This is a real Onion article lampooning real history. It is satire. There is always a kernel of truth in satire and this is very cleverly done in that it is almost true and at the same time not quite so and surrounded by similarly historically satirical articles like early southern Klansmen making monster trucks and driving over model T Fords.

SATIRE.

Edit to say that the Onion used to sell physical papers in physical newsstands and that is how I first learned of them.