The Atlas Obscura Podcast

Josephine Baker’s Chateau (Classic)

19 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Writer and travel educator Tracey Friley tells the story of the glamorous life of entertainer, French Resistance agent, and civil rights activist, Jos...

Forbes Pigment Collection (Classic)

16 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A repository in Cambridge, Massachusetts holds over 2,700 pigments that’ve been quietly coloring the world around us since the beginning of human hi...

World Famous Crochet Museum

15 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Step inside the cutest, most cuddly museum for handmade crafts. This museum, set near Joshua Tree National Park, has been called “a vortex of love a...

Reed College Reactor

14 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Students at Reed College study things like philosophy, history and English. But for the past 50 years they’ve also had access to a scientific instru...

The Greenbrier

13 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

You’d never guess that beneath a historic, genteel southern resort sits a massive bunker that the US government built in case of catastrophic events...

Close to the Edge PART 2

12 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We asked, you answered. Hear listener stories of near death travel experiences. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for info...

Maine’s Burning Blueberry Fields (Classic)

09 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Travel to Penobscot, Maine, where one farmer maintains the tradition of burning his crop each year to rejuvenate it the next. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS:...

Tabor Opera House

08 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Colorado is known for being a music and performance hub. And that history goes way back – all the way to a theater that staged high dramas, tragedie...

Frozen Dead Guy

07 Jun 2023

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...

Temple of Pythons

06 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We visit southern Benin to hear the story of the Temple of Pythons and clear up some misconceptions about one of the world's most misunderstood spirit...

Fairy Castle

05 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A famous movie actress from the 1920s left the world a lasting piece of art — a remarkable miniature home that could be considered Chicago’s cutes...

Hitler’s Toilet (Classic)

02 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It roamed the seas, served an evil dictator, survived a war, and ended up in a New Jersey auto-repair shop bathroom. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz ...

Tonopah Mining Camp

01 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We step into the shoes of the miners who once labored in the Nevada mountains, via a trip to the Tonopah Historic Mining Park. This episode was produc...

Koutammakou

31 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A race is on to save this world heritage site that straddles the border of Togo and Benin. It’s home to remarkable earth tower homes called Takienta...

Woman with the Handbag

30 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We go to Sweden, where some people are intent on making a woman a permanent symbol of resistance, whether or not she would have wanted it. Check out s...

Tick Collection

29 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We go to Statesboro, Georgia to the US National Tick Collection to learn what ticks, often thought of as little monstrosities, can teach us.READ MORE ...

Tina Turner Museum (Classic)

26 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Flagg Grove School in Brownsville, Tennessee has become a museum dedicated to its most famous student. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS:https://www.atlasob...

Micropia (Classic)

25 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Take a trip to Micropia, the world’s only museum dedicated to microscopic organisms, and learn about our invisible life companions.READ MORE IN THE ...

American Chestnut Foundation (Classic)

24 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The story of the unimaginable destruction of the American Chestnut tree and the group of scientists, academics and tree lovers who are desperately try...

The Mirror Lab (Classic)

23 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A spinning furnace tucked under the football stadium at the University of Arizona is building giant telescope mirrors. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https...

Åtvidaberg Sun Cannon (Classic)

22 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Sun cannons have been around since the 1600s. But as far as we know, there’s only one left that’s still up and running. We pay it a visit. READ M...

Chile Pepper Institute

19 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Habaneros!  Jalapenos! Green! Red! These days, an appreciation for chiles is pretty mainstream. But that wasn’t always the case. We head to New Mex...

Fugitive Train Wreck

18 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A North Carolina town has become a draw for people who want to see the wreckage of the train wreck from the movie “The Fugitive.” But a more inter...

Theatricum Botanicum

17 May 2023

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...

Voynich Manuscript

16 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One of the oldest books in the world is also the most misunderstood. A medievalist tells us about the Voynich, which is in the collection of the Bein...

Big Bertha Drum (Classic)

15 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

She’s about 8 feet wide and 500 pounds. And her history spans all the way from the stockyards of Chicago... to a nuclear test during the Manhattan P...

Kilwa Kisiwani (Classic)

12 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We dig through more than 1,000 years of dirt, history,  colonialism, and myth on the Swahili Coast.Read more in the Atlas: https://www.atlasobscura.c...

Butter Sculptures

11 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Where can you find the smoothest, most scrumptious edible art? If you ask our host, Dylan, it’s in the Minnesota State Fair butter sculpture room. H...

Close to the Edge

10 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We all dream of the perfect vacation when everything goes right. This episode is about the opposite. Hear stories of people having near death travel e...

Iowa Remnant Prairies

09 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Elusive patches of land in America’s Midwest can show us what the environment was like 150 years ago and tell us about the future. Hosted by Simplec...

National Poo Museum

08 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We spend time with the world’s foremost poo enthusiasts, who operate a museum in England where poo is elegant, elevated and celebrated.READ MORE IN ...

Mississippi River Basin Model (Classic)

05 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A walk through this scale model has you feeling like a giant, and striding from Baton Rouge to Omaha in an hour. LEARN MORE about the model and the g...

The Nutmobile

04 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The next time you go out on a road trip, keep your eyes peeled for a peanut-shaped car that got its start as an advertising play during the Great Depr...

Okomfo Anokye’s Sword

03 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Nestled in a hospital courtyard in Kumasi, Ghana, you’ll find the strength of the Asante people: the sword of Okomfo Anokye, planted in the ground o...

Hurricane Hunters

02 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We go on a bumpy ride with the Hurricane Hunters – the government’s team of scientists who fly into storms so the rest of us can have accurate inf...

Distant Relatives

01 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

At a food truck in Austin, tried and true barbecue favorites meet unexpected spices and flavor profiles. Here, chef Damien Brockway’s journey into f...

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...