These Weird Historical Trends Probably Wouldn't Catch On Today

Fern Collecting

Ferns might be pretty standard these days, but during the mid-1800s, Victorian women in London loved collecting ferns. This phenomenon was known as "pteridomania," or better titled as "fern fever."  Teens and young adult women loved collecting them so much, that the fern began to be used as a symbol of beauty, youth, and inhibition. Nothing says forever young like a fern, apparently.

Advertisement

Next Page →

The More You Know

  • February used to be the last month of the year.
  • The designer of the current United States flag was 17 at the time, and created it for a high school project. He received a B-.
  • When Boris Yeltsin met President Clinton in 1995, his first question was "Do you think O.J. did it?"
  • The last movie ever rented at a corporate Blockbuster was "This Is The End" at a store in Hawaii.
Next Page →