The Atavist Magazine
LightNews LightNews
banner
atavist.com
The Atavist Magazine
@atavist.com
1.3K followers 140 following 23 posts
One incredible true story every month. Part of Automattic Inc. https://magazine.atavist.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
raynewman.bsky.social
“Members could flip through the Social Register’s pages to learn the essentials about each other. What school did so-and-so attend? What yacht club did they belong to? Were they related to someone on the Mayflower?” (Via Longreads)

magazine.atavist.com/2025/blue-bo...
The Hardest-Working Art Thief in History
The 'Social Register' was a who’s who of America’s rich and powerful—the heirs of robber barons, scions of political dynasties, and descendants of 'Mayflower' passengers. It was also the perfect hit l...
magazine.atavist.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:50 AM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
jackelhai.bsky.social
"They snipped the phone line."

Today's article pick from Damn History, a free monthly newsletter for readers/writers of #popularhistory. Congrats to
writer Jack Rodolico & @atavist.com!

Read/subscribe to Damn History: damn-history-16d93f.beehiiv.com/subscribe

magazine.atavist.com/2025/blue-bo...
The Hardest-Working Art Thief in History
The 'Social Register' was a who’s who of America’s rich and powerful—the heirs of robber barons, scions of political dynasties, and descendants of 'Mayflower' passengers. It was also the perfect hit l...
magazine.atavist.com
November 4, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
longreads.com
"While stealing art is a challenge, selling it—and making a profit—is much, much harder."

Read an excerpt of the new @atavist.com story by Jack Rodolico, about a hard-working art thief—and the list he used to rob the rich: longreads.com/2025/11/04/b...
The Art of the Steal - Longreads
"The Social Register was a who’s who of America’s rich and powerful—the heirs of robber barons, scions of political dynasties, and descendants of Mayflower passengers. It was also the perfect hit list...
longreads.com
November 4, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
seywarddarby.bsky.social
Obsessed with the Louvre heist? Eager for an eat the rich story because you're mad as hell? Meet the prolific art thief who robbed America's aristocracy blind.

magazine.atavist.com/2025/blue-bo...
The Hardest-Working Art Thief in History
The cops watched helplessly as art went missing from old-money mansions Up and down the east coast. then they made a shocking discovery: one man was behind it all.
magazine.atavist.com
November 3, 2025 at 6:14 PM
atavist.com
The 'Social Register' was a who’s who of America’s rich and powerful—the heirs of robber barons, scions of political dynasties, and descendants of 'Mayflower' passengers. It was also the perfect hit list for the country’s hardest-working art thief.

magazine.atavist.com/2025/blue-bo...
The Hardest-Working Art Thief in History
The cops watched helplessly as art went missing from old-money mansions Up and down the east coast. then they made a shocking discovery: one man was behind it all.
magazine.atavist.com
November 3, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
zacheverson.com
Speaking of Maine and Nazis—this was a great story about the state’s response to one

Mira Ptacin for @atavist.com
How Concerned Citizens Ran a Neo-Nazi Out of Rural Maine
Before he promoted lies about Haitians eating pets in Ohio, Christopher Pohlhaus tried to build a fascist compound in America's whitest state. His neighbors had other plans.
magazine.atavist.com
October 22, 2025 at 1:15 AM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
longreads.com
"A nation, like a body, can be marked before it recognizes the wound."

For @atavist.com, Masha Hamilton looks for America on Interstate 95. Read an excerpt from our sister magazine's new story: longreads.com/2025/10/07/a...
"Are We Breaking Apart, Or Is There Enough Left to Bind Us?" - Longreads
Conversations and revelations about an ailing nation along Interstate 95.
longreads.com
October 7, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
seywarddarby.bsky.social
"We’re traveling nearly 2,000 miles on I-95 from Miami to Maine, and pausing at virtually every rest stop. Our project is simple and vast at once: to ask fellow travelers where they’re headed, and where they think America is going too."

New from @atavist.com.

magazine.atavist.com/2025/america...
I’ve Gone to Look for America - The Atavist Magazine
Conversations and revelations about an ailing nation along Interstate 95.
magazine.atavist.com
September 30, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
brendanomeara.bsky.social
For the @atavist.com Robert Weintraub came by to talk about "American Hindenburg." Great talk!
September 5, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
brendanomeara.bsky.social
@cassidyrandall.bsky.social stopped by Pitch Club HQ to talk about her @atavist.com pitch for her story "Alone at the Edge of the World," a story was anthologized in Year's Best Sports Writing 2023.

welcometopitchclub.substack.com/p/how-to-wra...
How to Wrangle the Idea with Cassidy Randall
Cassidy Randall takes us to her Atavist Magazine pitch that earned her a nod in Year's Best Sports Writing 2023.
welcometopitchclub.substack.com
September 2, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
nickashdown.bsky.social
Thrilling read. @atavist.com
American Hindenburg
In the early days of flight, airships were hailed as the future of war. Then disaster struck the USS Akron.
magazine.atavist.com
September 4, 2025 at 9:32 AM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
longreads.com
"Dirigibles promised the Navy omniscience, dispelling the fog of war with blasts of helium fuel."

Read the introduction of the @atavist.com's fascinating new story by Robert Weintraub, about the crash of a Navy airship: longreads.com/2025/09/04/z...
The Worst Air Disaster You've Never Heard Of - Longreads
"In the early days of flight, airships were hailed as the future of war. Then disaster struck the USS Akron."
longreads.com
September 4, 2025 at 5:25 PM
atavist.com
The worst air disaster you've never heard of.

Issue no. 166, American Hindenburg

magazine.atavist.com/2025/america...
American Hindenburg
In the early days of flight, airships were hailed as the future of war. Then disaster struck the USS Akron.
magazine.atavist.com
September 2, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
alexanderchee.bsky.social
Reading this now and it’s fantastic.
atavist.com The Atavist Magazine @atavist.com · Jul 31
He made his name in Chicago investigating racial violence, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.

Issue no. 165 is here!

magazine.atavist.com/2025/the-tal...
The Talented Mr. Bruseaux
He made his name in Chicago investigating race riots, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.
magazine.atavist.com
August 6, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
the-syllabus.bsky.social
Like a real-life Gatsby, this piece details how America’s first Black private detective, Sheridan Bruseaux, achieved greatness while hiding behind elaborate fictions, ultimately leaving a legacy as complex and conflicted as the times he lived in.

By Matthew Wolfe in @atavist.com

buff.ly/LviJoMC
The Talented Mr. Bruseaux
He made his name in Chicago investigating race riots, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.
magazine.atavist.com
August 8, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
longreads.com
"He had become wealthy and famous by unearthing other people’s secrets, but the man known as Sheridan Bruseaux was keeping a few of his own."

An excerpt from the new @atavist.com story, by Matthew Wolfe: longreads.com/2025/08/05/b...
The Mostly True Story of America's First Black Private Investigator - Longreads
He made his name in Chicago investigating racial violence, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.
longreads.com
August 5, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
mysteriousbookshop.com
The remarkable story of America’s first Black private eye magazine.atavist.com/2025/the-tal...
The Talented Mr. Bruseaux
He made his name in Chicago investigating race riots, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.
magazine.atavist.com
August 3, 2025 at 12:10 AM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
katyacengel.bsky.social
A man almost lost to history as fabulous and fabulously flawed as the best of them. Great storytelling by Matthew Wolfe for @atavist.com magazine.atavist.com/2025/the-tal...
The Talented Mr. Bruseaux
He made his name in Chicago investigating race riots, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.
magazine.atavist.com
August 3, 2025 at 11:36 PM
atavist.com
He made his name in Chicago investigating racial violence, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.

Issue no. 165 is here!

magazine.atavist.com/2025/the-tal...
The Talented Mr. Bruseaux
He made his name in Chicago investigating race riots, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.
magazine.atavist.com
July 31, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
seywarddarby.bsky.social
Here's the @atavist.com piece. It's an incredible read. All credit to the reporter, Dave Simpson, who covered the hell out of this story. And is still following it!

magazine.atavist.com/2017/not-fuz...
Not Fuzz - The Atavist Magazine
They were partners in fighting crime. The only problem: Neither was a cop. But when one friend turned on the other, things got real.
magazine.atavist.com
July 21, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
katyacengel.bsky.social
Another great @atavist.com read with equally stunning art magazine.atavist.com/confessions-...
A Hit Man Sheds Light on a Notorious Louisiana Cold Case
A former FBI agent traveled to Louisiana to ask a hired killer about a murder that haunted him. Then Larry Thompson started talking about a different case altogether.
magazine.atavist.com
July 11, 2025 at 3:26 AM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
seywarddarby.bsky.social
A good resource for freelancers. @atavist.com isn't on the list (yet?) but for reference, we pay at minimum $6,000 per story, plus royalties based on traffic.

www.freelancingwithtim.com/p/freelance-...
Here's what 300+ publications pay freelancers
The good, the bad, and the ugly
www.freelancingwithtim.com
July 9, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
amillus.bsky.social
American Illustration 43 Winner MATT ROTA @matt.rota
#publication @atavist.com
A journalist goes missing in Libya, his daughter is left to find out what hapend.

#illustrationoftheday #ai43 #winner #illustrator #instaart
July 8, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
longreads.com
Larry Thompson's most famous murder inspired two books and a movie. Was he also responsible for a crime that's haunted Louisiana for nearly 50 years?

Read an excerpt from the new @atavist.com story, "Conversations with a Hit Man," by David Howard: longreads.com/2025/07/08/h...
When the Hit Man Starts Talking - Longreads
"A former FBI agent traveled to Louisiana to ask a hired killer about a murder that haunted him. Then they started talking about a different case altogether."
longreads.com
July 8, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Reposted by The Atavist Magazine
longlead.com
To learn more about David Wolman's coverage of the Egyptian revolution, read "The Instigators" on @atavist.com.
magazine.atavist.com/the-instigat...
The Instigators - The Atavist Magazine
Award-winning journalist David Wolman retraces the forces behind the Egyptian revolution.
magazine.atavist.com
July 8, 2025 at 8:48 PM