Chocolate has been making Americans smile for at least 4,000 years now — South Americans, that is.

When it became clear that the American colonies would have to engage in a war for independence from England, Ben Franklin was made president of Pennsylvania’s defense committee.

Sometime during the Neolithic or Stone Age (6000–2000 BCE), a girl who suffered from epilepsy, migraines, depression, or a mental illness was treated by someone skilled in trepanation.

Kennedy in the confessional booth. President John F. Kennedy was private about his Roman Catholic faith but did make an effort to attend confession regularly. However, he worried that as president a priest might recognize him and someday reveal the contents of his confession.

10 Quick Facts about Santa Claus