The Atlas Obscura Podcast

The Bottle Tree Ranch

25 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When Elliott Long’s dad started planting a forest of “bottle trees” with trunks of steel and old bottles for leaves, Elliott immediately underst...

Frozen Dead Guy (Classic)

24 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Atop a mountain in a picturesque Colorado town is the frozen corpse of a Norwegian grandpa. We get the tale of how this came to be, from the person wh...

The Atlas Obscura Podcast Presents: The Detour

22 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we’re sharing an episode from The Detour: a show about going places, that actually goes places. Host Sam O’Brien and geologist Becky Nesel ...

Italy’s Bomb Squad (Classic)

21 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We chat with writer Alessio Perrone about what he learned from the people who hunt for Italy’s unexploded bombs, leftover from times of war. READ M...

The Revolutionary Life of the Black-Owned Bookstore with Char Adams

20 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Char Adams is the author of Black Owned: The Revolutionary Life of the Black Bookstore. She chronicles Black-owned bookstores in America – from Davi...

The Museum of Yogurt

19 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1905, a Bulgarian named Stamen Grigorov made a discovery. Inspired by a wave of researchers studying the secret to long life, he decided to put und...

The Chinampas in Xochimilco

18 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Reporter Teresa de Miguel joins host Kelly McEvers to talk to her about these floating gardens called Chinapas in Xochimilco, Mexico City. Today, many...

Snake Island (Classic)

17 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A tiny island off the coast of Brazil is known for being a dangerous place … purely because its inhabitants are, well, snakes. But we speak to a res...

Mr. Kaor’s Letters (Classic)

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We visit a quaint Dutch fishing village and attempt to unravel the mystery that unfolded there… a mystery that involved strange and curious letters ...

The Mythical Panda with Nathalia Holt

13 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1920s the world was small. This was an exciting time for scientists and explorers. And among these explorers were Ted and Kemit Roosevelt who t...

Invasion of the Lampreys

12 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

About 100 years ago, the Great Lakes were inundated with an unwelcome visitor – the leech-like, blood-sucking, creepy-looking sea lamprey. For deca...

Toronto’s Musical Robot

11 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Artist and architect Danny Shaddick and the rapper Shad have known each other since high school, and they both wound up in Toronto making art together...

Manuscript Writing Cafe (Classic)

10 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We go to Tokyo, to a particular place that is both nemesis and best friend to all those procrastinators out there. (Yes, we’re looking at you :) LE...

The Beat Museum (Classic)

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This San Francisco museum, curated by a super-fan of the Beats, is a shrine to an incredibly influential cultural movement and a destination for folks...

The Living Libraries of West Africa

06 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Journalist Eliot Stein explores the tradition of the djeli – African storytellers who memorize and pass down oral histories – tracing it all the ...

More Things We Collect

05 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A while ago, we asked you to send us stories about your collections – and we got so many great responses, that we decided to make another episode a...

Baseball’s Muddy Little Secret

04 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On the heels of the World Series, Kelly and Amanda discuss an unusual tradition in baseball: the fact that, before each game, every single ball is rub...

Freud Museum London (Classic)

03 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sigmund Freud’s famous psychoanalytic couch is preserved in his final office in London, England.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com...

Luomus Spiders (Classic)

31 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Finnish Museum of Natural History in Helsinki has been home to an infestation of Chilean recluse spiders for more than 50 years. Hosted by Simplec...

Local Legends Corner with Colin Dickey: LaLaurie Mansion

30 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There’s a mansion in New Orleans with a truly horrific past. Author Colin Dickey, who has joined us every Thursday this month, reveals the real life...

How Buffalo Changed City Parks Forever

29 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When the city of Buffalo, New York invited landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted to town in the late 1860s, they were hoping he’d replicate the ...

Your Stories of Traveling with Kids

28 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From long flights to strenuous trips, listeners share stories about traveling with their kids for the first time. Plus, we want to hear stories about...

Moynaq (Classic)

27 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A city in Uzbekistan used to be the site of one of the world’s largest seas. Now it’s a dusty reminder of one of the largest and most forgotten en...

Gregynog Hall (Classic)

25 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We go to the former estate of the Davies sisters, two unusually wealthy Welsh women who traveled the world, fell in love with art, served their countr...

The Wishing Tree (Classic))

24 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There’s a special tree in Portland that’s full of a city’s hopes, dreams, and wishes.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places...

Local Legends Corner with Colin Dickey: Moundsville

23 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The West Virginia Penitentiary in Moundsville, West Virginia was once a home to thousands of prisoners. Today, it’s a tourist attraction. But its pa...

The Glass Flowers

22 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Over the course of 50 years, a father and son team made exquisite glass botanical models that would transform our understanding of the natural world. ...

Pinball Hall of Fame

21 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Maybe you associate Las Vegas with slot machines more than with pinball machines. But what you might not know is that pinball, today found in every fa...

Plain of Jars (Classic)

20 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This archaeological dig in Phonsovan, Laos is one of the most important and dangerous prehistoric sites in Southeast Asia. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: ht...

Star Trek Original Series Set Tour (Classic)

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sets from the original 1960’s Star Trek have been recreated for fans and actors alike in Ticonderoga, New York.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.a...

Local Legends Corner with Colin Dickey: Mustang Ranch

16 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Colin Dickey is no stranger to dubious ghost tales. But when he went to Nevada to report at a brothel called the Mustang Ranch, he experienced somethi...

The Burning of Zozobra!

15 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the months leading up to Labor Day, a dedicated team of craftspeople and volunteers gather in the Santa Fe Plaza Mall to build…a puppet. Not just...

The Last Chinese Town in America

14 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1915, a devastating fire destroyed the Chinatown in Walnut Grove, California. In its aftermath, a group of Chinese immigrant residents founded the ...

Rites of Passage (Classic)

13 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Atlas Places Team bring two stories - one from the campus of Gallaudet University and the other from Cornell University to tell us about usual tra...

Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame (Classic)

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A basketball fan goes to the hall of fame – and no, it’s not the big one in Massachusetts that you may be thinking about. Hear the story behind a ...

Local Legends Corner with Colin Dickey: Tommyknockers

09 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Deep in the Phoenix Gold Mine in Idaho Springs, Colorado, a strange noise inspires a legend.Every Thursday this month, writer Colin Dickey joins us to...

Famous Last Words

08 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk is viewed as the founder of the modern Czech state – a George Washington-like figure. When he died in the 1930s, his...

The Zither King of Missouri

07 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We learn how a small town in Missouri became a world capital for a unique instrument – and how one man would go from being a down-on-his-luck furnit...

Atlas Obscura Goes Off Assignment: To the Bear We Didn't Find

06 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A girl and her father take a walk in the woods. This essay was written by Emily Lowe and edited by Tusshara Nalakumar Srilatha, and originally appeare...

Aurora Alien Gravesite (Classic)

03 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A small town in Texas has embraced the story of the visit and demise of an otherworldly being from the 1800s… and what many say is America’s only ...

They Had Submarines During the Civil War?

02 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Probably when you think of submarine warfare, WWI or WWII comes to mind. Not… the American Civil War. But oh, they had them back then! Or rather, th...

Thomas Paine’s Bones

01 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Founding Fathers” like Washington or Jefferson have gigantic monuments in Washington, statues galore and palatial house-museums. But what about…...

The Miraculous Staircase

30 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Loretto Chapel in Santa Fe, New Mexico has a pretty unusual spiral staircase – it winds round and round like a DNA helix, and has no visible cen...

What You Collect

29 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Listeners share stories about their most treasured collections.Plus: We want to hear your stories about traveling with kids! Give us a call at 315-992...

Under Our Feet: The Mail Rail

26 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We go underground in London, where there is a railway built for one purpose and one purpose only: to keep the city’s mail moving on time. All this w...

Under Our Feet: Damanhur

25 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We visit northern Italy, where a mysterious religious community founded by an insurance agent–turned–spiritual leader spent 15 years constructing ...

Under Our Feet: Upton Chamber

24 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We visit an underground chamber in Upton, Massachusetts, that’s puzzled some New Englanders – while others long knew its ancient origins. All thi...

Under Our Feet: Forestiere Underground Gardens

23 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We visit an underground oasis in Fresno, California, that’s a winding maze of rooms and passageways filled with lush citrus trees. All this week, we...

Under Our Feet: Exploring the Underworld With Jessica Leigh Hester

22 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Jessica Leigh Hester joins us on a deep dive into the sewer, the subject of her appropriately-titled book, Sewer. She and Dylan talk about some of the...

Priscilla’s Homecoming (Classic)

19 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The story of Thomalind and Priscilla is 300 years in the making and brings listeners to Bunce Island, off the coast of Sierra Leone.  READ MORE IN T...

Traveling Grannies with Ellie and Sandy

18 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Inspired by the novel and movie Around the World in Eighty Days, Eleanor Hamby and Dr. Sandra Hazelip (Ellie and Sandy) ventured out and took the worl...

Portland’s War of the Roses

17 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The International Rose Test Garden in Portland, Oregon is a rose-lover’s paradise: there’s over 10,000 bushes and 625 varieties from all over the ...

Exploring Edinburgh’s Deserted Tidal Island

16 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Since his childhood, Nick Dawson has been fascinated by Cramond Island, a deserted tidal island off the coast of Edinburgh, Scotland, which became for...

Goodbye, Summer

15 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As the summer travel season officially closes, we share our favorite memories of the warm months – from minor league baseball games with unique tra...

Theatricum Botanicum (Classic)

12 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A once-blacklisted Hollywood star created a magical theater in Topanga Canyon, California, that still endures and inspires today.READ MORE IN THE ATLA...

Sweden’s Last Night Watchman

11 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In Ystad, Sweden, every night at 9pm a night watchman scans the horizon for fires from the tower of St Mary’s Church, and sounds his trumpet to let ...

Who Put a Crack in The Glen Canyon Dam?

10 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Utah bookseller Ken Sanders has spent his life fighting the Glen Canyon Dam. Inspired by a band of cowboy ecoterrorists in his favorite Western novel,...

Fordlandia

09 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1920s, Henry Ford decided to create a rubber plantation in the Amazon rainforest, and alongside it, a tidy little town for his workers: Fordlan...

Dylan’s Mailbag: Work Travel, What to Read, and Solo Travel at 60

08 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dylan and producers Amanda and Johanna take listener questions. If you have a question for our next mailbag episode, give us a call at 315-992-7902 an...

NYC’s Favorite “Folk Sandwich”

06 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We journey into New York City’s delis and bodegas, in search of a famous – and controversial – sandwich: the chopped cheese. This sandwich has...

Fenway Victory Gardens (Classic)

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

One of the last remaining World War II Victory Gardens in the U.S is quietly growing across from Boston’s Fenway Park.  Hosted by Simplecast, an Ad...

A Tour of Human Anatomy With Mary Roach

04 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Mary Roach is an author of several books including Stiff and Fuzz. And her newest book, Replaceable You, explores the incredible advances and tough ...

The Things We Collect

03 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Here at Atlas Obscura, we’re big on collections. From rare jerseys to popular ‘90s plush toys, our staff shares the things we collect – and what...

Atlas Obscura Goes Off Assignment: To the Hiker Carrying Two Backpacks

02 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A backpacker on the Inca Trail encounters a fellow hiker who is inexplicably carrying two bags. This essay was written by Maggie Downs and edited by A...

Mother Jones and the Battle of Blair Mountain (Classic)

01 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The story of a woman who, in her 70s, inspired some of the biggest labor uprisings in American history. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See ...

Tell Us Your Stories of Traveling With Kids

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dylan just returned from a month-long trip with his wife and two kids, ages 8 and 10. And now, he wants to hear your stories about traveling with your...

Our Favorite Objects: The Arrow Stork (Classic)

29 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The story of a stork, a spear and a scientific mystery that led to breakthroughs in the way we understand bird migration.All week, we’re featuring t...

Our Favorite Objects: World’s Oldest Edible Ham (Classic)

28 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Atlas Obscura’s resident food and death reporter Sam O’Brien takes us to Smithfield, Virginia, where we meet a 120-year-old ham, and the people wh...

Our Favorite Objects: The Thousand-Year Rose (Classic)

27 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We visit the world’s oldest rose, which is so tough that it survived being bombed in World War II. All week, we’re featuring the stories behind a...

Our Favorite Objects: The Spritz Cookie Gravestone (Classic)

26 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We explore the unexpected combination of recipes and graves through the story of Naomi Odessa Miller Dawson’s spritz cookies.All week, we’re featu...

Our Favorite Objects: Galileo's Middle Finger (Classic)

25 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dylan goes on a journey to examine the preserved middle finger of astronomer, physicist, and engineer Galileo Galilei.All week, we’re featuring the ...

Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai (Classic)

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Created by a volcanic eruption in 2015, this island in the South Pacific no longer exists… but we chat with a person who got to see it before it dis...

Shamanism: The Timeless Religion

21 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We talk with anthropologist Manvir Singh, whose research on shamanism took him from the small island of Siberut to study current practitioners, to exp...

Dylan’s Mailbag: Traveling With Kids, Girls’ Trips, and Pedal Pubs

20 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dylan has just returned from a month-long trip with his family, and he and the gang answer listener questions about traveling with kids and more. Hav...

This Is Your Commute

19 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Listeners share stories about how they commute to work and back home as they also reflect on how special their neighborhood is too. Plus: We wanna he...

Time Travel with a Parking Lot Dinosaur

18 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Earlier this year a geologist at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science got a very unusual phone call. A construction crew ripping up the museum’s ...

Gunnar Schonbeck Exhibit (Classic)

15 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For years, students at Bennington College snuck into a locked room for a glimpse of strange and magical instruments created by professor Gunnar Schonb...

The World’s Largest Collection of Two-Headed Calves

14 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Henry S. Rosenthal is the owner of what is likely the world’s largest collection of two-headed taxidermied calves. The collection is in San Francisc...

America’s Oldest Tofu Shop

13 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ota Tofu in Portland, Oregon is the oldest tofu shop in the United States. Two brothers opened the shop in 1911 and even today their tofu is still mad...

It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

12 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From opera singers to strange noises emitting from air conditioners, listeners share stories about their unusual neighbors. Plus:  We want to hear s...

Ostracism at the Athenian Agora

11 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In ancient Athens, citizens would gather at the Agora, or marketplace, for a specific purpose: to vote people off the island – er, out of the city....

The Ark of Citrus (Classic)

08 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There are thousands of varieties of citrus, many more than just the navel oranges. And they’re all being preserved in a collection at the University...

Rolando Pujol and the Great American Retro Road Trip

07 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Rolando Pujol is an executive producer at ABC, but his true passion is for roadside attractions. And he’s got a new book all about it titled The Gr...

LA’s Hippie Nun and the Corita Art Center

06 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Counterculture icon… artist… nun? A new art center has opened up in downtown LA dedicated to the work of Corita Kent, also known as Sister Mary Co...

The Earth Room

05 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We remember Bill Dilworth, who took care of 280,000 pounds of dirt in an NYC loft for 35 years. Plus: Preorder your copy of The Atlas Obscura Explore...

Unusual Date Spots with Eden Dawn

04 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s show is all about unusual dating spots. And to help, Eden Dawn, co-author of The Portland Book of Dates and The Seattle Book of Dates, joins...

Beach Week: The Gray Man (Classic)

01 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A South Carolina ghost story is a harbinger of hurricanes and a window into history. All this week, the Atlas Obscura Podcast is hitting the sand, and...

Beach Week: Sunny Jim Cave (Classic)

31 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We follow a long set of wooden stairs deep underground to a sea cave with a mysterious and colorful past, and take in a spectacular, hidden view of th...

Beach Week: Boulders Beach Penguin Sanctuary (Classic)

30 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Boulders Beach in Simon’s Town in South Africa is a destination where sunbathers, tourists, and penguins share both the beach and parts of the town....

Beach Week: The Tanks of Flamenco Beach (Classic)

29 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This beautiful beach made of sand and worn down coral is covered in the wreckage of tanks once used by the U.S. military for target practice.  All t...

Beach Week: Shipwrecked Doritos (Classic)

28 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 2006 a massive haul of Doritos was shipwrecked on Hatteras Island on the Outer Banks, leaving its mark on the town forever. All this week, the Atla...

Tiny Bread Box (Classic)

25 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A couple created what is perhaps the cutest and most filling micro-store to pop up during the pandemic. But to find it, you’ll have to trek through ...

The Grave of Charlotte Temple

24 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1800s, people flocked to a special gravestone in New York City’s Trinity Churchyard. They left flowers and cards and even wept. But there was...

Love Thy Neighbor

23 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We share stories about our neighbors – from an unusual pet in Maryland, to an out-of-place front yard in Brooklyn, to a beekeeper with a secret. Pl...

The Ravens of the Tower of London

22 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

An elite group of ravens live at the Tower of London, anxiously monitored and lovingly tended to by a professional ravenmaster. Because according to l...

The Atlas Obscura Podcast Presents: Charlie’s Place

21 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we’re sharing an episode from our new podcast documentary series, Charlie’s Place. Beloved, notorious, defiant, folk hero – these are j...

Ol Pejeta Rhino Cemetery (Classic)

18 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A small cemetery in the grasslands of Kenya serves as a way to honor one of the most endangered animals in the world – the rhino – and elevate the...

The Art Spy with Michelle Young

17 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A French curator infiltrates a Nazi army to save masterpieces from the Jeu De Paume museum. Read more in Michelle Young’s new book, The Art Spy: T...

The Portland Treasure Map (Classic)

16 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A map in the archives of the Oregon Historical Society Research Library in Portland, Oregon may be the key to finding buried treasure that has yet to ...

The World’s Largest Time Capsule

15 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1975, a man in Seward, Nebraska dug a gigantic hole in his yard and made the world’s largest time capsule. On July 4, 2025, the capsule was opene...