Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street
Episodes
23: It's Summer in the USA
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's getting hot outside. School is out and July 4 is just around the corner. Summer is here! What does the summer season mean to you? Americans are f...
22: Our Towns Are Our Passion: The Power of Community Service
05 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Explore the many ways that people contribute their skills, their passions, and their time to activities that benefit their hometowns. No matter where ...
21: Varied and Vital: What Women Contribute to the Country
13 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
"Too often, the women were unsung, and sometimes their contributions went unnoticed. But the achivements, leadership, courage, strength, and love of t...
20: Love Makes the Difference
25 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In addition to our families, we also share ties that bond us with friends, neighbors, and companions in shared interests like religious, cultural and ...
19: Having Fun in a Small Town
05 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
"How do people have fun in your town?" was one of the most interesting questions Stories from Main Street asked of rural Americans over the years. Nev...
18: The Food (and Memories) That Unite Us This Holiday Season
11 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome back to the Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street! It's the holidays, and for many of us, that means food. Our foodways connect us in intimat...
17: Shapeshifters, Ghosts, and Red-Eyed Dogs: Spooky Tales and a Rich Heritage
29 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome back to Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street! We're relaunching this series during an introspective time of year, with Halloween just around...
16: Hopefully, My Generation Will Be the Ones to Change It
27 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Young people throughout the country bring new perspectives and attitudes to our history and our culture. But often, they don't feel welcome to the con...
Preview: Youth Voices
13 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Here's a sneak peek at our next special episode! Give a listen to the voices and the work of the next generation of rural Americans learning about the...
15: Good Relationships Build Stronger Communities
28 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You've got to have friends! Personal and professional connections are critical to the development of healthy communities, whether they are rural or ur...
14: Great Things Happen Here
14 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we're taking a closer look at two very different rural communities that embody technological innovation. In Taos, New Mexico, solar e...
13: Comebacks and Ripple Effects
31 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rural America is full of places of innovation--towns where people work together to conceive new ideas and spark engagement by the community to impleme...
Trailer: Small Town Innovation: Creativity and Resilience
17 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For many years, the conventional wisdom in the United States has been that rural America is hurting: facing impacts from outmigration, aging populatio...
Special: "Museum on Main Street: A Love Letter to Small-Town America" from Museums in Strange Places
29 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We're excited to share an episode from our host Hannah Hethmon's podcast Museums in Strange Places. Back in 2019, Museums in Strange Places featured t...
12: My Vote, My Voice
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Apologies friends! This pod is the actual episode titled "My Vote, My Voice," which should have been originally posted back in October. "The Greater G...
11: Use Your Voice! Get Involved
01 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What civic responsibilities do we have as Americans? What do we owe to the process of democracy? What is the best way to voice our opinions and shape ...
10: The Greater Good: Democracy Everyday
18 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Democracy can be messy. Americans share many common values and ideals, but views on how that works out in the democratic process and in public policy ...
Trailer: Democracy in America: Voices and Votes
04 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Coming soon! What does "democracy" mean to you? As Election Day 2023 nears and the 2024 presidential campaign is already a daily news story, it is imp...
9: Are We at a Crossroads?
20 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Is rural America endangered, thriving, or just scraping by? The answer depends on who you ask and where you ask. As we finish our mini-series on chang...
8: "Living in a Small Town Taught Me..." Identity in Rural America
06 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rural America has always been more nuanced and diverse than you often see in popular depictions. People have always experienced rural America in diffe...
7: Small Town = Hard Work
23 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Listen in as rural Americans talk about the work -- creative, unique, and sometimes exhausting -- they do. It's a revealing look at how work helps for...
Season 2 Trailer: Change in Rural America
15 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome back to the Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street podcast! The stereotypical view of rural America is that life is quiet, people all think th...
6: Worth Saving
13 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Our waterways are one of our most precious shared resources. But in some places, we risk losing them to pollution, climate change, or overuse. In this...
5: Over and Under
30 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We sometimes take for granted that we humans have figured out how to swim and dive, and travel across great bodies of water on boats. But it is really...
4: An Invitation to Play
16 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What is it about water that can instantly improve our mood, stir up joy, or awaken our inner child? In episode 4, we dive into the joy of playing in t...
3: How We Grow
02 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Simply add water and watch it grow! In episode 3, we dig into the ways water contributes to almost everything we need to survive, and drink in stories...
2: Work and the Water
18 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
These things are certain: the passage of time, the flow of water, and the labor of humankind. In episode 2, we navigate stories of work and the water,...
1: Take Me to the Water
04 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the water. In episode 1, join host and producer Hannah Hethmon as she explores stories that highlight the many ways water connects and defi...
Season 1 Trailer-Water Stories
24 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Experience the voice of small-town America, one story at a time. Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street is a new podcast from Museum on Main Street, a...