Our American Stories
Our American Stories tells stories that aren’t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we’ll be a place where listeners can refresh their spirit, and be inspired by our stories.
Episodes
The Great Arsenal of Democracy: How America Went From Nothing...to Outproducing Every Nation in WWII
On this episode of Our American Stories, America was woefully unprepared for World War II. Our army was about the size of Portugal's, our navy was outdated, and our "air force" was roughly equivalent to what the German Luftwaffe flew on a near-daily basis across Europe. Not only that, but nobody in America wanted war, or expected it to come to us. FDR was under no such delusion. We needed weapons,
20,000 Salt and Pepper Shakers and One Remarkable Family Legacy
On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrea Ludden’s mother was an archaeologist who began collecting salt and pepper shakers after moving to the United States in the 1980s. What started with a search for pepper mills grew into a collection of thousands as she realized that these ordinary household objects could reveal changing fashions, technology, travel, manufacturing, and everyday li
Titanic Thompson: The Gambler Who Fooled Al Capone
On this episode of Our American Stories, Titanic Thompson could hustle almost anyone. He beat gamblers at cards and dice, golfers on the course, pool players in smoky halls, and even fooled Al Capone with a rigged lemon toss. Born Alvin Clarence Thomas in rural Missouri, he spent decades crisscrossing America in search of bets he already knew how to win.The History Guy tells the story of the legen
Burt Young, the Actor Behind Paulie in Rocky, Shares His Story
On this episode of Our American Stories, Burt Young grew up in Queens, the son of a working-class family, and spent his early years far from the world of film. He boxed professionally, served in the Marine Corps, and worked a series of jobs before ever thinking about acting.That changed when he began studying under Lee Strasberg and started to take the craft seriously. Not long after, he came acro
Christopher Columbus: The Good, the Bad, and the Four Voyages
On this episode of Our American Stories, Christopher Columbus sailed west in 1492, convinced he could reach Asia across the Atlantic. He was wrong about where he was going, wrong about the size of the world, and yet skilled and determined enough to complete a voyage that would change it forever. Over four expeditions, Columbus explored the Caribbean, encountered peoples unknown to Europeans, pursu
How Yogi Berra Became an American Original
On this episode of Our American Stories, before Yogi Berra became one of the greatest catchers in baseball history, he was an 18-year-old U.S. Navy sailor headed toward Omaha Beach on D-Day. After World War II, the son of Italian immigrants from St. Louis helped build one of the greatest careers in American sports, winning 10 World Series championships with the New York Yankees and becoming one of
The Teenage Spy Who Arrested His Nazi Boss
On this episode of Our American Stories, at 17 years old, Pino Lella was helping Jewish families escape Nazi-occupied Italy by guiding them across the Alps into Switzerland. A year later, after being drafted into the German military, he found himself assigned as the personal driver to one of the most powerful Nazi commanders in Italy.Secretly working for the Italian resistance and the Allies, Pino
Christopher Columbus: The Last Crusader
On this episode of Our American Stories, The Age of Discovery launched European exploration across the Atlantic, but Columbus’s motivations were more complicated than simple curiosity or greed. He wrote about prophecy, Christian expansion, and the belief that history was moving toward a final reckoning.George Grant, author of The Last Crusader: The Untold Story of Christopher Columbus, share
The Pilot Who Found God in the Sky Over Vietnam
On this episode of Our American Stories, Dick Erickson was a young Marine helicopter pilot flying over Vietnam when everything went quiet. His radio was dead, his instruments were failing, and the jungle below offered no clear place to land. Alone in the cockpit, he began to pray. What happened next stayed with him for life. In that silence, he felt a calm that didn’t come from training or i
How Haunted Houses Became a Halloween Tradition
On this episode of Our American Stories, before haunted houses filled October nights, Halloween in America was a mess. In the early twentieth century, it was less about candy and costumes and more about broken fences, stolen gates, and angry neighbors. Communities were desperate for order, and their answer came from an unexpected place. Schools, churches, and civic clubs began creating haunted att
The True Story of the Donner Party’s Struggle for Survival
On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1846, a group of pioneers set out for California with dreams of a better life. Known as the Donner Party, they fell behind on the trail, took a disastrous shortcut, and became trapped in the Sierra Nevada as winter storms closed in. With supplies gone and snow piling up, survival came at a great cost.Here’s their remarkable and tragic story. Suppor
Frankie Avalon Talks Grease, Billboard Hits, and His Legacy in Hollywood
On this episode of Our American Stories, Frankie Avalon became a household name before he turned twenty. With hits like “Venus” and “Why,” he dominated the Billboard charts during the golden age of American pop. But while many teen idols faded, Avalon evolved. He starred alongside Annette Funicello in a string of beach party films that captured the imagination of a generati
The Man in the Glass Coffin
On this episode of Our American Stories, along the shores of Lake Michigan is a story stranger than fiction: a man preserved in a glass coffin. He was part of the House of David, a communal religious group whose followers built amusement parks, baseball teams, and their own legends. Visitors came from across the country to see him, but not all of them came with good intentions. Thieves once tried
The Great Chicago Fire Was Devastating. The Recovery Was Extraordinary.
On this episode of Our American Stories, most people know the story of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Fewer know what happened next. After flames destroyed the heart of the city and left more than 100,000 people homeless, Chicago didn’t collapse. It rebuilt faster and bigger than anyone thought possible. Businesses reopened while the rubble was still smoking. New buildings rose within month
How a Fake Bottle of Wine Sparked a $35 Million Fight for Justice
On this episode of Our American Stories, it began with a few rare bottles and a collector who thought he’d found perfection. But what looked like the discovery of a lifetime turned out to be one of the most elaborate wine scams in modern history. Billionaire Bill Koch, known for his meticulous taste and love of authenticity, discovered that his prized collection included counterfeits, some o
From Steel Town to Tinsel Town: The Life of Composer Henry Mancini
On this episode of Our American Stories, before the Pink Panther ever tiptoed across a screen, Henry Mancini was a steelworker’s son from Pennsylvania with a trumpet and a dream. Music took him from Army bands during World War II to the backlots of Hollywood, where he helped shape the sound of American film. Through works like Peter Gunn and “Moon River,” Mancini turned simple th
How One Italian Immigrant and a Fruit Cart Built a Tennessee Whiskey Icon
On this episode of Our American Stories, Dominico Canale arrived in America from Italy in 1859 and eventually settled in Memphis, Tennessee. He began with a fruit cart and built it into a thriving business, one that eventually included a whiskey bearing his name. Then Prohibition shut that part of the family business down, and Old Dominick disappeared from Memphis. The Canales kept the name and th
How Edgar Allan Poe Gave Us Horror, Mystery, and Science Fiction
On this episode of Our American Stories, Edgar Allan Poe is best known for his dark tales and haunting poems, yet his imagination stretched far beyond the macabre. Behind the tragedies that shaped his life was a writer who helped define Gothic literature, pioneered detective fiction, and even ventured into early science fiction.Chris Semtner, curator at the Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia, reveal
Jack Marucci Made a Bat for His Son. Then Major Leaguers Wanted One
On this episode of Our American Stories, Jack Marucci didn't set out to create a sporting goods company; he was simply trying to find a wooden baseball bat for his son. When he couldn't find one small enough, he opened up his shed and made one from scratch. Then another kid wanted one. Then another. Before long, the bats that had started as a project for his son were finding their way into the han
Mike Leven: The Bigger the Bureaucracy, the Smaller the Customer
On this episode of Our American Stories, Mike Leven learned one of his most important business lessons in the hotel franchise world: treat the franchisee like a customer, and give that owner every reason to succeed. Done well, he argues, franchising combines the resources of a larger brand with the energy and accountability of individual entrepreneurs.Sharing the story through recalling his time w
How Air Conditioning, Barcodes, and Elevators Changed the World
On this episode of Our American Stories, a century ago, much of the American South was brutally uncomfortable in summer, skyscrapers could only rise so far, and keeping track of thousands of products in a store was a slow, manual job. Then a handful of inventions quietly changed how people lived and worked. Air conditioning helped transform entire regions of the country. A safer elevator made the
What Buck O'Neil Did After Missing the Hall of Fame by One Vote
On this episode of Our American Stories, in February 2006, Buck O'Neil and Bob Kendrick were packed and ready to fly to Florida for what they believed would be a Hall of Fame celebration. Instead, O'Neil fell one vote short. Kendrick was devastated. Hundreds of supporters gathered at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum were angry. Buck responded differently.Bob Kendrick, president of the Negro Leagu
Hollywood Goes to War: George O'Brien, Star of Three Wars
On this episode of Our American Stories, George O'Brien became one of Hollywood's biggest leading men after starring in John Ford's 1924 silent epic The Iron Horse. But long before Hollywood made him famous, O'Brien had already served in the Navy during World War I, and when Pearl Harbor brought America into World War II, the 41-year-old husband and father volunteered to serve again.As part of our
Beating the Soviets: Mike Eruzione on the 1980 Olympic Upset
On this episode of Our American Stories, it was the Cold War on ice, and no one expected Team USA to win. But in 1980, a ragtag group of college kids stunned the world when they beat the seemingly unbeatable Soviet Union at the Lake Placid Winter Olympics.Our own Greg Hengler and Mike Eruzione himself, captain of the U.S. men’s hockey team and the man who scored the game-winning goal, share
How Three Escaped Slaves Changed America Forever
On this episode of Our American Stories, in May 1861, three enslaved men, Frank Baker, Shepherd Mallory, and James Townsend, escaped from Confederate labor at Sewell's Point, Virginia, and crossed to Union-held Fort Monroe. When their enslaver demanded their return, General Benjamin Butler faced a problem. Sending them back would mean returning three men to work on Confederate defenses aimed at hi
Randall Wallace on the Greatest Man He Ever Knew: His Father
On this episode of Our American Stories, before Randall Wallace wrote Braveheart and directed We Were Soldiers, his father, Thurman Wallace, taught him what it meant to keep your word, work hard, and treat everyone with dignity. Thurman had grown up without a father, went to work at 14, and spent his career as a traveling candy salesman who seemed to know everyone he met.Randall remembers the man
"I Came to New York City Dead": Sarah Gonzalez's Faith Story
On this episode of Our American Stories, Sarah Gonzalez was six years old when her father, a former gang member and addict who became a jail chaplain, suddenly died. His death shattered the joyful childhood she had known and eventually led Sarah to reject the Christian faith in which she had been raised. By her teenage and college years, she was using drugs, drinking heavily, and practicing witchc
The Magna Carta at Fort Knox: A Forgotten WWII Story
On this episode of Our American Stories, during World War II, U.S. leaders feared German bombers could strike American soil. To protect the nation’s most important treasures, the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Gettysburg Address, and the Magna Carta, Britain’s most important document, which was on loan at the time, were secretly moved to Fort Knox.Steve Puleo, autho
Steve Jobs and the iPhone That Almost Wasn't
On this episode of Our American Stories, on January 9, 2007, Steve Jobs stepped onto the stage at Macworld and unveiled a device that would forever change the way we communicate. To the audience, it looked like a flawless presentation. Behind the scenes, however, Apple engineers were bracing for disaster. The iPhone prototype was so fragile that Jobs had to follow a carefully rehearsed sequence of
A Life at NASA From the Lunar Rover to the Space Shuttle
On this episode of Our American Stories, when Apollo astronauts drove across the Moon, Craig Sumner had already spent years helping make that possible. As a young engineer at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, he worked on the Lunar Roving Vehicle, solving the kinds of problems that come with designing a car for a place where no one had ever driven before. He later left NASA to become a military
The 5-Foot Bookshelf That Changed How America Thinks About Education
On this episode of Our American Stories, in the early 1900s, Harvard President Charles W. Eliot made a remarkable claim: with just 15 minutes of reading a day, a person could give himself the equivalent of a liberal education from a shelf of books only five feet long. Publisher P. F. Collier challenged him to prove it.Our American Stories regular contributor John Elfner and historian Robert Johnst
A Cemetery Is a History Book Written in Stone
On this episode of Our American Stories, on a summer walk through one of Antrim, New Hampshire's old public cemeteries, Bill Bryk begins reading the stones. A Revolutionary War militiaman rests near a Civil War cavalryman. Veterans of two world wars lie beneath familiar family names. Some markers tell long stories. Others offer only a few words, including one man's simple epitaph: “an honest
Kasserine Pass and the Harsh Reality of America’s First Defeat in WWII
On this episode of Our American Stories, in February 1943, American soldiers met the German Army at Kasserine Pass in North Africa and discovered just how unprepared they were for the war ahead. Units became separated, communications failed, intelligence broke down, and inexperienced commanders struggled to respond as German forces tore through American positions. The defeat was humiliating, costl
How Rodney Dangerfield Finally Got Some Respect
On this episode of Our American Stories, before he was Rodney Dangerfield, he was Jacob Cohen, then Jack Roy, a struggling comedian who quit show business, sold aluminum siding, raised a family, and spent years filling a duffel bag with jokes. When he returned to the stage in his 40s, a new name, a black suit and red tie, and one unforgettable complaint finally made him a star: "I don't get no res
Bass Reeves: The Former Slave Who Tamed the Wild West
On this episode of Our American Stories, Bass Reeves was born into slavery in Arkansas in 1838. During the Civil War, he escaped bondage and made his way to Indian Territory. Years later, he returned there carrying a badge. For more than three decades, Reeves served federal warrants across some of the most dangerous country in the West, tracking fugitives, working in disguise, and earning a reputa
What Lee Iacocca and Henry Ford II Taught a 23-Year-Old Newbie
On this episode of Our American Stories, Tim Leuliette was only 23 when he found himself presenting multimillion-dollar proposals to Lee Iacocca and Henry Ford II at Ford Motor Company. Working in product planning during the 1970s energy crisis meant long nights, five-minute presentations, and learning how to strip away the fluff and get straight to the facts.Leuliette, who went on to become a pro
Thomas Mundy Peterson: The First Black Voter Under the 15th Amendment
On this episode of Our American Stories, on March 31, 1870, Thomas Mundy Peterson walked into Perth Amboy City Hall in New Jersey to vote on a local charter. Nothing about the election seemed especially historic. But when Peterson cast his ballot, he became the first Black American known to vote under the protection of the newly ratified 15th Amendment.Historian Elliott Drago of the Jack Miller Ce
A.P. Giannini: The Italian American Who Bet on Everyday Americans
On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1904, A.P. Giannini opened the Bank of Italy in San Francisco for the people other bankers tended to overlook: immigrants, farmers, shopkeepers, and working families. Then, just two years later, the earthquake and fire devastated the city. While San Francisco struggled to get back on its feet, Giannini began lending money to people who needed a chance to
The Song My Father Remembered When He Forgot Everything Else
On this episode of Our American Stories, growing up, Karen Cutler Drecktrah and her sister loved teasing their father, Jim, about his favorite song, "Kentucky Waltz." They had never heard it and were convinced he had confused it with "Tennessee Waltz." Jim insisted the song was real, even though he could no longer remember the words or melody.Decades later, as 89-year-old Jim struggled with dement
Winston Churchill: The Warrior Who Hated War
On this episode of Our American Stories, Winston Churchill had seen war up close long before he was asked to lead a nation through one. As a young soldier and correspondent, he rode into battle, came under fire, and watched new weapons make killing faster and more devastating. The experience never left him. Churchill spent much of his life warning about the cost of war and searching for ways to pr
The Home Depot Worker Who Became Boston’s Lead Singer
On this episode of Our American Stories, Tommy DeCarlo’s story feels like a lost lyric from a Boston song. He worked at Home Depot by day and sang their music at night, never expecting anyone to hear him beyond a few friends. Then a homemade recording traveled farther than he ever could have planned. The surviving members of Boston, led by guitarist and founder Tom Scholz, invited him to joi
How Pinball Found Its Way Through Bans, Backrooms, and the Arcade Boom
On this episode of Our American Stories, pinball’s story winds back to a quiet corner of European parlor culture, where small tabletop games offered a brief challenge to anyone willing to try their luck. Those early ideas eventually migrated to America, where the game weathered citywide crackdowns and the tests of time.As the tables grew more complex, the machines slipped into public rooms t
When Infertility Tests a Marriage
On this episode of Our American Stories, Stephen Rusiniak and his wife had always imagined a home filled with children. Then infertility turned that future into a painful uncertainty, and Stephen carried much of the blame himself. He knew he was the reason they were struggling to conceive, but shame and guilt made it difficult to say aloud what he was feeling. One summer night, sitting beside his
The Story of America: Woodrow Wilson and the Great War [Ep. 43]
On this episode of Our American Stories, when war erupted across Europe in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson promised to keep the United States out of it. For nearly three years, he tried. But German submarine warfare, the sinking of the Lusitania, and repeated attacks on American shipping steadily narrowed the country's options. By the spring of 1917, neutrality was no longer holding. On April 2, Wi
Why the Wild West Wasn’t So Wild After All
On this episode of Our American Stories, a wagon train heading west might carry dozens of families, hundreds of animals, and almost no formal government. Before setting out, the travelers had to decide who was in charge, how disputes would be settled, and what would happen if someone broke the rules. So they wrote constitutions. In mining camps, prospectors did much the same thing, establishing cl
America's First Multi-Millionaire: John Jacob Astor
On this episode of Our American Stories, John Jacob Astor arrived in America in 1784 with little money and an eye for opportunity. He began trading furs, built a commercial empire that stretched across the continent, and then made an even bigger bet on the future of New York City. As Manhattan expanded, the land Astor had quietly accumulated became extraordinarily valuable. By the time he died, th
How Bananas Changed the World
On this episode of Our American Stories, Americans eat roughly 4.5 million tons of bananas every year. They’re cheap, plentiful, and so ordinary that most of us toss a bunch into the shopping cart without giving them a second thought. But getting that banana onto the supermarket shelf required ships, railroads, enormous corporations, and a global trade that helped shape American involvement
From $1,000 Down to 1,500 Employees: Bob Huff's American Dream
On this episode of Our American Stories, Bob Huff grew up outside Dayton, Ohio, in a three-room house without indoor plumbing, raised largely by a single mother who taught him that when something needed to be done, you went to work. Years later, that lesson followed Bob and his wife, Lynn, into a struggling 35-bed nursing home they bought with $1,000 borrowed for the down payment. There was no sta
Sidney Poitier: The Actor Who Broke Hollywood's Color Barrier
On this episode of Our American Stories, Sidney Poitier arrived in New York as a teenager with almost nothing. He sometimes slept on rooftops and in pay toilets, worked as a dishwasher, and could barely read. When he auditioned for the American Negro Theater, he was thrown out and told to go find work washing dishes. Instead, Poitier taught himself to read, changed the way he spoke by imitating vo
Bruce Wang, All-American: The Chinese Cowboy with a Southern Accent
On this episode of Our American Stories, Bruce Wang grew up in southwestern China and came to America for college, eventually finding his way to West Texas. Then someone took him to a rodeo. Bruce was fascinated. Before long, he was wearing cowboy boots, watching Duck Dynasty, studying Southern accents, and learning everything he could about cattle and the people who raised them.Bruce shares how a
The Surprisingly Strange History of Toilet Paper
On this episode of Our American Stories, toilet paper might seem like a modern necessity, but the truth is messier—and much older. Long before perforated rolls and flushable comfort, people used whatever they could find: seashells, corn cobs, even stones.Our American Stories regular contributor, The History Guy, shares the story of what people used before toilet paper was invented—and
How One Hatmaker Shaped the Image of the American West
On this episode of Our American Stories, the cowboy hat didn’t come from Texas or tumbleweeds. Instead, it came from a modest Philadelphia workshop. John B. Stetson transformed durable felt and a wide brim into a practical design that would become one of the most iconic symbols of the American frontier. His creation topped the heads of Western legends like Buffalo Bill and Will Rogers, and l
Wally Amos: The Real Man Behind Famous Amos Cookies
On this episode of Our American Stories, Wally Amos was a talent agent who worked with some of the biggest names in show business before a chocolate chip cookie changed his life. In 1975, with backing from friends including Marvin Gaye and Helen Reddy, Amos opened a cookie shop on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. His Famous Amos cookies soon became a national sensation.His daughter, Sarah Amos, sh
Ten Cent Beer Night: When Cheap Beer Sparked Chaos in MLB
On this episode of Our American Stories, on June 4, 1974, the Cleveland Indians hosted the Texas Rangers in what began as a regular MLB game and ended as one of the most infamous promotions in baseball history. Known as “Ten Cent Beer Night,” the evening promised cheap drinks to boost attendance. What followed was a riot on the field, a forfeit, and a chapter of baseball history that s
When a Bathroom Drug Deal Was Interrupted by Jesus
On this episode of Our American Stories, it started in a bathroom, where a man trapped in addiction waited to make another bad decision. Pastor Greg Laurie didn’t know what he was walking into—only that something told him to go. Inside, he found a man on the edge: tired, angry, and ready to give up. Instead of turning away, Greg spoke about grace, and in that small, stained room, somet
My Father’s Escape from Castro’s Cuba
On this episode of Our American Stories, Cuba’s 1959 revolution brought Fidel Castro to power and forced countless families to make an impossible choice: stay under a communist regime or flee their homeland. Mike Gonzalez’s father once called Castro a friend, but soon discovered the price of living under his rule. With freedoms stripped away and fear taking hold, escape became the only
Dwayne Johnson’s Heartfelt Goodbye to His Father, Rocky “Soulman” Johnson
On this episode of Our American Stories, Rocky “Soulman” Johnson spent his life fighting for a place in professional wrestling. As a Black wrestler performing before largely white audiences in the 1960s and ’70s, he faced racism inside and outside the ring, but kept winning over crowds with his charisma and athleticism. Years later, when his son Dwayne decided to become a wrestle
What It Means to Be the Only Lawyer in Town
On this episode of Our American Stories, Bill Bryk may be the only practicing lawyer in his small New Hampshire town, so when a 17-year-old neighbor got a speeding ticket, her family knew who to call. The problem was that she had already paid the fine, assuming that would be the end of it. Instead, she'd unknowingly put her driver's license at risk. Bill agreed to help her fight to keep it.Regular
How the USPS Stamped Itself onto American History
On this episode of Our American Stories, The Founders knew firsthand that a postal system could be used as a tool of government surveillance. Before the Revolution, British officials had opened and inspected colonial mail, giving Americans good reason to distrust putting their letters in government hands. But the new nation faced a different problem. Its people were scattered across vast distances
A Jewish Soldier’s Unbelievable Survival at the Battle of the Bulge
On this episode of Our American Stories, Milton Nadler grew up fast. The day after Pearl Harbor, his paper route turned into a rush of headlines about war. Within a few short years, he was living those headlines himself. During the Battle of the Bulge, Milton found himself surrounded, outnumbered, and facing death in the frozen forests of Europe. What happened next defied every expectation.Here's
The Mad Scientists of Malibu: Surfing’s Early Pioneers
On this episode of Our American Stories, when Roger McGrath first paddled out at Malibu as a boy in the 1950s, surfing was still a small fraternity with only a few decades of history in California. The boards were heavy, the crowds were thin, and many of the men riding those waves were quietly reinventing the sport. Roger grew up among them, and decades later, he shares the story of the surfers wh
“Hey Kid, Catch!” The Coca-Cola Ad That Made Mean Joe Greene a Legend
On this episode of Our American Stories, few commercials have left a mark like Coca-Cola’s “Hey Kid, Catch!” starring "Mean" Joe Greene. Greene, already one of the greatest defensive players in the NFL, gained a new kind of fame as the spot played during football broadcasts nationwide.Our own Greg Hengler (and others) share the story of how a 60-second spot became one of the most
“Son of a Gun” & “Steal My Thunder” and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions
On this episode of Our American Stories, we use them without thinking. Someone gets “sold down the river.” A project has to “start from scratch.” An idea “steals our thunder.” But behind these familiar expressions are stories involving ancient athletes, biblical passages, British sailors, American slavery, theater rivalries, and baseball.Andrew Thompson, author
Empathy Is Not Optional: The Professor Who Changed Mike Leven's Life
On this episode of Our American Stories, Mike Leven was studying law at the University of Chicago when a bad grade sent him to his professor's office looking for help. Instead, the professor gave him a verdict: “You don't understand contracts, and I don't think you ever will.” Mike walked out, sold his law books, and went home. His legal career was over almost as soon as it had begun.L
Bloodletting, Whiskey, and the Strange History of Fighting the Flu
On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1918, influenza swept across the world with terrifying speed, killing millions. Doctors were desperate to stop it, but there was a fundamental problem: they didn't even know what caused the flu. Patients were subjected to bloodletting and enemas, prescribed whiskey, and even exposed to toxic factory gases, while scientists pursued theories involving bact
How “Women and Children First” Began
On this episode of Our American Stories, when the HMS Birkenhead struck rocks off the coast of South Africa in 1852, chaos should have followed. Instead, what happened that night became one of history’s clearest displays of courage and order in the face of disaster. With lifeboats too few for the hundreds aboard, British soldiers stood their ground so that women and children could be saved.
Smokin’ Ed Currie on The Miracle That Gave Him a Family
On this episode of Our American Stories, before “Smokin’” Ed Currie became famous for breeding the Carolina Reaper and Pepper X, he nearly destroyed his life with addiction. Recovery gave Ed a second chance, but it didn't erase the guilt he carried over the person he had once been. Years later, after he and his wife, Linda, endured miscarriage after miscarriage, they finally acce
The Boys of Milo: The Marine Recon Veteran Who Kept Cheating Death
On this episode of Our American Stories, Ted Godlove was only months out of high school in Milo, Iowa, when he volunteered for the United States Marine Corps. Before long, he was serving with a reconnaissance unit deep in the jungles of Vietnam, where small teams of Marines operated dangerously close to much larger enemy forces. Godlove survived firefights, desperate escapes, and one helicopter ex
How Johnny Carson Saved Twister
On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1966, Twister looked like a flop. Retailers thought Milton Bradley's new game was too risqué, Sears refused to put it in its Christmas catalog, and the company was preparing to pull it from stores. Then Johnny Carson spread the colorful mat across the stage of The Tonight Show and invited actress Eva Gabor to play.Our Ameican Stories regular contr
Did Benjamin Franklin Believe in God?
On this episode of Our American Stories, Benjamin Franklin rarely attended church and questioned some of Christianity's central doctrines. Yet he never abandoned belief in God. He believed in Providence, immortality, moral accountability, and the importance of religion to a healthy society. Franklin's faith never fit neatly into a single category, and he spent much of his long life thinking, quest
The Best Worst Counterfeiter in American History
On this episode of Our American Stories, for nearly a decade, the Secret Service couldn't catch one of America's most persistent counterfeiters. The strange thing was that he wasn't very good at counterfeiting. Mister 880 produced only one-dollar bills, printed them on the wrong paper, drew a lousy George Washington, and occasionally even misspelled Washington's name. Still, the phony dollars kept
James Madison: The Quiet Founder Who Built a Nation
On this episode of Our American Stories, James Madison rarely chased the spotlight, and he knew his character flaws. He was short, balding, awkward, and didn’t always play well in group settings. Yet despite his stature, his big ideas built and shaped America. He drafted the Bill of Rights, argued for ratification in The Federalist Papers, and turned quiet conviction into lasting policy thro
When 7-Year-Old John Quincy Adams Watched the Battle of Bunker Hill
On this episode of Our American Stories, on June 17, 1775, Abigail Adams climbed Penn's Hill with her seven-year-old son, John Quincy. Across the water, British and American soldiers were fighting the Battle of Bunker Hill. Cannon fire echoed in the distance, smoke rose over the battlefield, and Charlestown burned before their eyes. The American Revolution was no longer something happening somewhe
How Bear Bryant Changed My Life
On this episode of Our American Stories, Jeremiah Castille grew up surrounded by poverty, alcoholism, drugs, and violence. At 13 years old, he found the Christian faith and began imagining a different life for himself. He set his sights on one goal: earn a football scholarship to the University of Alabama, get an education, and someday give his own family the life he never had.Castille made it to
Thomas Jefferson: America's “Everyman”
On this episode of Our American Stories, for more than two centuries, Americans who agreed on almost nothing have found something to admire in Thomas Jefferson. Presidents, abolitionists, liberals, and conservatives have all claimed the man who wrote that “all men are created equal” while holding hundreds of people in slavery. He's a complicated figure, and that might say something abo
"Tie the Knot" & "Blackballed" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 23)
On this episode of Our American Stories, why do we say a married couple "tied the knot"? How did rejecting someone become known as "blackballing" them? And what do sailing ships have to do with being "under the weather" or finding yourself in a "touch and go" situation?Andrew Thompson, author of Hair of the Dog to Paint the Town Red: The Curious Origins of Everyday Sayings and Fun Phrases, returns
Who Wrote “We the People”? The Story of Gouverneur Morris
On this episode of Our American Stories, Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. James Madison became known as the Father of the Constitution. But the man who gave the Constitution much of its final language, including the famous words “We the People of the United States,” is largely forgotten. His name was Gouverneur Morris.Dennis C. Rasmussen, author of The Constituti
The Making of Justice Scalia: Faith, Family, and the American Dream (Pt. 2)
On this episode of Our American Stories, before Antonin Scalia joined the Supreme Court, he was wrestling with a question that would define his career: What is a judge supposed to do when the law produces a result he doesn't personally like? Scalia's answer was that judges should follow the law rather than their own preferences, an idea that helped shape his growing commitment to textualism and or
The Making of Justice Scalia: Faith, Family, and the American Dream (Pt. 1)
On this episode of Our American Stories, before Antonin Scalia became the first Italian American to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, he was "Nino," the only child of an Italian American family growing up in Queens. His father had arrived from Sicily as a teenager, speaking no English, and worked his way through school to become a professor of Romance languages. His mother, the daughter of Italian
How a Bible Verse Became One of America’s Most Famous Metaphors
On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1630, John Winthrop and hundreds of Puritan settlers crossed the Atlantic hoping to build a new community in New England. Before they arrived, Winthrop delivered a warning. Their success or failure would not go unnoticed. Drawing on the words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew, he told his fellow settlers, “We shall be as a city upon a hill. The eye
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