1. Carpet Beaters Before the days of vacuum cleaners, people had to get creative when it came to cleaning their rugs. Carpet beaters looked like oversized fly swatters made of rattan or wire, and they were used to whack dust […]

1. Tab Tab was one of Coca-Cola’s first attempts at creating a diet soda, and it became a major hit with people trying to cut calories in the ’70s. With its pink can and unique taste, it quickly developed a

1. McDonald’s Arch Deluxe Back in the mid-1990s, McDonald’s thought it could appeal to adults with a “fancy” burger called the Arch Deluxe. It was supposed to be more sophisticated than their usual fare, with a special sauce, peppered bacon,

1. Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab In the early ’60s, kids could actually buy a science kit that came with real radioactive materials. The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab included small samples of uranium ore along with a Geiger counter

1. Radium Water Back in the early 1900s, people were convinced that drinking water laced with radium was the ultimate health booster. Companies marketed it as a way to increase vitality, fight fatigue, and even enhance sexual performance. The radioactive

1. Evacuation Day If you grew up in Boston, you might have heard of Evacuation Day, but most Americans wouldn’t recognize the name. This holiday once marked March 17, 1776, when British troops left Boston during the Revolutionary War. For

1. Hydrox Cookies Before Oreo took over the cookie aisle, Hydrox was the original chocolate sandwich cookie. They hit shelves way back in 1908, decades before Nabisco’s Oreo came along. By the ’70s, Hydrox was still hanging on and had