an indigenous boy and a white boy shaking hands at a youth baseball game in Wisconsin
colorful canoes tied together in a river in Brazil
a young girl with orange scrunchies in her hair, walking through rice fields in China
a photographer laying on the ground, pointing his camera at a young caiman
a flock of colorful bee-eater birds swarming together at sunset
people riding camels across a vast desert in China
a crowded beach in Vietnam, with people carrying bikes and playing badminton
an elderly woman doing a handstand between her dance teammates in Arizona
a man practicing a tango move in a dance studio in Argentina
a man carrying a fuel can past his alternative Volkswagen, covered in fake grass
villagers cheering on Amelia Earhart after her solo transatlantic flight
two bottlenose dolphins playing in Doubtful Sound, New Zealand
mist over a clear lake in a nature reserve in China
people marching in Washington, D.C., to demand voting rights for women in 1913
a woman tending the family land in a rural village in the Italian Alps
women in expensive dresses and hats for a wedding at a country club in São Paulo, Brazil
women in white hats and dresses, during a hot church service in French Polynesia
migrant workers attending a candlelight vigil for a fellow union member who was killed
astronauts learning what weightlessness feels like in a NASA training aircraft
three teenage boys doing somersaults into muddy brown water in Australia
a Navy scientist documenting the weather under the protection of a dome in Antarctica
bioluminescent mushrooms glowing in the dark
three women swimming in choppy ocean waters while storm clouds are overhead
a female astronaut looking at Earth through a window in the International Space Station
a young woman in a blue cap and gown celebrating her high school graduation
a jazz band playing a crowded show in Preservation Hall in New Orleans
a small bird perched on the head of a hippo in the Zambezi River
climbers descending Mont Blanc in the Alps
women in traditional Ariaal garb singing together on their way to a wedding
a Lakota Sioux chief in traditional dress, embracing his family in South Dakota
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Good GameYoung baseball players shake hands after a game in Keshena, Wisconsin, in the early 1970s. Keshena is a large community on the Menominee Indian Reservation.
Photograph by Steve Raymer, Nat Geo Image Collection

30 astonishing pictures found from the Nat Geo archives

ByBreann Birkenbuel
September 18, 2020

We’re in the midst of a historic moment that, one way or another, will impact each of us. For this month’s collection of images, I wanted to examine parallels between the past and the present.

An image by Clinedinst Studio shows thousands of women marching in 1913 in Washington, D.C., for the right to vote, shedding light on the fight for women’s equality in a way reminiscent of today’s protest marches.

Today, we continue to push the boundaries of space exploration—reminding me of James A. Sugar’s photo of aspiring astronauts in 1989 practicing weightlessness on a NASA training aircraft.

And just like families in decades past, we’re concerned about what the future holds for our children. An image by Steve Raymer shows an Indigenous boy and a white boy shaking hands at a youth baseball game, capturing the importance of acceptance.

As you look through this collection of vintage images from our archives, I hope it reminds you to consider where we came from—and where we are now.

Breann Birkenbuel is the editor for Photo of the Day. Melody Rowell writes and researches the captions.

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