Post archive for ‘In Production’
Weathering the Storm
In New England, 1816 was “The Year Without a Summer.” Snow fell throughout June and July. According to one diarist, the 4th of July saw “ice as thick as window glass” as far south as Pennsylvania. This week on BackStory, we tackle weather in its strangest and scariest permutations.
Cheers and Jeers: Alcohol in America
Sloshed, hammered, smashed. . . Drinking, and drunkenness, has always been a feature of the American landscape. But throughout our history, there has been a tension between excess and prohibition.
Monumental Disagreements
In this Memorial Day episode, we’ll attempt to breathe some life back into the debates and controversies that have surrounded some of our most iconic national monuments.
Times of Terror
On Sept 16, 1920, a bomb exploded on Wall Street as workers took their lunch break. It was the deadliest terrorist bombing in the US until Oklahoma City — but at the time, people saw it as just one more incident in a long string of attacks. Why?
Contagion
When yellow fever struck Philadelphia in 1793, the entire federal government picked up and fled. A hundred years later, health workers with police power were imprisoning the sick, burning entire districts, and vaccinating resistant citizens at gunpoint. We wondered: why the change?
Home Bittersweet Home
In this episode, we’ll search for the roots of the American dream of home ownership, and explore some of the challenges many have faced in trying to attain that dream.
Signs of the Times: Protest in America
In this episode, we’ll explore political protest in its American forms, and ask how the protest tactics we’re familiar with today came into being. From the Tea Party of 1773 to its contemporary namesake, what strategies have proven the most successful?
The Athlete, the Amateur, & the Academic
College sports have provided some of this year’s biggest controversies, leading some to ask why sports even exist at “higher-ed” institutions. In this episode, we’ll explore the ways schools have attempted to answer that question.
Sweet and Dangerous: A History of Sugar
In this episode, the History Guys will explore sweetness in American history. How has our national sweet tooth shaped our political and economic priorities?
Going Postal: A History of the U.S. Mail
In this episode, the History Guys will explore some of the intricate connections between the nation’s history and the history of its postal system.
