Our American Stories

The Double Agent Spy Who Helped Win D-Day (w/ Stephen Ambrose)

09 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, defeating the Nazi menace would take more than strength and tactics. It required the Allies giving them lots ...

A Doolittle Raider’s Story of War & Forgiveness

08 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, two enemies: One led Japan’s surprise attack on Pearl Harbor; the other was an American Doolittle Raider wh...

"I Came Here Not To Talk, But To Die": The Story of Outlaw Cherokee Bill

08 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Art Burton, the author of countless books on African Americans in the West, tells the story of one of the mos...

The Untold Story of a Civil War Cemetery

08 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Nancy Bro of the GAR Cemetery in Miami, Oklahoma shares the stories of the unique and colorful characters bur...

The “LA Speed Check”: A Story from a Pilot of the Fastest Plane in the World

08 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, here’s Major Brian Shul with his legendary story known today as the “LA Speed Check.” Support the show ...

The Life of Duke Ellington: An American Original

07 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, some believe he was the most important composer of the 20th century, in or out of jazz. Terry Teachout, one o...

Three Stories Guaranteed to Make You Laugh About The King of Rock & Roll—From the Man Who Was There

07 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Greg McDonald got his start in show business as a teenager after meeting Elvis Presley and his manager, Colon...

Halloween Haunted House History

07 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Halloween expert Lisa Morton is going to be unpacking the history of the Halloween Haunted House, which is di...

The "Slap Shot" Story with Dave Hanson

07 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the choice of three then-minor league hockey players to play the Hanson Brothers in "Slap Shot" starring Paul...

“Red Tape” and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 19)

07 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

A Father Wanted A Clean Hotel For His Family... So He Created Holiday Inn

04 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Kemmons Wilson Jr. tells the story of how his father (Kemmons Wilson) created a hotel chain that established ...

Triumph and Disaster: The Life of Rudyard Kipling

04 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the life of the youngest-ever winner of the Nobel Prize for literature, Rudyard Kipling, was filled with trag...

“A Ph.D. Who Can Win A Bar Fight”—WWII’s Most Incredible Spy Was Also a Hollywood Heartthrob: The Story of Peter Ortiz (Hollywood Goes to War)

04 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1944, Peter Ortiz parachuted into Nazi-occupied France, where the Gestapo offered a reward of half a milli...

Treating the Cause, Not the Symptoms: A Listener's Life-Changing Lifestyle Story

04 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, "On the outside I looked pretty good, but inside, I felt like I was dying." Tim Hennessey was appalled at his...

Curly (of "The Three Stooges") Was My Grandfather... But My Family Kept It a Secret from Me

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Brad Server grew up watching The Three Stooges on TV, not knowing he was related to one of the greatest comi...

"If You Act Like a Lady, Men Will Always Treat You as One": Gold Rush Queen, Nellie Cashman

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, relatively few women went with the initial stampedes to new mineral discoveries throughout the American front...

The Time I Nearly Died in Pilot Training

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on the morning of September 11, 2001, Peter Braxton was the first military pilot in the air over the burning ...

Legendary Founder of The Ritz Carlton: My Employees Are My Closest Neighbor

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, a legend and leader in the hotel world, Horst Schulze has reshaped how service and hospitality are defined in...

California Softens Criminality—Skid Row Police Officer Deon Responds with "Ladies Night"

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Senior Lead Officer Deon Joseph shares this vivid story about how he helped the ladies who lived on LA's noto...

Bruce Wang, All-American: The Chinese Cowboy With A Southern Accent

02 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Bruce may be Chinese-born, but as you are about to hear, he’s all American. Support the show (https://www.o...

A One Man (Abridged) History of the Big Apple

02 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, if you’re curious enough, the familiar can become fascinating. Bill Bryk briefly recounts how New York City...

The Only Woman to be Awarded the Medal of Honor

02 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the History Guy remembers a truly extraordinary Civil War heroine, Mary Edwards Walker. She was the only woma...

How American History Created the American Superhero

02 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Jeffery Johnson, author of Super-History: Comic Book Superheroes and American Society, tells the story of how...

“Wild Bill" Donovan, America’s Top Spymaster

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, “Wild Bill" Donovan was one of America’s most exciting and secretive generals—the man President Frankl...

John Eliot, The Apostle to the Indians (100 Bible Verses that Changed America)

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, if you want to know about the history of America, it is imperative that you know the role that the Bible play...

The Story of the Brooklyn Bridge—The 8th Wonder of the World

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the Brooklyn Bridge, with its unprecedented length and two stately towers, was dubbed the “eighth wonder of...

"Bring Home the Bacon" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 5)

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

Weapons of WWII with Stephen Ambrose: Bombers and Fighters

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Stephen Ambrose was one of America’s leading biographers and historians. Ambrose passed away in 2002 but hi...

The Story of How One Bad Employee Harmed a Bank's Reputation (Told by the Ritz-Carlton Founder)

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Ritz-Carlton founder Horst Schulze reshaped how service and hospitality are defined in business. He tells a s...

Lincoln's Perilous 13-Day Train Ride to DC--For His First Inaugural

30 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Ted Widmer sits down with Lee Habeeb to discuss his book, Lincoln on the Verge: 13 Days to Washington. Sup...

The Little Boy Who Saved His Family

30 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Kathy Cooley shares the story of how her late son, Christopher, led his family to faith and founding their or...

The Time a County Seceded From a State: The Story of McDonald County, Missouri

30 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1961, McDonald County, Missouri found a unique way to show their dissatisfaction with their state governme...

A Daughter Discovers Her Long Passed Father Through His War Letters

27 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Loretto M. Thompson recounts her significant yet distant memories of her father - and how she grew to know hi...

Nellie Bly's Record-Breaking Trip Around the World

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Nellie Bly was a writer, industrialist, inventor, and a charity worker who was widely known for her record-br...

Butch Cassidy: The Man Who Brought Organization to Unorganized Crime in the West

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, when people think of Butch Cassidy, they often imagine Paul Newman’s characterization from the famous movie...

Adolph Coors: The German Immigrant Who Brought Us Banquet Beer

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Coors Banquet is really good...no, really good, and its story began with a German immigrant living in a Color...

The Man Who Milks Snakes for a Living

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, at the age of 6, Nathaniel Frank became intrigued with reptiles and dreamt of working with them one day. Toda...

When America Tried to Deport Its Radicals: The Story of the Palmer Raids

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Larry Reed tells the story of one of the worst violations of the rule of law in our nation's history. Support...

Weapons of WWII With Stephen Ambrose: Poison Gas and Transportation

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Stephen Ambrose was one of America’s leading biographers and historians. Ambrose passed away in 2002 but hi...

"Wild Goose Chase" & "Wrong End of The Stick" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 25)

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

Brett Favre’s Tribute to His Father

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Brett Favre, during his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction speech in 2016, takes us back to the day after hi...

"White Elephant" & "Wear Your Heart on Your Sleeve" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 24)

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

The Story of The First Man To Die In an Airplane Crash

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, becoming masters of the skies has come at a cost. Lt. Thomas E. Selfridge stepped up for service against enem...

The LLC, Concrete, and the Index Fund: Fifty Things That Shaped the Modern Economy

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Tim Harford, author of the bestselling book 50 Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy, shares the storie...

Valerie Habeeb's Story: From Sexual Abuse to Salvation

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, our host, Lee Habeeb, tells his wife's story. Decades after years of sexual abuse and crisis, Valerie leaned ...

Sgt. Stubby: The Most Decorated War Dog of WWI

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Jeremy Swick of the College Football Hall of Fame recounts the remarkable story of the street dog turned sold...

Ches McCartney: The Goatman of Appalachia

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, JD Phillips tells the story of Ches McCartney, the man who traversed the United States in a ramshackle wagon ...

Weapons of World War II with Stephen Ambrose: Shermans, Tigers, and Panthers

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, tank strategists involved with winning World War I favored a supporting role for tanks. In the 1930s, the los...

Going Postal: How The USPS Came to Be

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the United States Postal Service was established in 1792. It’s hard to believe that a service that was crea...

Being Imprisoned with Leprosy Patients Changed His Life

24 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, for much of his early life, success and status were the driving factors of Neil White's life. This mindset le...

One of the Great Men of American Business Started Out as a… Paperboy

24 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Jerre Stead, who's been the CEO of 10 publicly traded companies and has served on 37 corporate boards, shares...

My Life Changing Encounter With a Real Life WWII Hero

24 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Jay Moore tells us an emotional story of meeting a real life World War II hero before going to see Saving Pr...

The Untold Stories of Dr. Seuss's "The Lorax" and "The Grinch"

24 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dr. Seuss was raised as a Lutheran and had a strong religious background. His books often included strong mor...

The Story of Cabbage Patch Kids and the 1983 Retail Riots

23 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Jonathan Alexandratos is a toy historian whose knowledge was featured in the film, Billion Dollar Babies: The...

The 1926 Race to the South Pole

23 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, The History Guy remembers when explorers raced to go where no one had gone before, Amundsen, Byrd, and the fu...

A Son Discovers His Deceased Mother's Hidden Talent

23 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Texas boys don’t write poetry, and certainly don’t cry. Roger Latham did, though, after discovering a poe...

The Story of Brain Surgery

23 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dr. Theodore Schwartz is an attending neurological surgeon and professor of neurological surgery at Weill Cor...

The Story Behind FDR's Day of Infamy Speech

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on the day Pearl Harbor was attacked, FDR's speechwriting team wasn't in Washington. Roosevelt, with the hel...

The Inventor of the Machine Gun Became Deaf—So His Son Invented the Silencer

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1902, the first successful, commercially available gun silencer was invented by Hiram Percy Maxim. He als...

The Titanic’s Last Hero

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Lowell Lytle has been one of the privileged few who has seen Titanic first-hand. Lowell has played the part ...

The Heiress of "America's Billionaire King" Who Joined Her Terrorist-Abductors: The Story of Patty Hearst

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1974, Patricia Hearst—heiress of the William Randolph Hearst newspaper empire—was abducted by an Amer...

Winston Churchill on Education and What It Means for All of Us

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dr. Larry Arnn, President of Hillsdale College and a Churchill scholar, tells the story of Winston Churchill...

The WWII Story of a Black Man Who Rescued White Sailors by Swimming 6 Hours in Shark-Infested Waters

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Bruce Wigo—the former CEO of the International Swimming Hall of Fame—is here to share a story of an unkn...

The Marine-Turned Saturday Morning Cartoonist: "My Calling from God is to be an Animator"

19 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, after a career in the Marines, Mike Joens worked for some of the most successful animation studios (Hanna Bar...

The Story of One of the Most Decorated Veterans of All Time: The Col. David Hackworth Story

19 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, most know the now famous line from the film Apocalypse Now, which showed Robert Duvall standing in a bombed-o...

How One Black Woman Led in the Redemption of "The Most Dangerous Racist In America": The Story of George Wallace and Shirley Chisholm

19 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, a tragic event brought a racist (Wallace) and a radical (Chisholm) together and forged an unlikely alliance. ...

Before Kevin Costner's "Yellowstone" was Richard King's "King Ranch"

19 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the story of Richard King and his "King Ranch" has much to tell us about America. Here is the pulse of the na...

"Apple of Your Eye" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 2)

19 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

The Constitution's First Test—Washington's First Term: The Story of America [Ep. 14]

18 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the new Constitution was an experiment—a unplayed sheet of music— and we wouldn't know what it would loo...

David McCullough: The Founding Fathers Were Not Like Us?

18 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, renowned historian David McCullough answers the question - about a most extraordinary group of men at a most...

Dr. Larry Arnn Explains the Constitution and Declaration in Six Minutes

18 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, here is Dr. Larry Arnn, President of Hillsdale College, with your daily briefing on the foundational claims ...

How the Constitution Came to Be: The Story of America [Ep. 12]

18 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories,The Constitution didn't just become the law of the land overnight—it took some convincing. Here to tell the...

Justice Scalia on Why The Constitution is Unique

18 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, a bill of rights depends on a government that actually manifests restraint. Otherwise, Justice Scalia sugges...

The Man Who Led America's "Miracle on Ice": The 1980 US Men's Olympic Hockey Team

17 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Mike Eruzione recounts the unlikely circumstances that led to his amazing career on ice, the legendary upset...

Weapons of WWII with Stephen Ambrose: Barbed Wire, Mines, Guns, and Artillery

17 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Stephen Ambrose was one of America’s leading biographers and historians. Ambrose passed in 2002, but his e...

One of America's Great Business Leaders Tells The Story of Why Bureaucracy Size Matters

17 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Mike Leven was President and Chief Operating Officer of Las Vegas Sands Corp. One of the great hoteliers of ...

The Civil War's Moses Moment at Providence Spring—100 Bible Verses That Changed America

17 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the Union Soldiers at Andersonville Prison were near starvation, and dehydration, when prayer saved thousand...

Jedediah Smith: The Mountain Man Who Opened the American West

17 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, just decades following the signing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787, trailblazers called “mountain men” ...

The Story of America—Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in the 30th Episode of our Story of America Series with Dr. Bill McClay, author of Land of Hope, Bill reads ...

A Listener's Story About His Uncle Bud's Last Days

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, listener and regular contributor Brent Timmons tells the story of spending time with his Uncle Bud in the fi...

The Story of the 1st Black Woman to Join the U.S. Coast Guard

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dr. Olivia Hooker tells the story of how and why she joined the U.S. Coast Guard. Support the show (https:/...

The Story of Air Conditioning, the Barcode, and the Elevator Brake!

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Tim Harford, an economist and best selling author of Fifty Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy, tell...

The American Chocolatier: Milton Hershey's Story

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, an American candy store in 1900 looked very different than it does today. Candy was a special treat sold alm...

Johnny Cash: The Redemption of an American Icon

13 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Johnny Cash is an American original, and this story is an insider’s look at the man whose music sprang fro...

The Cold War On TV: Anti-Communist Crusader Senator Joseph McCarthy vs. CBS Reporter Edward R. Murrow

13 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Kirk Higgins, the Senior Director of Content at the Bill of Rights Institute, tells the story of the prime t...

The Story of How a Dog Walked a Couple Through Their Infertility Struggle

13 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Stephen Rusiniak shares the story about his four legged family member that helped him and his wife through t...

The Story of the Capture of California's Serial Killer—the "Original Nightstalker"—Told by the Man Who Arrested Him

13 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, one thing that cannot be downplayed is the emotion Sergeant Bob Alaniz carries to this day knowing that the ...

How an Iowa Waitress Became an Officer's Wife in Texas

13 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Our American Stories listener, Joy Neal Kidney, shares her mother's story about how she became the wife of a...

The Unlikely Relationship Between Two of NYC's Finest

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, 9/11 firefighter Niels Jorgensen and billionaire David Koch, and the tragedies that brought them together. S...

What I Learned About Faith and Friendship After 9/11

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Our American Stories listener Jocelyn Green tells the story of what she learned about faith and friendship a...

Calling All Boats: How FDNY Fireboats Helped During 9/11

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on September 11th, 2001, more people were evacuated from Lower Manhattan than Dunkirk on FDNY fireboats, tug...

The CEO of The Company That Lost More Lives Than Any Other—658, Including His Brother—Remembers 9/11

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Howard Lutnick, the CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, tells the story of the company's worst tragedy..and their rema...

They Will Be Remembered: A Letter For All Those Who Served

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, President Ronald Reagan's Chief Speechwriter and Pulitzer Prize Winning journalist Tony Dolan pays tribute t...

9/11 As The News Reported It

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the crew at Our American Stories assembled a vast array of news reports of 9/11 as it unfolded. Here are tho...

How the Football Rivalry Between Michigan and Ohio State Began

11 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the rivalry between Michigan and Ohio actually dates back to before the days of football. Tedd Long, curator...

Down Cemetery Row

11 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Our American Stories listener Bill Bryk gives us a tour of his local cemetery in Antrim, New Hampshire—and...

The Goo Goo Cluster: Nashville's "Official" Candy?

11 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, it's a family story, a business story, and a regional story; It's the story of how the Goo Goo cluster becam...

Paul Revere's Ride

11 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in this dramatic reading, American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow immortalized Old North Church and Paul Re...

The 1st Air Force Pilot at Ground Zero—and the Last to Know What Happened

11 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on the morning of September 11, 2001, Peter Braxton was the first military pilot in the air over the burning...

A Museum Dedicated to Bad Art?

11 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, The Museum of Bad Art is one of a kind...here to tell the story is one of its founding members. Support the ...