Podcast Episodes

Moving Water

The Erie Canal and The Chicago River were two of the most impressive engineering feats in history.

For the 200th Anniversary of the opening of the Erie Canal we look at the opening celebration, alon…

Published on 13 hours ago

Kids Listen Big Emotions

We're a part of Big Emotions this week! We’re feeling all squishy this week, as we dive into two of the strongest emotions of all. Love is powerful, joyful, and comforting - and when it changes or we…

Published on 4 days, 6 hours ago

Halloween Special: Twain's Ouija Novel

Did a no-longer-living Mark Twain send a novel from the great beyond with a Ouija Board? Find out about the real story with help from our pal Nate DuFort of the podcast, Unspookable.

Published on 2 weeks, 2 days ago

Very Hairy

Episode 110! Peter the Great, The Hairy Eagle and more!

Did I decide on an episode about Peter the Great just so I could say 6-7 a few times to be cringe and make kids laugh? Yes, yes I did. But it'…

Published on 1 month ago

Handwritten

Episode 109 tells the story of Lincoln's the speech Lincoln lost before his inauguration in 1861.

Also included is the story of Ely S. Parker, an indigenous Seneca man who made an impact in the Civi…

Published on 2 months ago

Lost Bones

Composer Joseph Haydn is buried with two skulls. You'll never believe why (hint: it has to do with phrenology).

Meanwhile Thomas Paine's bones went missing thanks to an overly enthusiastic fan.

Published on 3 months ago

Mountains To Climb

Henriette D'angeville was the first woman to climb Mount Blanc in the Alps, despite everyone advising her not to try it.

Decades later, Julia Archibald Holmes (a friend of John Brown's) became the f…

Published on 4 months ago

Electric Kids

Philo Farnsworth loved electricity so much he came up with a way to invent television - as a 14 year old!

Centuries beforehand Stephen Gray, a British scientist, learned more about electricity than …

Published on 5 months ago

Good Things to Eat

This episode will make you hungry!

Rufus Estes and Chin Foin both left a big mark on food, both lived in Chicago at the same time, and both had their food featured in important cookbooks in 1911.

Published on 6 months ago

One Year, Two Hoaxes

Episode 104

The year 1917 gave us both the birth of the Cottingly Fairies and the silly fake history known as the Bathtub Hoax.

Published on 7 months ago