I've been listening the Revolutions podcast for inspiration for my D&D campaign world based on 19th century South and Central America. While it's been incredibly helpful for the big picture socioeconomic and political contexts, I'm trying to expand my knowledge to the more minute and intimate details of the cultures and day-to-day stuff in the region during this timeframe.

Where should I even start? I feel like I'm looking at this too broadly, but I'm not sure how to narrow down my search.

So this is long, but may require a short answer - I was asked to repost here instead.
Why would a Southerner from the United States refer to another Southerner as a "carpetbagger?"

So, a little background: I am from NC and I'm trying to trace my 4th great grandfather. We have almost no information on him - he's not in any census or public record of the time; we do not know who his parents were, when he was born, or where he was from. He never married my 4th great grandmother - he had 2 kids with her and the month before my 3rd GGF was born (the 2nd kid) in 1850, he took off with another woman and married her. They were on their way to Florida for their honeymoon as well as to look for land for a new homesite, and he and his new wife were murdered enroute, in Georgia. We have found two newspaper articles on the murder. Other than a secondary source in which he was listed as a patroller ("one who patrolled and rounded up slaves to return them to their owners to prevent possible insurrection or turmoil") 4 years before his murder, this is the extent of information we have on him, other than family rumor. This is where the "carpetbagger" reference comes in. He was referred to pejoratively as a "carpetbagger" by my grandmother and her siblings (perhaps this was her father's term; I honestly do not know who specifically called him this) which would have put these people living somewhere around the range of 1880-1940. The term did not come into use until after the Civil War; my 4GGF died in 1850.
So, in reading the Wikipedia article on carpetbaggers:
"carpetbagger is a largely historical term used by Southerners to describe opportunistic Northerners who came to the Southern states after the American Civil War, who were perceived to be exploiting the local populace for their own financial, political, and/or social gain."
Not only did he die well before the Civil War, we are reasonably sure that he was a North Carolina native - he shares a surname with a prominent and prolific family who were one of the first settlers of that part of NC; however, the surname is also a common name that could have its origin in either Ireland or Germany. So it's not necessarily a sure thing that he was from NC...but the vast majority of the folks who lived in the county in that time frame were long-time natives. Lots of endogamy going on there.
"The term broadly included both individuals who sought to promote Republican politics (including the right of African Americans to vote and hold office), and individuals who saw business and political opportunities because of the chaotic state of the local economies following the war."
If "carpetbagger" refers to a person who sympathizes with African Americans' social standing, I find it hard to believe that this would apply to my 4GGF if he was someone who was hired to round up runaway slaves to return to their owners in 1846.
"In practice, the term carpetbagger was often applied to any Northerner who was present in the South during the Reconstruction Era (1865–1877)."
Again...my 4GGF died in 1850, well before the Reconstruction Era.
"The term came to be associated with opportunism and exploitation by outsiders."
I suppose this is a possible explanation. If my grandmother and great grandmother's era were familiar with the term from firsthand knowledge or from hearing it from their parents or grandparents, it's possible that it did not refer to a Northerner at all in this case, but someone who was not a "local" (essentially, in this extremely rural and endogamous setting, someone from a county or two over) who came in and took advantage of people (namely, my 4GGM - we always pictured him as a bit of a womanizer, and my grandmother's generation had nothing good to say about him and really did not even want to discuss the matter.)
So...it seems that the final bullet would be the most likely explanation. However, I wanted to run it by you guys to see if there was something I was missing or did not know about, especially when we have so little information about him and are evaluating every little fact that we know. Thanks for the help!!

How do we know the details of what Shakespeare's Globe Theatre looked like? Is the decor a best guess or are there contemporary sources?

My 12 year old son just asked me and Google didn't help. Thank you

Why was winter historically considered a time of scarcity? If the main food source was grain and harvest happened in fall, shouldn't winter be relatively plentiful food-wise and spring/summer be the lean months?

Prior to the Golden Bull of 1354, which outlined who the 7 Prince-Electors of the HRE would be, it seemed that all the large nobility of the HRE had a vote for the Emperorship.

Of course leading to a few occasions of Anti-Kings hammering each other for the crown ^(King Philip Hohenstaufen vs Otto the usurper)

How did the nobility react to their loss of voting franchise?

And how did the recent black death outbreak affect this?

how old is "cunning linguist" as a euphemism or reference to the similarly named sex move?

Why is Friday called 'Congregation Day' in Arabic?

I have looked at a previous Ask Historians thread about why Muslims congregate on Friday as well as searched online.

There is general agreement that the Quran commands muslims to congregate on 'Congregation Day' AKA Friday in Arabic, but this seems circular.

If Friday was already known as Congregation Day before this command, then why was that so? Was there a customary congregation on the 6th day in pre-Islamic Arabia? And if so, why the sixth day and for what purpose?

If Friday became known as Congregation Day AFTER the Quranic command, then why was the 6th day chosen?

Who was the "Shakespeare" of French and German?

Is there a similar writer, in roughly the same time period that had written a large catalogue of works that are still studied in language & grammar classes ^(I almost wrote 'english classes' like a fool)

European- and USA centred history education is of course just one limited piece and perspective of history.

Where I’ve had plenty of education in WW2 and US civil war. What would students in Asia, Africa, Latin America, Australia focus most on? Thanks

So this might not be a "simple question" but I was looking at flying aces in WW2 and well, it's shockingly German. Greatest non-German ace on that list is 94, yet the Germans had dozens of pilots all with over 100 kills to their name. The Germans ultimately lost the war. They lost the battle of Britain. As far as I know, the Germans were losing consistantly against the RAF with their raiding in the blitz in terms of aircraft killed.

So how come? Obviously aces only tell a small part of the story (well, as small as it can be when one man shoots down 200 aircraft) but it sure looks like the Germans should have had the allies licked in the air.

I’ve been trying to find information on how important ancient peoples perceived time and dates.

Herodotus, when writing about Homer and Hesiod claimed that they lived 400 years before him and no longer. But what year did Herodotus perceive himself to be in? Or would the idea of a “year zero” be impressing modern ideas on ancient worlds?

I've seen this trope over and over again in fiction but what are some real life examples of "They think I'm dead and that gives me an advantage."

It seems to show up so much, I was just wondering if there were any real historical episodes that include similar things.

Does anyone have any good resources for what life was like around the Pearl River Delta during the 80s and 90s?

I couldn't really think of a more specific question, I was just hoping to find more ground level information on how cultures, lifestyles, and socioeconomic conditions evolved in urban Guangdong during that time, and I don't know where to start or if there even are any good, accessible resources on this.

Who was the first known person to posit that torture is an ineffective means of interrogation?

It doesn't take much to see that torture is cruel and inhumane, as that's kind of part of the whole point. But it's been proven by today to also be highly ineffective, being more likely to yield an insane subject or the answers you want to hear rather than any truth. Now, there are people who still don't understand this today, and I know in the ancient and medieval eras torture was considered fairly standard and reliable, even necessary a procedure in cases. However, even if the science disproving its effectiveness is relatively recent in the grand scale, I'm sure there must have been earlier philosophers or thinkers who would have realised that torture can't really be that reliable. Who is the first person we have records of opining thus?

After a walk through the Louvre my wife would like a good biography of Marie de Medici. She says she found a 3-volume work (can't recall the author, alas) but thought it was poorly written and overly fanboy-ish(?). Any recommendations?

Thanks in advance!

Who wrote the constitution not who came up with it but who held the pen?

Does anyone have recommendations on sources for medieval peasants hunting and trapping? By my understand, nobles hunted in large groups where everyone had a role, and it was more of a past time for socializing with other nobles. But how did peasants hunt? Did they also gather in big groups?

Was Malcom X murdered by the US government? - it was claimed somewhere in a sub, I'm ignorant on the issue but most regular sources list other members of Nation of Islam and I saw that recently, after old documents were released, it was decided that 2 of the people imprisoned shouldn't have been. But did the US take any more of an active role in his murder?

Which cast would be the female occupants of an Indian harem?

We call “in living memory” that period of time that is remembered by people still alive today (eg 1930s). Is there a name for that period stretching back wherein today’s oldest people remember from their childhood being told first hand accounts in the childhood memories of elderly people (eg 1850s)?

Where can I find medieval art depicting peasant or middle class women's clothing?

dID YOGURT COME TO THE MIDDLE EAST WITH CENTRAL ASIAN TURKS?

Besides NY, which other US states, if any, mandate the appointment of public historians?

As per the website of the https://aphnys.org :

The Association of Public Historians of New York State is a 501(c)3 non-profit professional organization that represents the 1,600+ government-appointed historians in the state. Under state law, every county and municipality in New York is required to have an appointed historian to document, preserve, interpret, and share the history of their communities. It is part of the state’s commitment to ensuring that New Yorkers have access to quality educational experiences enriched by cultural heritage resources. Our state’s local historians are here to serve you!

TL:DR - Is it safe to wear and breathe through a WW2 gas mask?

I have recently acquired THIS WW2 British Gas Mask. Is it safe to put on, strap up and breathe through it? If not. What can I do to make it safe?

Looking for French revolutionary babe! PLEASE HELP

If I am recalling this correctly I may have initially read about her in Popkin's "A New World Begins" (2019). She was only mentioned briefly in the second half of the book but it is killing me.

After forgetting her name I have been searching for QUITE some time to find the woman who I'd consider, THE most beautiful of the French Revolutionary era. The only FACT I have to work with is that she was thought of at the time to be incredibly beautiful. (and that she has a wikipedia page.) Outside of that I have some vague, possibly incorrect memories which are as follows: She was a politicians wife or mistress in the provinces or south of France (read: not Paris)(?) after the Thermidorian reaction(?). She may have been of the royalist or conservative persuasion. I thought maybe she was Tallien's wife but seems not to be the case (unless he had a mistress after his breakup?), this may imply its someone in Tallien's circle or someone he interacted with? I think she's wearing a green dress in her wiki portrait. And maybe only has a few paragraphs in her wiki as well. She's a brunette bombshell. She isn't one of the top most famous women (for sure would put all of them to shame in the looks department) of the era but she may have personally influenced her man to lean right? As I said, those are fuzzy memories and may be incorrect, but any help would be greatly appreciated!

Specifically in terms of artillery, what was a random mundane day in WWI like?

There are countless stories of x million shells fired per hour during this or that major battle, and of course I can look up how many guns were attached per unit. I don't know what that means in practice during a slow non-historic day. Were guns taking pot shots when there was something exposed? Firing a few shells on the hour to keep their heads down? Staying quiet and saving ammunition?

When did humans started using "solar years" and how did they figure it out?

Are there any lists or compilations of rules that governed naval engagements during the Napoleonic wars? e.g. when ships had to hoist ensigns to indicate national origin, treatment of prisoners, etc.

Are cashmere goats native to the Middle East and was their wool used for clothing? How far back is so?

What is proto-history? How is it different from prehistory?

Given your field of expertise, how accurate are some Wikipedia pages as introductions to the material?

Which roman emperor is seen to have led the empire through its darkest hour?

What is the name of king Henry’s reign? For example, we have ‘victorian’ for Queen Victoria, ‘Georgian’ for king George, what about about Henry?

How do you determine the value of medieval currency and compare it to todays? For example how could i determinebthe value of one dukat in todays euros ?

Who is the most ancient person to be referenced in a historical record?

Just a note for clarification-- I am talking about any person who could have potentially existed, even if their existence is unconfirmed. I am also not including prehistoric humans.
This is a bit of a difficult question to ask, but I tried a little bit of searching myself and found Kushim (c. 3400 - 3000 B.C.E.) and [...]pu (c. before 3200 B.C.E., whose existence is only evidenced by the Palermo Stone, on which most of his name is cut off). Are there any other figures who are referenced in a text that are potential contenders for this position?

Was each state’s influence on the drafting of the US Constitution proportional to their population? How many delegates was each state able to send?

Do the French have a national memorial where they inscribe names of famous battles?

I had always believed that the Arc de Triomphe was carved also with the names of famous battles won by the French, but I have never found confirmation of the list of battles. I did read that there was some memorial which mentioned all the battles they had won and cities captured (like Moscow 1812), but can anyone confirm this and tell me where it is?

In modern times, what is the best time of day to launch an offensive?

Were there any instances of a small religious minority(maybe even a secret one) attempting to overthrow the ruling government?

Is it fair to say that in the period before Columbus arrived to the Americas, that south/central America was wealthier than North America? The descriptions I’ve read of the Aztecs and Inca cultures sounds like they were somewhat prosperous.

Has the British Parliament ever had a law(s) that forbid MP’s from changing/leaving a party immediately following being elected?

What is the term when a king keeps the son of another king as ransom for peace?

I feel like they're is a term for raising the children from another monarchy as insurance for peace between the nations. They weren't prisoners or mistreated and it wasn't an arranged marriage, I just can't think of the term.

I'm sure this is an easy answer but I can't seem to phrase this question correctly for Google.

What was the title given to the children of Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs?

What was the language of court in 1500 in the Duchy of Savoy?

Did languages used by nomadic societies typically have an alphabet or written form?

Which book would it make more sense to read first? Inferno by Hastings or Rise and Fall of the Third Reich?

Did native Americans or Europeans have a longer life expectancy prior to contact?

I've been doing some research on a US Army General and have found a document from his commission following graduation from West Point. Everyone in the class has a number following it. Is that their serial number?

Does anyone have book/reading suggestions on the history or the great lakes region, specifically lake michigan. I'm mostly interested in the first migrations of people to the area up to contact with Europeans. I know thats a broad range lol. Anything from their beliefs/religion/Folklore to a specific event/period. Especially interested in earliest known people in the area and their history once they arrived. but really any good book/articles on the indigenous history of michigan, the state or the lake, or just the great lakes in general.

In the middle ages, when weapons received decorative elements for ceremonies or noblemen, how were they done by hand? Engraving, inlay, etc.

https://bit.ly/33Bhmyf

Did the weaponsmith handle such endeavors, or hand it off to someone else?

Did the Italian Army use watchtowers during WW2 to spy enemy planes?

What army base was in Palermo during WW2?

What are some of the oldest tools or technologies still in common use?

https://imgur.com/a/xilMZ8Y what's this ?(from ancient rome and before the empire)

I am looking for the name of a famous warrior who once lived. He was huge, had blue eyes and blond hair. It was said that he left no survivors on the field of battle, so that the vultures could be fed. His purpose was to destroy empires. Who is this man ?