Join Don Wildman twice a week for your hit of American history, as he explores the past to help us understand the United States of today.
We’ll hear how codebreakers uncovered secret Japanese plans for the Battle of Midway, visit Chief Powhatan as he prepares for war with the British, see Walt Disney accuse his former colleagues of being communists, and uncover the dark history that lies beneath Central Park.
From pre-colonial America to independence, slavery to civil rights, the gold rush to the space race, join Don as he speaks to leading experts to delve into America’s past.
New episodes every Monday and Thursday.
Brought to you by History Hit, the award-winning podcast network and world’s best history channel on demand, featuring shows like Dan Snow’s History Hit, Not Just The Tudors and Betwixt the Sheets.
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In 1699, Virginia’s government and capital moved from Jamestown to Middle Plantation, renaming it Williamsburg.
But why did they abandon Jamestown? In this final episode of our series, Don and Willie Balderson of Jamestowne Rediscovery uncover the colony’s last great struggles - from the loss of its charter, to fire and to rebellion.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What was it like to live in the fort at Jamestown? Who was in charge? What provisions were there? And why is this considered to be the birthplace of enslavement in the United States?
Don is joined by Jamestowne Rediscovery's Willie Balderson to dive into the years following the establishment of the British settlement. Join them to hear more about the lives of those who made the journey to the unknown in the 17th Century.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What is a Viking? Did they really make it to the United States? And if so, how far did they get?
Don speaks to Martyn Whittock about the norse landings in North America. From the Icelandic sagas to the archaeological evidence that supports them, listen as we separate the truth from the myths.
Martyn is an author, educational consultant and former teacher. His book on this subject is American Vikings.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How did Frederick Douglass, born into enslavement, rise to become one of the most influential orators, writers, and publishers of his time. By the end of his life in 1895, he was world-renowned and owned an estate overlooking the Washington, D.C. skyline.
In the first episode on Frederick Douglass, we explored his escape from enslavement and the beginnings of his career. Now, we pick up with him as the Civil War brews, at the time of John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry. Don is joined once again by Sidney Morrison, author of 'Frederick Douglass: A Novel'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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From suspicion, to siege, to collaboration, to all out war - in this episode we uncover the complex reality of the Jamestown colonists' relationship with the Indigenous peoples of the East Coast. What were their first impressions of one another? How did the Powhatan view their dynamic with the British settlers? And how crucial were figures like John Smith, Pocahontas, and John Rolfe to this story?
Don is joined once again by Mark Summers, Educational Director of Youth and Public Programmes for Jamestowne Rediscovery. They explore the shifting alliances, conflicts, and consequences that shaped early colonial America, with the help of discoveries made by archaeologists at Jamestown.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Born enslaved in 1818, by the time of the Civil War Frederick Douglass was famous around the United States and Europe for his work in the abolition movement. So how did this famous orator learn his trade, having never been to school? How did he escape enslavement? And how did his ideals change as war was brewing?
Sidney Morrison introduces us to Frederick Douglass in this first of two episodes. Sidney is the author of 'Frederick Douglass: A Novel'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In May 1607, over 100 English settlers arrived at Chesapeake Bay on the East Coast of North America. Traveling 50 miles inland along the James River, they established what would become the first permanent English settlement: Jamestown. But what motivated their journey? Why was Chesapeake Bay their chosen destination? And how much do we know about their voyage.
For this first of four episodes, Don is joined by Mark Summers, Educational Director of Youth and Public Programmes for Jamestowne Rediscovery. Don and Mark explore the roles of the Virginia Company, the British crown and individuals like Captains John Smith and Christopher Newport. From mutiny at sea to sealed instructions, this is the first step in a journey that echoes to this day.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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FDR and Winston Churchill spent 113 days in each others' company during WWII. FDR even saw Churchill naked. But how close were the pair in personality and in strategy? How did the personal relationship between these two giants of history shape the war? And why, in the end, did Churchill see it as a failure?
Dan Snow, of our sister podcast 'Dan Snow's History Hit', joins Don to talk about the most 'Special Relationship' of all.
Produced by Freddy Chick. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.
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In the 19th Century, a war on the boundary between Europe and Asia had an unexpected effect. It caused the American public to re-examine one of the terms with which they described race: Caucasian.
Don Wildman is joined for this episode by the award-winning art historian Sarah Lewis. They explore how the term Caucasian came to be associated with whiteness, and how photography was fundamental to unpicking this myth.
Sarah is the John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Humanities and Associate Professor of African and African American Studies at Harvard University. She is also the founder of the Vision & Justice initiative and author of the book discussed here: 'The Unseen Truth: When Race Changed Sight in America'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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They say that the enemy of your enemy is your friend, but did that apply to President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his Soviet counterpart, Joseph Stalin, during the Second World War?
Despite their ideological differences, the United States and the USSR joined ranks on January 1, 1942, attacked by Japan and Nazi Germany, respectively. Their leaders would meet for the first time almost two years later at the 1943 Tehran conference.
Don is joined by Phillips Payson O’Brien, Professor of Strategic Studies at St Andrews. Phillips is the author of 'The Strategists: Churchill, Stalin, Roosevelt, Mussolini and Hitler – How War Made Them, And How They Made War'.
Produced by Freddy Chick. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.
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Why was there once a fashion for styling your hair like Brutus, the most famous of Julius Caesar's assassins? Why are there so many neoclassical buildings in the United States? And how was the Ancient Roman Empire once used as a justification for the system of enslavement?
Find out in this episode, as Don is joined by Caroline Winterer, William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies at Stanford University. Caroline is the author of five books, most recently 'How the New World Became Old: The Deep Time Revolution in America'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The leaders of the two most powerful nations fighting in the Second World War, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Adolf Hitler, never met. They never even spoke.
In this episode, we explore the war of words between them, the involvement of each of their allies and when it became certain that war would break out between their two nations.
Don is joined by Charlie Laderman, Senior Lecturer in International History at King's College London. Charlie is the author of 'Hitler's American Gamble: Pearl Harbor and the German March to Global War'.
Edited by Sophie Gee. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.
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Sitting Bull, Jumping Badger, Slow - what do we know about the man who went by each of these names? How did he earn them and what was his role in the changing United States of the late 19th century?
Don is joined by none other than Sitting Bull's great-grandson, Ernie Lapointe, to hear stories passed down in his family about this Native American icon of resistance.
Ernie is a Vietnam veteran and author of 'Sitting Bull: His Life and Legacy'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In 1932, amidst the Great Depression, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected the 32nd President of the United States. He was more than a leader; he was a beacon of hope, steering the nation through its darkest days... and the newly-elected president had a plan.
In this episode, Don is joined by historian Eric Rauchway to explore the New Deal, an ambitious set of federal initiatives aimed at pulling America out of the Great Depression.
Edited by Matthew Peaty. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.
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Archive audio courtesy of the Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia. "Presidential Speeches: Downloadable Data." Accessed December 20, 2024.
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In April 1861, Union forces having lost the first battle of the Civil War, attention turned to the Confederacy's likely next target - Washington DC.
Entirely unprepared, the American capital was to be undefended for the next 12 days. To explore the fears, preparations and movements of these days, Don is joined by Tony Silber, author of 'Twelve Days: How the Union Nearly Lost Washington DC in the First Days of the Civil War'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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President Herbert Hoover is synonymous with failure. As the Great Depression hit, shanty town across America were nicknamed 'Hoovervilles' in honour of the man held responsible for their birth. But there's more to him than this. Today Don restores depth and nuance to Hoover's tragic story with his wonderful guest Eric Rauchway, author of "Winter War: Hoover, Roosevelt, and the First Clash Over the New Deal".
Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.
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In this special episode, Don Wildman is joined by experts Jonathan Alter and Jefferson Cowie to delve into the remarkable life of the 39th president of the United States, Jimmy Carter, who has died at the age of 100.
Carter, who served in office from 1977 to 1981, is the longest-lived president.
From his early days in rural Georgia, to a hostage crisis which cost him his second term, and his extensive humanitarian efforts post-presidency; hear about the pivotal moments and challenges in Carter's life.
Edited by Tomos Delargy. Produced by Charlotte Long.
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When the US turned to Japan for workers in the late 19th Century, they probably never foresaw that one day soon they would imprison those who arrived, their successors, and their families, en masse in camps around America.
To hear about the Japanese American experience through history, Don is speaking to Kristen Hayashi. Kristen is Director of Collections Management & Access and Curator at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles.
Together, Kristen and Don explore the initial migration from Japan, the work offered, and the treatment of these first generations of Japanese Americans in life and under the law. They also discuss the contradictions of the Second World War - when some 120,000 people were forcibly moved to internment camps whilst, in Europe, an all Japanese American unit became the most decorated unit of its size in US history.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The shot heard ‘round the world'; the start of the American Revolution. An event that would have profound consequences for world history, especially western democracy. Who’d have thought that something of such magnitude would begin in a small settlement with as many cows as people living in it?
Don Wildman hops across the Atlantic from American History Hit to Echoes of History to help Matt Lewis understand how two tiny towns became the spark that lit the fire of the American War of Independence.
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Hosted by: Matt Lewis
Edited by: Tim Arstall
Produced by: Matt Lewis, Sophie Gee, Robin McConnell
Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff
Production Coordinator: Beth Donaldson
Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett
Music:
Main Menu Theme by Lorne Balfe
Burial Mound by Lorne Balfe
The Convoy by Lorne Balfe
Fort Attack by Lorne Balfe
Deadly Performance by Lorne Balfe
When fossils were discovered in the US during the 19th Century, it altered American understandings of science, religion, race and more. So what was the Hadrosaurus Foulkii, and why did it have such an enormous effect?
Caroline Winterer, William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies at Stanford University, joins Don for this episode. Caroline's book on this topic is 'How the New World Became Old: The Deep Time Revolution in America'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Nick Thomson. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What makes the ideal gangster hunter? In the 1930s, outlaws like John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson and Bonnie & Clyde were the scourge on the justice system of the United States.
To bring them in, the lawmakers needed to try something new. And that something new was the FBI.
Don is joined by John Oller for this episode to find out how the FBI's powers were expanded over the years, the problems that they faced, and the influence of J. Edgar Hoover on the process.
John is a journalist and author, his book on this subject is 'Gangster Hunters: How Hoover's G-Men Vanquished America's Deadliest Public Enemies'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Matthew Peaty. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How did a couple's holiday save Kyoto from certain ruin? How did a landslide contribute to the Revolutionary War? Basically, how have chance encounters and decisions influenced the history of the United States?
Don is joined for this episode by Brian Klaas, author of 'Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters'.
Brian is a political scientist, a contributing writer at The Atlantic, and an associate professor in global politics at University College London.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Nick Thomson. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Sworn in after the death of President Harding by the light of a kerosene lamp, the 30th President of the United States led the country through 6 years of the prosperous roaring 1920s.
Coolidge polled more than 54% of the popular vote in 1924, so what was so good about 'silent Cal'? To find out, Don is joined by Amity Shlaes, author of 'Coolidge' and 'The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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76 people died on 19th April 1993 when the compound of a religious sect, the Branch Davidians, went up in flames. It had been under siege by government agencies for 51 days, but no one knows what started the fire.
Don is joined by Jeff Guinn, investigative reporter and author of ‘Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Dividians, and a Legacy of Rage’ to find out why the United States’ Government was interested in this religious compound outside Waco, Texas, and how the situation escalated to this point.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On 7th December, 1941, the Japanese Imperial Navy struck the United States. In an action which killed 2,403 Americans and destroyed 21 US warships and 188 aircraft, they also brought the US into the Second World War.
But it may not have been possible without the input of a British spy who had, for a time, lived in Hollywood, mingling with stars of the screen. So who was Frederick Rutland? What information did he give the Japanese Navy intelligence that might have helped them launch the attack on Pearl Harbor? And why did he give it to them?
Ronald Drabkin, author of 'Beverly Hills Spy: The Double-Agent War Hero Who Helped Japan Attack Pearl Harbor', joins Don for this episode. Together, they discuss Rutland's life and impact, and just how the intelligence services failed to catch him for so long.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Alien spacecraft, phenomena from another dimension, ghosts, demons of satan, a trick of light - whatever you might believe UFOs to be, they have a long history.
Don is joined by Greg Eghgian for this episode. Professor of History and Bioethics at Penn State University, Greg is the author of 'After the Flying Saucers Came: A Global History of the UFO Phenomenon'. Together with Don, he explores the origins of the 'flying saucer', the end of the stigma against researching UFOs, and much more.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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A cargo hold, just 5 feet tall and divided up with canvas - this is what served as the living quarters for the 102 passengers of the Mayflower on their 66 day crossing to North America.
Don is joined by guest Anna Scott, a researcher from the University of Lincoln, to find out what this journey was really like. From the failures of the Speedwell to the tensions between passengers on arrival in the wrong place, how has this group of colonists become so intrinsic to the American story?
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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More than 30 million people can trace their ancestry to the 102 passengers and 30 crew aboard the Mayflower when it landed in Plymouth Bay, Massachusetts in the harsh winter of 1620. On board were men, women and children from different walks of life across England and the city of Leiden in Holland. But why did the Pilgrims leave their old lives behind in the first place, chancing it all to cross the treacherous Atlantic and settle a strange alien land?
In today's episode Don is joined by Dr Anna Scott, heritage consultant and public historian at the University of Lincoln in the UK, to learn more about this 400-year-old tale of religious persecution, financial opportunity and a Puritanical fight for freedom that helped sow the seeds of a fledgling nation.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Despite dying as one of the most popular presidents in history, the 29th Commander-in-Chief has been consistently ranked one of the worst of the American Presidents.
What caused this fall from grace? From the Teapot Dome Scandal to the Veterans Bureau Scandal, to the several extramarital affairs that Harding had, much has muddied Harding's name. But what of women's, civil and worker's rights?
Don is joined by Jason Roberts, Professor of History at Quincy College in Massachusetts. Jason is an expert in politics of the 1920s and is currently working on the foreign policies of Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, in particular their handling of Lenin’s Russia.
Produced by Freddy Chick. Edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In April 1898 the United States declared war on Spain. By the end of the war that December, the Spanish had lost their centuries-old colonial empire and the US had emerged as a power in the Pacific.
Join Don as he speaks to Christopher McKnight Nichols, Professor of History and Wayne Woodrow Hayes Chair in National Security Studies, The Ohio State University. Nichols' latest book, co-edited with David Milne, is ‘Ideology in U.S. Foreign Relations: New Histories’.
Produced by Freddy Chick. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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This is the story of America's longest held prisoner of war. John 'Jack' Downey, an American CIA operative, was imprisoned by the Chinese for 21 years during the Cold War.
Don speaks to Barry Wirth, author of 'Prisoner of Lies: Jack Downey's Cold War.' They explore why the CIA were in Asia in the 1950s, Downey's capture and imprisonment, and why it took so long for him to be released.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In 1933, The Pittsburgh Courier published an editorial entitled 'Hitler Learns from America'. So how and why was fascism on the rise in the United States from the Great Depression to the Second World War?
In this episode, Don speaks with Rachel Maddow, host of 'The Rachel Maddow Show' on MSNBC. Together, they explore the influence of propaganda, key figures of American Fascism, and the Great Sedition Trial of 1944.
Rachel's latest book is 'Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism.'
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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With the US election happening, we wanted to take a look back at the presidents from the past what we know about their sex lives.
Which president was well-endowed and supposedly presented it to staff in the Oval Office? Which president had an affair on his honeymoon? And which had an affair with his wife's secretary?
And no, they're not all JFK.
Joining Kate on Betwixt the Sheets to help us find out is Eleanor Herman, author of Sex with Presidents: The Ins and Outs of Love and Lust in the White House.
This podcast was edited by Freddy Chick. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
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Invisible ink, delayed flights and political meddling - elections are a symbol of democracy, so how can they become the opposite?
Don is joined for this episode by Brian Klaas, co-author of 'How to Rig an Election' to find out. What makes a free and fair election? What techniques have authoritarians used to have themselves elected? And how widespread has this been throughout history?
Brian is a political scientist, a contributing writer at The Atlantic, and an associate professor in global politics at University College London.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The unclaimed dead of New York City's streets and rivers were brought to the New York Morgue in the second half of the nineteenth century. This history is full of dark, sad stories and buried secrets.
Maddy Pelling and Anthony Delaney are joined by Cat Byers who is a writer and historian based in Paris currently finishing a PhD on the barely-studied New York Morgue.
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What causes a person to lose the Presidential election?
Henry Clay ran for the Presidency 3 times, and for nomination by his party 5 times, but never made it to the Oval Office as the Commander in Chief.
So who was he? And why could he just not get the votes? Find out in this episode, as Don is joined by Eric Brooks, Curator at Ashland: The Henry Clay Estate.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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If somebody asked you to go on a dangerous mission, no other details, would you volunteer?
Well, in 1942, that's exactly what 120 crewmen of the US Army Air Force did. In this episode, find out how it went and who Jimmy Doolittle was. From an impossible take off, through the first attack on mainland Japan in a millennium, to capture by Japanese forces.
Don is joined once again by Michel Paradis, leading human rights lawyer, historian, and national security law scholar. His book on this topic is 'Last Mission to Tokyo: The Extraordinary Story of the Doolittle Raiders and Their Final Fight for Justice'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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4,322 days. That's how long Franklin Delano Roosevelt was in office. Whilst no other US president has served more than two terms, FDR was elected four times!
Was this because of his charisma, his opposition, the challenges of the Great Depression and the Second World War, or a combination of all of the above, Don is joined by Jonathan Darman. Jonathan is a journalist and author of 'Becoming FDR: The Personal Crisis That Made a President.'
Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On July 21, 1861, Confederate and Union forces met for the first time in full-scale battle at Bull Run Creek, near Manassas, Virginia. By the end of the day nearly 900 men were dead, and it was clear that this war would not be over in 90 days.
Don is joined by President of the American Battlefield Trust, David N. Duncan, to find out more about how this battle came to pass, how the Confederate army secured their first victory, and what the battleground looks like today.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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We have a constitutional right to vote in the United States ... don't we? Find out in this first episode of American History Hit's series, Elections Explained.
Having correctly predicted every election since 1984 (except - arguably - 2000), Allan Lichtman joins Don to explore the development of the American right to vote,. When did we move from public to private voting? And where did the electoral college come from?
Allan is a Distinguished Professor of History at the American University, Washington DC, and has been an expert witness in 100 Civil and Voting Rights cases. His books include ‘White Protestant Nation: The Rise of the American Conservative Movement’, ‘The Keys To the White House’, and ’The Thirteen Keys To the Presidency’, and his Youtube can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/@AllanLichtmanYouTube
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What does it take to be the first person named as 'Public Enemy No.1' by the US Bureau of Investigation?
In this episode, we're going to find out. Don is joined by Elliott Gorn to find out about the rise and fall of John Dillinger, the man who took this title in 1934.
Elliott Gorn is the Joseph Gagliano Professor of American Urban History at Loyola University, Chicago. His books include 'Let the People See: The Story of Emmett Till' and 'Dillinger's Wild Ride: The Year That Made America's Public Enemy Number 1'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Nick Thomson. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Did Columbus really think the Earth was flat? Where did he come from? Where did he get to? To untangle the myths of Columbus and his complicated legacy, Don spoke to Elise Bartosik-Velez.
Elise teaches at Dickinson college about Latin American history and literature, focusing in particular on the Colonial Period through Independence. She is the author of 'The Legacy of Christopher Columbus in the Americas: New Nations and a Transatlantic Discourse of Empire'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Max Carrey. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Just how murderous were Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow? Where did those famous photos come from? And how did the press lead to the pair's demise?
Don chats to Jeff Guinn, best-selling author and historian, to find out about this notorious outlaw couple. They explore the impact of the Great Depression, the prison system and dreams of fame on Bonnie and Clyde's rise and fall.
Jeff is an investigative reporter and author of several books including 'Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Davidians, and a Legacy of Rage'. His book on this subject is ‘Go Down Together: The True Untold Story of Bonnie And Clyde’.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long. Bonnie's poem read by Breeana Gamueda.
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When it comes to US foreign policy in the early 20th Century, isolationism tends to come to mind. What, then, was Woodrow Wilson's impact on the end of WW1?
Don is joined by Charlie Laderman to find out more about the peace negotiations, the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations, and how these things were understood in the US.
Charlie is Senior Lecturer in International History at King's College London. He is the author of 'Sharing the Burden: The Armenian Question, Humanitarian Intervention and Anglo-American Visions of Global Order'.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Max Carrey. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Jesse James. Perhaps the most notorious American outlaw?
He’s become legendary figure of the Wild West, compared to an American ‘Robin Hood.’ But with a legacy so pervasive, the myths about Jesse James can get often get confused for the truth…
Did you know he played significant part in engineering his own reputation as a ‘Confederate hero’, comparing himself in newspapers to Napoleon and Alexander the Great? Or, that he married his first cousin while recovering from a gun wound?
Don finds out about the real Jesse James with his guest, award-winning biographer, T.J. Stiles on today’s episode.
You can see more about T.J’s work here: https://www.tjstiles.net/
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Max Carrey. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Very few people know what it is like to be in the infamous US detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, but our 3 guests for this episode have all had first hand experience.
For one of them, it was as a detainee. Mansoor Adayfi was held, interrogated and tortured at Guantanamo for over 14 years. For Pardiss Kebriaei, it was as an attorney. Pardiss is a Senior Staff Attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, and has worked with Guantanamo detainees since 2007. Finally, for Karen Greenberg, it was as an historian. Karen is Director of the Center on National Security at Fordham Law, and author of a number of books, including 'The Least Worst Place: Guantanamo's First 100 Days'.
So how did Guantanamo Bay become the locus of a detention centre? How did nearly 800 people come to be detained there? And how has it changed over time? Don finds out.
Mansoor's books include 'Don't Forget Us Here' and the audiobook 'Letters from Guantanamo', available on audible.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long. Artwork by Kyle Hoekstra.
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When was the first bank robbery? What does it take to be successful in organized crime? Is it possible to be non-violent? And how might you avoid getting caught? The story of Ma Mandelbaum, the mother of New York's criminal underworld, has the answer to these questions and more.
Don is joined by Margalit Fox, former senior writer at the New York Times, to discuss the fascinating rise and fall of Frederica Mandelbaum, a 19th-century immigrant in New York who became one of the earliest and most successful figures in organized crime.
Margalit's books is entitled 'The Talented Mrs. Mandelbaum: The Rise and Fall of an American Organized-Crime Boss'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How did Egypt and Israel come to an agreement at Camp David in 1979? How did the USSR come to allow the operation of NATO troops in East Germany? Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat has played a leading role in the United States' diplomatic negotiations whilst serving in six Presidential administrations.
In a troubled world, which needs diplomacy more than ever, Stuart joins Don to explore the internal workings of agreements that have shaped the world in which we live.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Who was Joe McCarthy? How did this Republican Senator come to lead a nationwide campaign against communism? And how did he bring about his own downfall?
For this episode, Don is joined by the authors of ‘Witch Hunt: The Cold War, Joe McCarthy, and the Red Scare’, Dr. Andrea Balis and Elizabeth Levy. Listen in to find out why McCarthyism happened when it did, and why it was a bad idea to make an enemy of the US Army.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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When the US turned to Japan looking for workers in the late 19th Century, they probably never foresaw that one day soon they would imprison those who arrived, their successors, and their families, en masse in camps around America.
To hear about the Japanese American experience through history, Don is speaking to Kristen Hayashi. Kristen is Director of Collections Management & Access and Curator at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles.
Together, Kristen and Don explore the initial migration from Japan, the work offered, and the treatment of these first generations of Japanese Americans in life and under the law. They also discuss the contradictions of the Second World War - when some 120,000 people were forcibly moved to internment camps whilst, in Europe, an all Japanese American unit became the most decorated unit of its size in US history.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The 20th Century is up and running and the next President in our series, Woodrow Wilson, is in for a challenge. Reconstruction is over, Europe is on the precipice of war, and women are campaigning for suffrage. So how does this two term presidency play out?
From granting women the right to vote to segregating the Federal Government, how progressive was the 27th President? Where did Wilson stand on American isolationism during the First World War? And where did the League of Nations come from?
Don is joined by Dr Michael Kazin for this episode. Michael is a professor of History at Georgetown and author of several acclaimed books including 'What It Took to Win: A History of the Democratic Party' and 'War Against War: The American Fight for Peace, 1914-1918'.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In 1621 the Virginia Company of London put out a call for young, handsome and honestly educated women to become wives for the planters in its new colony in Jamestown. Hopeful husbands were supposed to pay for their English brides in best leaf tobacco. But who were the women who made the Atlantic crossing? And what became of them when they arrived in America?
In this episode of our sister History Hit podcast, Not Just the Tudors, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb meets author Jennifer Potter to find out more about the lives of these extraordinary women.
***Warning: This podcast includes references to slaughter and hostage taking.
This episode was produced by Rob Weinberg.
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Which President was best with their money? Which was worst? And are Presidents responsible for paying for their food, staff and parties during their time in office?
To find out all this and more, Don speaks to tax attorney and wealth manager Megan Gorman. Megan's book is 'All the Presidents' Money: How the Men Who Governed America Governed Their Money'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Max Carrey. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In June 1944, the joint forces of the Allies began the liberation of continental Europe on D-Day. But was there tension within the ranks?
Don speaks to Michel Paradis to find out how Eisenhower's leadership helped win the war. How did he deal with the strained relationship between the fading colonial powers of Britain and France, and the rising superpowers, the US and the USSR? How did he police the behaviour of the American troops in Europe? And why did a summit meeting almost end in a fist fight?
Michel is a leading human rights lawyer, historian, and national security law scholar. His book on this topic is 'The Light of Battle: Eisenhower, D-Day, and the Birth of the American Superpower'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Max Carrey. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Sandwiched between Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson is our 26th President of the United States, William Howard Taft. Did he have the confidence, belief and vision necessary to become a president? And why was he criticised for spending too much time on the golf course?
Don is joined by Adam Burns, Head of Politics at Brighton College and author of 'William Howard Taft and the Philippines: A Blueprint for Empire'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Max Carrey. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Why did an aristocratic French man fight for American freedom? How influential was Lafayette? And what did he do on his return visit to the United States 200 years ago this year?Don is joined by Chuck Schwam, Executive Director of the American Friends of Lafayette. You can find more about Chuck’s work with Lafayette 200 here: https://lafayette200.org/
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Cleopatra, Catherine the Great, Boudicca, Margaret Thatcher, Angela Merkel: what do these women have in common? They were all leaders of their nations, and they may - pending the choices of the electorate later this year - be joined in their ranks by an American.
But what might Kamala Harris face if she wins the election? What is she already facing? Are there patterns in the way they are discussed? From Eve to Hillary Clinton, Don is joined by author Eleanor Herman to discuss the history of responses to women in leadership roles.
Eleanor's book on this subject is 'Off With Her Head: Three Thousand Years of Demonizing Women in Power'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.
Host Don Wildman has a message for listeners old and new, marking 200 episodes of American History Hit.
American History Hit first started publishing in 2022, and since then we've covered the first Americans, Revolution, Civil War, the World Wars and beyond. Here's to the next 200 episodes, where we will continue to look to the past to understand the United States of today.
What kind of a nickname is Bull Moose? How progressive was Theodore Roosevelt's presidency? And how does his legacy live on?
Don is joined once again by Michael Patrick Cullinane, historian of American politics, an award-winning author, and the Lowman Walton Chair of Theodore Roosevelt Studies at Dickinson State University.
Michael's books on Roosevelt are 'Remembering Theodore Roosevelt' and 'Theodore Roosevelt's Ghost'.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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"Speak softly and carry a big stick."
The youngest President ever, Lieutenant Colonel of the Rough Rider Regiment, uncle to Eleanor Roosevelt, fifth cousin to FDR, and a keen huntsman; Theodore Roosevelt is consistently remembered as one of the United States' top 5 Presidents.
But how did he reach the White House? In this first of two episodes on Theodore Roosevelt, we are looking at his rise from sickly child to tough President.
Don is joined by Michael Patrick Cullinane, historian of American politics, an award-winning author, and the Lowman Walton Chair of Theodore Roosevelt Studies at Dickinson State University.
Michael's books on Roosevelt are 'Remembering Theodore Roosevelt' and 'Theodore Roosevelt's Ghost', his podcast is 'The Gilded Age and Progressive Era': https://shows.acast.com/gildedageandprogressiveera
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How do our politicians use the media? Throughout the 2024 election we have seen a boom in the use of social media and cable news, so how far back does this go?
To find out, Don speaks first to crisis public relations expert and TikTok star, Molly McPherson, to hear about this year's election campaign. Then, he chats to author Claire Bond Potter, whose book is titled 'Political Junkies: From Talk Radio to Twitter, How Alternative Media Hooked Us On Politics and Broke Our Democracy' and whose substack carries the same name. Claire takes us through the history of political news, from pamphlets and papers to radio, TV and social media.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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When the First World War ended at 11am on 11 November, 1918, how did army command relay the ceasefire to their troops? In fact, before radios and computer systems, in the early years of the telephone, how were messages passed along trenches at all?
In this episode, Don is joined once again by Elizabeth Cobbs, award-winning historian and novelist. Elizabeth's book on this subject is 'The Hello Girls: America's First Women Soldiers'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On 6th September, 1901, President William McKinley attended a public reception at the Pan American Exposition, a 6-month-long World’s Fair, in Buffalo, New York. He was at the height of his power, having been re-elected at the beginning of the year. But one of the people who stood in line to meet him was an anarchist, determined to carry out the first US presidential assassination of the 20th century.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Edited by Joseph Knight. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Why does the Secret Service protect the President of the United States? And what can we learn from McKinley's life and presidency, not just his assassination?
Don speaks with Kim Kenney, Executive Director at the McKinley Presidential Library & Museum. Together, they take us through McKinley's background, election and term in office, as well as looking at his lasting impact on America.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Peter Dennis. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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President Joe Biden will address the nation from the Oval Office on Wednesday night, after announcing he was ending his reelection bid a few days ago. Dropping out so close to the election is historically unprecedented, but Biden is not to first president to make this decision. In 1968, Lyndon B. Johnson sat in the same office to announce the same news.
But what makes Biden's situation so rare? Has a sitting president ever been under pressure to drop out over concerns about their age and mental clarity? Who were the other presidents who chose to serve only one term? And is there any truth to the so-called 'second term curse'?
For this special bonus episode, Don is joined by Professor of History, Kevin M. Kruse, from Princeton.
You can find out more about Kevin's newsletter, Campaign Trails, here.
Producer: Sophie Gee. Produced and mixed by Charlotte Long.
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How did a party in the White House end in mayhem? When did the West Wing become a hive of government? And how has the private life of the President been shielded from the public, despite them living and working in the same building?
To explore the stories that lurk beneath the white washed surface of the President's residence, Don speaks to Corey Mead. Corey is an associate professor of English at Baruch College, City University of New York. He is also the author of three books including 'The Hidden History of the White House: Power Struggles, Scandals, and Defining Moments'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Lincoln, FDR, Reagan, Clinton, Bush and now Trump. All have been targets of assassination attempts while in or running for office. Listen to this bonus episode from our sister podcast, Dan Snow's History Hit, where host Dan is joined by Professor of American History at Cambridge University Gary Gerstle to take a look at the assassination attempts that could have changed the course of American history and how.
Produced by Dan Snow, Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal Patmore.
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This podcast contains adult language.
What was the ‘Indian Citizenship Act’ of 1924? Why was it necessary? How did it happen? And why did it happen in 1924?
Shannon O’Loughlin from the Association of American Indian Affairs joins Don to discuss the Act and its effect.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Right from independence, a question has hovered over the government of the United States. How much power should the President have? Not too much, lest they become a monarch. But not too little, they are elected to do a job and that job must be done.
In this episode of American History Hit, Don is joined once again by Professor of Political Science, Graham G Dodds. Graham is author of 'The Unitary Presidency' and, together, he and Don discuss the power of the President.
Can they commit a crime? How has the unitary executive been used in domestic, and foreign, spaces? And where was this theory born - with the Constitution, Hamilton, Reagan or Bush?
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What caused the economic panic of 1893? In this episode we are delving into the event that made Grover Cleveland's second term so different from his first.
Don is joined once again by Professor Mark Zachary Taylor from Georgia Institute of Technology, author of 'Presidential Leadership in Feeble Times.' From the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, to labour strikes, to the evolution of the presidency's role in financial systems - this is the second term of the United States' only President to serve twice, non consecutively.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What do you know about Galveston, Texas? Perhaps you've heard about the disastrous hurricane of 1900, perhaps not. This was also likely the case for the thousands of European Jews who migrated to the United States via the city's port in the years preceding the First World War.
Don speaks to Rachel Cockerell, whose great-grandfather, David Jochelmann, was one of those persuading passengers to make the journey. Rachel's book is called 'Melting Point'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In the long unanswered question of whether the established elite truly support the concerns of ordinary people, a supposed hero arises: Populism.
But what is Populism? Where did it come from? And is this political approach from the late 19th century reflected anywhere in today's politics?
Don speaks to Steve Babson, author of seven books including ‘Forgotten Populists: When Farmers Turned Left to Save Democracy’.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What took the US from the Boston Tea Party to Lexington and Concord? Where was the turning point for the creation of the republic?
Mary Beth Norton joins Don in this episode to take us through the causes of the Revolutionary War, and why the year 1774 is so important in this history.
Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Why is the 23rd President of the United States, Benjamin Harrison, remembered as a 'Human Iceberg'? Why did it seem as though he was predestined for the Presidency? And what was it like to have a term sandwiched between the presidencies of Grover Cleveland?
Don speaks to humorist Alexandra Petri about Harrison's presidency and legacy. Alexandra is a Washington Post columnist and the author of 'US History: Important American Documents (I Made Up)'.
Produced by Freddy Chick. Edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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A 34-hour bombardment, one (accidental) death, and the start of the bloodiest war the United States has ever seen.
The Battle of Fort Sumter, in April 1861, is often obscured by the more famous battles in the four years of Civil War history, but it is one of the most significant among them.
To find out more, Don speaks to the incredible Allen C. Guelzo, Thomas W. Smith Distinguished Research Scholar and Director of the James Madison Program’s Initiative on Politics and Statesmanship at Princeton University.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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This episode was first released on November 14 2022.
The Whiskey Tax, imposed in 1791, was the first federal tax on a domestic product by a United States government. It was introduced by Alexander Hamilton to pay the interest on war bonds that had been issued to wealthy backers of the the American Revolution. But many Whiskey distillers in Western Pennsylvania refused to pay a tax that would only benefit a few rich bond holders.
Over the course of three years, there were attacks on federal and local tax collectors and the region became a law unto itself. A situation only suppressed, as William Hogeland tells Don, by President George Washington gathering together a militia of 12,000 men and marching to Western Pennsylvania .
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In the US Constitution, the President of the United States is granted the right to pardon those convicted of federal crimes.
But how do they tend to use these pardons, and when have they been used in the cases of mass insurrection? From Mormons, to conscientious objectors, to the January 6th uprising, Don is joined by Graham Dodds to discuss this history.
Professor Graham Dodds teaches at Concordia University in Montreal. His book on this subject is 'Mass Pardons in America: Rebellion, Presidential Amnesty, and Reconciliation'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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They say that honesty is the best policy, but was this the case for Grover Cleveland? He may be the only president to have served two non-consecutive terms (as of 13 June 2023), but Cleveland was deeply unpopular by the end of his last term.
From protecting the interests of the American people and upholding the constitution, to a secret lifesaving operation - what defines the 22nd and 24th President?
In this episode we find out with two guests. The first is President Cleveland's grandson, George, who introduces us to Grover from inside the family. The second is Professor Mark Summers, author of 'A Good Man is Hard to Take: Grover Cleveland – Man of Destiny'.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How did the United States go from a country defined by its lawlessness in the 1920s and early 1930s, to one where many political standpoints rest on a War on Crime? What roles did FDR, J. Edgar Hoover and Attorney General Homer S. Cummings play in this?
In this episode of American History Hit, Don delves into the transformation of the Federal government during Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal. He is joined by Anthony Gregory, historian of the American State and author of 'New Deal Law and Order: How the War on Crime Built the Modern Liberal State'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On June 6, 1944, the Allied forces combined their land, air and sea forces into the largest amphibious invasion in history - D-Day.
Under Supreme Commander General Dwight D Eisenhower, this attack turned the tide on the second world war, pushing enemy forces out of France and towards surrender in Berlin.
73,000 Americans landed on the beaches of Normandy that day, and to hear about their roles, Don is speaking to Martin Morgan - tour guide, historian and author of 'The Americans on D-Day: A Photographic History of the Normandy Invasion.'
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Max Carrey and Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The history of the United States' relationship with communism is one littered with fear and persecution. So where did the American Communist Party come from? How powerful has it been in the last century? And where is it now?
In this episode of American History Hit, Don is joined by Dr. Vernon Pederson, Professor at the American University of Sharjah and President of the Historians of American Communism.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Where did baseball come from? Why is every stadium unique? And how do you make it to the Hall of Fame?
For half the year, baseball remains a national pastime in the USA. It is also a game of many myths, and plenty of legends. In this episode, Don speaks to one of them - Joe Posnanski is a two time Emmy Award winner and has been named National Sportswriter of the Year by five different organizations.
From Gaylord Perry's moonshot, to the teenage girl who pitched for Babe Ruth, to the crossing of barriers of race and gender in major league baseball, Joe takes us through some of the key moments in baseball history.
Joe's book on this subject is 'Why We Love Baseball: A History in 50 Moments': https://linktr.ee/WhyWeLoveBaseballUK.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Please note, this episode contains discussion of suicide.
On 1 April 1945, as the Second World War in Europe was reaching its end, one of the bloodiest battles in the whole conflict commenced on a small island south of mainland Japan. It was the Battle of Okinawa.
Saul David joined Dan Snow on our sister podcast, Dan Snow's History Hit, to provide a fascinating rundown of this truly horrific battle.
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Vice President to a narrow election winner, Chester Arthur was a very unlikely President. But on September 20th 1881 he took his seat as the 21st President of the United States at the dawn of the modern administrative state and presidency.
So what kind of President did he become? Was he progressive? What was his role in the creation of the Civil Service? And how did the Presidency impact him as a person?
Don is joined by Michael J. Gerhardt for this episode in our Presidential series. Michael is the Samuel Ashe Distinguished Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of North Carolina School of Law in Chapel Hill. He is the author of The Forgotten Presidents: Their Untold Constitutional Legacy and FDR's Mentors: Navigating the Path to Greatness.
Produced by Sophie Gee and Freddy Chick. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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11 Tonys, a Grammy, a Pulitzer Prize and broken box office records - there's no denying the impact of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton.
Throughout this series on the real Hamilton, we have been trying to uncover the man the musical is based on. But how much of the show and its production is truthful? And how much does this matter?
Renee Romano joins Don to look into this new American Myth. Renee is a writer, historian and professor, and one of the editors of 'Historians on Hamilton: How a Blockbuster Musical is Restaging America's Past'. She can be found here.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Today we dive into the little-known true story of American castaways abandoned on the Falkland Islands during the War of 1812 ― a tale of treachery, shipwreck, isolation and a desperate struggle for survival.
In this fascinating episode, best-selling author Eric Jay Dolan joins Don to explore this wild encounter between an American sealing vessel, a shipwrecked British brig and a British warship in the desolate Falklands, all while the two nations remained at war. Fraught with misunderstandings and mistrust, this bizarre incident left three British sailors and two Americans adrift for eighteen months, and is the subject of Eric's new book Left for Dead: Shipwreck, Treachery, and Survival at the Edge of the World.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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When Alexander Hamilton took a bullet to the abdomen on the morning of the 11th July 1804, he joined a long list of people who had fallen foul of this very strange practice. So where did duelling come from? And how did these two revolutionary American politicians find themselves with pistols in their hands?
Don is joined for this third episode of our Real Hamilton series by Mike Loades, British author and presenter of History Hit's new series of documentaries about the tradition of duelling, first with swords, then with pistols.
Find 'Duelling, with Mike Loades' on History Hit TV.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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This may have been the second shortest Presidency in the history of the United States, but the term of James Garfield is definitely not one to miss.
From his dark horse nomination to his assassination by Charles Guiteau, Don is speaking with bestselling author of ‘An Assassin in Utopia,' Susan Wels.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Founding Father, first Secretary of the Treasury and focus of one of the world's first political sex scandals - we couldn't do a series about Alexander Hamilton without touching on his personal life.
Don is joined by Elizabeth Cobbs in this episode to explore the private lives of the Hamiltons. Who was Elizabeth Schuyler? Did her sister have an affair with her husband? And was the Reynolds affair an elaborate plot or an unhappy coincidence?
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Theodore Roosevelt is arguably the most masculine president in American history. So how was he influenced by the women around him? And how was he impacted by the deaths of two of them on the same day?
In this episode, Edward O'Keefe introduces us to Theodore Roosevelt's mother, two sisters, and two wives: Mittie, Bamie, Conie, Alice and Edith.
Edward O'Keefe, Prime Time Emmy award and Peabody winner, CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, is the author of 'The Loves of Theodore Roosevelt: The Women Who Created a President'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Who really was Alexander Hamilton, and what do we actually know about his life?
A Founding Father, he fought in the Revolutionary War, founded the American financial system and was the first ever Secretary of the Treasury. But who really was Hamilton? How did his face come to be on our bank notes? Did he love his wife? And why would he go to duel even after his son had died in doing so?
In this first episode of our 4 part series on American History Hit, Don Wildman is talking to William Hogeland to find out. William is the author of 'The Hamilton Scheme: An Epic Tale of Money and Power in the American Founding' and his substack can be found here.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Emerging victorious from an electoral quagmire in 1876, Rutherford B. Hayes became the 19th President of the United States.
Professor Mark Zachary Taylor joins Don to explore the first great depression and how Hayes navigated the US towards recovery from it.
From strike and unrest to growth and stability, how did Hayes lay the groundwork for economic prosperity?
Produced by Freddy Chick. Edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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An iconic signature on the Declaration of Independence - that is what John Hancock is best known for. But how did he come to be the first signatory? What was his role in the American Revolution?
Brooke Barbier joins Don in this episode to take us through the life and works of John Hancock, and to explain how he got the nickname, 'King Hancock'.
Brooke is the author of ‘Boston in the American Revolution’ and ‘King Hancock: The Radical Influence of a Moderate Founding Father’. She also founded 'Ye Old Tavern Tours', a private tour company in Boston.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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During the spring of 1921, eleven bodies were found in in rural Georgia. These men were victims of horrific murders, and also of a more widespread crime - peonage.
Whilst enslavement had legally ended with the surrender at Appomattox and the 13th Amendment, black people across the south were still being entrapped into debt slavery half a century later, in the Twentieth Century.
To find out more about this, and about what drove these men's murderer to his crimes, Don speaks to Earl Swift, author of 'Hell Put to Shame: The 1921 Murder Farm Massacre and the Horror of America's Second Slavery.'
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How does a heroic general of the Civil War become one of the lowest rated Presidents (at least until recently)?
To discuss Grant's commitment to reconstruction, civil rights, and the crushing of the Ku Klux Klan, Don is joined by Professor Anne Marshall. Anne is a historian of the Nineteenth century U.S. South and the Civil War in historical memory at Mississippi State University.
Produced by Freddy Chick. Edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Strategic brilliance? Relentless determination? Unbeatable leadership and cooperation with Lincoln? How did Ulysses S. Grant distinguish himself in the Civil War?
Don speaks to Cecily Zander, a historian specializing in the Civil War era and the American West. Together, they discuss Grant's rise to General, his role in the war and why he has been known as 'the Butcher'.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Charlotte Long. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Al Capone is one of the most notorious gangsters in US history. His story of rags to riches, set against the backdrop of the prohibition era, is worthy of the many movies that it has inspired.
Violent mobster, genius businessman or semi-professional baseball player, who was the real Al Capone? To find out, Don speaks to Claire White, Director of Education at the Mob Museum in Las Vegas.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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It comprises more than half of the world's defence spending, but what is the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation? How has the United States influenced it from its inception to today? And how, during its 75 years, has it impacted the United States in return?
Don is joined by Peter Apps, journalist and Reuters global defence commentator. From the signing of the treaty by the first 12 members on 4th April 1949, through tensions, failures and the addition of member states, how might NATO be 'the world's most successful military alliance'?
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Ella Blaxill. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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A wealthy man in his early 30s. An army man. A German immigrant. A bootlegger. A lover. Who was Jay Gatsby? And if he was based on a real person, what do we know about them?
To delve into one of the most famous fictional characters of the 20th century (from one of Don's favourite authors, F Scott Fitzgerald) Don speaks to Joe Nocera. Joe is the host of a new eight-part investigation that delves into the shrouded mystery behind the person who claims to have inspired The Great Gatsby.
American Dreamer: Who Was Jay Gatsby? An Audible Original podcast, is out now.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Three quarters of a million people dead in the Civil War. A country separated in to two. How do you join it back together? Do you punish the secessionists? How do you grapple with the question of enslavement? And who do you choose to be at the controls?
When Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, his Vice President, Andrew Johnson, became President. Johnson was a Southerner who had sided with the Union during the war. To hear how his standpoint impacted on his policy in the aftermath of the war, Don speaks to Erik B Alexander.
Erik is an Associate Professor of American History at Souther Illinois University.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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More than 200 accused, 20 executed and a village plagued with hysteria. Were the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 and 1693 the work of superstition, a power struggle, fungus or actual witchcraft? What makes them stand out in the history of witch trials?
In this episode, Don speaks to Jessica Parr from Northeastern University about the alleged crimes, persecution and lasting memory of the so-called Salem witches.
Jessica is a historian of the Early Modern Atlantic and author of 'Inventing George Whitefield: Race, Revivalism, and the Making of a Religious Icon.'
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Tean Stewart-Murray. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Would the Cold War have happened if the nuclear bomb was never created? How did Gorbachev, Reagan and Thatcher reduce tensions between the East and West? And, according to one of the Russian authorities' most wanted journalists, how are echoes of the Cold War felt today?
'Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War' is a new, 9-part Netflix documentary which answers these questions and more. In this episode of American History Hit, Don speaks to the series' director and two contributors to get some insight.
First, he speaks to Brian Knappenberger, the documentary filmmaker behind this series, Turning Point: 9/11 and the War on Terror and others.
Then, he is joined by Archie Brown, Emeritus Professor at the University of Oxford and author of 'The Human Factor. Gorbachev, Reagan, and Thatcher, and the End of the Cold War'.
Finally, he speaks with Andrei Soldatov, Russian investigative journalist and co-founder and editor of Agentura.ru, a watchdog of the activities of the Russian secret service.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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At least 23 of the Presidents of the United States can have their ancestry traced back to Ireland.
So why did this diaspora come to America? What was their reception like? And how have they reached the top of the power structure so regularly?
We are finding out in this episode with historian Kevin Kenny, Professor of History and Glucksman Professor in Irish Studies at New York University. Kevin is the author of 'Making sense of the Molly Maguires' and 'Diaspora: A Very Short Introduction' among other titles.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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President and Commander-in-Chief at a major turning point in American History? Victim of a violent and public assassination? How do you remember Abraham Lincoln? Most likely it isn't for his role as a son, husband, friend and father.
In this final episode of our Lincoln series, we're going to dig into Lincoln's personal life, upbringing, relationships and struggles with his mental health.
Don speaks to Callie Hawkins, CEO and executive director of President Lincoln's Cottage. Callie is also co-host of the museum's podcast, Q & Abe.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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A far-right hate group known the world over, the Ku Klux Klan emerged in the aftermath of the Civil War. So why did it emerge? Where did it get its name from? And how has its size, focus and influence changed in the years since?
To demystify this terrorist organisation, Don spoke to Professor Kristofer Allerfeldt from the University of Exeter, England. Kristofer is the author of 'The Ku Klux Klan: An American History'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Inaugurated into the thick of secession and assassinated just weeks after Confederate surrender, there is no separating the story of Abraham Lincoln from the Civil War.
So in this second part of our series on Lincoln, Don speaks to Adam Smith about Lincoln's leadership of the Union army during the war.
Adam is a professor at the University of Oxford and Director of their Rothermere American Institute. He is also the host of podcast 'The Last Best Hope?' and author of 'The Stormy Present: Conservatism and the Problem of Slavery in Northern Politics, 1846-1865'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In July 1860, half a century after the importation of captive slaves was banned under federal law, a ship docked in Alabama carrying around 110 enslaved people.
To find out who was still engaging in the Atlantic slave trade, how these people were forced onto the Clotilda and what happened to them after landing in the United States, Don speaks to Hannah Durkin.
Hannah is the author of 'Survivors: The Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the Atlantic Slave Trade'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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When it comes to US Presidents, it’s not easy to agree on much these days. But one thing that has remained consistent is the man widely considered to be the best president in history: Abraham Lincoln.
In this first episode of our three part series, we're finding out about Lincoln's rise to power and key policies as the President of the United States.
Don speaks to Matthew Pinsker, Professor of History at Dickinson College and author of 'Lincoln's Sanctuary: Abraham Lincoln' and 'The Soldiers’ Home'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On February 18th, 1965, the University of Cambridge hosted one of the most legendary debates in history. Author James Baldwin and conservative intellectual William F. Buckley Jr took to the floor to discuss whether the American Dream was achievable only at the expense of black Americans.
To find out more about this debate, often overshadowed by other significant civil rights events of the same era, Don speaks to Nicholas Buccola. Nick is a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College and author of ‘The Fire is Upon Us’.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
Audio from the debate republished with the permission of The Cambridge Union (https://www.cus.org).
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On 23 June 1972, a man boarded American Airlines Flight 119 in St Louis. He sat most of the way to Tulsa before donning a wig and a pair of gloves in the restroom, taking out a gun and handing a member of the cabin crew a note.
'Don't panic. This is a ransom hijacking.'
To find out more about this man, what he hoped to gain from his crimes, and how he and others were inspired by D.B. Cooper, Don speaks to John Wigger. John is Professor of History at the University of Missouri and author of ‘The Hijacking of American Flight 119: How D.B. Cooper Inspired a Skyjacking Craze and the FBI's Battle to Stop It’.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The city of Tulsa is perhaps best known in history books for the events of 1921. In 36 hours, hundreds of residents of the Greenwood district were murdered and more than 30 blocks of housing and businesses were razed to the ground.
In this episode, Don is with Victor Luckerson to go beyond the story of that one day in Tulsa. Why was the Greenwood district known as Black Wall Street? Why was it targeted that day? How did its residents raise themselves up and carry on to become commercially stronger in the aftermath? And what is the legacy of the massacre in Tulsa?
Victor is a journalist and author based in Tulsa. His book on this subject is 'Built from the Fire: The Epic Story of Tulsa's Greenwood District, America's Black Wall Street' and his substack is https://runitback.substack.com
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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From 1857 to 1861, James Buchanan held the office of President of the United States. It was a pivotal moment in the history of America, a bitterly divided nation that would very soon descend to its darkest depths during the Civil War.
So what exactly was Buchanan's role in steering his country towards this fate? Could he have done more? Why is Kansas so intrinsic to this story? And what else was unusual about his presidency?
Don speaks to Dr Ian Iverson, Historian and Editor at the John Dickinson Writings Project and author of 'Holding the Political Center in Illinois: Conservatism and Union on the Brink of Civil War', published this year by Kent State University Press.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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From financial to conspiratorial to sexual, the words 'Clinton' and 'scandal' are regularly found in each others' vicinities. But why?
Don is talking to Professor Peter Ling today to take us back to before Bill Clinton became president, before Monica Lewinsky became a household name, to find out about the scandals that have lurked in the Clintons' shadows.
Peter, from the University of Nottingham, is working on a study of presidential scandals from Watergate to Trump.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Where did the idea for Facebook come from? How has the site evolved? And how has it changed the world? In this episode, 20 years after the creation of the social media site, Don speaks to Steven Levy, WIRED’s editor at large.
Steven had access to Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg over three years for his book 'Facebook: The Inside Story'. His work chronicling the digital revolution can be found at WIRED.com.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The war between the Union and the Confederacy is a major turning point in the history of the United States. But why did it happen?
From slavery and states' rights, to economic, legislative, moral, and political issues, in this episode, Don and Professor Adam Smith explore how these intertwined issues triggered this devastating war.
Adam is a professor at the University of Oxford and Director of their Rothermere American Institute. He is also the host of podcast 'The Last Best Hope?' and author of 'The Stormy Present: Conservatism and the Problem of Slavery in Northern Politics, 1846-1865'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long
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We're creeping closer and closer to the Civil War in our chronology of presidents, and this episode's focus did little to delay the division of the United States.
The 14th President, Franklin Pierce, took office in March 1853. To hear about his attempts at both domestic and foreign policy, as well as the personal tragedies that impacted his ability to govern, Don spoke to Brian Neumann.
Brian C Neumann is the author of 'Bloody Flag of Anarchy: Unionism in South Carolina during the Nullification Crisis' and managing director of the John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History at the University of Virginia.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What were the Apache Wars? How did they begin? And how did the end of the Mexican-American War impact the indigenous people of that region?
In the 19th century, U.S. forces and Apache groups in areas that are now parts of New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas fought a series of conflicts over territory, power and resources.
In this episode, historian Doug Hocking gives us insight into the various turning points in the conflicts, notably the Bascom Affair, the role of figures like Cochise and Geronimo, and the degrading relationship between the U.S. forces and Apache tribes after the Mexican-American War.
Doug is a historian of the American South West and author of a number of books including 'Black Legend: George Bascom, Cochise, and the Start of the Apache Wars'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How did the 100th bomber group get a reputation for being unlucky? Who were they? And what was their role in the Second World War?
In this episode, Don has the pleasure of speaking to John Orloff. John has written the TV adaptation of Donald L. Miller's 'Masters of the Air', following the men of the 'Bloody Hundredth' 25,000 feet in the air as they conduct bombing raids despite freezing temperatures, lack of oxygen and opposition fire.
John previously worked on 'Band of Brothers' and 'The Pacific' from the same executive producers.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Wiretapping, White House tapes and the possibility of impeachment. On June 17, 1972, a break-in at the Watergate Hotel triggered a chain of events ending with the resignation of President Nixon in 1974.
From the burglary to the surprising redactions from the Nixon tapes, Kathryn Brownell joins Don to explore the story. Kathryn is an Associate Professor at Purdue University and author of '24/7 Politics: Cable Television and the Fragmenting of America from Watergate to Fox News'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How did a president lose his entire cabinet so soon after taking office? What was his role in the Westward expansion of the United States? And where did the name Millard come from?
From teaching himself to read to becoming President of the United States, today we are being introduced to the 13th President of the United States, Millard Fillmore.
Don is joined by Michael David Cohen, Research Professor of Government and Editor of the Correspondence of Zachary Taylor & Millard Fillmore at the American University.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Who introduced Martin Luther King Jr. to activism? Why is the influence of mothers so often understated? And did you know about the other King assassination?
In this episode, we explore the extraordinary life and legacy of Alberta Christine Williams King, a remarkable activist in her own right.
From her upbringing in Atlanta to her pivotal role in shaping MLK Jr.'s values and beliefs, Alberta's story is one of resilience, determination and tragedy.
Don is joined by Anna Malaika Tubbs, New York Times bestselling author of 'The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and James Baldwin Shaped a Nation'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Chaos, collusion and the Chennault Affair. What made the election of 1968 so unusual?
Luke Nichter joins Don to talk about the election race that made Richard Nixon president. With political intrigue, baptist ministers, secret messages and boycotts, this contest paved the way for the elections we see today.
Luke is the author of 'The Year That Broke Politics: Collusion and Chaos in the Presidential Election of 1968' and Professor of History at Chapman University.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Once the most popular man in America, hero of the Mexican-American war Zachary Taylor is our twelfth President and the subject of this episode.
To find out what Taylor managed to achieve in his 16 months in office, and how his presidency was marred with debates over the spread of enslavement across the newly won West, Don speaks to Cecily Zander from Texas Woman's University.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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January, 1968. Fighting in Vietnam has been ongoing since the 1950s. Ho Chi Minh and the leaders of the communist forces in Hanoi have concocted a strategy for a decisive victory to end this conflict of attrition.
What happened in the Tet Offensive? Who won? And why was it such a massive turning point for the Americans in Vietnam. We find out with Mark Atwood Lawrence, Professor of History at the University of Texas at Austin.
Mark is the author of ‘The Vietnam War: A Concise International History’, ‘Assuming the Burden: Europe and the American Commitment to War in Vietnam’ and ‘The End of Ambition: The United States and the Third World in the Vietnam Era’.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In the summer of 1579, Francis Drake had to land in a ‘fair and good bay’ on the western coast of the New World when his ship - The Golden Hind - needed repairs. A sign was put up, naming it Nova Albion (‘New England’) for Queen Elizabeth I. But the question of exactly where Drake landed has continued to vex historians to this day.
In this episode of Not Just the Tudors, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb talks to Melissa Darby, whose meticulous and painstaking work has uncovered all manner of evidence to finally resolve the controversy.
This episode was edited by Joseph Knight and produced by Rob Weinberg.
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On 17 January 1920, the 18th Amendment came into effect in the United States. It made the manufacture, sale and transportation of 'intoxicating liquor' illegal.
Sarah Churchwell is BACK to explore the realities of the roaring twenties with Don. Why was alcohol banned? How did prohibition become federal law? And why would the US government have poisoned its citizens?
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What was it about the Kennedys that attracted so much tragedy, that many believed them to be cursed?
From plane disasters in World War 2, to drug overdoses and of course, assassinations - it has to be said, they had their fair share.
Is there something sinister going on, or is this tragedy the by-product of such a go-getter risk-taking attitude?
Joining Kate on this episode of Betwixt the Sheets to explore the so-called Kennedy curse is Barbara Perry, Professor in Presidential Studies at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center, where she co-directs the Presidential Oral History Program.
This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and the producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
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Is this the only president to have achieved all of their campaign promises? James K. Polk, the 11th Commander-in-Chief successfully led the nation through ambitious expansion during his single term.
Don is joined for this episode by Professor Amy Greenberg to find out about Polk's presidency and successes, his warmongering, his lies and his workaholic tendencies. They also discuss his wife, Sarah, and her political influence.
Amy is head of the Department of History at Pennsylvania State University and author of 'Lady First: The World of First Lady Sarah Polk', and 'A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico'.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Simple living, plain dress and pacifism. This is not a lifestyle typical of the United States. So how did the Amish come to be in America? Where did this religion come from? And how has their society changed with modernisation?
In this episode, Don and Dr Joseph Donnermeyer journey from the Anabaptist practices of medieval Europe to the faith and farms of modern day North America.
Joseph is a Professor Emeritus in the School of Environment and Natural Resources at The Ohio State University. Specialising in community sociology and rural criminology, he has been researching the Amish for over 2 decades.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Why did the Boston Tea Party happen? Why Boston? And how did the events of December 1773 fit in to the American Revolution?
In this episode, we are taking a broader look at the Boston Tea Party with Benjamin Carp, the Daniel M. Lyons Professor of American History at Brooklyn College. Why was tea the focus of debate and how did it become such a legendary patriotic event.
Benjamin is the author of ‘Rebels Rising: Cities and the American Revolution’; ‘Defiance of the Patriots: The Boston Tea Party and the Making of America’; and ‘The Great New York Fire of 1776: A Lost Story of the American Revolution’
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On December 16th 1773, Bostonian colonists took a stand against the British Crown in the Boston Tea Party.
In this episode, we dive deep into the events of that evening in Boston Harbor. Don is joined by Benjamin Carp, the Daniel M. Lyons Professor of American History at Brooklyn College. Who was involved? What signalled the start of the event? And was it really a non-violent protest?
Benjamin is the author of ‘Rebels Rising: Cities and the American Revolution’; ‘Defiance of the Patriots: The Boston Tea Party and the Making of America’; and ‘The Great New York Fire of 1776: A Lost Story of the American Revolution’
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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He may have been the tenth President, but John Tyler - 'His Accidency' - was a pioneer in many ways.
Tyler was the first Vice President to assume the position of commander-in-chief on the death of their running mate, the first President to be kicked out of their own political party, and the only President to renounce their US citizenship.
Don is joined by Dr Christopher Leahy from Keuka College to explore the presidency of John Tyler. Chris' book, ‘President without a Party: The Life of John Tyler’, is the first full biography of John Tyler in more than 50 years.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The two party division of the US political system is as evident as ever as we warm up to the 2024 elections. But where does this state of affairs come from?
Don speaks to Michael Barone, political analyst, historian and journalist, to find out more about the history of the Democratic and Republican parties, their forebears, and the possible downfall of political parties.
Michael is author of 'How America’s Political Parties Change (and How They Don’t)'. His new book is ‘Mental Maps of the Founders’.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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How would the Allied forces have forced the surrender of Japan had they not dropped the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
Operation Downfall was the planned invasion of Japan. It was expected to be a massive two part operation; bigger than D-Day and enormously costly.
To find out more about the proposed invasion, its projected outcomes and why it wasn't implemented, Don spoke to D. M. Giangreco, an award winning author who served as an editor at Military Review, US Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, for 20 years. His book on this subject is 'Hell to Pay: Operation Downfall and the Invasion of Japan, 1945-1947'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The ninth President of the United States holds two unique records. William Henry Harrison delivered the longest inaugural address in US Presidential history. He also served the shortest term, dying on his 32nd day as Commander-in-Chief.
In this episode, Don speaks to Dr Robert Owens of Wichita State University. How did Harrison win the presidency? What were his goals? And did he really die of pneumonia?
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Napoleon Bonaparte. From military leader to revolutionary to Emperor of the French, his conquests and reforms have had a lasting impact across the world. But what impact did he have on the United States? And what if he had completed the journey across the Atlantic?
Don speaks to author Shannon Selin, whose new book 'Napoleon in America' imagines Napoleon's life in the United States. Together, they discuss Napoleon's relationship with and reputation in the United States, and the French people who did make the journey.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On November 22nd 1963, President John F. Kennedy was shot dead. The ensuing years have been filled with questions and conspiracy about the events of that day, and the weeks, months and years leading to it.
In the second of our special series, Don meets Paul Landis, a former secret service agent who was feet from the presidential limousine when the assassination happened. He tells us his recollection of the event itself, the direction of the bullets and the experience of accompanying First Lady Jackie Kennedy into the Emergency Room alongside her husband.
Don is also joined by Jefferson Morley and Thomas Whalen to explore why we have so many unanswered questions despite the Warren Commission report of 1964 and the many other reports that have followed.
Jefferson Morley is a journalist and editor who has worked in Washington journalism for over thirty years. He has been researching the CIA files of the assassination since their release 3 decades ago, is the editor of the JFK Facts blog, and his books include 'Our Man in Mexico: Winston Scott and the Hidden History of the CIA' and 'Scorpions' Dance: The President, the Spymaster, and Watergate.'
Thomas J. Whalen is an associate professor of social science at Boston University. His books on JFK include 'JFK and His Enemies: A Portrait of Power' and 'Kennedy Versus Lodge: The 1952 Massachusetts Senate Race'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
This podcast contains archive from NBC, 22 November 1963, and music and SFX from Epidemic Sound.
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Who was JFK? How popular was he in his lifetime? And how did his untimely death impact the world's memory of him?
In this first of two episodes to mark 60 years since President John F Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, we are exploring his personality and popularity.
Don is joined by Fredrick Logevall, Laurence D. Belfer Professor of International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School. Fredrick's most recent book is 'JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What makes the Gettysburg Address one of the most famous speeches in history? Did Lincoln really write it on the train? How did the audience in the Soldiers' National Cemetery respond?
In this episode, Don is joined once again by Glenn LaFantasie to examine the words, circumstances and reception of this much quoted oration.
Professor Glenn LaFantasie is the Richard Frockt Family Professor of History at Western Kentucky University
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The 'Little Magician', the 'Sly Fox' or - to our expert guest - a 6.5/10 president. We're onto President number 8, Martin Van Buren.
Don is joined by Edward Widmer - historian, writer, librarian, and musician who served as a speechwriter in the Clinton White House. One of Ted's many books is a biography of Martin Van Buren, published by Times Books in 2005.
From success in the creation of a modern democratic party, to economic depression, war against Canada and more; in this episode you'll hear about the highs and lows of Van Buren's one term presidency.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What is a Viking? Did they really make it to the United States? And if so, how far did they get?
Don speaks to Martyn Whittock about the norse landings in North America. From the Icelandic sagas to the archaeological evidence that supports them, listen as we separate the truth from the myths.
Martyn's new book, American Vikings, is out now.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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During the first half of the 20th century, dozens of murders plagued the oil-rich Osage Nation. The question of who killed them, and why, spread beyond the borders of the nation, eventually being picked up by the fledgling FBI.
In this episode, Don speaks to David Grann, author of the silver-screen adapted 'Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI'. Don and David explore the Osage Nation, why it fell victim to the greed of its neighbours, and how the truth was eventually discovered.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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If you've ever watched a Voodoo scene in a horror movie, you might be forgiven for envisioning zombies, dolls and witchcraft when asked what it is. But in this episode of American History Hit, Don speaks to Elizabeth James to find out the truth about the New Orleans strand of this misunderstood religion and spiritual practice.
Where does Voodoo come from? How has it been practised over the years? And who was Marie Laveau?
Elizabeth James is a programme associate for Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan. She had the practises of Voodoo passed on to her by her grandmother in Louisiana.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The seventh person to hold the position of President is arguably one of the most divisive.
A strong-willed military hero, whilst President from 1829-1837, Andrew Jackson pushed American democracy forwards. But his policies on Native American removal remain some of the darkest in US history.
To untangle this presidential history, Don is joined by David Brown. David is Professor of History at Elizabethtown College, Pennsylvania, and author of seven books including 'The First Populist: The Defiant Life of Andrew Jackson'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford, John Wayne. We've seen them roping and wrangling and defeating their enemies, all by the time the credits role.
But what was the role of cowboys in the real wild west? What was the role of black men in this industry? And how have they been erased in popular culture?
In this episode, Don speaks first with Roger Hardaway, professor of history at Northwestern Oklahoma State University. Roger has written and researched extensively on the American West, and is the co-editor of African Americans on the Western Frontier.
Don is then joined by Tony Warner, founder of Black History Walks and co-founder of the African Odysseys programme, to talk about how the inclusion of black people on the screen has evolved.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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From 800 to 1300 CE, a great religious movement swept Mesoamerica, the Southwest, and the Mississippi valley. This Medieval Warm Period was one of the most consequential eras in North American history. In this era, the continent was shaped by climate change or – as its peoples then believed – controlled by gods of wind and water.
In this episode of our History Hit sister podcast, Gone Medieval, Matt Lewis talks to archaeologist Dr. Timothy Pauketat, author of Gods of Thunder: How Climate Change, Travel, and Spirituality Reshaped Precolonial America. He has followed the footsteps of priests, pilgrims, traders and farmers led by the weather to migrate long distances to new lands.
This episode was edited and produced by Rob Weinberg.
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A 13 day siege. 90 minutes of fighting. An almost 200 year legacy and the most popular tourist site in the state of Texas.
The 1836 Battle of the Alamo has become a symbol of Texan pride and independence, and also a springboard for conversations about Texas' relationship with slavery.
To find out more about the battle, the site and what really happened to David Crockett, Don spoke with Kolby Lanham, Senior Researcher and Historian at the Alamo.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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John Quincy Adams didn't just share a name with his father. He also followed in his footsteps to take the Presidency, and then lose it after one term.
In this episode of our series on the Presidencies of the United States, we're onto the sixth commander-in-chief.
Don is joined once again by Christopher Young. Chris is a Professor of History at Indiana University Northwest and among his many publications wrote “Serenading the President: John Adams, the XYZ Affair, and the 18th-Century American Presidency” for Federal History.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What if the Civil War had ended differently, with the South seceding from the Union? Would slavery have continued? Would the southern states have continued as a whole? Would any other states have followed suit?
To explore this hypothetical history, Don spoke to Aaron Sheehan-Dean, Department Chair of history at Louisiana State University. Aaron specialises on the Civil War and reconstruction and is the author of 'The Calculus of Violence: How Americans Fought the Civil War', 'Reckoning with Rebellion: War and Sovereignty in the Nineteenth Century' and 'Why Confederates Fought'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In 1969, at the height of US presence, there were over half a million Americans in Vietnam.
But why were they there in the first place? When did the conflict in Vietnam begin and how did it escalate towards US involvement?
Pierre Asselin is the author of A Bitter Peace: Washington, Hanoi, and the Making of the Paris Agreement and Hanoi’s Road to the Vietnam War, 1954-1965. He and Don discuss the origins of the Vietnam war in domestic and international relations.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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'It's one of those threads you pull on and immediately you're connected to the whole fabric of American history.'
The American Buffalo, Bison Bison, is an icon of American identity. It is also the subject of a new two part documentary from legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns and his team.
In this episode, Don and Ken explore the relationship between the United States and the buffalo, and how this relationship spills into 10,000 years of social, economic and ecological history.
Watch 'The American Buffalo', a two part series directed and executive produced by Ken Burns, written by Dayton Duncan, and produced by Julie Dunfey and Ken Burns, on PBS on October 16 and 17, 2023.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Serving from 1817 to 1825, James Monroe's presidency was only the fifth presidency of the United States. Monroe's time in power saw the development of republicanism and the Missouri Compromise of 1820 signalled the growing cracks between north and south.
But this was also the end of an era. Monroe was the final President of the United States to have been a Founding Father.
He was also the last of the three presidents to have died on July 4th. To find out why this was a strangely fitting end to Monroe's life, Don spoke to Dr. Brook Poston, Associate Professor of History at Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas, author of 'James Monroe: A Republican Champion' and co-author of 'Parallel Lives: Romans and the American Founders'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Not one of the US forces led by General George Custer into the attack on 25 June 1876 survived. But the story of 'Custer's Last Stand' as it was known for a long time, has long been told by the settlers, rather than the indigenous people who survived.
In this episode, Don talks to Lindsay Stallones Marshall, Assistant Professor of History at Illinois State University. Together, they talk through the battle and the opposing narratives and names of it.
She is the author of 'Teaching Us to Forget: The Wars of Westward Expansion, U.S. History Education, & Public Memory, 1870 - 1995'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What is a bat bomb? Why would you cover a fox in radioactive paint? And who are the masterminds behind the Office of Strategic Services, the precursor to the CIA?
In this episode, Don is joined by John Lisle to discuss the creations of the Research and Development branch at the Office of Strategic Services.
John is the author of 'The Dirty Tricks Department: Stanley Lovell, the OSS, and the Masterminds of World War II Secret Warfare' and a lecturer at the University of Texas, specialising in the history of science.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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It's the worst accident in US commercial nuclear power history. In March 1979, the Unit 2 reactor at Three Mile Island nuclear generating station came half an hour from full meltdown. Two days later, an explosive bubble of hydrogen gas was found in the reactor.
To talk technical malfunction, human error and public response, J Samuel Walker joins Don for this episode. Sam is a former historian of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and author of 'Three Mile Island: A Nuclear Crisis in Historical Perspective'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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His life is one of firsts for the United States. Having contributed to the Federalist Papers, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, in 1812 James Madison became the first President to make a declaration of war.
In the fourth episode of our presidential series, we're taking a closer look at Madison's two terms. How did his policies differ from those of his predecessors? How much was his diplomacy influenced by his former role as Jefferson's Secretary of State? Why might this period of Madison's life be seen as his least impressive?
Don is talking to Kevin R. Gutzman of Western Connecticut State University, author of 'James Madison and the Making of America' and 'The Jeffersonians: The Visionary Presidencies of Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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New York was a city of 8 million people in 2001. A city that would be changed forever by the events of 9/11.
In this episode, we will not recount the day itself. Instead, we're looking at the after effects of the attack on New York city. What dangers remained after the buildings collapsed? How did it alter the communities of Manhattan? And how did the city decide how to fill the spaces left behind?
Don speaks to Susan Opotow and Zachary Baron Shemtob, authors of 'New York after 9/11' about the impact of toxic gases, conflicting planning and increased surveillance on this iconic city.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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In 1848, after almost two years of fighting, the US annexation of former Mexican territory was signed into a treaty.
Mexico lost a third of its territory, land which would later yield metals and stretch the United States from coast to coast.
To find out how the war broke out, and how it ended in the deal that it did, Don spoke to Peter Guardino from Indiana University. Peter's third book, The Dead March: A History of the Mexican-American War, is a social and cultural history of this 1846-48 war.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The new Oppenheimer movie has everyone asking questions about the atomic bombs dropped on Japan in 1945 - were two bombs necessary? Would the war have ended without it? Was there an ulterior motive? Would the Americans have dropped a third if they had it?
To answer some of the questions and more, Professor Paul Poast joined our sister podcast, Dan Snow's History Hit. Paul, from the Department of Political Science at the University of Chicago, explains how the decision to drop the bombs was really made, what would have happened if they hadn't and reveals that the Manhattan Project was actually more about impressing Stalin than destroying Japan.
Produced by Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal Patmore.
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Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, so how did it work out when he became the leader of this nation that he was so instrumental in founding?
For the third episode in our special series about the Presidents, we're exploring Jefferson's presidency. What challenges did he face during his time as President, and how did he mould the early years of the nation?
Don is joined for this episode by Professor Frank Cogliano, direct from Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. Frank is a Professor of American History at the University of Edinburgh.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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45 seconds. An estimated 7.9 on today's Richter scale. The deadliest earthquake in US history.
In this episode, we're examining the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. What happened? Why were this earthquake and the fires it caused so disastrous? And who did this seemingly indiscriminate force of nature hit the hardest?
Don is joined by Joanna Dyl, an environmental historian at Pomona College and author of 'Seismic City: An Environmental History of San Francisco’s 1906 Earthquake'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What could the prehistoric artists of North America have in common with the graffiti artists of today? Picked into the rocks of southwestern Arizona, a couple hour drive from Tucson, are marks of the Patayan and Hohokam traditions. The petroglyphs are an insight into these civilisations, their religions and their lives.
Aaron Wright is a Preservation Archaeologist whose research is currently focused on the Hohokam and Patayan traditions. He joined Don to explore what this rock art has in common with sites across North America, and what makes it different.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Despite her's being a household name, how much do we really know about Pocahontas? Where did she come from? How old was she? And what was her real relationship with the colonists?
Don is joined for this episode by Camilla Townsend, a Historian of Early Native American and Latin American History at Rutgers University. Camilla is the author of 'Pocohontas and the Powhatan Dilemma' and, most recently, 'Indigenous Life After the Conquest: The De la Cruz Family Papers of Colonial Mexico'.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Sequels are always hit and miss. So what must it have been like to be the second President of the United States, following the man who originated the role?
This was John Adams' position, stepping into the shoes of fellow founding father George Washington. To find out about how Adams navigated his presidency and the diplomatic crises that arose during it, Don spoke to Christopher Young.
Chris is a Professor of History at Indiana University Northwest and, among his many publications, wrote “Serenading the President: John Adams, the XYZ Affair, and the 18th-Century American Presidency” for Federal History.
This is the second episode of our new series on American History Hit in which, every two weeks, Don and an expert will explore the presidencies of the US' former Commanders-in-Chief.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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When it closed in 1973, the Texas Chicken Ranch was the oldest continually operating brothel in the United States. Why was this brothel able to survive for so long? Who were the women at work there? And where did it get its name?
In this episode, Don explores the brothel behind the Dolly Parton and Burt Reynolds musical with Jayme Blaschke, author of Inside the Texas Chicken Ranch: The Definitive Account of the Best Little Whorehouse.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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On August 10 1680, the Pueblo people began the most successful uprising against colonial power in North America.
For 11 days, Spanish colonisers were driven out, taken prisoner or killed, their horses were stolen and Christian churches were burnt to the ground. They did not manage to return for the following 12 years. The Pueblo people rebuilt their society and ensured the survival of their traditions, languages and religions.
Matt Liebmann joins Don today to discuss the revolt and to share some of his findings from archaeological research in New Mexico.
Matt is Professor of Archaeology in the Department of Anthropology at Harvard University, he has conducted collaborative research with the Pueblo of Jemez since 2001.
Edited and produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What does a document written in 1215 in England have to do with the United States? The Magna Carta has supposedly influenced foundational documents like the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
In this episode, Don is joined by Eleanor Janega, the new co-host of our sister podcast, Gone Medieval. Together, they explore the influence of this medieval document on the United States.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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He was the victorious Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. As presiding officer of the Constitutional Convention, he oversaw the birth of the government of the United States. But George Washington is remembered by most as the first President elect of the United States.
This is the first episode of a new series on American History Hit. Every two weeks Don and an expert will explore the presidencies of the former Commanders-in-Chief of the US.
To begin, Patrick Spero joins us to take us through George Washington's time in office. From his ascent to the presidency to the development of the new capital; from the Proclamation of Neutrality to the Whisky Rebellion; this is the ultimate introduction to the first president.
Patrick is Executive Director of the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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He is undoubtedly the most famous member of the Confederate forces. But it wasn't always set to be that way.
In this episode, Don speaks to Jonathan Horn to find out about the life of Robert E Lee, why he made the decision to join the Confederate side, and how he was connected to George Washington.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Beginning with the enduring words, 'We the People of the United States', the US Constitution is the basis of the government and its three distinct branches. So when was it written, and by who?
Mary Sarah Bilder is Founders' Professor of Law at Boston College and finalist for the prestigious George Washington Prize. She joins Don today to take us through the history of this keystone of the history of the United States with cameos from Washington, Madison, Hamilton and Adams to name just a few.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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She's an icon, a polymath, a fashionista, and she's absolutely everywhere right now.
Where did Barbie come from? What has she represented to the many who have bought and played with her? And what makes her an American doll?
In this episode, M.G. Lord joins Don to introduce us to Barbie, her friends and her creators. M.G. is the author of Forever Barbie: The Unauthorized Biography of a Real Doll. She is also the host of the podcast LA Made: The Barbie Tapes from LAist Studios, So Cal Public Radio.
Edited and produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The Church of the Latter Day Saints is one shrouded in mystery, whispers of polygamy and is often synonymous with Salt Lake City. But where did this religion come from? And how did Mormonism make it to Utah?
To find out more about the American born religion of Mormonism, Don is joined by Professor Peter Coviello from the University of Illinois. Peter is the author of Make Yourselves Gods: Mormons and the Unfinished Business of American Secularism.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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School, play and much less work: the idealised childhood is a very separate part of life. But how did it come to be so? And why is this perhaps more pronounced in American society than anywhere else?
Don is joined by Todd Brewster to talk about the creation and possible demise of childhood in the United States, and how we can study it using photographs. Todd's book is ‘American Childhood: A Photographic History’.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Richard Nixon and Nikita Khrushchev. Leading figures of the United States and the Soviet Union respectively, in a verbal debate about capitalism and communism in the 1950s. The location? A cultural convention.
On July 24 1959, this pair of key players in the Cold War met at the American National Exhibition in Moscow. Their conversation was televised on all new colour television. This 'Kitchen Debate' became one of the most famous episodes of the Cold War.
Kitchen Debate newsreel: Richard Nixon Foundation. Originally recorded July 24 1959.
Edited and produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Why should we associate LSD and its psychedelic effects with New York as much as we associate it with San Francisco? What use did the CIA think that this drug could be to them? And how did LSD impact the culture of New York City?
Don is joined by Christian Elcock, author of Psychedelic New York: A History of LSD in the City to find out about New York's time as a hub of LSD production, research and consumption.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Gettysburg is synonymous with the bloodiest battle in the history of the United States. But before it was the location of a battle and Lincoln's arguably most famous speech, Gettysburg was a town.
In this episode, Don is joined by Andrew Dalton, executive director of the Adams County Historical Society. They explore the story of Gettysburg and its people, their experiences in the battle, and the lasting effects of the Civil War on the town.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Teän Stewart-Murray. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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The first three days of July 1863 saw the bloodiest single battle of the American Civil War. This clash between the Unionist and Confederate armies quickly became the stuff of legend.
But what actually happened at Gettysburg? Professor Glenn LaFantasie joins Don for this episode to take us through the key figures in the battle, their strategies and whether this really was the turning point of the Civil War.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Teän Stewart-Murray. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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What made June 28 1969 a landmark occasion for LGBTQ+ rights?How was Stonewall different from the uprisings that had come before it? And why were the mafia involved?
Dr Pip Gordon joins Don today to explore the experiences and activism of LGBTQ+ people in New York and across America before Stonewall, and to take us through this night and its legacy.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Teän Stewart-Murray. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Dan Snow, James Holland, Mary Beard and more.
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This episode contains music and sound from Epidemic Sounds and Pixabay.
On July 2 1937, Amelia Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, took off on what was supposed to be the final leg of their circumnavigation of the globe, but would in fact be their final flight.
In this episode Don is joined by Susan Butler to explore this American sweetheart's personality, her early life and her work for women's rights.
We then explore some of the many theories surrounding the thing that Amelia is perhaps best known for, her disappearance. For this, Don is joined by Richard Spink.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Dan Snow, James Holland, Mary Beard and more.
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Behind the handshakes of leading politicians, beyond the trade deals and beneath mutually beneficial military deals, how has the 'special relationship' between the United States and the United Kingdom extended to intelligence and covert operations?
Don is joined by Michael Smith, who has drawn on his own service in the British Army's Intelligence Corps to explore how the intelligence agencies of the US and the UK have worked together - or not - since the Second World War.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Ella Blaxill. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Dan Snow, James Holland, Mary Beard and more.
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We celebrate abolition - in the United States during the Civil War and on Juneteenth, in Haiti after the revolution, and in the British Empire in 1833. Yet, over the approximately 100 years in which there were various moments of emancipation, these processes often provided failed pathways to justice for people who had been enslaved.
Kris Manjapra joins Dan Snow on our sister podcast, Dan Snow's History Hit, to unearth disturbing truths about the Age of Emancipations, 1780-1880. They discuss examples of emancipations across the Americas, Europe and Africa where Black people were dispossessed by the very moves that were meant to free them.
Produced by Hannah Ward. Edited by Dougal Patmore.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Dan Snow, James Holland, Mary Beard and more.
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There are no other historic sites like this one on the planet. The concentric semi circles and mounds of Poverty Point in Louisiana are a mystery not only to those who come across them, but also to the archaeologists.
Don is joined by Tristram Kidder to find out what we do know about this late archaic site and the people who built it.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Dan Snow, James Holland, Mary Beard and more.
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Why were gay federal employees seen as a national security threat during the 20th century? How might they in fact have been more of an asset? And how did some of them fight against their dismissals?
In this episode, Don is joined by James Kirchick, author of 'Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington'.
Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Dan Snow, James Holland, Mary Beard and more.
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Approximately 100 thousand flights take off and land each and every day. A months long journey on a boat is condensed to just a few hours with the help of aircraft, and the birth of planes introduced an entirely new form of warfare.
Orville and Wilbur Wright, the Wright brothers, are household names. But how did they create the first successful heavier than air flying machine?
In this episode, Don speaks to Tom Crouch, Curator Emeritus at the National Air and Space Museum. They delve into the lives and personalities of these two men, and the long process that took them into the air above Kitty Hawk.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
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Of all of the people enslaved in the southern United States over time, 40% of them were owned by women. For example, when she married George Washington in 1759, Martha Washington was herself the enslaver of 84 people.
So why has the trading and enslaving of people been commonly perceived as a male domain? Why, in fact, were many white women so entrenched in this trade in human lives?
In this episode, Don is joined by Dan David Prize Winner, Stephanie Jones Rogers. Stephanie has been exploring the testimonies of these people formerly enslaved by women to find out more about their experiences.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
From the rings on our fingers, to coins in our pockets and, for a select few, the medals hanging around our necks. Gold is one of the most coveted metals in the world.
Gold still has the power to change lives, but in the mid 19th century, it also sparked the largest migration in the history of the United States.
Don is joined by Professor Mark Eifler, author of 'The California Gold Rush: The Stampede that Changed the Nation', to find out how gold was discovered in California and who benefitted from it.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
He's the best president that the United States has ever had ... at least according to one 2021 C-span study.
But how did Lincoln's religious views affect his life and leadership? In this episode, Don is joined by Joshua Zeitz, author of 'Lincoln's God: How Faith Transformed a President and a Nation'.
We hear about Lincoln's journey from scepticism to spiritualism, and the growth of connections between politics and the church in the United States.
Produced by Sophie Gee. Edited by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.
13 equal horizontal stripes in red and white, with a navy blue square in the top left bearing 50 small white five pointed stars. It's recognisable the world over as the flag of the United States of America.
But how did this become the American flag? When did it develop its own 'cult'? And does Betsy Ross have anything at all to do with this story?
Don is joined by Marc Leepson, author of Flag: An American Biography.
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Was the USA already a superpower when it joined the Second World War? How did it turn from an isolationist nation to a force ready for action?
Today Don is joined by Craig Nelson to find out how President Franklin D. Roosevelt manoeuvred the country from the isolationism of the interwar years to supplying an arsenal and, eventually, manpower to its European allies.
Craig's new book is 'V Is For Victory: Franklin Roosevelt's American Revolution and the Triumph of World War 2'.
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Between 1871 and 1872, Labette County, Kansas became a source of mystery. Several people have gone missing on their journey west and a few bodies have been found. Is this the work of highway robbers? Or could it be the peculiar family who live beside the Great Osage Trail?
Don is joined for this episode for Susan Jonasus, author of 'Hell's Half-Acre : The Untold Story of the Benders, America's First Serial Killer Family'.
Email us at [email protected] if you have any areas of history that you would love Don to explore.
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The Vietnam War or the Great Society? Which event looms larger in the history of the United States?
The 36th President of the United States, Lyndon Baines Johnson, is often weighed up in these terms - the balance between domestic and foreign policy. But what is his legacy? Could he be called the first President of our modern era?
In this episode, Don is joined by Mark Lawrence, Director of the LBJ Presidential Library and Museum in Austin, Texas.
Produced and mixed by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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He was the most famous man in the world at the turn of the 20th century, bringing the American frontier to the rest of the United States, the United Kingdom and Continental Europe. But who was Buffalo Bill?
In this episode, recorded at the Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave in Golden, Colorado, Don is joined by Steve Friesen to find out about the rise of America’s first celebrity.
From boy scout to breadwinning buffalo hunter, how did William Cody become a showman and an iconic household name?
Produced by Sophie Gee. Mixed by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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When it was founded in 1585, Roanoke was intended to be the first permanent English outpost in America. So how did it become the 'lost colony'?
In this episode, Don is joined by Professor Mark Horton, archaeologist from the Royal Agricultural University in the UK. Together they delve into the mystery.
Why did John White take three years to return to the colony? What clues were left by the one hundred people missing from the island? And why did those who found the island abandoned not follow these clues to find their countrymen?
Produced by Sophie Gee. Editing and sound design by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In 1939, on the invitation of Franklin D. Roosevelt, King George VI became the first reigning British monarch to set foot on American soil.
So what triggered this monumental moment in the transatlantic relationship? How has it trickled down to today's special relationship? And how was King George assisted in his diplomacy by his wife, Elizabeth?
In this coronation special, Don is joined by author Sally Bedell Smith to find out more.
For more from Sally, you can find her substack here: https://sallybedellsmith.substack.com/
Produced by Sophie Gee and Stuart Beckwith. Editing and sound design by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In August 1918, the battle of Amiens brought the German army's 'black day' and the beginning of the end of the First World War.
But what happened at Amiens? How were US troops involved in this battle? And how is the battle remembered today?
In this episode, Don is joined by Dan Snow to talk about the American troops and their parts in the offensives at Hamel and Amiens.
Produced by Sophie Gee and James Hickmann. Editing and sound design by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Nearly a thousand years ago, America's first city appeared in the Mississippi flood plain. Don finds out about a day in the life of Cahokia, what its vast mounds were used for, and why it is so poorly remembered nowadays.
Our guest is Timothy Pauketat, archaeologist and author of several major books about Cahokia. His latest book is called Gods of Thunder: How Climate Change, Travel, and Spirituality Reshaped Precolonial America.
Editing and sound design by Stuart Beckwith. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.
Horses have been a bulwark of American culture and society for centuries. Think of cowboys in the Mid-West or Native Americans riding bareback on the Great Plains. But new, ground-breaking archeological evidence has emerged to suggest horses were present in the Americas more than 10,000 years ago, shattering our previous assumptions that they were first brought to North America by the Spanish.
In today’s episode of American History Hit, Don speaks to Dr William Taylor about these new findings, exploring how the mighty horse conquered America, went extinct, and then conquered it once more.
Produced by Benjie Guy and Freddy Chick. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long
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Benjamin Franklin is considered by many to be one of the first to live the American Dream. He came from humble beginnings, Franklin was raised in Boston, the last of 17 children. Márcia Balisciano tells Don how he went from a printer’s apprentice to Founding Father of the United States, via stints in London.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Much of American history has been redacted. Since the World War 2, the number of secrets the US government has kept has grown exponentially. There are some things they think are too dangerous for the public to know. Matthew Connelly, author of the Declassification Engine, takes Don through America's top secrets of the 20th century.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Stuary Beckwith. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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July 20th, 1969. Neil Armstrong descends from Lunar Module Eagle to the Moon's surface. A momentous moment in American, and human history. For more than a decade, pioneers in the US and Soviet Union had competed in the exploration of space, the final frontier. Jay Gallentine tells Don how new technology was developed to go where no one had gone before. How America won the Space Race.
Produced by Freddy Chick and Benjie Guy. Mixed by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Under segregation, African Americans' lives were severely limited. Restricted entry to public places, private businesses and public transport, cars provided liberty they were otherwise denied and protection from danger and discrimination. Gretchen Sorin, author of Driving While Black, tells Don that with the help of travel guides such as the Green Book, listing businesses that would accept African American customers - the car enabled African Americans to enjoy the freedom of the open road.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Tom Delargy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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English-born artist Thomas Cole emigrated to the United States in 1818. Six years later he began what is now known as the Hudson River School, which became the first art movement of the United States.. Betsy Jacks, director of the Thomas Cole National Historic Site, tells Don how these artists captured the country's awe-inspiring natural beauty, at a time when the US was rapidly industrialising. Framing an image of America that would illustrate the spirit of the continent and the nation that sought to conquer it.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Claire Bellerjeau tells Don the the story of Liss, an enslaved Black woman in 18th century New York, and her involvement with one of George Washington's spies. Her story sheds light on the experiences of people of colour in New York from the colonial period, during the revolution and into the early republic.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aisha Deva & Tom Delargy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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The story of the American Revolution is one of the best known in American history. But it could have been very different. Outgunned and outmanned against the might of the British Empire, America’s revolutionaries found themselves backed into a corner from the start. Their solution was to turn to Europe’s other superpower - France - for military aid. But the French were wary.
Were it not for the actions of a renegade French spy and a secretive committee held in Philadelphia’s Carpenters Hall in 1775, then French support may not have been forthcoming. Johanna Dunphy tells Don about this cloak and dagger meeting and how it altered the course of the War of Independence.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long
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While the President of the United States is often seen as the most powerful person in the world, the vastness of the Federal government is too much for just one person to oversee. The president needs someone to control events, run the White House, respond to challenges and handle emergencies. That person is the Chief of Staff. Chris Whipple, author of The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency, tells Don how the Chiefs of Staff have impacted the 8 most recent presidents.
Warning: There is explicit language in this episode.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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You are what you eat - and so is America. Various foods have played their part in the country’s history. Anna Zeide, author of US History in 15 Foods, takes us through 5 of them - Corn, Peanuts, Graham Bread, Spam and The Big Mac.
Produced by Freddie Chick. Mixed by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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At its height the Iroquois Confederacy (or Haudenosaunee) - a union of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca nations - controlled lands from Quebec to Ohio.
Its origin story goes back to the legend of the warrior Hiawatha and the Peacemaker. In the end its system of governance may have been an inspiration for the founding fathers.
Joining Don to explore the history of the Haudenosaunee is Jen Birch, archaeologist at the University of Georgia.
Produced by Freddy Chick, Senior Producer is Charlotte Long
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When it was completed in 1931, the Empire State Building became the tallest building in the world. While it has long been surpassed, it is still one of the most recognised skyscrapers on the planet, synonymous with the city in which it stands. Its imposing but elegant art deco design, a tribute to the roaring ’20s from which it came. Carol Willis, author of Form Follows Finance: The Empire State Building, tells Don how it became a monument to the golden age of the skyscraper.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Completed in 1825, the Erie Canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. Alice Shay tells Don how ‘the Nation’s First Superhighway’ accelerated the westward expansion of the United States, carrying goods, people, wealth and prosperity along it. Until the railroad came along, able to carry a lot more, a lot faster, rendering the canal obsolete. Though it remains used and loved by many still today.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Don talks to former White House reporter Kate Andersen Brower about how the role of First Lady has changed - and stayed the same - since the 1960s. Supporting their husband's presidency, while pursuing their own agenda. Each putting their stamp on their time in office - while often forming stronger bonds than their male counterparts.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Before New York was New York, it was New Amsterdam. Dutch colonists arrived on the East Coast in the early 17th century, creating the New Netherlands. At its heart was a settlement on the tip of the island of Manhattan, centred on the fur trade. Russell Shorto tells Don how New Amsterdam became integral to all trade between Europe and the New World, becoming a version of the multicultural melting pot that is the (renamed) city today.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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George III is forever known as the king who lost the 13 American colonies. In the US he is thought of by many as a tyrant king, taxing and subduing from across the Atlantic. Professor Jeremy Black tells Don that there is much more to his character, and his relationship with America.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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On a cold winter morning in February 1908, six cars lined up in Times Square, attempting to be the first to drive from New York to Paris, the long way round. Lindsey Lauren Visser tells Don how teams from the US, France, Italy and Germany attempted to complete the race, faced with adverse weather, a distinct lack of roads, and sabotage.
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The revolution in Haiti freed the country from French control and created the first Black republic after years of fighting, in 1804. Leslie Alexander tells Don how the revolution became possible and why it had such an impact on the United States - which doubled in size following the Louisiana Purchase from France when the revolution was almost won; and whose white population feared a similar uprising by its own enslaved black community.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.For more History Hit content, subscribe to our newsletters here.
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One of the Founding Fathers of the United States, Samuel Adams was a political force of nature. Stacy Schiff tells Don how Adams, fuelled by discontent under British rule, instilled a revolutionary spirit in his peers. The result was the Declaration of Independence - and the fight to earn it.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Harriet Tubman is perhaps the most famous African American woman in the world, but she’s usually remembered in two-dimensions - the hero of the underground railroad rescuing slaves from the misery of the plantation system.
The real Tubman did far more than this in her remarkable life, not least by being the first woman to lead a military raid in US history.
Helping Don understand the truth behind the legend is Janell Hobson, who edited a wonderful collection of work for Ms Magazine celebrating the bicentenary of Harriet Tubman’s birth: https://msmagazine.com/tubman200/
Edited and produced by Freddy Chick, Senior Producer is Charlotte Long
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The Waldorf-Astoria, the Plaza and the Algonquin all tell their own stories of New York City. Don talks to Anthony Melchiorri, host of Travel Channel's Hotel Impossible, about the histories of these hotels. How they reflect the city they were built in and how that has changed around them.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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The first naval engagement of the American War of Independence took place on Lake Champlain, which straddles modern-day New York state and Vermont and extends into Canada. Marine archaeologist Art Cohn tells Don how the British and American forces raced to build their fleets in the summer of 1776 and ultimately clashed in October. Both sides knowing that control of the lake meant access to the heart of the colonies and would be key to the outcome of the entire war.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In late April 1607, three ships carrying a hundred men and boys arrived in Chesapeake Bay, having set sail from London four months earlier. They travelled up a river and created what became the first English settlement in North America. Benjamin Woolley tells Don about the many struggles that the people of Jamestown would face in the years to come.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In Spring 1961, the Space Race between the US and Soviet Union was well underway. Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person in Space in April and the Americans knew his achievement had to be matched. Alan Shepard was chosen as the man for the job. Jay Gallentine tells Don how we went from satellites, to dogs, then humans in space; as the competition outside Earth's atmosphere intensified between the US and the USSR.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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For thousands of years, nomadic Native American peoples crossed the Yellowstone River basin, in awe of its stunning landscape and geothermal wonders. Very few colonial Americans had set sight on its mountains, geysers and hot springs before geologist Ferdinand Hayden and his party arrived in the summer of 1871.
Hayden's survey, the first of the region, contributed to Yellowstone becoming the first National Park in America. But while the Yellowstone Act of 1872 protected the area from development by private business, it dispossessed the Native Americans of their ancestral land.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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From 1956 to 1971, J. Edgar Hoover ran COINTELPRO (Counterintelligence Program). A series of covert and illegal FBI operations aimed at surveilling, infiltrating, discrediting, and disrupting political organisations in America. The leaders of pro-civil rights, anti-Vietnam war and pro-choice groups were among those targeted. When the programme was uncovered, it revealed the paranoia that consumed Hoover in his last decades in power and would change his legacy forever.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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J. Edgar Hoover was the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 48 years. He grew the FBI from a small, obscure operation to one that employed thousands of agents, investigating everything from kidnapping and bank robberies to political subversion and international espionage. Beverley Gage tells Don how Hoover guided every aspect of the FBI's operation for his decades in charge. And how, if he had decided to step down at the end of the 1950s, we might remember him very differently.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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From the 1880s to the 1920s the United States experienced a huge wave of immigration. People fleeing poverty and political instability in Europe, plus a huge demand for labour in the US, meant record numbers of people came to America. Most arrived by ship and were processed on Ellis Island, in New York harbour - an immigration station opened in 1892 when the facility on Manhattan couldn't deal with the numbers coming in. Vincent Cannato tells Don what happened on Ellis Island and the story of the people who, in passing through it, became Americans. From which 40 percent of the US population today are descendants.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Dr Martin Luther King Jr was one of the figureheads of the civil rights movement in America. On 28th August 1963, he made one of the greatest English language speeches of all time, I Have A Dream. A quarter of million people, who had gathered in the National Mall after the Great March on Washington, in support of African American civil and economic rights, heard his dream of racial equality. Tragically gunned down at only 39 years old, the fight for equality that he began, continues today. On today's episode, Charles Woods III tells Dan Snow about Martin Luther King Jr.
Mixed by Thomas Ntinas, Dougal Patmore and Benjie Guy. Produced by Charlotte Long.
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One of the most famous writers ever to have lived, Charles Dickens travelled twice to the US, in 1842 and 1867. This made him one of the first transatlantic celebrities. Don goes to Dickens' house in London to see some items he took with him. He also speaks to Dickens' great great great granddaughter, Lucinda Hawksley, to hear what Dickens got up to in America and what he made of the place.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Assistant Producer: Sophie Gee. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Join Don as he visits Benjamin Franklin's home of nearly 16 years: 36 Craven Street, London. Now a museum, its director Marcia Balisciano explains what brought the famous polymath to London, how he lived and the various things the famed scientist, diplomat, philosopher, inventor and Founding Father of the United States got up to while he was there - including his role in the beginnings of the American Revolution.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Gone with the Wind, released in 1939, is the highest-grossing film of all time. Based on Margaret Mitchell's novel published a few years earlier, it is a story of romance set against the backdrop of the civil war and reconstruction era. But, as Sarah Churchwell tells Don, it whitewashes the horrors of slavery, while condemning those who abolished it. And it is not alone. This is something that has happened in popular culture and the media since the civil war and continues today.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Assistant producer Sophie Gee. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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It’s December 1912 and we’re joining in with the festivities at Highclere Castle, in London England. The prime minister is Herbert H. Asquith and King George V is on the throne. Across the Atlantic, America has left the Gilded Age behind and elected Woodrow Wilson as president.
Downton Abbey, the hugely popular television series, was filmed at Highclere Castle. The show is of course fiction, but it’s set in a home where the history is real, and no doubt the food was delicious…that is, if you like meat pies and blood pudding. Today, for a special festive episode, we’re looking at history through the lens of food served at Downton Abbey - and what it can tell us about how people lived at that time.
How did British early 20th century eating influence dining in America? And did it go both ways, how were the Brits influenced by what we were cooking here in the US? Don is joined by food historian Annie Gray to tell us more.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Modern humans thrived in the Americas for thousands of years before the first European colonists arrived, but how and when did they get there?
What's more, did their arrival spell disaster for indigenous megafauna such as giant ground sloths and wooly mammoths, or was there another culprit behind the mass extinctions across North, Central & South America?
This is an episode is from our sister podcast, The Ancients. Host Tristan is joined by Professor David Meltzer, an archeologist from Southern Methodist University, to explore the nature of human migration into the Americas and how scientific developments now allow us to discover more about those very first Americans.
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As the British and French colonies in North America expanded in the middle of the 18th century, they inevitably clashed. Fighting between the two sides and their respective Native American allies began in Ohio Country (now western Pennsylvania) in 1754. Dan Snow tells Don how fighting began in 1754 in Ohio country (now western Pennsylvania) and spread, over almost a decade, across disputed territory in the Great Lakes region and into New France (modern-day Canada). As a result of the Treaty of Paris, which ended the war, France's presence in North America was all but ended. They were left only with the small islands of St Pierre and Miquelon, off Newfoundland.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In the early 19th century, amidst the Napoleonic wars, the British began restricting the United States’ trade with Europe. On top of this, the British Navy began recruiting American sailors by force. As a result, on 18th June, 1812, the US declared war. The conflict, between the United States and the British and their Native American allies, lasted until February 1815. With America still a very young nation, trying to assert itself on the world stage, it is often called the second American war of independence.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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On 5th September, 1901, President William McKinley attended a public reception at the Pan American Exposition, a 6-month-long World’s Fair, in Buffalo, New York. He was at the height of his power, having been re-elected at the beginning of the year. But one of the people who stood in line to meet him was an anarchist, determined to carry out the first US presidential assassination of the 20th century.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Joseph Knight. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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On the morning of 7th December 1941, hundreds of Japanese planes took off from aircraft carriers and attacked Pearl Harbor, on Oahu island, Hawaii. They took out ships, bombed airfields and killed thousands of Americans. Japan intended to neutralise the US navy, to prevent it from interfering in the Pacific, where Japan was expanding its empire. But the effect was the opposite. America declared war on Japan, as well as Germany and Italy and entered World War 2. Don recounts the damage done in 90 devastating minutes. Eri Hotta tells Don about the negotiations between the US and Japan, explains why Japan decided to carry out the attack and Japanese people's reaction to it.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Space historian Jay Gallentine tells Don how World War 2 weapons paved the way for space rockets, igniting a space race between the USA and the USSR that would see the first projectiles, satellites and people leave Earth’s atmosphere.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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On shooting President Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth fled Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC on horseback, eventually heading south. But Lincoln’s was not the only assassination planned that night. Michael Kauffman tells Don about the others - attempted and abandoned - on the evening of April 14th, 1865, and the ill-fated run from the law of Booth and his co-conspirators.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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On the evening of 14th April, 1865, the Union was celebrating victory in the civil war, won 5 days earlier with General Lee's surrender at Appomattox. President Abraham Lincoln was watching a play at Ford's Theatre in Washington DC. But some Southern sympathisers still thought the Confederacy could be restored. Among them was the actor John Wilkes Booth. He entered the theatre, made his way to Lincoln's box and carried out the first assassination of a US president. Michael Kauffman takes Don through the conspiracy to murder Lincoln and the act itself, after which Booth fled on horseback, into the night.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In the fall of 1621, a year after the pilgrim ship the Mayflower landed on the coast of New England, the settlers of the Plymouth Colony celebrated their first successful harvest. Joining them at the three day feast were the Wampanoag people, Native Americans who had to taught the settlers how to grow corn, ensuring the community would survive the coming winter. Richard Pickering tells Don about the difficulties faced by the pilgrims as they made their way from Europe and how the first Thanksgiving forged diplomatic relations with the Wampanoag people. Creating the foundations for the national holiday now celebrated every year in America.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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When Ronald Reagan became President in 1981, he was initially written off by many as a reckless B movie cowboy who would lead the US to nuclear war.
However, as William Inboden tells Don, Reagan would go on to defy the odds on the international stage. Navigating complex foreign policy challenges, from Grenada to Lebanon and of course the Cold War. Taking the Soviets and the World to the brink of the unthinkable, while charting an unpredictable path to peace.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Edited & Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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While Thomas Edison is widely credited as the inventor of the electric lightbulb in 1879, it had existed in one form or another since the the beginning of the 19th century. But as Hugh Price tells Don, another American - Lewis Latimer - had his own light bulb moment: tweaking Edison’s invention a year later to create a longer-lasting and more affordable light bulb, able to light the buildings and streets of America, and the world.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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The Whiskey Tax, imposed in 1791, was the first federal tax on a domestic product by a United States government. It was introduced by Alexander Hamilton to pay the interest on war bonds that had been issued to wealthy backers of the the American Revolution. But many Whiskey distillers in Western Pennsylvania refused to pay a tax that would only benefit a few rich bond holders. Over the course of three years, there were attacks on federal and local tax collectors and the region became a law unto itself. A situation only suppressed, as William Hogeland tells Don, by President George Washington gathering together a militia of 12,000 men and marching to Western Pennsylvania .
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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The experience of African Americans in World War 2 was, to say the least, a gross double standard. While fascism was confronted in the name of liberty and justice, those same ideals were denied to African Americans, who suffered racism and segregation, at home and on the front line. As Matthew Delmont tells Don, to African Americans, what was happening in Europe and elsewhere was an ugly reminder of the prejudice and bigotry they faced in their own nation.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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On April 6th 1909, deep inside the Artic Circle after months on the ice, Robert Peary, Matthew Henson and their four Inuit guides reached what they thought was the North Pole. But, as Edward J. Larson tells Don, Peary’s measurements and the speed of their journey were immediately called into question. Nonetheless, Congress voted to recognise Peary’s expedition as the first to reach the North Pole, dismissing a rival's claim to have done it a year earlier.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In August 1921, when Franklin D. Roosevelt was 39 years old, he contracted Polio, paralysing him from the waist down. Jonathan Darman tells Don how, despite some telling FDR that any political aspirations he might have were over, he went on to become the 32nd President of the United States.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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On Halloween, Elizabeth Bradley tells Don about Washington Irving's famous story, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, its headless horseman and the influence of European folklore on this famous American gothic tale.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In 1963, a Gilded Age estate in Millbrook, New York, became a venue for academic research into therapeutic uses for LSD, led by psychologist Timothy Leary. Over the next few years evolved into the home of the psychedelic movement of 1960s America.
Guests were invited to turn on, tune in, drop out. Bemused locals first saw their new neighbours as harmless. But, as Devin Lander tells Don, as their number and notoriety grew, so did a moral panic across America.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior producer: Charlotte Long.
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From the 1830s until the arrival of the transcontinental railroad, hundreds of thousands of people packed their possessions into wagons and headed west, seeking land and opportunity. Following in the footsteps of Native Americans and fur trading ‘mountain men’, many travelled for several months along what became known as the Oregon Trail. But as Don hears from YouTube history teacher Mr Beat (youtube.com/c/iammrbeat), not all would succeed. Miles from civilisation, people succumbed to disease, dangerous river crossings and attacks by Native Americans, whose land they were crossing and on which they intended to settle.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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When the Central Intelligence Agency was created by President Truman in 1947, it was the latest incarnation of an American intelligence-gathering service. Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones tells Don about the evolution that led to the creation of the CIA and the often controversial covert operations it has undertaken in the name of US national security.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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When US Marines landed on the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific, in August 1942, they were taking part in the first US ground offensive of World War 2.
As Saul David tells Don, in taking on the Japanese in the Pacific, they would go on to engage in some of the bloodiest fighting of the whole war.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Edward Rulloff was described as “a monster imbued by the spirit of the devil”. In 1844, he murdered his wife, likely killing his daughter at the same time, though he never admitted it. He spent the next three decades either incarcerated or on the run, becoming a career criminal. After killing a man during a robbery in 1870, he was sentenced to death.
But Rulloff was thought of at the time as no ‘ordinary killer’. A trained doctor, a lawyer and philosopher, he spoke twelve languages. As Don hears from Kate Winkler Dawson, in America’s Gilded Age, academics and journalists speculated on his criminal mind, which some claimed was too intelligent to be killed.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In October 1962, the United States confirmed that Soviet missiles were being deployed in Cuba. President John F. Kennedy had to contemplate the consequences of any US response, knowing an escalation of hostilities could end in all-out nuclear war.
What followed was the period of greatest tension during the Cold War. When journalist and historian Sir Max Hastings started writing Abyss, his new book on the confrontation, he thought he was writing about the threat of nuclear war as history. But, as he tells Don in today’s episode, with Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, it has returned to present day.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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Central Park is an oasis of nature in New York City, amidst the countless skyscrapers and gridded streets of Manhattan. Over 800 acres of sweeping fields, shaded pathways and picturesque vistas attract more than 42 million visitors a year. It was created to give free and equal access to recreational space for all. But, as Don hears from Leslie Alexander, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Professor of History at Rutgers University, underneath Central Park are the remains of Seneca - a village of African-American, Irish and German communities, whose inhabitants were forced from their homes to make way for the park’s construction in 1857.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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In 1763, Native American tribes in the Great Lakes region began fighting British expansion and rule in their territory, attacking forts and settlements. They were led by the Odawa war chief, Pontiac. The conflicts, which continued over the course of 3 years, forced the British to re-examine their policies towards Native Americans, banning settlements west of the Appalachians. Ned Blackhawk, professor of History and American Studies at Yale, explains how this fuelled the colonists’ desire for independence from Britain.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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The Battle of Midway took place between the US and Japan in June 1942. The US victory, after 4 days of fighting in the air and sea around the Pacific island of Midway, is widely seen as a turning point in the Pacific War in World War 2. Craig L. Symonds tells Don about the key decisions made by both sides and the important role played by American code breakers in discovering what was meant to be Japan’s surprise attack.
Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.
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After World War 2 ended, the Nazis defeated, America feared communist infiltration of its institutions, among them, Hollywood.
In November 1947, a number of high profile ‘friendly witnesses’ in the film industry, including Walt Disney and Jack Warner of Warner Brothers, appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee and named people and organisations they believed were associated with communists.
As Don hears from Dr. Kathleen Feeley - Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Redlands, this began a witch hunt for communists in the entertainment industry, which lasted more than a decade.
Hundreds of writers, producers and actors - many with no affiliation with communism - were left unable to work.
Senior Producer: Charlotte Long. Producer: Benjie Guy. Mixed by Benjie Guy.
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While the Revolutionary War was being fought in July 1776, the 13 British colonies in America came together to approve their Declaration of Independence, the founding document of the United States of America.
Shaped by the Enlightenment ideas of liberty, happiness and reason, the document has since influenced many causes in America and around the world.
In this episode, Don speaks to Reverend Byron Williams about how the Declaration of Independence came about, its meaning and endurance.
You can find out more about Byron's book here.
Produced and mixed by Benjie Guy. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
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In 1939 Franklin D Roosevelt received a letter from Albert Einstein, warning him that the Nazis might be developing nuclear weapons. America has to act fast.
What follows is the creation of a secret city in the rural area of Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Around 75,000 people moved to the secret city during the World War Two, and the first atomic bomb was developed in just 28 months.
Don Wildman is joined by historian, Ray Smith, to find out how it was possible, and to hear about the experiences of the people who worked at Oak Ridge, most of whom didn't know what they were creating.
You can find out more here.
The senior producer was Charlotte Long. The producer was Benjie Guy. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas. Special thanks to Fendall Fulton.
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We had plans today to release the first two episodes of American History Hit but due to the news of the death of Queen Elizabeth II last week, we’ve decided to take some time and do something a little different.
You’ll hear those episodes on Thursday September 22, until then here’s a special mini episode looking into the Queen’s historic meetings with US presidents who served during her 70 years on the throne. As she reminded George W Bush in 2003, "unlike in the United States, the British head of state is not limited to two terms of four years, and I have met no less that seven of your predecessors".
Elizabeth’s reign saw her meet thirteen of the last fourteen presidents, from dinner with Kennedy, to touring Buckingham Palace with Nixon. Dancing with Ford, to watching baseball with Bush Senior. Dining with Obama to banqueting with Trump - she’s likely to have met more American presidents than anyone else in history.
American History Hit will officially launch on Thursday 22nd September.
Senior Producer: Charlotte Long. Producer: Benjie Guy. Mixed by Charlotte Long.
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This episode includes music from Epidemic Sound
Join Don Wildman twice a week for your hit of American history, as he explores the past to help us understand the United States of today.
We’ll hear how codebreakers uncovered secret Japanese plans for the Battle of Midway, visit Chief Powhatan as he prepares for war with the British, see Walt Disney accuse his former colleagues of being communists, and uncover the hidden history that lies beneath Central Park.
From pre-colonial America to independence, slavery to civil rights, the gold rush to the space race, join Don as he speaks to leading experts to delve into America’s past.
New episodes every Monday and Thursday, from September 22nd.
Brought to you by History Hit, the award-winning podcast network and world’s best history channel on demand, featuring shows like Dan Snow’s History Hit, Not Just The Tudors and Betwixt the Sheets.
This episode includes music from Epidemic Sound.
En liten tjänst av I'm With Friends. Finns även på engelska.