Stuff You Missed in History Class
Episodes
The Lions of Tsavo, Pt. 1
16 Dec 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1898, two male lions killed and ate dozens of people in Tsavo and shut down construction of the Uganda Railroad. Lt. Col. John H. Patterson, a civi...
The Axman of New Orleans, Part 2
11 Dec 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The second half of the Axman story involves his famous letter to the New Orleans Times-Picayune warning that he would descend on the city, but would s...
The Axman of New Orleans, Part 1
09 Dec 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1918 and 1919, a rash of attacks had all of New Orleans on edge. While the Axman has turned up in modern storytelling, no fiction could top the rea...
Sei Shonagon and the Heian Court
04 Dec 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Thanks to the pillow book of lady-in-waiting Sei Shonagon, we have a first-person account of court life in Heian Japan. It's part diary, part commonpl...
The Boston Massacre
02 Dec 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The name "Boston Massacre" sounds as though it was the slaughter of a bunch of innocents in colonial Boston. The reality is much smaller - and not nea...
Zenobia and the Roman Empire
27 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Our focus today is on a woman who was actually covered in the podcast several years ago. But she's a figure so mythic and with so many variations to h...
Hessians
25 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
If you've only seen the Hessians referenced in movies or TV, you probably don't have a clear picture of who these very capable soldiers actually were....
Edward Jenner, Father of Vaccines
20 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Smallpox has been around longer than recorded history. It killed royalty, shifted the tides of battles, and was so terrifying that many religions have...
Babushka Lady
18 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Despite all the publicity surrounding the shooting of John F. Kennedy, the identity of one witness has remained elusive for decades. Beverly Oliver ha...
Emperor Rudolf II of Austria
13 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
He was an art patron. He loved science. He spoke many languages. He was also known for a dark temper and instability, and his poor decisions as a rule...
Improbably Effective Holocaust Rescuers
11 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
There are many amazing, heroic stories of people who risked everything to protect Jews and other people at risk before and during the holocaust. A few...
Audre Lorde Pt. 2
06 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In addition to being a poet, Audre was a teacher, speaker, wife and mother, and become an influential presence in the feminist movement. She also wrot...
Audre Lorde Pt. 1
04 Nov 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Audre Lorde called herself a "black feminist lesbian mother poet warrior," but for a lot of people, she's best known for the "poet" part. She was way ...
Sophie Blanchard and Balloonomania
30 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
From timid girl to trailblazer, Sophie Blanchard became famous in the early 1800s as the first woman to become a career balloonist. Learn more about ...
Encephalitis Lethargica
28 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
From 1916 to about 1927, a strange epidemic spread around the world. It caused unusual symptoms, from drastic behavior changes to a deep, prolonged sl...
Building Disneyland's Haunted Mansion, Pt. 2
23 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The second installment in the story of the Haunted Mansion going from concept to fully-realized theme park attraction covers the reboot the team went ...
Building Disneyland's Haunted Mansion, Pt. 1
21 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most iconic Disney park attractions -- the Haunted Mansion -- had a development process that was anything but smooth. Budget and scheduling...
Elsa Lanchester: Becoming the Bride Pt. 2
16 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
After her unconventional upbringing, Elsa's career as a performer began to take off in the late 1920s, around the same time she met her husband. But t...
Elsa Lanchester: Becoming the Bride Pt. 1
14 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
You may not know her name, but her image is famous. As the love interest for Dr. Frankenstein's monster in "The Bride of Frankenstein," Elsa Lancheste...
Alan L. Hart
09 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Alan L. Hart was a doctor, writer, and prominent figure in the fields of radiology and tuberculosis control. He was also one of the first people in th...
Was there a real Sweeney Todd?
07 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Sweeney Todd is a well-known fictional character, a murderous barber who colludes with a cook to bake his victims into pies. There are many instances ...
Grove Park Inn
02 Oct 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Like any grand old hotel, the Grove Park Inn has quite a history, involving real medicine, patent medicine, famous writers and inventors, several wars...
New England Vampire Panic
30 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Starting in the late 1700s and running for a century, small rural communities in New England were sometimes stricken with a panicked fear that the dea...
Luis W. Alvarez, Pt. 2
25 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The second part of the Luis Alvarez episode covers his time as part of the Manhattan Project designing detonators for atomic bombs. Beyond his controv...
Luis W. Alvarez, Pt. 1
23 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Luis Alvarez was a physicist whose broad interests connected him to some of the 20th century's most influential moments, including the bombing of Hiro...
Philo T. Farnsworth
18 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Phylo T. Farnsworth is called the "Father of Television" -- his initial idea for electronic television came to him as a teen. He's also become somethi...
Mendez v. Westminster
16 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Mendez v. Westminster fought the segregation of Mexican-American students in the state of California in the 1940s -- and it went on pave the way for t...
Phineas Gage
11 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1848, Phineas Gage experienced a catastrophic brain injury and survived -- though altered -- for more than 11 years. Over time, he morphed into one...
Marie Taglioni
09 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Marie Taglioni is considered THE ballerina of the Romantic era. She's often credited with revolutionizing, restyling and redefining dance, though her ...
Thomas Morris Chester
04 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Chester was the first African American war correspondent working for a major daily paper, covering the U.S. Civil War. He also had a troubled relation...
The Nazca Lines
02 Sep 2013
Contributed by Lukas
About 200 miles southeast of Lima, Peru, between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, there are lines etched into the desert. The glyphs have re...
Jane Addams, Pt. 2
28 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Jane Addams was a leader and advocate, especially for the working poor - but her work really boiled down to a better quality of life for everyone. Par...
Jane Addams, Pt. 1
26 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Jane Addams was one of the foremost women in America's Progressive Era. She co founded the social settlement Hull House, spoke and wrote on social iss...
Paxton's Crystal Palace
21 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Sir Joseph Paxton was a 19th-century botanist who became instantly famous for the hall he designed for the Great Expo of 1851. After the expo, the Cry...
Chesapeake Bay Oyster Wars
19 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In the years after the Industrial Revolution and the Civil War, the oyster supply became so scarce that people turned to oyster piracy. The bloodshed ...
The Mysterious Hope Diamond, Pt. 2
14 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Hope Diamond is well traveled, but is it cursed? Does it have mystical powers? Why does it glow red after exposure to UV light? Analysis of the cu...
The Mysterious Hope Diamond, Pt. 1
12 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Hope Diamond has traveled across continents, been stolen in revolutions, and was even the signature accessory of a wealthy heiress for nearly four...
The Flannan Isles Disappearance
07 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Flannan Islands have been rumored for centuries to be haunted or have some supernatural darkness. In 1900, three men vanished from the lighthouse ...
Hypatia of Alexandria
05 Aug 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Hypatia was one of the earliest female mathematicians and astronomers -- though she wasn't the very first, she was among the greatest. At the time of ...
Charley Parkhurst, One-eyed Whip
31 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Charley Parkhurst was a stagecoach whip who spent almost 20 years handling teams of horses over treacherous terrain at high speeds. After his death in...
The Antikythera Mechanism
29 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1900, a shipwreck was discovered near the island of Antikythera, including an assortment of luxury goods: statues, silver coins, vases ... and what...
We All Scream for Ice Cream
24 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
There is actually some disagreement about the actual origin point of ice cream, but almost everyone agrees it's delicious. The real origin story is a ...
Pluto: The Demoted Dwarf Planet
22 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
It was the only planet to have been discovered by an American, but it's no longer classified as a planet. Who found Pluto, and how did astronomers eve...
Selman Waksman and the Streptomycin Controversy
17 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
An accomplished bacteriologist, Selman Waksman and his students and colleagues isolated many new antibiotics in the 1940s, including streptomycin and ...
Boudica: Warrior Queen
15 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Boudica was a queen of the Iceni who staged either a successful rebellion against the Romans or a massacre, depending on who's talking. Learn more ab...
George Aiston: Outback Entrepreneur
10 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
A member of the South Australian Mounted Police, George "Poddy" Aiston was a friend to and advocate for Aboriginal peoples, a fairly accomplished phot...
Particle Physics and Animals
08 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Felicia the ferret, who helped Fermilab in the early '70s, has been popping up in online stories and social media lately. How did she come to work in ...
The Luddites
03 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Luddite uprising was a series of protests in northern England, in which workers smashed machines in mills and factories. This wasn't the first org...
John Harvey Kellogg
01 Jul 2013
Contributed by Lukas
While his last name is famous for breakfast cereal, John Harvey Kellogg was a 19th-century doctor with some unique (and groundbreaking) beliefs about ...
Five Historical Robots
26 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Long before Czech playwright Karel Capek coined the term "robot" in his 1920 play "R.U.R.," mechanized creations -- automata -- were being created wit...
The Cursed Mary Celeste
24 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
She's often referred to as a cursed ghost ship. The history of the Mary Celeste features one unfortunate incident after another. While this vessel is ...
The Irish Potato Famine: An Unnatural Disaster, Pt. 2
19 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In the mid-1800s, the poorest people in Ireland ate almost nothing but potatoes. Other crops were for selling. So when a blight cut a swath through th...
The Irish Potato Famine: An Unnatural Disaster, Pt. 1
17 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The history lesson kids often get on the Irish Potato Famine could be summed up as "a blight destroyed the potato crops, and a lot of people starved o...
Paul Poiret
11 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
French designer Paul Poiret's work, which was often avante-garde, changed the fashion world in significant ways. He got rid of corsets, introduced the...
Benjamin Banneker
10 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Despite having almost no official schooling and being a man of color in Colonial America, Benjamin Banneker turned out to be such an accomplished scho...
Who was the real Robin Hood?
05 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Robin Hood-style characters have been showing up in literature since the 14th century. Historians disagree about whether there was any truth to the le...
The Phoenician Alphabet
03 Jun 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Phoenicians were great ship-builders, sailors and textile experts. But they're most known for developing the alphabet that many modern alphabets a...
Boxer Rebellion
28 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
"It was a culture clash of epic proportions. The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising, was a gruesome, violent slaughter of Chinese Christi...
Heaven on Earth: the Brook Farm Community
27 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In the 1840s, Boston's West Roxbury suburb -- which was completely rural at the time -- was home to an experiment in transcendentalist utopian living:...
Russia's Vladimir the Great
22 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Vladimir I is often credited with bringing Christianity to Russia, though he actually embraced paganism first as Grand Prince of Kievan Rus. Wishing t...
India's Karni Mata Rat Temple
20 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Though it's most famous for its rats, the story of this temple starts with Hindu goddess Durga and Karni Mata, a 15th-century mystic believed to be he...
China's Empress Dowager Cixi
15 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
After becoming a concubine for Emperor Xianfeng at the age of 16, Cixi rose to power when he died and her young son inherited the throne. She governed...
Cannibalism at Jamestown
13 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
On May 1, 2013, forensic evidence confirmed what survivors had reported: Colonists at Jamestown resorted to cannibalism during the winter of 1609-1610...
Here, Kitty Kitty: The Domestication of the Cat
08 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The human culture shift to an agricultural lifestyle started the domestication of animals. Cats naturally moved in to help with rodents. Today, there ...
The Hindenburg Disaster
06 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Hindenburg tragedy is one of the world's most infamous air disasters, but the dirigible had many successful flights prior to its final voyage, inc...
Stede Bonnet, the Gentleman Pirate
01 May 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1717, Stede Bonnet left his family and became a pirate. Despite having no seafaring experience, Bonnet's brief career as a pirate was eventful, inc...
Sarah Emma Edmonds, Civil War Spy
29 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Though she was Canadian, Sarah Emma Edmonds fought for the Union during the Civil War. She adopted the name Franklin Thompson while traveling. Disguis...
The Princess who Swallowed a Glass Piano
24 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Princess Alexandra Amelie of Bavaria was part of the House of Wittelsbach. The princess was frail, and she exhibited unusual behavior. She told her pa...
Johann Beringer's Fossils
22 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1725, Beringer was the University of Würzburg's chair of natural history and chief physician to the prince bishop. He was also unpopular, and some...
Loving v. Virginia, Part 2
17 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Mildred and Richard Loving's relationship went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court when they were arrested for breaking Virginia's anti-miscegenatio...
Loving v. Virginia, Part 1
15 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Mildred and Richard Loving's relationship went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court when they were arrested for breaking Virginia's anti-miscegenatio...
The Story of 'Happy Birthday to You'
10 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
When teachers Mildred and Patty Hill's song "Good Morning to All" was published in 1893, there was no public performance right for songs. After the tu...
The Origin of Cheeses
08 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Cheese has been around for more than 9,000 years. But how did humans learn to make it? Journey with Tracy and Holly to ancient Anatolia, where, people...
Albert J. Tirrell, the First Sleepwalking Killer
03 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
On Oct. 27, 1845 Mary Ann Bickford's body was found in her Boston boardinghouse room. Her paramour Albert J. Tirrell was eventually charged with murde...
Australia's Rabbit-proof Fence
01 Apr 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Many English settlers brought animals and plants to Australia, including rabbits. The rabbit population exploded, and rabbit-controlling fences were s...
Emu War of 1932
29 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
After World War I, Australian and British soldiers moved to rural Australia. In 1932, about 20,000 emus began making their way through Campion and Wal...
The Contentious Invention of the Sewing Machine
27 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The mechanization of stitching happened by way a series of inventions, several of which finally came together. Though Elias Howe is often credited wit...
The Trial of Goody Garlick
25 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Decades before the Salem trials, an East Hampton woman was tried for witchcraft. Before Lion Gardiner's daughter died, she accused Goody Garlick of be...
The Famous Speech Chief Seattle Never Made
20 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Suquamish chief is best remembered for a speech he gave upon discovering that Governor Stevens wanted land to build a railroad. However, the speec...
The Life of Johnny Appleseed
18 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The image of Johnny Appleseed walking around in rags, barefooted with a bindle, planting apple trees and moving on is actually pretty accurate. Join H...
The Voynich Manuscript
13 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Voynich manuscript is named after Wilfrid Voynich, who acquired it in 1912 from a Jesuit library. There are many theories as to what this book fro...
The Mystic Margery Kempe
11 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Born in the 1300s, Margery had 14 children with her husband before dedicating her life to God. In her 40s, she began a vision-inspired pilgrimage to v...
The Real Al Swearengen: Part 2
06 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
While Al Swearengen's notoriety comes from his famous saloon, his early experiences all informed his later life. Join Tracy and Holly as they examine ...
The Real Al Swearengen: Part 1
04 Mar 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Al Swearengen has become a widely-recognized figure in the time of the Black Hills gold rush. While his notoriety comes from his famous saloon, his ea...
Richard III: Unearthed!
27 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 2013, experts identified the remains of King Richard III, one of England's most notorious rulers. Shakespeare wrote the king as a nephew-killing, h...
The Other Pope Benedict Who Resigned
25 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Long before Benedict XVI's resignation, Benedict IX resigned. Benedict IX was one of the youngest (and most notorious) men ever to become pope, and hi...
Pablo Fanque's Fair
20 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
The Victorian age offered few opportunities for Black-Britons, making Pablo Fanque's circus all the more impressive. Born William Darby, he was a tale...
Okichi, the Tragic Geisha
18 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Okichi's story is filled with embellishment and hazy details. Sent to serve Townsend Harris, the first U.S. Consul to Japan, she was shunned after Har...
Walter Potter's Wild and Wonderful Taxidermy
13 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
By the time he was 19, Potter had preserved and mounted 98 birds. In 1880, his work had grown to a point where it had to be moved to a building, which...
The Fantastic Fitzgeralds
11 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
A week after releasing his debut novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald married Southern Belle Zelda Sayre. But Fitzgerald's drinking and Zelda's mental state led...
Nikola Tesla and the War of Currents Revisited: Part 2
06 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
By 1887, Nikola Tesla secured seven patents for components of his alternating current system. In 1888, George Westinghouse offered to hire Tesla to de...
Nikola Tesla and the War of Currents Revisited: Part 1
04 Feb 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1857 Nikola Tesla began work on direct current motor issues. In 1884, he approached Thomas Edison with ideas about alternating current, but Edison ...
The Booth Conspiracy
30 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Most people know the story of President Lincoln's assassination, but what happened afterward? In this podcast, we cover John Wilkes Booth's escape, hi...
Who is D.B. Cooper?
28 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In 1971, a man calling himself Dan Cooper hijacked Northwest Orient Airlines flight 305. He received a ransom of $200,000 -- and then jumped out in mi...
5 War Dogs of History
23 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Dogs have been used in war for a long time and are still used today. In this episode, Sarah and Deblina look at five war dogs known for their strength...
Ned Kelly's Last Stand
21 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Ned Kelly's cropped up in the news again, but who was he? The bushranger Ned Kelly became an outlaw in 1878, and his gang successfully conducted sever...
5 Historical Hoaxes
16 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
Historical hoaxes are surprisingly common. For example, a N.Y. cigar maker once commissioned a gypsum skeleton to pass off as a 10-foot-tall petrified...
The Great Stink of 1858
14 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
By the 1840s, London faced a sanitation crisis. One summer the stench of the Thames drove Parliament to soak their curtains in lime, an experience tha...
The Bone Wars, Part 2
09 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
In Part 2 of this podcast, we examine the tactics rival paleontologists Edward Drinker Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh used in their battle to achieve ...
Double Agent: James Armistead and the American Revolution
07 Jan 2013
Contributed by Lukas
James Armistead was a slave in Virginia, but got his master's approval to enlist when the Revolutionary War came. Armistead worked as a spy, and his s...