stackyFACTSThe scent of a salty sea dog was apparently just the intoxicating aroma of carcinogenic roofing materials. Sailors coated their pigtails in pine tar to protect against sea lice and the weather, which is why British naval personnel eventually earned the incredibly accurate nickname 'Tarheels.'
Keep exploring facts in this topic.
History →STACKY FOR IPHONEKeep discovering with Stacky. Interesting facts in an app that is always within reach.
While Caribbean buccaneers were still centuries away from capturing the public imagination, Sayyida al Hurra was busy owning the western Mediterranean. A…
Discover more
When you are so exceptionally brutal that 15th-century Spain thinks you've gone too far, you belong in jail. While serving as governor of Hispaniola, Columbus…
Discover more
Royalty truly comes with the most unhinged job postings. The powerful Empress of Russia kept a staff of dedicated foot ticklers whose sole job was to gently…
Discover more
The ultimate out-of-touch billionaire move is roleplaying poverty for fun. The French queen ordered the construction of the 'Hameau de la Reine,' complete…
Discover more
Medieval cities were not quiet, candlelit villages; they were noisy, smoky, and filled with rules about when you were allowed to move in the dark. Many…
Discover more
Before refrigeration existed, 18th-century monastic orders across Europe dealt with rotting winter cabbages by drenching them in incredibly pungent, fermented…
Discover more