The Weird History Podcast
Activity Overview
Episode publication activity over the past year
Episodes
One Year Later
27 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Weird History launched one year ago today on October 27th, 2014. Thank you, all of you, for listening, and here’s to many more years to come.
53 Bathory
22 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Elizabeth Bathory is one of history’s most notorious killers. Supposedly, the Bloody Countess (as she is sometimes called) murdered an unknown numbe...
52 Little Kill House on the Prairie
15 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
It’s October. For the next three weeks, we’ll be focusing on bloody, violent, and generally horrifying historical episodes. This week: The Bloody ...
51 The Ultimate Palindrome
08 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The Sator Square is a level of palindromic perfection untouched by other palindromes. It reads perfectly backward, forward, up, and down. The inconseq...
50 The Rise and Fall of Nauru
01 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The tiny island nation of Nauru once had one of the highest GDPs per capita on Earth. Today, the country has been stripped of resources and impoverish...
49 Destroy All Emus!
24 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
1932 was a bad year for farmers in Australia. Hot weather withered grain, because of the Great Depression, promised agricultural subsidies were not fo...
48 The Swedish Titanic
17 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The story of the the Titanic is usually one of human hubris, and then nature putting humanity back in their place. Implicit in any Titanic narrative i...
47 Live at the Jack London Bar, The Postmodern Icon
10 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This episode was part of Stumptown Stories, a Portland history lecture collective. Stumptown Stories meets on the second Tuesday of every month at dow...
46 Paper Theater, Golden Bat
03 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Before Batman, before Superman, before even the Phantom, there was the Golden Bat. “Ogon Batto” (as he’s known in Japanese) is, arguably, the wo...
45 The White City of the Monkey God
27 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In September of 1940 an American Explorer named Theodore Morde proclaimed in the Milwaukee Sentinel that he had found “the Lost City of Ancient Amer...
44 Live at the Steep and Thorny Way to Heaven, Thoughts on Richard III
20 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Richard III is one of Shakespeare’s most compelling villains. Unlike other tragic figures who do terrible things (Macbeth, Othello, Brutus) Richard ...
43 Medusa
13 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most high-profile maritime disasters in French history also inspired a famous, and gigantic work of art. In 1816 the French frigate Medusa ...
42 An Invention of Writing! Maybe.
07 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Humans have invented writing not once, not twice, but three times. Ancient Sumeria, China, and Mesoamerica all invented the written word independent o...
41 His Majesty Gregor MacGregor, King of Con-Men and Cacique of Poyais
31 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In 1820 a Scotsman named Gregor MacGregor pulled off one of the most audacious cons of all time. MacGregor claimed to be descendant of Rob Roy and anc...
40 Prison of the Mind
23 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
“Morals reformed – health preserved – industry invigorated instruction diffused – public burthens lightened – Economy seated, as it were, up...
39 How to Steal the Mona Lisa
17 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The Mona Lisa wasn’t always an icon. Before 1911 Leonardo’s painting was certainly known and respected, but it wasn’t yet the most famous, most ...
38 The Secret Plan to Nuke the Moon
09 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In 1959 the United States had a secret plan to explode a nuclear weapon either on or near the surface of the moon. The plan was known as Project A119 ...
37 Roberts Versus Boswell
03 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Last week the US Supreme Court legalized gay marriage. It was an amazing victory for equality and a long time coming. There were, however, dissents. C...
36 Thirteen Ships
26 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In the 1590s Japan invaded Korea. The Imjin War lasted from 1592-1598, and it included all manner of land battles, guerilla skirmishes, sieges, spyin...
35 Clairvoyance and Free Love on Campaign Trail ’72
19 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
It’s very likely that Hillary Clinton will become the Democratic nominee for president in 2016. When/if she does, some talking head will likely call...
34 Norton I, Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico
11 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
If you were out and about in San Francisco between 1860 and 1880, you might have seen a curious figure on the streets. Joshua Abraham Norton wore a un...
33 Live at Velo Cult, the Legend of Polybius
02 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is a little different. About a year ago I was approached by a team of documentary film makers who were making a movie about Polybius, Por...
32 There’s No Such Thing as an Iron Maiden
28 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine a medieval dungeon. You probably imagine prisoners chained to the wall, a torturer in a black mask tormenting the occupants, several machines ...
31 The Kingdom of North Sudan
21 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The British Empire and other colonial powers did a lot of things wrong, and they famously ignored actual human patterns when drawing borders of Africa...
30 The Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace, Part Two
15 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hong Xiuquan and his Taiping rebels successfully founded a new kingdom in southern China. The Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace sought to overthrow the ...
29 The Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace, Part One
08 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In the 1850s a man who styled himself as the younger brother of Jesus Christ led China into a bloody rebellion. China in the early 1800s was ravaged b...
28 Attack the Rock
01 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The foreboding form of Alcatraz Island looms just beyond San Francisco, an obvious symbol of isolation and punishment. Alcatraz was never the biggest,...
27 King of Jewels and Centaurs
23 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most persistent myths of the Middle Ages was that of Prester John, a mythical Christian king whose supposed domain was located beyond the e...
26 Joseph Barker on Artificial Intelligence, Strategy, and Games
17 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode is slightly different than our other entries. We have another interview episode, this time with Joseph Barker, who has a PhD in arti...
25 Clockwork Genius
09 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Humans have pursued artificial intelligence, in one form or another, for generations. One of the most potent signifiers of intelligence has, historica...
24 The Raider, the Playboy, the Sultan, and Roosevelt
03 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In 1904 a Greek-American playboy, Ion Perdicaris was, along with his stepson Cromwell, kidnapped in Morocco by a man who would later be called “The ...
23 A Dinosaur Named Sue
27 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The most complete tyrannosaurus rex skeleton in the world, nicknamed “Sue,” in honor of the paleontologist who discovered her, stands over adoring...
22 Live at the Clinton Street Theater: How Arthurian Legend is Like Comic Books
19 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
On Sunday, March 15th I had the privilege of introducing one of my favorite movies of all time at the historic Clinton Street Theater, Monty Python an...
21 Shanghaied!
13 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In the late 1800s countless men were exploited by a system that used debt and indentured servitude to keep them tied to the shipping industry. The pro...
20 The Lost Empire of Scotland
06 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In the late 1600s Scotland, in an attempt to start an international trade empire, founded a small settlement in what is now modern Panama. The venture...
19 Hey Big Spender
27 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
You can do a lot of things with wealth. You can buy stuff, make things happen, bribe officials, give to the poor… Or, if you’re Mansa Musa of Mali...
18 The Tulsa Race Riot
20 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Probably the most violent singular example of post-slavery racial violence in the US happened in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1921. Mobs of armed whites burned ...
17 Jaime Kirk on Piratical History
13 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This week we interviewed a pirate! Kind of. Jaime Kirk is the current captain of PDX Yar, a Portland organization dedicated to all things piratical. T...
16 The Siege of the Grand Mosque
06 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In 1979 a group of religious extremists seized the Grand Mosque in Mecca and began a siege that would last over two weeks. The bloody event shook the ...
Announcement!
03 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
I’m committed to keeping this podcast ad-free, and to that end I’ve started a Patreon campaign. Patreon is a service that allows you to support cr...
15 Heather Arndt Anderson on the History of Breakfast
29 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This week’s episode has a slightly different format from previous entries. We sat down with food historian Heather Arndt Anderson, author of Breakfa...
14 Nellie Bly Versus Phileas Fogg
23 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Jules Verne’s Around the World in Eighty Days is not strictly science fiction, but it is a book that speculates about technology (specifically steam...
13 Nellie Bly and the Asylum
15 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In 1880s New York Nellie Bly (born Elizabeth Jane Chochrane)reported on the conditions inside an insane asylum by pretending to be mentally ill and ge...
12 Shortest War Ever
09 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The Anglo-Zanzibar war comes up all the time on lists of curiosities, records, weird things, etc., as the shortest war in recorded history. It certain...
11 Maps of Time
02 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Happy New Year! It’s January First, 2015, and you probably have a new calendar. Calendars tend to be irregular, weird, and uneven, but some folks ha...
10 The Habsburg and Juarez, Part Two
24 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Maximilian’s rule over Mexico was never truly solidified or legitimized, and the would-be emperor faced relentless resistance from liberal Mexican f...
09 The Habsburg and Juarez, Part One
19 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most definitive and dramatic struggles against European monarchy happened in Mexico. France attempted to install Maximilian, a member of Au...
08 Sealand
11 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Defining what is and is not a country, state, or nation can sometimes be sort of difficult. China, obviously, is a country. So are Brazil and Morocco....
07 The Mountain Range That Wasn’t There
05 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Maps used to have blank spots. California used to be drawn as an island. The Mercator projection makes Greenland look fat. One of the biggest and stra...
06 Franksgiving
27 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
The United States has been a divided nation plenty of times. It’s been divided about slavery, about politics, about culture and, very importantly, ...
05 The Puppet Kingdom
21 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Before and during World War II Japan (just like Britain, France, and the United States) had a considerable empire. The Greater East Asian Co-Prosperit...
04 BONE WARS!
14 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists are motivated by curiosity, by the desire to help their fellow humans, by compulsion and, sometimes, by irrational personal vendettas. Edwa...
03 Incorrect Ideas About Olmecs
07 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
The Olmecs are the oldest known Mesoamerican civilization, and we know little about them compared to, say, the Mayans or Aztec. Several people, though...
02 Axe Murder
31 Oct 2014
Contributed by Lukas
The Korean Demilitarized Zone is a strange place. In 2008 I was a tourist visiting the peninsula, and I learned about one of the strangest incidents i...
01 Ancient Propaganda
28 Oct 2014
Contributed by Lukas
A famed artifact, the Cyrus Cylinder, has often been cited as an early proclamation of human rights. The Shah of Iran, the UN, a Nobel Peace Prize win...