American History Hotline
Episodes
Sybil Ludington: 16-Year-Old Hero of the American Revolution
18 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
She was just 16 years old when she rode nearly 40 miles through the night rallying the militia as the British attacked during the American Revolution....
What Happened to Aaron Burr After He Killed Alexander Hamilton?
11 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In 1804, Vice President Aaron Burr shot and killed Alexander Hamilton in the most infamous duel in American history. But what happened next? Did Burr ...
Why Do We Spring Forward?
04 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
No, Benjamin Franklin did not invent Daylight Saving Time. But he did muse about its practicality in a 1784 essay. So, if Franklin didn't invent DST, ...
Was Disney’s Balto a True Story?
25 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Was the Disney movie Balto actually based on a true story? A listener wants to know if this heroic snow dog was real—or just a Hollywood inventi...
Did Willy Wonka’s Creator Spy on America?
18 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Roald Dahl is a beloved children’s author. Turns out, he was also a British spy during WWII! So how does one transition from seducing prominent ...
A Washington & Lincoln Birthday Special!
16 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In honor of President's Day, we're sharing some of the best conversations we've had about Honest Abe and General Washington. We speak with histo...
American History Hotline: A Washington & Lincoln Birthday Special!
16 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In honor of President's Day, we're sharing some of the best conversations we've had about Honest Abe and General Washington. We speak with histo...
America Loves Trains. Why Can’t We Build Them Anymore? Inside NYC’s Second Avenue Subway [from American History Hotline]
13 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It takes decades to build a new subway line in the United States. Meanwhile, China is building entire high-speed rail networks in just a few years. So...
Abraham Lincoln Before the Presidency: What He Learned as a Lawmaker
12 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Before he became president, Abraham Lincoln spent just one term in Congress. So how did "the best known two-time Senate loser in the country" become o...
Are the Olympics an Appropriate Place for Protest?
11 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
You gotta keep 'em separated. That's a lot of people's opinion about mixing sports and politics. But as the world turns its eyes to Italy for the 2026...
Who Integrated the NFL?
04 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball. That's a well known piece of history. But who integrated the NFL? Well, it's an amazing sto...
Can the President Tear Down the White House?
28 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Who owns the White House? Is it the American people or the person who lives inside of it — AKA, the president? If the President of the Uni...
Abraham Lincoln Before the Presidency: What He Learned as a Lawmaker
21 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Before he became president, Abraham Lincoln spent just one term in Congress. So how did "the best known two-time Senate loser in the country" become o...
Did Montezuma Surrender? Debunking the Myth of the Spanish Conquest
14 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
For centuries, the story has been told the same way: Montezuma surrendered to Hernán Cortés, and a small band of Spaniards conquered the...
America Loves Trains. Why Can’t We Build Them Anymore? Inside NYC’s Second Avenue Subway
07 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It takes decades to build a new subway line in the United States. Meanwhile, China is building entire high-speed rail networks in just a few years. So...
Can We Add a Fifth Face to Mount Rushmore? The History and Future of the Monument
31 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Could a new president ever be carved into Mount Rushmore? It depends on who you ask. We call up historian Matthew Davis (author of A Biography of a Mo...
Are These Really the Best Movies of the 21st Century? Debating the NYT’s Top 100
24 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What is the greatest movie of the 21st century? The New York Times says it’s Parasite, but not everyone agrees. We call up Rotten Tomatoes corre...
Death by Lightning: What Netflix Got Right (and Wrong) About a Presidential Assassination
17 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Netflix’s Death by Lightning is gripping, dramatic and TRUE. Or is it? We call up historian and New York Times bestselling author Alexis C...
Was Johnny Appleseed a Real Person? The Man Behind the Myth
10 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Was Johnny Appleseed a real person or just another American tall tale? We get to the core of the issue with author William Kerrigan (Johnny Appleseed ...
The Surprising History of Vaccines in America with Kathryn Olivarius
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Many Americans have turned their backs on the vax, but early Early Americans would literally have killed for some vaccines. In this episode, we explor...
Why Were There So Many Serial Killers in 1970s America?
26 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Was it the rise of hitchhiking? Lead in the water pipes? Or was it something a little darker in our culture? Bob rings up private investigator and hos...
Is Thanksgiving a Feast of Lies?! Historian David J. Silverman Separates Myth from Truth
19 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We all have that relative that tells us there was actually no green bean casserole at the first Thanksgiving. Yeah, we know, Grandma! But how much do ...
When Murder Was Legal …ish
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 1859, Congressman Daniel Sickles murdered Philip Barton Key (son of the man who wrote The Star-Spangled Banner) in a fit of jealous rage just steps...
How Did Big Tech Take Over Our Elections?
05 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
You won't see it on the ballot, but it's always the winner in American elections. That's right, we're talking about big tech. From Facebook to Google ...
Why Won't Daylight Saving Time Die?
29 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Set it and forget it! That's what most Americans want to do with their clocks. They want standard time year-round. So, why are we stuck with Daylight ...
Hunting Witches: What Started the Salem Witch Trials?
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Which witch is which? You probably heard a lot of lawyers saying that in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. That was the year of America's largest witch hu...
Hail to the Cheapskate: How Presidents Made (and Spent) Their Money
15 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How did America’s presidents really make—and manage—their money? Bob Crawford sits down with financial expert and author Megan Gorma...
What Was Columbus REALLY Like?
08 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A complicated man in complicated times? A genocidal enslaving maniac? Or something in between? Bob voyages back in time with biographer Matthew Restal...
Blackface's Lasting Legacy in America with Tyrone Howard
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What’s so wrong about a white person painting their face black to entertain a crowd? Well, it helps to understand the history of blackface in Am...
Why Watergate Didn't Bother Lynyrd Skynyrd / Ozzy vs. Winged Creatures
24 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Did Ozzy bite the head off a bat? Is there a political message in Sweet Home Alabama? Bob Crawford sits down with music critic and author Mark Kemp to...
Dueling in Early America: Hamilton, Burr, and Honor Culture with Lindsay Chervinsky
17 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This episode demands satisfaction! Why did Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr meet on the dueling ground—and how common were duels in early Ameri...
Buffalo Soldiers: The History Behind Bob Marley’s Lyrics with Cale E. Carter II
10 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Buffalo Soldier, dreadlock RastaThere was a Buffalo SoldierIn the heart of AmericaStolen from Africa, brought to AmericaFighting on arrival, fighting ...
Why Do Third Parties Fail?
03 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Spoilers ahead! No, not those type of spoilers. We're talking about third party presidential candidates and the reasons third parties can't get a foot...
Episode Title Redacted: From the Files of the CIA
29 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Who was America's most successful spy? What happens to a spy that's captured? How can you tell if your child is lying? We interrogate a former member ...
Arsenic and Cyanide: The Dark Side of Victorian Womanhood in America
27 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why did so many women in the 1800s turn to poison to solve their problems? (Sorry husbands). Poisons like mercury, arsenic and strychnine were s...
Peter Sagal: Is the Electoral College "America's Worst Idea"?
20 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The U.S. Constitution has inspired countless countries to adopt democracy, but NONE have adopted the electoral college. What's up with that? Turns out...
Why Haven't We Returned to the Moon in 50+ Years?
13 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Moon. We hit it and quit it. But after more than 50 years is it time to rekindle the relationship? We'll explore the reasons we stopped going to t...
America's Favorite Fighting Frenchman: Lafayette
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why did a French-born aristocrat volunteer (without pay) to fight for the Americans during the Revolutionary War? And what happened when the Marquis d...
Was Disease the Biggest Killer in the Civil War?
30 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
"War is 99 parts diarrhea and one part glory." Walt Whitman had a point when he wrote this. Diseases like dysentery, typhus, and malaria were responsi...
Did George Washington Cut Down a Cherry Tree and Tell the Truth?
23 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sir Mix-a-Lot can't lie about liking big butts. And George Washington can't lie about cutting down cherry trees. Or can he? According to Washington bi...
Would Lincoln Be a Republican Today?
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's Lincoln's party and he'll cry if he wants to. We trace the evolution of America's major political parties to understand how they've changed since...
Can the Great Depression Happen Again?
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Roaring Twenties was a period of tremendous financial growth in America — punctuated by a stock market crash and the highest poverty and une...
Does the Constitution Prevent A Dictator?
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How does the U.S. Constitution protect our country from being taken over by a power-hungry dictator? You may not like the answer. President and CEO of...
Dead on the 4th of July
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
American history is full of folklore and tall tales, so it's hard to believe that Founders Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both died on July 4th, 1826...
Introducing: American History Hotline
28 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
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