17 Dark Historical Facts You Didn't Learn In School

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20-07-2025

Redditor u/DrunkenConifer asked people to share the historical events that were actually grislier and grosser than most people think. So, I did deep dives on 17 of the events mentioned in that thread and summarized the dark, often unknown details here for you. Let's get into them:
"The Great Pox" — aka the 1495 syphilis epidemic that swept across Europe prior to the existence of the antibiotics to treat it. Like today, the first stage of the sexually transmitted infection began with painless ulcers, typically on one's genitals, that often went away on their own. The next phase manifested in the form of rashes, swollen lymph nodes, and — at its worst — pustules "which oozed a foul-smelling discharge." Again, these would go away, fooling people into thinking they were cured. In the third and final phase, permanent and more intense symptoms arose. Though they were still alive, infected people's skin and bones would literally start rotting and disintegrating on their faces. This often resulted in the collapse of their nasal cartilage, which made them appear as though they had no nose at all. Other symptoms included the formation of gummas — or "grotesque tumor-like growths" and severe damage to internal organs.
You can read more about the early syphilis epidemic here.Suggested by: Creme_Bru-Doggs
In January of 1919, The Great Molasses Flood took Boston's North End by storm. While you might think the famously thick, slow-moving syrup surely couldn't be all that deadly, the flood actually killed 21, injured 150, and caused massive damage. The 2.3 million gallons of molasses traveled at speeds up to 35 miles per hour. It "knocked an elevated train off of its tracks, crushed buildings, moved a firehouse and other buildings off their foundations, and suffocated both humans and animals."
The flood came after Purity Distilling's 50-foot-tall tank of molasses split open, wreaking havoc on the crowded neighborhood in the middle of the day. According to structural engineers, the tank was poorly built, with walls that were too thin to support the weight of the product and made of unsuitable material that could — and did — easily crack with a sudden temperature change.While the severity of the flood was a shock, the tank had been experiencing issues long before the catastrophe ever happened. Residents had been complaining about the tank leaking molasses, but in response, the distilling company simply painted it brown so locals wouldn't notice the molasses seeping through its seams.Suggested by: natterca
"The low reflective bumper on the rear of an 18-wheeler trailer is called a Mansfield Bar. It's named after actor Jayne Mansfield, who died after her driver ran into the back of a trailer at 2 a.m. in 1967. Jayne, her lawyer, and her children, including 3-year-old Mariska Hargitay, were in the vehicle. The car slid under the trailer and none of the adults survived the crash."
Contrary to what was portrayed in Netflix's Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story series, what was actually found in Dahmer's Milwaukee apartment was much more sinister. According to police findings, there were "seven skulls, two human hearts, an entire torso, a bag of human organs, two skeletons, a pair of severed hands, two severed and preserved male genitalia, a mummified scalp and a 57-gallon drum that included three dismembered torsos." The Oxford Apartments that Dahmer resided in were torn down in 1992, and it remains an empty, grassy lot despite efforts to repurpose it into a children's play area.
You can read the FBI report for yourself here.Suggested by: AddictedToDurags
Like its sister ship, the Titanic, the Britannic met its demise at sea. In 1916, the hospital ship reportedly hit a German mine, causing an explosion. Despite the flooding of six of its compartments, it remained afloat, so the captain ordered the ship to go at full speed to land. This only made it sink faster, so he ordered it to slow back down. Unfortunately, before it did, two lifeboats full of passengers fled the ship without getting permission first. Thinking they were escaping to safety, they were sucked into the ship's propellers.
Suggested by: Tarkus_Edge
In 1992, Stella Liebeck — a 79-year-old McDonald's customer — sued the fast food giant after suffering burns from their coffee. While many saw the case as a quick way to make a buck from a massive corporation, Stella was seriously injured. She was sitting in the passenger seat of her grandson's car at the time of the incident and had ordered a hot coffee at a McDonald's drive-thru. While parked, she put the cup between her legs and opened the lid, which spilled burning hot coffee all over her. Her sweat pants soaked up the hot liquid, keeping it in contact with her skin. She suffered third-degree burns on 6% of her body, "including her vagina, perineum, buttocks, thighs, and groin area."
She had to be hospitalized for eight days and required skin grafts. After reaching out to McDonald's about the incident to cover her medical fees, they offered her a mere $800. After the trial, she was awarded $200K in compensatory damages and an additional $2.7 million for punitive damages. Suggested by: u/the-wrong-lever
More than half of the 81 people that made up the Donner party were children, six of which were infants. Overall, about half of those who survived being stranded ultimately succumbed to cannibalism. In most instances, they consumed the flesh of the members of their party who died naturally, though prior to that, they considered the men of the party dueling or drawing straws to determine who would be sacrificed for food. On one occasion, though, they killed two Native American men who'd joined them prior to being stranded. The two men had refused to eat human flesh and had attempted to flee, fearing they'd be future targets. They were correct.
Other members of the party "slaughtered their pack animals, cooked their dogs, gnawed on leftover bones and even boiled the animal hide roofs of their cabins into a foul paste." They were also reported to have eaten boiled pieces of leather and tree bark."Suggested by: Ziggysan
On March 18, 1937, tragedy struck a school in New London, TX, just fifteen minutes before classes were to end for the day. A massive explosion killed nearly 300, including students from fifth through eleventh grade. It was so big that it was felt by residents up to 40 miles away and reportedly shot a two-ton slab of concrete 200 feet away from the school. The explosion was caused by a cost-saving measure the school had taken earlier in the year in an effort to save $300 a month on gas. Plumbers had tapped a "residue gas line"; however, there was a faulty connection, and gas had been pooling under the school. On the day of the explosion, some students reported watery eyes and feeling lightheaded, but odors hadn't yet been added to natural gas in the 1930s, so it went undetected. That very year, gas odorization was mandated in the state of Texas.
You can read more about the tragedy here.Suggested by: GloveBatBall
Flight data during the Challenger space shuttle disaster in 1986 revealed that it was likely some of the astronauts on board were still alive after the explosion. According to NASA, at least three of the emergency breathing packs were turned on following the Challenger's explosion, leading them to believe that some of the crew remained conscious for at least 10 seconds following the disaster and were alive when it hit the water. They were believed to have been coherent enough to understand the severity of what was occurring. Reportedly, the final word they heard from the crew — which was uttered by the shuttle's pilot, Michael J. Smith, 73 seconds after they took off — was a simple, "Uh oh."
Suggested by: Yournaughtyjedi
The gritty details of Travis the Chimp mauling Charla Nash in 2009. Travis — who'd been raised by Sandra Herold in a particularly human-like life — had been described as "agitated" on the day of the incident. Charla — Sandra's friend who had often looked after Travis when she was away — had arrived at Sandra's home to help for the day. Whether Charla offered to come or Sandra asked her to is debated by the two. Regardless, Charla drove over and exited the car holding an Elmo doll. Almost immediately, Travis began assaulting her. The violent attack went on despite Sandy coming after him with a snow shovel and, later, a knife. He even stopped to look her in the eyes. After police arrived at the scene, Charla was found mostly naked, "covered in nearly half [her] blood supply," and with pieces of her scalp and fingers strewn about the yard.
Per New York Mag, "Travis had bitten or torn away her eyelids, nose, jaw, lips, and most of her scalp. He'd broken nearly all the bones of her facial structure. He'd fully removed one of her hands and virtually all of the other. He'd rendered her blind." She was in critical condition, but alive, and underwent over a year of intervention.After a chase with the local police department, Travis was shot and, ultimately, died.Pictured above is Charla in 2012.Suggested by: Party-Welder3777
The aftermath of the American Civil War was more gruesome than most realize. Redditor u/senorgrub shared their perspective as a Gettysburg local, "The part you don't think about is the aftermath. We think they fight and leave, but [it wasn't] that simple." Infection and blood loss made battle wounds all the more deadly, which not only resulted in many dead bodies, but also contributed to the piles of amputated limbs. According to one Confederate soldier, "There were piles of legs, feet, hands and arms, all thrown together, and at a distance, resembled piles of corn at a corn-shucking. Many of the feet still retained a boot or shoe."
It's estimated that roughly 620,000 died on both sides during the war.Further, OP pointed out that "a lot of these battles were in warm areas during the summer months. Gettysburg was the first week in July in southern Pennsylvania. [We're] talking 100-degree heat and rotting flesh, bugs, and animals consuming that stuff ...That flesh took YEARS to clean up."Suggested by: senorgrub
Similarly, the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in and around New Orleans in 2005 was even more devastating than commonly believed. Approximately 1,170 people died in Louisiana, with 47% of the deaths being a result of acute or chronic disease and 33% being a result of drowning. 80% of New Orleans and the parishes surrounding it were flooded by 20 feet of water. Redditor u/thetruckboy shared their first-hand experience of it: "I was down there twice immediately after the storm, and the stench from dead bodies was almost overwhelming. My sister and brother-in-law bought a house on the other side of Lake Pontchartrain a few months later, and there were STILL bodies floating up on the north shore of the lake."
You can learn more about the statistics surrounding deaths due to Hurricane Katrina here.Suggested by: thetruckboy
A decent chunk of what doctors know about hypothermia and how to deal with it came from "Nazi science" in WWII. The Dachau Hypothermia Experiments were "medical experiments" — or, rather, brutal torture — conducted at the Dachau concentration camp with the goal of discovering the most effective treatments for immersion hypothermia. The use of their findings was highly debated, with some arguing that using it would be wholly unethical, and others considering it valid medical data that could save lives and using it in their studies.
You can read more about it here.Suggested by: u/CommieKiller304
King Leopold II's treatment of the people of the Congo (now called the Democratic Republic of Congo) during the late 1800s was so cruel that other European colonial powers — despite their own violence towards Africans simultaneously — condemned it, and the Belgian parliament had to step in to take it from his control. Packaged as a "humanitarian and philanthropic mission," Leopold II's reign was brutal. If villages failed to produce an adequate yield of rubber, ivory, or minerals for trade, it was not uncommon for a member of the village — often a young child — to have their hands or feet chopped off.
His administrators were also known to have "child colonies" made up of kidnapped orphans who were expected to work and train as soldiers. It's believed that over half of them died in the "colonies." Further, Leopold II had a "human zoo" at his palace in Tervuren, with over 260 Congolese people in it. His actions were not condemned until 1908. You can read more about his horrific reign here.Suggested by: RonNumber
On December 14, 1799, George Washington died...and was nearly (attemped to be) brought back to life. While he had succumbed to his throat ailment (there's debate as to the specific illness) fairly quickly, he tried a variety of remedies, from gargling molasses, vinegar, and butter to having his throat "swabbed with a salve and a preparation of dried beetles." Additionally, he requested his doctor to bleed him and lost 40% of his blood in the process. By the time his friend — surgeon Willian Thornton — arrived, Washington was dead and frozen due to the cold. Thornton proposed they thaw the former president in warm water, that he perform a tracheostomy, and that they inject Washington with lamb's blood in an attempt to revive him.
Ultimately, the procedure was not supported by those close to Washington. You can read more about it here.Suggested by: wagadugo
"The first suicide hotline was created after a man — 23-year-old deacon Chad Varah — conducted the funeral of a 13 or 14-year-old girl. She killed herself after she got her period for the first time and assumed it was an STD, since no one talked about periods at the time." While the actual hotline itself didn't come into fruition until nearly two decades later, his "vision began" after that funeral in 1935.
For hundreds of years, people dumped human, industrial, and animal waste into London's River Thames. By 1858, it caused such a horrendous odor to plague the city that it became dubbed "The Great Stink." The river's longtime pollution caused many Londoners to become violently — and sometimes deathly — ill with cholera, typhoid, and dysentery, as water wells lied near leaking cesspools and even water pumped from outside the city was still at risk of sewer contamination. In several cholera epidemics between 1831 and 1854, roughly 30,000 Londoners died. In 1855, Royal Institution scientist Michael Faraday claimed the river's water was 'an opaque pale brown fluid' and that near its bridges, people could see dense clouds of fecal matter at the surface.
Ultimately, the "Great Stink" and its horrific consequences were the catalyst for London's sewage system, which was conpleted in 1870. You can read more about it here.Suggested by: LonelyWanderess
Do you know of any dark historical facts like these? From pop culture to politics, I wanna hear all of them. If you'd like, you can share them in the comments below or via this anonymous form for an opportunity to be included in an upcoming BuzzFeed Community post.