Person

Bill Black

Bylines

Blood on Our Hands

What did Truman and Oppenheimer actually say in that room?

by Bill Black via Contingent on December 7, 2023
Ain't I Some Pumpkins?

Soon after he was elected, Abraham Lincoln received a rather bizarre letter.

by Bill Black via Contingent on February 27, 2023
When Christmas Started Creeping

Christmas starts earlier every year — or does it?

by Bill Black via Contingent on November 8, 2022
Black Population by State, 1790–2019

A Flourish data visualisation by Bill Black.

by Bill Black via Flourish on July 29, 2021
The Strange Case of Booker T. Washington's Birthday

If Booker T. Washington never knew when he was born, how are we so sure about it now?

by Bill Black via Contingent on April 5, 2021
The Historical Profession's Greatest Modern Scandal, Two Decades Later

Emory professor Michael Bellesiles resigned in the midst of a political firestorm. He still stands by his work.

by Bill Black via The Week on September 18, 2019
Why is Everyone Suddenly Saying 'Y'all'?

Or better put, why is it something so many outside of the South have recently adopted?

by Bill Black via MEL on November 12, 2018
Abraham Lincoln's Secret Visits to Slaves

Former slaves claimed the president came to plantations disguised as a beggar or a peddler, telling them they’d soon be free.

by Bill Black via The Atlantic on February 12, 2018
How Watermelons Became a Racist Trope

Before its subversion in the Jim Crow era, the fruit symbolized black self-sufficiency.

by Bill Black via The Atlantic on December 8, 2014

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Illustration by Yannick Lowery. A drawing of watermelons between hills and valleys

Tell Me Why the Watermelon Grows

Throughout its botanical, cultural, and social history, the watermelon has been a vehicle for our ideas about community, survival, and what we owe the future.

by Jori Lewis via Switchyard Magazine on November 25, 2023

Bill Black

Bylines

Blood on Our Hands

Ain't I Some Pumpkins?

When Christmas Started Creeping

Black Population by State, 1790–2019

The Strange Case of Booker T. Washington's Birthday

The Historical Profession's Greatest Modern Scandal, Two Decades Later

Why is Everyone Suddenly Saying 'Y'all'?

Abraham Lincoln's Secret Visits to Slaves

How Watermelons Became a Racist Trope

Related Excerpts

Tell Me Why the Watermelon Grows