Pictures illuminate the shadows of history, revealing the forgotten people and places that otherwise may have faded into oblivion. They help us make sense of the past and, in turn, allow us to understand the present.

So we at Bored Panda decided it would be a nice idea to explore the subreddit ‘Rare Historical Photos‘ — it has 40,000 members constantly digging through the archives and sharing their best finds. Prepare to be transported through time!

#1 Renowned Photographer Walter Chandoha Created One Of His Most Famous Photographs Of His Daughter Paula And A Small Kitten Smiling At The Camera At The Same Time, 1955

Image credits: ua-stena

#2 A Seaman’s Request For An Extraordinary Leave Of Absence, 1967. Reason: “My Wife Is Planning To Get Pregnant This Weekend And I Would Like To Be Present.”

Image credits: ua-stena

#3 A Police Officer Playing Duck Duck Goose With Children In New York, 1970

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#4 Ojibwe Woman, Ponemah, Minnesota, Photograph Taken By Roland W. Reed C.1908

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#5 A Baby Lamb Snuggles Up To A Sleeping Boy, 1940

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#6 Girls Sent Home From Mckinley High School For Wearing Slacks And Blue Jeans, Chicago, 1946

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#7 A GI Shares His Rations With Two Italian Children, 1944

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#8 A Former Prisoner Points Out The Most Brutal Guard. Germany. 1945

Image credits: ua-stena

#9 Shy Young Woman Smiling For The Camera 143 Years Ago

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#10 A Dog Says Goodbye To His Fallen US Soldier Friend. Afghan War, 2004

Image credits: ua-stena

#11 The Oldest Indian, John Smith, Managed To Live In Three Centuries At Once, Being Born In The 18th Century, Living Throughout The 19th Century And Dying In The 20th Century. It Is Alleged That He Lived For About 137 Years

Image credits: ua-stena

#12 Vancouver’s First Official Lifeguard, Joe Fortes, 1905. Fortes, Who Was Born In Trinidad And Tobago, Was Credited With Saving Dozens Of Lives And Was Known As “Old Black Joe”

Image credits: ua-stena

#13 A Young Woman Photographed In The 1910s

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#14 Portrait Of A Family. Georgia, USA, Circa 1900

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#15 The Ship “Queen Elizabeth” Arrives At The Port Of New York. On Board Are Soldiers Returning From World War II, 1945

Image credits: ua-stena

#16 This Is What The Empire State Building Looked Like Against The Background Of Other Buildings, 1941

Image credits: ua-stena

#17 Five-Year-Old Albert Einstein, 1884

Image credits: ua-stena

#18 New York, 1958. Dancers In A Nightclub Play Chess. Smartphones Haven’t Been Invented Yet

Image credits: ua-stena

#19 An Old Fisherman Photographed In Bergen, Norway In 1902 By Anders Beer Wilse

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#20 Abraham Lincoln In 1861 And 1865. A Noticeable Four-Year Contrast Against The Backdrop Of War

Image credits: ua-stena

#21 Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau Carries The Country’s Future Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Under His Arm. Ottawa, 1973

Image credits: ua-stena

#22 A Lady From High Society. Ottoman Empire, 1900s

Image credits: ua-stena

#23 Man With Down’s Syndrome, 1890s

Image credits: World-Tight

#24 With Her Husband At War, Mom Works On The Car, 1944

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#25 Republican Party Supporters And Democratic Party Supporters Fight With Snowballs In Front Of The Capitol. January, 1921, Washington, USA

Image credits: ua-stena

#26 Young Couple Standing At A Speed Limit Sign. Oklahoma, 1920s

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#27 Queue For The Premiere Of The Star Wars Film. Vancouver, 1977

Image credits: ua-stena

#28 American Soldier Returning Home From The Great War, Ca 1918-19

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#29 Early Use Of A Selfie Stick In The 1940s

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#30 Pictured Is Paul Overby, One Of Two Drivers Trapped In The Cab Of The Truck. He Is Pulled By A Rope In The Pit River Bridge Over Lake Shasta Near Redding, California, May 3, 1953. Both Overby And His Partner Hank Baum Were Rescued Before The Car Plunged And Caught Fire

Image credits: ua-stena

#31 A Cowboy, 1890s

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#32 A Youthful Marine, Da Nang, Vietnam, August 3, 1965

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#33 A Typical American Family In 1950s, Detroit, Michigan

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#34 Goodyear Illuminated Tires, 1961

Image credits: ua-stena

#35 A Lady Walks Around Renting Out Books As A “Walking Library.”

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#36 Airmail Pilot, William “Wild Bill” Hopson Of The U.S. Mail Service In Omaha, Nebraska, 1926

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#37 A Mexican Baker, 1880-90s

Image credits: World-Tight

#38 Service At The Track Restaurant In Los Angeles, 1950s. Food Was Delivered Via Conveyor Belt Directly To Cars

Image credits: ua-stena

#39 A Victorian Home Being Moved Via Horse Power. San Francisco, California, USA. 1908

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#40 Cab Drivers In Madison Square Garden, New York, 1900

Image credits: ua-stena

#41 Drexel Institute Girls’ Rifle Team. Philadelphia, USA

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#42 People Sit On A Curb Amid Confetti And Papers After Celebrating The End Of World War II In New York City On August 14, 1945

Image credits: ua-stena

#43 Crossing Over The Thames. Photo By René Groebli, 1949

Image credits: WistfulHush

#44 Downtown Boston, 1910

Image credits: ua-stena

#45 A Gentleman Tips His Hat To A Group Of Ladies, 1920s

Image credits: Quick_Presentation11

#46 A Fashionable Young Woman Exiting A NYC Streetcar In 1912

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#47 Photo Of Marilyn Monroe First Wedding, She Was 16 Years Old, 1942

Image credits: ua-stena

#48 Passengers Onboard The Staten Island Ferry. New York, USA. 1895

Image credits: USHistoryUncovered

#49 John D. Rockefeller Gifting A 5-Cent Coin To A Child, 1929

Image credits: senorphone1

#50 Little Leonardo Dicaprio And His Parents George And Irmelin, 1976

Image credits: ua-stena