Remember that Joseph Nicéphore Niépce took the first photograph, or the oldest surviving photograph, in 1826 or 1827. Therefore, in the vast context of human history, we have only had the ability to take pictures of people and events for a very short time, and we will never really know what the appearances of the most well-known people in history looked like. Fortunately, we do have pictures of a few. One of history’s most renowned naturalists, Charles Darwin, was among the first to propose that all species share a common ancestry. Even though many academics and religious organizations at the time disapproved of his beliefs, his theory that evolution results from natural selection is now regarded as one of the pillars of contemporary science. In his book On the Origin of Species, published in 1859, he presented his evolutionary research.
Charles Darwin
Annie Oakley
Annie Oakley, whose real name was Phoebe Ann Mosey, was a female sniper who rose to fame while performing in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. From an early age, Oakley developed her shooting skills so she could hunt for food for her family. When she joined Buffalo Bill’s show in 1885 and won a sharpshooting competition at the age of 15, she attracted national attention. With the exception of Bill, she received the highest salary during her tenure on the show.
Annie Oakley
Butch Cassidy
Butch Cassidy, who was born Robert LeRoy Parker, was a well-known train robber in the Old West. Along with his partner Alonzo Longbaugh, “The Sundance Kid,” and Etta Pace, he led a criminal outlaw group called the “Wild Bunch” and was ultimately forced to leave the nation. Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are thought to have been slain in a gunfight with the Bolivian Army in 1908. These days, Cassidy is regarded as a Wild West legend.
Butch Cassidy
Leo Tolstoy
Russian author Leo Tolstoy, whose real name was Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, wrote in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He has been regarded as one of the finest of all time since his early achievements. He received nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1901, 1902, and 1909, as well as the Nobel Prize in Literature between 1902 and 1906. Anna Karenina, War and Peace, and The Death of Ivan Ilyich are a few of his best-known pieces.
Leo Tolstoy
John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams was a statesman, lawyer, and diplomat who was born on July 11, 1767. John Adams, the second president of the United States, had him as his eldest son. Quincy Adam served as an ambassador and a member of the US Senate and House of Representatives for Massachusetts during his career. As a member of the Democratic-Republican Party, he was elected as the sixth president of the United States in 1825. In the 1830s, he was linked to the Whig Party.
John Quincy Adams
Harriet Tubman
Harriet Tubman, who was born into slavery and eventually managed to escape, is closely linked to the Underground Railroad. But after that, she committed herself to ensuring others’ freedom. Using what is now known as the Underground Railroad—a network of antislavery activists and safe houses—she personally oversaw 13 expeditions to free over 70 additional slaves. In addition, Tubman carried on her struggle for liberty while working for the Union Army as a spy and scout throughout the Civil War.
Harriet Tubman
Andrew Jackson
Harriet Tubman, who was born into slavery and eventually managed to escape, is closely linked to the Underground Railroad. But after that, she committed herself to ensuring others’ freedom. Using what is now known as the Underground Railroad—a network of antislavery activists and safe houses—she personally oversaw 13 expeditions to free over 70 additional slaves. In addition, Tubman carried on her struggle for liberty while working for the Union Army as a spy and scout throughout the Civil War.
Andrew Jackson
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke Of Wellington
During the 19th century, Arthur Wellesley was a significant military and political figure in Britain. He is credited for defeating Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo and was an Anglo-Irish soldier who held two terms as prime minister. He was regarded as one of the greatest British military strategists in history and was able to limit the losses of his own soldiers while winning multiple battles against stronger armies. He became a national hero after defeating Napoleon, and in 1814 he was made the first Duke of Wellington.
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke Of Wellington
Vincent Van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh was a 19th-century Dutch post-impressionist painter who is renowned for producing almost 2,000 pieces in a single decade. Despite being regarded as one of the forerunners of contemporary art, his creations were largely overlooked throughout his lifetime. But after his passing, he gained recognition as one of the most significant figures in Western art history. Unfortunately, until he committed suicide in 1890, Vincent van Gogh ignored his illusions and psychotic episodes.
Vincent Van Gogh
Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass was a 19th-century revolutionary and political figure. He became an anti-slavery campaigner and a leader in the abolition movements in Massachusetts and New York after he was able to flee slavery in Maryland. Many Northerners were even shocked to learn that he had been a slave, demonstrating how his intelligence and power directly contradicted the notion that African-Americans had the capacity to be independent American citizens. He later became the first African-American to be nominated for vice president of the United States, despite his disapproval.
Frederick Douglass
Martin Van Buren
Martin Van Buren is recognized as one of the Democratic Party’s principal founders. He was the eighth Vice President, the eighth President of the United States, the tenth Secretary of State, and the governor of New York during his political career. Martin Van Buren won the 1836 presidential election with Andrew Jackson’s help, but William Henry Harrison defeated him in the 1840 reelection. In 1848, Van Buren made his final presidential run with the Free Soil Party.
Martin Van Buren
Samuel Wilson Or “Uncle Sam”
Originally used during the War of 1812, Uncle Sam is a representation of the American government and society. In addition to other American-related attire, he is usually perceived as a man with a beard, white hair, and a top hat. The character is said to be based on Samuel Wilson, a meatpacker who served during the War of 1812. The initials U.S. for the United States were in his barrels; some joked that they stood for “Uncle Sam.”
Samuel Wilson Or Uncle Sam
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, started off as a lawyer before becoming a congressman, state legislator from Illinois, and leader of the Whig Party. The Civil War started when pro-slavery states started to break away from the Union following his election as president in 1860. After that, Lincoln guided the nation through the Civil War while maintaining the Union until his eventual assassination in 1865. He is still regarded as one of the greatest presidents in history.
Abraham Lincoln
Billy The Kid
Billy the Kid, whose real name was Henry McCarty, was an Old West criminal who started committing crimes as a young adolescent after becoming an orphan at the age of 15. When McCarty was younger, he participated in the Lincoln County War in New Mexico, where he is suspected of killing three men. Prior to becoming an adult, he was a federal fugitive, with wanted posters calling him “Billy the Kid.” He is reported to have killed eight persons before taking his own life at the age of 21.
Billy The Kid
Calamity Jane
Calamity Jane, a legendary figure from the Wild West, was a sniper and frontierswoman who was close to Wild Bill Hickock. Her real name was Martha Jane Cannary. She would go on to act in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show as a result of their friendship. However, she was seen as having a very distinct personality because she was a rough-and-tumble lady who often wore men’s clothing and was also known to be quite compassionate. Alongside other well-known figures from the Old West, her name appears at the top.
Calamity Jane
Hannah Stilley Gorby
Hannah Stilley Gorby, the “earliest-born person ever to be photographed” on film, was born in Wilmington, Delaware, in the United States, in 1746. Naturally, no one, including historians, wants to make assumptions. Nevertheless, if her attire and lack of expression in the photo are any indication, this is a quite amazing image of a woman who lived in a totally different era than the twenty-first century.
Hannah Stilley Gorby
Peter Freuchen
The Thule Expeditions, which traversed more than 600 miles of arctic ice to demonstrate how a channel separated Peary Land from Greenland, are the most well-known explorations by Danish explorer Peter Freuchen. Fecuchen and his companion, Knud Rasmussen, disproved the assertion made by explorer Robert Peary. Due to the extremely difficult conditions they had to travel through, the two explorers’ journey was nearly over.
Peter Freuchen
Jane Doe, Post-Mortem
Although the woman in this image has not yet been recognized, it is thought that she was one of the first people to be photographed after death and that she lived in the 19th century. People on Reddit think it is a post-mortem shot because of the expression on her face, namely how her mouth and eyes appear emotionless and somewhat “glued on.”
Jane Doe, Post Mortem
Grigori Efimovich Rasputin
In the era of Imperial Russia, Grigori Efimovich Rasputin was a Russian mystic and holy man who served Nicholas II and the other members of the Romonav family. Despite his friendship with the royal family, Rasputin ultimately betrayed them. Rasputin has appeared in various forms across popular culture, including as the 1997 movie Anastasia.
Grigori Efimovich Rasputin
Rhoda Derry
Rhoda Derry was a young woman who became a mental patient for most of her life, but the story behind her illness is what is most alluring to people. Rhoda was dating a young man named Charles, and Charles’s mother did not approve of her. The mother told Rhoda that if she didn’t leave her son alone, she would cast a spell on her. Rhoda was terrified of witches. Soon after, at 18-years-old, Rhoda began showing signs of mental illness that were described as “madness”. She was admitted to Adams County almshouse at the age of 25, described as “blind and insane” and spent the rest of her adult life in institutions, living to be one day shy of 72.
Rhoda Derry
Harriet Beecher Stowe
The now-famous Uncle Tom’s Cabin, written by novelist and abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe, helped shed light on the cruel treatment of slaves in the nation. Particularly in the north, her novel inspired others to rebel against slavery and gained international recognition. Throughout her life, Stowe wrote 30 novels, many of them focused on social issues and her position at the time. Her writings are regarded as quite significant today.
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Helen Keller
A disease caused Helen Keller to lose her hearing and vision at the age of just over a year. She learned to read, write, and speak through language from her childhood teacher and lifelong friend, Anne Sullivan. She became the first person who is deafblind to receive a bachelor’s degree while attending Harvard University’s Radcliffe College as a young adult. She was a champion for women’s rights, labor rights, and disability rights in addition to penning 14 books and innumerable speeches and essays.
Helen Keller
George Armstrong Custer
In 1861, US Army commander George Armstrong Custer graduated from West Point at the bottom of his class. At the young age of 23, he was elevated to brigadier general of volunteers after demonstrating his leadership abilities during the American Civil War. He fought in the American Indian Wars after proving his bravery in the Civil War. He and five companies were murdered by an Indian alliance at Little Bighorn, now known as “Custer’s Last Stand,” on June 25, 1876, while he was in command of the 7th Cavalry Regiment.
George Armstrong Custer
Benito Mussolini
In a modest Italian village, Benito Mussolini was born to a mother who taught school and a father who worked as a blacksmith. From the 1920s to the beginning of the 1940s, he served as Italy’s prime minister. It might surprise some to learn that Mussolini was multilingual in German, French, English, and Italian. Because of his prior incarceration, he gradually developed a severe case of claustrophobia.
Benito Mussolini
Geronimo
Geronimo, often known as “the one who yawns,” was a leader and healer from the Apache tribe’s Bedonkohe band. As part of the Apache-United States struggle, which arose from the Americans’ settlement of Apache land following the Mexican-American War, Geronimo, a revered and feared Native American, launched multiple raids against Mexican and American forces. After escaping from multiple Indian reservations, Geronimo was always on the run for the United States until he was apprehended and forced to work at exhibits and other public events.
Geronimo
The Wright Brothers
At their shop in Dayton, Ohio, brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright developed their mechanical skills by working on a variety of gadgets. After that, they would go on to create and construct the first motorized aircraft. On December 17, 1903, they made their first flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on the aircraft known as the Wright Flyer. The brothers are recognized with creating the aircraft controls that enabled fixed-wing powered flight in addition to their accomplishment of successfully launching humans into the air.
The Wright Brothers
Daniel F. Bakeman
The final soldier to earn a veteran’s pension for his service was Daniel F. Bakeman, who fought in the Revolution. Bakeman was a private in the Tryon County militia during the final four years of the war. He was married and had eight kids with Susan Brewer after the war.
Daniel F. Bakeman
John Tyler
Prior to becoming president after William Henry Harrison’s death in 1841, John Tyler was Harrison’s vice president. From 1841 to 1845, he presided over the government. Although some historians have admired Tyler’s politics, he regrettably has a very low grade for his presidency.
John Tyler
Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson was a well-known American poet who lived from 1830 to 1886. Dickinson composed 1,800 poems in her lifetime. Regretfully, out of her complete body of work, only ten poems and one letter were released before to her passing. Known for her eccentricity, her poetry used slant rhymes, short lines, and usually no titles, which was a little unusual for the time.
Emily Dickinson
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was born in 1804, and after winning the 1853 election, he became the 14th President of the United States. Unfortunately, a number of his presidential actions resulted in the American Civil War in 1861. Despite his gregarious nature, Pierce is regarded by many historians and academics as one of the least memorable and worst presidents.
Franklin Pierce
Sylvia Plath
Throughout her life, American poet Sylvia Plath authored a large number of poetry, novels, and collections. The Bell Jar and the poetry collections Ariel and The Colossus and Other Poems are among her most well-known pieces. She won the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry in 1982, but she died in 1963.
Sylvia Plath
Robert E. Lee
During the American Civil War, Robert E. Lee served as a general for the Confederate States of America, for which he is perhaps best remembered. During the conflict, he had a reputation as a brilliant tactician and was widely respected. Later on, he was elected president of Washington College, which was subsequently renamed Washington and Lee University in his honor.
Robert E. Lee
Marie Curie
During her stay in the lab, Marie Curie, a great physicist and chemist, undertook groundbreaking research on radioactivity—a term she actually invented. Curie, the first female Nobel laureate, was born in 1867. She eventually acquired another, making her the only woman in history to have received two.
Marie Curie
Ichabod Crane
Over the course of his 48-year career, Colonel Ichabod Crane served in the US Army and Marine Corps. Crane, who was born in 1787, witnessed many wars, such as the Black Hawk War, the Patriot War, and the War of 1812. His name may also be familiar to readers as the main character of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving.
Ichabod Crane
Chief Seattle
Born in 1786, Chief Seattle was the leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish people. He is known for making relationships with the settlers who came to Washington state, particularly with the American pioneer “Doc” Maynard. Due to the peaceful relationships the Chief formed, the city of Seattle was named after him.
Chief Seattle
Leo Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy, a Russian author, created many classic books in his day. War and Peace, Anna Karenina, and the trilogy Childhood, Boyhood, and Youth are some of his best-known works. He was nominated three times for the Literature Prize and once for the Peace Prize, but he never received a Nobel Prize.
Leo Tolstoy
Vincent Van Gogh
One of the most important artists in Western art history is undoubtedly Vincent van Gogh, a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter. With more than 2,100 pieces of art, van Gogh established the foundations of contemporary art with his use of vivid color, expressive brushstrokes, and dramatic lines. The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles, The Starry Night, and the Road with Cypress and Star are a few of his most well-known pieces.
Vincent Van Gogh
Conrad Heyer
Conrad Heyer’s claim to fame is that he may be the first man to be photographed. Before serving in the American Revolutionary War, Heyer, who was born in 1749, worked as a farmer. He participated in the well-known crossing of the Deleware River in December 1776 and fought under General George Washington’s command. He made it to the age of 106.
Conrad Heyer
James K. Polk
The eleventh president of the United States, James K. Polk, was the first to resign after serving one term without running for reelection. He is credited with strengthening the executive branch, decreasing tariffs, and expanding US territory with the victory in the Mexican-American War. Historians and academics agree that Polk was a popular president who did, in fact, complete the major tasks on his agenda.
