12 Stories from the Past That Sound Like Fiction But Aren’t
Some historical events are so bizarre they seem straight out of a novel—but they really happened.
- Chris Graciano
- 3 min read
History is full of wild tales that could easily be mistaken for fiction. These true stories defy logic and challenge what we think we know. Here are 12 jaw-dropping moments from history that prove reality can be stranger than fiction.
1. The Great Emu War (1932)
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In 1932, Australia declared war—not on another country, but on emus. The flightless birds were wreaking havoc on farmland, so soldiers armed with machine guns were sent to eliminate them. However, the emus proved surprisingly resilient, dodging bullets and outrunning the troops.
2. The Exploding Whale (1970)
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Oregon officials once tried to dispose of a dead whale by blowing it up with dynamite. Their logic? The pieces would scatter, letting scavengers clean up the rest. Instead, massive chunks of whale rained down on spectators, crushing a car and leaving a terrible stench.
3. The Time a President Killed a Man in a Duel
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Before becoming the seventh U.S. president, Andrew Jackson shot and killed Charles Dickinson in an 1806 duel. Dickinson insulted Jackson’s wife, leading to a deadly standoff.
4. The Dancing Plague of 1518
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Hundreds of people in Strasbourg suddenly began dancing non-stop, some for days on end. There was no music—just an uncontrollable urge to move.
5. The Man Who Survived Both Atomic Bombs
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Tsutomu Yamaguchi was in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb dropped in 1945. Badly burned but alive, he returned home—to Nagasaki. Just three days later, the second bomb fell, and he miraculously survived again.
6. The Ghost Army of World War II
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During WWII, the U.S. Army used inflatable tanks, fake radio transmissions, and sound effects to deceive the Nazis. This top-secret “Ghost Army” made enemy forces believe there were thousands of troops where there were none.
7. The Mysterious Disappearance of the Sodder Children
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On Christmas Eve, 1945, the Sodder family’s house burned down, but five of their children mysteriously vanished. No remains were ever found, and strange clues—like a woman claiming she saw them alive—only deepened the mystery.
8. The Dead Man Who Won an Election
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In 1872, Horace Greeley ran for U.S. president against Ulysses S. Grant. He lost, but before the electoral votes were officially counted, he died. Despite this, Greeley still received votes from electors who hadn’t yet heard the news.
9. The Island That Disappeared Overnight
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Bermeja, a small island in the Gulf of Mexico, appeared on maps for centuries—until it mysteriously vanished. When researchers tried to locate it in the 1990s, they found nothing but open water.
10. The Man Who Cheated Death 7 Times
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Frane Selak, a Croatian music teacher, survived a train crash, a plane explosion, a bus accident, two car crashes, being hit by a bus, and nearly falling off a cliff. After years of defying death, he won the lottery in 2003.
11. The 52-Hertz Whale—The Loneliest Creature on Earth
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Scientists have detected a whale singing at an unusually high frequency of 52 hertz, unlike any other whale. This has led to speculation that it might be the only one of its kind unable to communicate with others.
12. The Day It Rained Meat in Kentucky (1876)
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Residents of Olympia Springs, Kentucky were baffled when chunks of raw meat fell from the sky. Scientists determined the substance was likely lung tissue from an animal, but how it got there remains debated.