Photos have a quiet magic to them… they can pull us out of the present and drop us into another moment in an instant.
This feeling is even stronger when we look at historic pictures taken across different eras and places.
Some of the moments feel so familiar — for example, we all can relate to a mirror selfie that was taken by a couple in the 1920s in Japan. But at the same time, some moments remind us of such strange times — for example, we will never fully understand what a soldier felt while embracing his baby after returning from World War 2.
Let’s travel back in time a bit, and check out this treasure trove from the Hatcher History Instagram page that reveals glimpses from the past.
#1 A Photo Of Nikolai Machulyak, A Russian Arctic Explorer Feeding A Polar Bear And Her Cubs, Off The Coast Of Chukchi Sea, 1976
Image source: hatcherhistory
#2 Nothing A Cup Of Tea Won’t Make More Bearable: Blitz London, June 1940
Image source: hatcherhistory
#3 A Couple Take A Selfie, In The Reflection Of A Mirror, Japan, 1920s
Image source: hatcherhistory
If you can relate even a little, history classes in school used to put me to sleep and all those dates and endless text were really hard to follow. So to keep myself awake, I’d try to lose myself in the blurry images in my textbook and try to make sense of the past in my own way.
That’s why I always believe that photos are a powerful medium to understand history. They bring moments, places and people to life with such clarity that words alone can’t convey.
#4 A Photo Of Dame Daphne Sheldrick In 1960, At The Orphan Elephant Sanctuary She Set Up In The 1950s, In The Karen District Of Nairobi, Kenya
Image source: hatcherhistory
#5 A Little Girl With Her Pet , Portugal, 1950s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#6 A Very Unique Photo Of The Regional Dress For Ladies In Navarre, Spain, And Particularly From The Town Of Ochagavía, Deep In The Basque Region, On The French Border
Image source: hatcherhistory
Photos also capture emotions of people which makes us relate a bit more to their experiences.
Much of the emotional and visual context would be lost if we had no photographic evidence capturing the horrors of different wars, or the iconic moments like the suffrage movements or civil rights protests.
They highlighted moments of joy, sadness and victory, letting us connect with events on both personal and social levels.
#7 A Brave Little 3-Year-Old, Eileen Dunne, Sits In Bed With Her Doll At Great Ormond Street Hospital, After Being Injured During An Air Raid On London, During The Blitz Of London By The Luftwaffe, In September, 1940
Image source: hatcherhistory
#8 A Market Girl Shows Off Her Wares, By The Sea, Netherlands, 1940s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#9 The Last Man Is Taken Off A Shipwrecked Trawler, Off The Coast Of Southern England, 1962
Image source: hatcherhistory
Some photos also help preserve cultural practices, and can act as primary historical sources when understood with context and caution.
Even everyday life and social norms from the past are preserved thanks to portraits and images from our history.
Street scenes that show the fashion of the time, or the early Victorians who were the first generation to see themselves through the camera lens — some pictures show social classes and living conditions from the past that we refer to even today.
#10 This Footprint Captures The Moment, Over 4,000 Years Ago, When Someone Stepped Barefoot On A Mud Brick Left To Dry In The Sun, 2000bc, In The City Of Ur, Mesopotamia
Image source: hatcherhistory
#11 A Beaming New Dad Is Pictured Giving His Newborn Child Thumbs-Up From Outside A Window. Soviet Union 1977
Following a long convention, maternity wards typically enforced strict separation between mothers, newborns, and visiting family.
Credit: archaeo adventure
Image source: hatcherhistory
#12 A Soldier Returning From War, Meets His Child For The First Time, Location Unknown, Ww2
Image source: hatcherhistory
Several pictures here show everyday life that can help us understand the social norms from the past — be it the fashion of the time, the way people worked or how they spent their free time.
Some pictures reveal the social classes and living conditions from the past which historians still refer to today.
For example, experts study studio portraits of wealthy families from the Victorian era and compare them with street scenes of the poor, to understand the stark differences in clothing, housing, and lifestyle at that time.
#13 A Soldier Of The French Foreign Legion’s, During The Algerian War, Rescuing A Baby Donkey Found On The Battlefield. He Or She Was Then Adopted And Named Bambi, July Or August 1958
Image source: hatcherhistory
#14 An Inuit Woman Carries Their Babies In Cold Weather Clothing, 1940
Image source: hatcherhistory
#15 A Youngster Practises Her Ballet, On A Rainy Day In Balsall Heath, Birmingham, England, 1968
Image source: hatcherhistory
While clicking away on their cameras, photographers do much more than just document memories. They capture stories that future generations might one day study.
“We capture images that will someday become part of history in some small way. Whether we mean to or not, as photographers, we become historians as well,” photographer Lawrence Lazare writes in the Medium.
“That is why we document the world around us, so we can pass along our images to others when those photos are needed most,” he adds.
#16 This Is A Mugshot Of 12 Year Old Jane Farrell, Sentenced To 10 Days Of Hard Labour, For The Theft Of A Pair Of Boots, Served At Newcastle Gaol, North Of England, 1874
Image source: hatcherhistory
#17 Recycling In London, During The War, Out Of Necessity, Hornsey, London, England, 1943
Image source: hatcherhistory
#18 A Photo Of Stunned And Disoriented Birds, During The Total Solar Eclipse, Taken In Chiapas, Mexico, July 1991
Image source: hatcherhistory
Many pictures here also show the history of specific people, some we know and some we won’t ever read about in history books.
They are remarkable because they tell us so many different stories, and they let us feel what life was really like for people in the past.
Everyday experiences and lifestyle such as clothes, expressions of kids, and interactions between people — all these images bring past lives to life.
#19 A Portrait Of Life In London’s Famous Portobello Road, London, 1954
Image source: hatcherhistory
#20 A Group Of Orphans In Their Winter Coats, With A Nun From Margaret House, Hammersmith, London, 1929
Image source: hatcherhistory
#21 A Young Girl Looks After Her Baby Sister, In The Poverty Of Cholera Ravaged Streets Of Spitalfields, In The East End Of London, 1886
Image source: hatcherhistory
#22 A Little Girl With A Grizzly Bear, Location Unknown, Mid 20th Century
Image source: hatcherhistory
#23 A Pair Of Roman Shoes Discovered During The Excavation Of A Maritime Site At Thérouanne, Pas-De-Calais, Northern France, 2023
Image source: hatcherhistory
#24 A Beautiful Portrait Of A Sicilian Fisherman, Brooding About His Days At Sea, Sicily, Italy, 1870
Image source: hatcherhistory
#25 After The Berlin Wall Was Put Up By The Communists, A Family In West Berlin Show Their Children To Their Grandparents Stuck In East Berlin, 1961
Image source: hatcherhistory
#26 A Photograph Of An Italian Lady In Front Of The Colosseum, Rome, Italy, Taken In 1897
Image source: hatcherhistory
#27 The Rear-Front Memorial, A Bronze And Granite Monument Erected In Steel City Of Magnitogorsk, Russia, Sculpted By Lev Golovnitsky, In 1979
Image source: hatcherhistory
#28 Portrait Of A Sicilian Girl, Italy, Early 20th Century
Image source: hatcherhistory
#29 A Little Girl Collecting Water, Sardinia, Italy, 1954
Image source: hatcherhistory
#30 Hms Vidal Riding The Crest Of A Wave, Durian The Second World War, 1940
Image source: hatcherhistory
#31 Medieval Warrior’s Scull
Image source: hatcherhistory
#32 A Woman Selling Fish Door-To-Door, On The Streets Of London, 1910
Image source: hatcherhistory
#33 An Artist In The Rain Paints, With The Sacre Coeur In The Background, Paris, France, 1946
Image source: hatcherhistory
#34 Irish Children Sit Outside And Eat Potatoes And Milk With Their Grandmother , Location Unknown, Ireland, 1915
Image source: hatcherhistory
#35 A Dutch Family Pose Infront Of Their Sod House, Drenthe, The Netherlands, 1936
Image source: hatcherhistory
#36 Two Nannies With Their Charges, London, 1950s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#37 The World’s Oldest Surviving Toy, Dating Back To The Chalcolithic Period Around 5500-3000 Bc, Is Exhibited At The Mardin Museum, Turkey
Image source: hatcherhistory
#38 A Suffragette Is Arrested In A Park, London, C1910
Image source: hatcherhistory
#39 Female Pilots From The British Air Transport Auxiliary (Ata), Recruited To Work As Ferry Pilots And Deliver Military Airplanes From Factories To Aerodromes In World War II, England, 1939-45
Image source: hatcherhistory
#40 A Group Of Young Dog Walkers, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1950
Image source: hatcherhistory
#41 The Discovery Of The Ancient Statue Of Antinous, Which Was Dug Up At A Site In Delphi, Greece, During An Excavation In 1894
Image source: hatcherhistory
#42 Federico Caprilli Demonstrates The Skills Of His Horse As Part Of The Esteemed Italian Cavalry School, 1906
Image source: hatcherhistory
#43 A Farmer In Central France Surveys His Domain, C1961
Image source: hatcherhistory
#44 A Lady Plays A Game Of Petang/Petanque, In The South Of France, 1970s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#45 Fisherman In Sou’westers, Off The Coast Of Cornwall, England, Early 20th Century
Image source: hatcherhistory
#46 A Mother And Daughter Watch A Tall Ship Navigate The Thames In London, 1880
Image source: hatcherhistory
#47 This Photo Of The 17 Year Old Helen Konek Walking Into Her Igloo In Arviat, Nunavut In February 1949
Image source: hatcherhistory
#48 An Mother And Child, Jemez Pueblo, New Mexico, USA, Early 20th Century
Image source: hatcherhistory
#49 A Lifeboat Launched From The St. Mark And St. Agnes Races To Save Lives, After The Arden Craig, A Three-Masted Wheat Ship From Melbourne, Australia, Crashed Into Rocks After The Captain Became Disoriented In The Fog
Image source: hatcherhistory
#50 A Portrait Shot Of An Athletic Couple Called Jura And Vera, Photographed In The 1930s Yugoslavia
Image source: hatcherhistory
#51 Italians Queue To View The Nemi Ships Of Emperor Caligula’s, Which Were Elaborate Floating Palaces Containing Quantities Of Marble, Mosaic Floors, Heating, And Plumbing
They were rediscovered in the 1930s but destroyed by a fire during WW2.
Image source: hatcherhistory
#52 A Picture Of Orphan Children Homed By The Charity Run By Dr. Barnardo, London, England, 1880s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#53 A Barefooted Italian Girl Plays With A Bird, In Naples, Italy, 1900
Image source: hatcherhistory
#54 Mother And Child, Canada, Late19th Century
Image source: hatcherhistory
#55 The Mildred, Shipwrecked On The Rocks Around Gurnards Head, Cornwall, 1912, On A Journey From Newport To London Carrying Slag
Image source: hatcherhistory
#56 Two Fisherman Knit Their Winter Woolies, Ramsgate, Kent, England, 1940s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#57 A Youngster Braves It Out During The Blitz On London, With His Teddy Bear, 1940-41. The Capital Was To Endure Over Seventy Nits Of German Bombs
Image source: hatcherhistory
#58 Anne Frank’s Father Otto, Revists The Attic Entrance Where He And His Family Hid For Two Long Years, Before They’re Betrayal, Amsterdam, In The Netherlands, May 1960
Image source: hatcherhistory
#59 Trying Out A Fake Tree Observation Post, On The Northern End Of The Trenches That Ran From The English Channel To Switzerland, That We Call The Western Front,
Image source: hatcherhistory
#60 A Roman Ship, Made From English Oak, Uncovered In 1910, On The South Bank Of The Thames During The Construction Of County Hall
Image source: hatcherhistory
#61 A Nursery Run Out Of East London, England, In 1911
Image source: hatcherhistory
#62 A Chimney Sweep Goes About His Business, Frankfurt, Germany, 1947
Image source: hatcherhistory
#63 An Elderly Italian Lady Takes A Rest, In An Alley In Her Village, Italy, 1960s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#64 Soviet Peasants Listen To The Radio For The First Time, Ussr, 1928, The Year That Stalin Became Dictator Having Won A Bitter Leadership Battle, Following The Death Of Lenin In 1924
Image source: hatcherhistory
#65 An Apprentice Son Learns His Craft From His Father, In A Cobbler’s Shop, Italy, Mid 19th Century.m
Image source: hatcherhistory
#66 Henry Worsley, The British Explorer Who Lost His Life In 2016, Attempting A Solitary Trek Across Antarctica
Image source: hatcherhistory
#67 A Photo Entitled, Sibling Love, Chicago, USA, 1945
Image source: hatcherhistory
#68 A Beautiful Daguerreotype Of A Smiling Father And Child, Location Unknown, 1856
Image source: hatcherhistory
#69 A Flying Saucer Photographed At A Junkyard In New Mexico, USA, 1962
Image source: hatcherhistory
#70 Building The London Underground, In This Case, The Central Line In 1898
Image source: hatcherhistory
#71 Checking The Sketch As Preparation For A Back Tattoo, France, 1950
Image source: hatcherhistory
#72 Charlie Chaplin On Wall Street, Celebrating Victory Over Imperial Germany, 1918
Image source: hatcherhistory
#73 A Bulgarian Bride And Groom On Their Wedding Day, From The Sofia Region, Bulgaria 1893
Image source: hatcherhistory
#74 A Studio Portrait Of A Young Woman , Location Unknown, 1870s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#75 Ava Gardner, At The Age Of 19, In 1942
Image source: hatcherhistory
#76 A Colorized Picture Of Three Girls Working As Oyster Shuckers, In South Carolina, USA, 1912
Image source: hatcherhistory
#77 A Coke Delivery Truck, Location Unknown, USA, 1909
Image source: hatcherhistory
#78 A Picture Of The Fishing Boat “New England”, Covered In Ice, British Columbia, Canada, 1911
Image source: hatcherhistory
#79 A Photo Of Laura Petty, A Six-Year Old Berry Picker, On Jenkins Farm, In Maryland, 1909
Image source: hatcherhistory
#80 A Little Boy All Dressed Up, New York City, USA, 1949
Image source: hatcherhistory
#81 A Group Of Children Playing In A Small Village, Location Unknown, 1905
Image source: hatcherhistory
#82 In 1925, Diphtheria Affected An Isolated Village In Alaska
The Norwegian Gunnar Kasen and his main dog Balto were the first to bring the serum to the village, through a snowstorm. For his courage, Balto had a monument of himself erected in New York’s Central Park.
Image source: hatcherhistory
#83 Fishermen Land A Big Tuna, Sicily, Italy, Date Unknown
Image source: hatcherhistory
#84 A Photo Of Some Down Time, At Women’s Prison, Then Still Segregated, New Orleans, USA, 1963
Image source: hatcherhistory
#85 A Pensive American Soldier Cradles A Puppy, Vietnam War, 1965
Image source: hatcherhistory
#86 Marilyn Monroe Visiting An Injured American Soldier, Evacuated To Japan From Operations On The Korean War, 1954
Image source: hatcherhistory
#87 A Happy Couple At The Beach, Coney Island, New Jersey, USA, 1950s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#88 Survivors From The 87th Floor Of The World Trade Center (North Tower) Wandering In The Dust After The Collapse Of The South Tower, New York City, September 11, 2001
Image source: hatcherhistory
#89 5-Year Old Harold Walker, Who Was Employed To Pick 20 Pounds Of Cotton A Day. Oklahoma, USA, 1916
Image source: hatcherhistory
#90 A Civil War Veteran In A Photo Surrounded By His Grandchildren, In 1900
Image source: hatcherhistory
#91 An Oldish Couple, Perhaps Sharecroppers, Happy With Their Lot, From The Beginning Of The Last Century, Exact Location Unknown, But From The American South
Image source: hatcherhistory
#92 Brooklyn Bridge Under Construction, NYC, 1880
Image source: hatcherhistory
#93 Photo Booth: Jfk With Future Wife Jackie During Their Dating Days
Image source: hatcherhistory
#94 A Young Boy Stops To Be Photographed, While Picking Hops, Yakima Valley, Washington, USA, 1939
Image source: hatcherhistory
#95 Jack Bonavita, A Circus Lion Tamer, Pictured With His Animals At A Show In New York, 1910: He Was Attacked And Killed By A Polar Bear He Had Tamed, One Has To Say Not Very Well, In 1917
Image source: hatcherhistory
#96 A Photo Of General High Brady Taken When He Was In His 80s, In The Late 1840s. The Good General Was Born In 1768, When The Us Were British Colonies And George III Was Still King
One of the oldest born persons ever to be photographed.
Image source: hatcherhistory
#97 Some Kids In Dust Bowl America, In The Great Depression Of The 1930s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#98 Edwardian Hobnobbing: Dinner At The Astor Hotel, New York City, USA, 1904
Image source: hatcherhistory
#99 Jeeps Abandoned In A Field, Somewhere In Liberated Europe, At The End Of World War II, Summer Of 1945
Image source: hatcherhistory
#100 A Us Army Chaplain Helps An Old Vietnamese Lady To Safety, In The Heat Of The Tet Offensive, Vietnam, 1968
Image source: hatcherhistory
#101 Japanese Child Soldiers Of The Tekketsu Kinnōtai Are Interviewed By Us Military, On The Island Of Okinawa, Japan, 1945
Image source: hatcherhistory
#102 Brigitte Bardot Walking Barefoot In The Island Of Capri, Italy, 1963
Image source: hatcherhistory
#103 A Promotion Photo Of 22-Year-Old Wasp (Women’s Airforce Service Pilot) Pilot, Shirley Slade, Who Was Employed In The War To Deliver Planes To The Us Military For Deployment, All Over America, 1943
Image source: hatcherhistory
#104 A Photo Of A Rest Stop For Geronimo And Other Apache Leaders After Their Surrender Ended The Apache Wars, 1886
They are on a Southern Pacific Railway train, near Nueces River, in San Antonio, Texas, en route to exile in Florida.
Image source: hatcherhistory
#105 Sergeant Alvin C .york, A Famous American Soldier Of WW1 Being Greeted By His Mother On His Return Home To Pall Mall, Tennessee, 1919
Image source: hatcherhistory
#106 A Studio Portrait Of A Young Woman, Location Unknown, Late 1800s
Image source: hatcherhistory
#107 Kids Playing Together, Nebraska, USA, 1910
Image source: hatcherhistory
#108 A Couple Of Sisters Enjoying The End Of The Day, In The Mid 20th Century, Locale Unknown, USA
Image source: hatcherhistory
#109 A Photo Portrait Of Mark Twain With His Friend, John T. Lewis, Who Was Born A Free Man In Maryland And Who Had Migrated To Upstate New York, 1903
Image source: hatcherhistory
#110 The Meeting Point Of The Pacific And Atlantic Oceans: Their Water Do Not Mix, A Phenomenon Based On The Difference In The Composition Of Each Ocean’s Water
Image source: hatcherhistory
#111 Portrait Of 2 Boys With Their Baby Sibling, Manhattan, New York, USA, 1918
Image source: hatcherhistory
#112 Suffer The Children Unto Us: Christmas Dinner In Home Of Earl Pauley Near Smithfield, Iowa. Dinner Consisted Of Potatoes, Cabbage And Pie, December 1936
Image source: hatcherhistory
#113 A Photo Of The Famous Harlem Debutante Ball, Held At The Renaissance Ballroom, The Renny”), Located At 7th Avenue And 138th Street In Harlem, New York City
Image source: hatcherhistory
Follow Us
