Shucks. No Results. Think we should've found something?

Drop us a line
See All Results

Stuff You Missed In History Class

What was the war of the currents? What made Alexander the Great so great, exactly? Each week Sarah and Deblina delve between the lines of textbooks to discover some of the world's most astonishing stories. Listen in and catch up on the Stuff You Missed in History Class.

Links

Latest Episodes

  • China’s Empress Dowager Cixi

    Released 05.15.13

    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.

  • Cannibalism at Jamestown

    Released 05.13.13

    On May 1, 2013, forensic evidence confirmed what survivors had reported: Colonists at Jamestown resorted to cannibalism during the winter of 1609-1610, known as the Starving Time.

  • Here, Kitty Kitty: The Domestication of the Cat

    Released 05.08.13

    The human culture shift to an agricultural lifestyle started the domestication of animals. Cats naturally moved in to help with rodents.

  • The Hindenburg Disaster

    Released 05.06.13

    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, including 10 round trips between Germany and the U.S.

  • Stede Bonnet, the Gentleman Pirate

    Released 05.01.13

    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, including a stint aboard Blackbeard’s ship and raids along the Atlantic coast of North America.

  • Sarah Emma Edmonds, Civil War Spy

    Released 04.29.13

    Though she was Canadian, Sarah Emma Edmonds fought for the Union during the Civil War. She adopted the name Franklin Thompson while traveling.

  • The Princess who Swallowed a Glass Piano

    Released 04.24.13

    Princess Alexandra Amelie of Bavaria was part of the House of Wittelsbach. The princess was frail, and she exhibited unusual behavior.

  • Johann Beringer’s Fossils

    Released 04.22.13

    In 1725, Beringer was the University of Würzburg's chair of natural history and chief physician to the prince bishop.

  • Loving v. Virginia, Part 2

    Released 04.17.13

    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-miscegenation laws.

  • Loving v. Virginia, Part 1

    Released 04.15.13

    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-miscegenation laws.

  • The Story of ‘Happy Birthday to You’

    Released 04.10.13

    When teachers Mildred and Patty Hill's song “Good Morning to All” was published in 1893, there was no public performance right for songs.

  • The Origin of Cheeses

    Released 04.08.13

    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 had begun to store milk in pottery and take other steps that set the stage for this delicious invention.

  • Albert J. Tirrell, the First Sleepwalking Killer

    Released 04.03.13

    On Oct. 27, 1845 Mary Ann Bickford’s body was found in her Boston boardinghouse room. Her paramour Albert J.

  • Australia’s Rabbit-proof Fence

    Released 04.01.13

    Many English settlers brought animals and plants to Australia, including rabbits. The rabbit population exploded, and rabbit-controlling fences were started by the 1880s.

  • Emu War of 1932

    Released 03.29.13

    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 Walgoolan, severely damaging wheat farms.

  • The Contentious Invention of the Sewing Machine

    Released 03.27.13

    The mechanization of stitching happened by way a series of inventions, several of which finally came together.

  • The Trial of Goody Garlick

    Released 03.25.13

    Decades before the Salem trials, an East Hampton woman was tried for witchcraft. Before Lion Gardiner's daughter died, she accused Goody Garlick of bewitching her.

  • The Famous Speech Chief Seattle Never Made

    Released 03.20.13

    The Suquamish chief is best remembered for a speech he gave upon discovering that Governor Stevens wanted land to build a railroad.

  • The Life of Johnny Appleseed

    Released 03.18.13

    The image of Johnny Appleseed walking around in rags, barefooted with a bindle, planting apple trees and moving on is actually pretty accurate.

  • The Voynich Manuscript

    Released 03.13.13

    The Voynich manuscript is named after Wilfrid Voynich, who acquired it in 1912 from a Jesuit library.

  • The Mystic Margery Kempe

    Released 03.11.13

    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 visit holy sites, and these travels became the basis for her spiritual autobiography,

  • The Real Al Swearengen: Part 2

    Released 03.06.13

    While Al Swearengen's notoriety comes from his famous saloon, his early experiences all informed his later life.

  • The Real Al Swearengen: Part 1

    Released 03.04.13

    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 early experiences as a pioneer child, 100-days man and apprentice barkeep all informed his later life.

  • Unearthed!

    Released 02.27.13

    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, hunchbacked villain, but Richard's real life was a complicated mixture of ambition, ruthlessness and fear.

  • The Other Pope Benedict Who Resigned

    Released 02.25.13

    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 his abuse of power was legendary.

  • Pablo Fanque's Fair

    Released 02.20.13

    The Victorian age offered few opportunities for Black-Britons, making Pablo Fanque's circus all the more impressive.

  • Okichi, the Tragic Geisha

    Released 02.18.13

    Okichi's story is filled with embellishment and hazy details. Sent to serve Townsend Harris, the first U.S.

  • Walter Potter’s Wild and Wonderful Taxidermy

    Released 02.13.13

    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 became his museum.

  • The Fantastic Fitzgeralds

    Released 02.11.13

    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 to fights, debt and writers' block.

  • Nikola Tesla and the War of Currents Revisited: Part 2

    Released 02.06.13

    By 1887, Nikola Tesla secured seven patents for components of his alternating current system. In 1888, George Westinghouse offered to hire Tesla to develop the AC system, and that’s when the Current War really got underway.

  • Nikola Tesla and the War of Currents Revisited: Part 1

    Released 02.04.13

    In 1857 Nikola Tesla began work on direct current motor issues. In 1884, he approached Thomas Edison with ideas about alternating current, but Edison championed direct current.

  • The Booth Conspiracy

    Released 01.30.13

    Most people know the story of President Lincoln's assassination, but what happened afterward? In this podcast, we cover John Wilkes Booth’s escape, his co-conspirators' attacks against other officials and the strange connections between Booth and Lincoln.

  • Who is D.B. Cooper?

    Released 01.28.13

    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 midair.

  • 5 War Dogs of History

    Released 01.23.13

    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, loyalty and intelligence.

  • Ned Kelly's Last Stand

    Released 01.21.13

    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 several raids.

  • 5 Historical Hoaxes

    Released 01.16.13

    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 man called the Cardiff Giant.

  • The Great Stink of 1858

    Released 01.14.13

    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 that led to funding for a modern sewer system.

  • The Great Stink of 1858

    Released 01.14.13

    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 that led to funding for a modern sewer system.

  • The Bone Wars, Part 2

    Released 01.09.13

    In Part 2 of this podcast, we examine the tactics rival archaeologists Edward Drinker Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh used in their battle to achieve preeminence.

  • Double Agent: James Armistead and the American Revolution

    Released 01.07.13

    James Armistead was a slave in Virginia, but got his master's approval to enlist when the Revolutionary War came.

No features yet.