The University of Florida Baldwin Library of Historical Children's Literature has a digital archive of 6000 children's books from the 19th and early 20th century, all free to read online. A redditor discovered the treasure and shared it it Reddit's Books community. Fans of history and children's literature will be delighted to click through the pages of titles such as Aesop's Fables, The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe and Grimm's Fairy Tales - and share them with their kids.

The English language is constantly evolving, with new words and phrases spreading among us like an infection - we hear things, then we say those things. The problem is that we don't always bother to wonder if we should. Because of that, the original meaning of some demeaning and hateful expressions get lost in time. Here are some widely used examples.

When you think of Valentine's Day you probably think of flowers, chocolates, and notes sealed with a kiss - not whipping women with dead animals or martyrdom. But it turns out this sweet and loving commercial holiday has its roots in pagan rituals and good old-fashioned Christian rebranding. Oh, and selling you cards.

Ever wondered how horses go from being wild, free-spirited animals to people's most faithful travel companion? Grab your lasso, put on your cowboy hat, and get ready to become a horse whisperer. I mean, you'll probably never need to tame your own horse, but if you did, this is how the masters do it.

Some people got a great high school education. But some of us were sent to an evangelical Christian school, where we learned that evolution is a lie, Columbus was a cool dude, and Catholics are faking it. For us, and anyone else who suspects their education could use a revisionist refresh, there's the free YouTube channel Crash Course.

In the 16th Century, over the course of five years, almost 80% of the Aztec population were wiped out due to an unknown disease that burnt through their villages, causing high fevers, bleeding from the mouth, nose and eyes and eventually lead to death. Without understanding the epidemic, the Aztecs named the phenomenon 'cocoliztli', their native word for 'pestilence'.

Scientists have pondered the potential cause of the cocoliztli epidemic for years, but only recently has new research uncovered what may have caused it.

When it comes to museums, our ambitions and curiosity are often larger than what our bodies and brains can handle. If you really want to enjoy a museum visit, plan to only see a couple of exhibits.

There's been a lot of controversy surrounding Youtuber Logan Paul and his childish antics while visiting the beautiful country of Japan. Well, if you were unaware, there's a way you should and shouldn't act when you're visiting unfamiliar places. The Japanese have known these rules for hundreds of years.

You know that creepy urban legend you heard about that thing in your town? Yeah, someone is probably telling that very same story in another part of the country right now. Here's why everybody seems to know the same spooky stories, no matter where they are.

Unlike actors and Ashton Kutcher, cartoon characters can't decide what products or ideologies they endorse in their off-time. Snoopy has no say in whether he sells MetLife. The Ninja Turtles most definitely get high -- they are pizza-eating sword collectors named after artists -- but they have to warn kids off drugs anyway.

The superstitious date occurred last week, but why is Friday the 13th considered to be so unlucky? It's part maths, part history and part pop culture.

Davy Crockett is an American folk hero of mythic proportions, and was greatly popularised during the '50s and '60s thanks to Disney's TV miniseries and major motion pictures. But Crockett was a very real person in history, and he had a lot of wisdom to share.

Today's kids have thousands of apps and educational programmes that tell them how to eat healthily. When I was growing up, we learned the Food Pyramid. We categorised grub into four food groups and that was pretty much it. But look back a bit farther, and dietary advice gets a little weirder: in the early 1950s, there were seven food groups, and one was just for butter.

I've got nothing against Dan Carlin's "Hardcore History," but it seems to eat up all the publicity for history podcasts. That's a shame, because the podcast format is a fantastic way to dive into a thirty-hour history of the French Revolution, or snack on a 12-minute account of how Warren G. Harding, betrayed by his corrupt Cabinet, publicly projected all his feelings onto his dog Laddie Boy.

Replace your annoying "Did you know?" factoids with even more annoying "Actually that's fake" corrections. Wikipedia features a massive list of common misconceptions about subjects such as history and science. I check it once a year to refresh my smugness.

Christopher Nolan's relentless World War II drama Dunkirk< is in theatres this weekend, telling a fictional story of the very real British defeat against Nazi Germany in France and subsequent retreat from Europe at the start of the war. Here's the history behind what you see, and what you don't see in Dunkirk.

Today is Bastille Day in France, and President Trump is there to celebrate it. But why? And what exactly is the holiday all about?

Easter is the most important feast day on the Christian calendar: a celebration centered around Jesus Christ rising from the dead. So, what does egg-hiding, floppy-eared bunnies and chocolate have to do with any of that?

Hey Lifehacker, I just finished watching all six seasons of The Sopranos which got me to wondering: does the Mafia actually still exist, or is it just a Hollywood fantasy? If it's real, in which countries does it operate? It might influence my travel plans!