The Atlas Obscura Podcast

The Deadliest Lake (Classic)

28 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 1986 an unknown natural disaster at Lake Nyos in Menchum, Cameroon left more than 1700 people dead in one night - and puzzled scientists. Listen to...

Moose Boulder

27 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How far would you go to find the largest island in the largest lake on the largest island in the largest lake on the largest island in the largest lak...

The Last Wild Apple Groves

26 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The variety of apples we enjoy today have a common ancestor that lies in the forests of Kazakhstan, where scientists are studying the wildest version ...

Caring for Canids

25 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome to the Judith A Basset Canid Education & Conservation Center, where a California couple has dedicated their lives to showing folks man has eve...

Telling Time through the Trees with the Places Team

24 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jonathan Carey and Michelle Cassidy of the Atlas Places Team bring us stories about the trees that have witnessed history. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: R...

International Cryptozoology Museum (Classic)

21 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It’s easy to dismiss Bigfoot, the yeti, the Loch Ness monster, and other cryptids as far-fetched X-Files fodder. But the International Cryptozoology...

John Brown’s Farm

20 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the Adirondacks of northern New York sits John Brown's Farm, a monument to the famous abolitionist, and the last vestige of Timbuctoo, an ambitious...

For Keeps Books

19 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In Atlanta, on this historic Auburn Avenue, sits a small bookstore and reading room that’s been called “an interactive art museum of Black Thought...

Pack Your Bag(pipes) with Ross Jennings

18 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ross Jennings, aka the First Piper, has been on a world-spanning quest to play the bagpipes in every country of the world. LEARN MORE: https://www.t...

Bete Giyorgis of Lalibela

17 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We go to Northern Ethiopia and learn about an ancient King who left a great legacy to his people and the world: the rock hewn church known as St. Giyo...

Red Sea Blue Hole (Classic)

14 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This stunning geological marvel just north of Dahab, Egypt has been called the deadliest dive spot in the world. But is that reputation deserved?READ ...

Fun and Funny Science with Mary Roach

13 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Author Mary Roach takes us into the hidden corners of the scientific world. From training to poop in space to the surprisingly pleasant Common Cold Un...

Fairy Circles

12 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We head to the Namib Desert in Africa, where the landscape is dotted with mysterious, pimple-like indents known as fairy circles. Where do these thing...

Ashley House

11 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For decades, the Ashley House in Sheffield, Massachusetts preserved and promoted the story of Col. John Ashley, a wealthy businessman who opened his h...

Places Our Families Took Us

10 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Hear tales of our team’s most memorable family trips – like going on vacation with Thomas Jefferson, getting thrown in the ocean and meeting Kling...

Yemrehanna Kristos Church (Classic)

07 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Photographer and author Paul Koudonaris brings listeners to this Ethiopian Church and explores ossuaries, jeweled skeletons, and death practices throu...

Lady Liberty’s Little Sister

06 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 1986, something really weird happened in Pennsylvania – a replica of The Statue of Liberty mysteriously appeared through the fog on the Susquehan...

Yellowstone Zone of Death

05 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A 50 square mile patch of Yellowstone National Park in Idaho might just be the perfect place to commit a crime. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.a...

Arrows Across America

04 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

An adventurous couple sets out to document and unearth the arrows of America’s past, once used to help pilots find their way across the skies. You c...

Museum of Clean

03 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A tidy little story from Pocatello, Idaho, home to the Museum of Clean READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/museum-of-clean H...

Grace Hopper’s Bug (Classic)

31 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Trailblazing computer scientist Grace Hopper shaped the way people use and talk about computers. Her actual computer bug is preserved at the Smithson...

The Beat Museum

30 Mar 2023

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 fol...

A Delicious Mission with Cheuk Kwan

29 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Filmmaker and writer Cheuk Kwan takes us for a round-the-world meal. Three courses, three incredible places. Three stories of Chinese immigration.LEAR...

Wild Chocolate with Rowan Jacobsen

28 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dylan chats with Rowan Jacobsen, a food journalist and host of the podcast called OBSESSION: Wild Chocolate. And he takes us on a journey that follow...

Great Balls of Twine with the Places Team

27 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jonathan Carey and Michelle Cassidy of the Atlas Places Team bring us stories about the biggest balls of twine. Plus, a special guest adds an addition...

Clown Motel (Classic)

24 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Tonopah, Nevada is home to the Clown Motel - an inn on the edge of the desert that’s packed with statues and figurines of Clowns. The eerie and full...

The Pennsylvania Firefly Festival (Classic)

23 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The deep woods of Pennsylvania hold a phenomena that has drawn attention from scientists and people around the world, and was almost recently destroye...

The Shrek Donkey of Barron Park (Classic)

22 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We visit a park in Palo Alto, California, home of the world’s most famous donkey. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-do...

Cisternerne (Classic)

21 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A massive 19th-century reservoir under the city of Copenhagen has been repurposed as a contemporary art cave. We venture inside to learn more about it...

Zone Rouge (Classic)

20 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A swath of land in Northern France still bears scars of the destruction of World War I. Destruction so bad that, in some cases, humans have never been...

Tiny Doors of Atlanta (Classic)

17 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As part of Women’s History Month, we're sharing some episodes from the archive including this story about mysterious doors scattered throughout Atl...

Blurred lines with Stacy Horn

16 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Writer Stacy Horn tells us about a period in American history when the study of psychic phenomena and the paranormal was serious business at places li...

Manuscript Writing Cafe

15 Mar 2023

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...

NYC’s Most Beautiful Public Bathroom

14 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Producer Abigail Keel takes us on the most strange, wonderful and beautiful potty break. And tells us how – and where – you can do it too.  Hoste...

Exploring the underworld with Jessica Leigh Hester

13 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Writer Jessica Leigh Hester joins us on a deep dive into the sewer, the subject of her new book. We’ll talk about some of the interesting (and disgu...

WHM Classic: Luciadagen

10 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As part of Women’s History Month Atlas Obscura will be sharing some episodes from the archive, including this story about the origins of a Swedish h...

More Wonders in Your Backyard

09 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Here the podcast team shares stories of wonder and curiosity that lies just outside your doorstep. Stories feature a troll bridge, a cemetery, natural...

The Dedan Kimathi Post Office Tree

08 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Dedan Kimathi Post Office played a notable role in Kenya’s struggle for Independence. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz....

Ouija Board 7-Eleven

07 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Ouija Board went from a tool for communicating with the dead to a sleepover party game. This trip through the Ouija Board’s past features a pit ...

Big Apple Inn

06 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This restaurant in Jackson, Mississippi was a haven for Civil Rights leaders and has stood for four generations, 83 years, and a whole lotta pig ear s...

WHM Classic: Forest of the Future Library

03 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As part of Women’s History Month Atlas Obscura will be sharing some episodes from the archive including this story about a forest in Oslo, Norway th...

The A. Everett Austin Facade House

02 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This architectural oddity in Hartford, Connecticut looks like a mansion… but is only one room deep. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscur...

The Discovery Tree

01 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

California's longest-running tourist attraction is a stump that helped spark a conservation movement.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura...

The Hampton House

28 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This simple brick building in Chicago, Illinois was the boyhood home of Civil Rights icon, Fred Hampton Sr. and a continued site for community organiz...

Nellie Mae Rowe’s Playhouse

27 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Nellie Mae Rowe decorated her home in Vinings, Georgia with homemade dolls and shiny bottle caps and placed paper streamers, pieces of colored glass a...

BHM Classic: Leimert Park

24 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As part of Black History Month Atlas Obscura will be sharing some episodes from the archive including Producer Baudelaire Ceus’s journey to Leimert ...

Thomas Merton's Hermitage

23 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This little house in New Haven, Kentucky is where Thomas Merton aka profit-poet aka the rebel monk tried to get away from the world.READ MORE IN THE A...

Jadeite Cabbage

22 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This tiny stone cabbage has a big backstory stretching from the rich, treasure-laden halls of Beijing’s Forbidden City...through a harrowing wartime...

Newtown Creek Nature Walk

21 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One man in Brooklyn, New York - armed with a homemade boat and an artistic vision - helped transform one of the most polluted industrial waterways in ...

The Gankutsu Hotel

20 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Chiseled out of a stone cliff, one farmer's unfinished art project in Yoshimi, Japan lies in ruins. And an architect and a photographer are working to...

Classic: Floating Freedom School

17 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As part of Black History Month Atlas Obscura will be sharing some episodes from the archive including the history of this paddleboat that gave some Bl...

Cactoblastis Memorial Cairn

16 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This site in Boonarga, Australia honors the cactoblastis - a humble moth that traveled across the globe, and became the hero of a continent. READ MOR...

Pushkin’s Duel

15 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The story of how famous Russian author Alexander Pushkin once faced a duel by The Black River on the outskirts of St. Petersburg features high drama, ...

Valentine's Day Classic: Chopin’s Heart

14 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For Valentine's Day, the Atlas team would like to bring you this tale of the heart….literally. The Church of the Holy Cross in Warsaw, Poland is the...

The Henry Miller Memorial Library

13 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This site is “not a Library where you can borrow books” nor “a memorial with dusty relics” but still aims to honor the spirit of American auth...

Black History Month Classic: Louis Armstrong Museum

10 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As part of Black History Month Atlas Obscura will be sharing some episodes from the archive including this journey to famed Jazz musician Louis Armstr...

The San Juan Island Pig War

09 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The killing of a British pig on an island off the coast of Northwestern Washington almost started a war between two of the world’s greatest military...

Creston Dinosaur

08 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This relic of roadside attractions in Creston, South Dakota is believed to be the first of its kind in North AmericaREAD MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://w...

The Rainmaker

07 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Professional rainmaker Charles Hatfield was either a scientist or a con man who had a particular influence on San Diego, CA.  Curious about cloud se...

Marchand Dessalines

06 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Marchand Dessalines, Haiti is a town named after Jean Jacques Dessalines one of the leaders of the Haitian Revolution and one of the country’s found...

Black History Month: Black Star Square

03 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As part of Black History Month Atlas Obscura will be sharing some episodes from the archive including this story about a gigantic public square dedica...

The Westgate with Rico Gagliano

02 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Rico Gagliano, host of the MUBI podcast, takes listeners to The Westgate Movie Theater in Minneapolis for a story about a movie that flopped terribly ...

Freud Museum London

01 Feb 2023

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...

Galileo’s Middle Finger

31 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Host Dylan Thuras leads listeners on a journey that leads to the preserved middle finger of Galileo Galilei, astronomer, physicist and engineer.READ M...

Tangier American Legation Museum

30 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This building in Tangier was one of the first pieces of land owned by the United States Government outside of the country, and was a gift from “Amer...

Classic: Cueva de los Tayos

27 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This Ecuadorian cave has captured the attention of  government officials, scientists, and professional cavers and is home to a particularly rare crea...

Rae Wynn-Grant and the Bear

26 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Rae Wynn-Grant, Ph.D. is a wildlife ecologist specializing in large carnivores. And in this episode she unfolds a mystery for listeners. To hear more...

Empress Anna’s Ice Palace

25 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Empress Anna’s Ice Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia was the site of an incredibly strange wedding. Was it a cruel joke? A strategic power move? Or s...

Lee’s Legendary Marbles and Collectables

24 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Lee's Legendary Marbles & Collectables in York, Nebraska is a pilgrimage of sorts for serious collectors and a curiosity for the casual passerby.READ ...

Urnes Stave Church

23 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This intricately carved church in Luster is one of Norway’s great treasures of architecture.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/pla...

Classic: The Great Stalacpipe Organ

20 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Luray Caverns in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia are home to an instrument that draws out the secret sounds of millenia-old stone.READ MORE I...

Cementerio Municipal José María Azael Franco Guerrero

19 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The José María Azael Franco Guerrero Cemetery in Tulcán, Ecuador is a topiary anomaly and a lush green paradise for the dead.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS...

The Lion House

18 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This abandoned lodge in Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique has been reclaimed by local lions - a story deeply enmeshed in the larger history of the...

Songs of Ice with the Places Team

17 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jonathan Carey and Michelle Cassidy of the Atlas Places Team bring you stories of how sometimes giant monuments built for a specific site need to go o...

Green Mill Jazz Club

16 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This internationally recognized jazz lounge has been running for more than a century. Its guests have included Frank Sinatra, Charlie Chaplin and less...

Classic: The Curse of the Kreischer Mansion

13 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Host Dylan Thuras visits a Staten Island mansion with a dubious and vitriolic past, only to learn the site’s curse may not be as obvious as it seems...

Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour

12 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Barnali Ghosh and Anirvan Chatterjee take us on a walking tour of Berkeley, CA, where they share their community's legacy of radical South Asian activ...

The Mail Rail

11 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This railway was built for one purpose and one purpose only: to keep the London’s mail coming on time.  READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlaso...

Chicago Bridge Houses

10 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Drawbridge operators in Chicago, IL used to live at these specific homes nestled at the base of their bridges. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz compan...

Making Films with Sky Hopinka

09 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Venture into the mind of Sky Hopinka, member of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and MacArthur Genius Grant recipient. He and host Dylan Thuras discus...

Classic: Million Dollar Point

06 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We visit Vanuatu in the South Pacific and go underwater to visit a very strange place from a very strange episode at the end of World War II. READ MO...

Medical Clowning Program

05 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The history of medical clowning extends back to Ancient Greece and the time of Hippocrates and is taught in workshops throughout the world.  READ MO...

The Plant

04 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This former meat-packing plant in Chicago, Illinois is now a site where people work to create a new kind of community in the city’s post-industrial ...

Classic: Post Office Bay

03 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Post Office Bay on the Galapagos Islands is a post office that runs on luck and the goodwill of visitors. It has a knack for bringing strangers togeth...

Classic: The World’s Quietest Room

02 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Experience the Orfield Anechoic Chamber: a room inside a concrete bunker that was once known as the quietest place on earth.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: ht...

Classic: Re-up Your Luck

30 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

We explore the power luck has on us all, rational or not, through the unlikely places people go to re-up.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobsc...

Classic: Nepali Folk Musical Instrument Museum

29 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This secluded museum beats the drum for the preservation of Nepal's musical heritage.  READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/n...

Classic: Dude Chilling Park

28 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A renegade art project in Vancouver galvanized a small community, pitted residents against city government, and ultimately resulted in a new name for ...

Classic: The Tank

27 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

An industrial water tank-turned-concert hall in the high deserts of Colorado is nothing less than a sonic wonder of the world. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS...

Classic: World’s Loneliest Tree

26 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

About 400 miles south of New Zealand, on the subantarctic Campbell Island / Motu Ihupuku, stands a Sitka spruce whose nearest neighbor is 170 miles aw...

Classic: The Forgotten Songs Sound Sculpture

23 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This unique installation in Sydney, Australia combines art and ornithology, commemorating the calls of the city’s lost birds. Plus, bin chickens!REA...

Classic: Moses Gates and the Chrysler Building Eagles

22 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Urban planner Moses Gates shares his unlikely experience with the residents of the 61st floor of one of New York City’s most iconic buildings. Hoste...

Classic: Newark Earthworks

21 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Updated December 2022. Built by indigenous people thousands of years ago, the Newark Earthworks are part cathedral, part cemetery, and part astronomic...

Priscilla’s Homecoming

20 Dec 2022

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...

Tumbleweed Christmas Tree

19 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Chandler, Arizona creates a Christmas Tree made entirely of the diaspore of this Western plant. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com...

Classic: Spite Houses

16 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Home is where the grudge is. We survey a special kind of architecture that is both petty and personal.READ MORE IN THE ATLAS:https://www.atlasobscura....

Getting Lost

15 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Atlas contributors bring listeners stories of getting lost on transit, on romantic getaways, or while just trying to get home, and the joy that comes ...

Duke Riley and the poly S. Tyrene Maritime Museum

14 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Artist Duke Riley has turned trash into a medium, like clay or paint, and an indictment.  His exhibit DEATH TO THE LIVING, Long Live Trash will run t...

The Sponge Capital of the World

13 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Discover how Tarpon Springs, Florida became known as the Sponge Capital of the World. This “Small Town, Big Story” episode is produced in partners...

Luciadagen

12 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In honor of Lucia Day on December 13, we’re diving into the origins of a Swedish holiday tradition which evolved from sinister pagan lore to a celeb...