Footnoting History

Mao and His Mango

(Lesley) In 1968, an act of diplomacy between the Government of Pakistan and China’s Chairman Mao set off a series of actions that would create a cult around the mango fruit. Chairman Mao did not taste this fruit. Instead, he passed it on to workers as a symbol of his gratitude for their allegiance to him. What followed was a stunning spread of the mango throughout China. Set against the backdrop of famine and the “Four Pests,” the worship of this single fruit created complexity and controversy in 20th century China.

Potosí: The Silver Mine that Changed the World

(Nathan) In 1545, a new Spanish mining town was founded in the Andes mountains of modern-day Bolivia, and for next 250 years, the mines of Potosí would fund the Spanish crown and its imperial ambitions. But what the Spanish did not know is that having too much silver could have disastrous consequences. In this episode, we will examine the history of New World silver and its effect on the world economy, the lives of the people who mined it, and how Bolivian silver contributed to global economic inflation.

King Henry I of England and the White Ship

(Christine) In 1120, just when King Henry I of England thought he had achieved a much-needed peace, tragedy struck. What happened to the White Ship that broke the king's heart and changed the trajectory of the English monarchy? Find out on this episode.

History for Halloween V

(Christine, Lucy, Elizabeth) It's that time of year again! Hauntings, mayhem, and spooky happenings abound and we are here to feed your dark side with some creepy bits plucked from history.

How to Make a Fortune in Fictional Poyais

(Lesley) While the brave, the curious, and the outlawed began new lives in New World colonies, industrialists in Europe began searching for investment opportunities. The realities of travel, however, meant that leaps of faith were common for investors. In this episode, Lesley digs deep into the story of a confidence trickster who fabricated an entire country in need of investment. Unfortunately, exotic Poyais did not exist. Who wants to buy the Brooklyn Bridge when you could buy a country the size of Wales instead?

The Legend of Pope Joan

(Nathan) One of the most famous stories about the medieval papacy is that, supposedly sometime in the 9th or 11th century, there was a woman named Joan who disguised herself as a man and became Pope John. While it might sound like a modern, anti-Catholic creation, this story was actually invented in the Middle Ages. In this episode, Nathan returns to the realm of medieval conspiracy theories to talk about the medieval origins and development of the myth of Joan, as well as the social role of conspiracy theory.

Escape from Slavery: The Story of Mary and Emily Edmonson

(Elizabeth) Mary and Emily Edmonson were two of the youngest passengers who attempted to escape slavery on the ill-fated Pearl voyage in 1848. Join Elizabeth as she and a descendant of the Edmonson family discuss the role of these young women in not only the escape but also the abolition movement and Reconstruction.

Beyond the Trenches: Other Fronts of WWI

(Lucy) In popular memory and on the big screen, the First World War was fought in the mud of northern France — or maybe in the skies above it. But what about the war beyond the irreverently-nicknamed trenches? This episode will explore the war as it was fought in the wheat fields of Romania, in the plains of Cameroon, the waters of the Mediterranean, and the deserts of Libya. Examining lesser-known fronts of WWI will also show us different experiences, and different soldiers, as the imperial maps of the late nineteenth century were permanently altered.

How to Avoid Serving in Napoleon's Army

(Christine) Napoleon Bonaparte built his career and maintained his empire with soldiers at his back. Often, the fate of the France seemed to hinge on his military success, but that did not mean every man in the country was eager to join the fight. In this episode, Christine looks at some of the ways men avoided serving in Napoleon's army.

Who Was Bass Reeves?

(Samantha) Bass Reeves was born a slave but escaped from his master and lived as an outlaw in the Indian Territory until the Emancipation Proclamation officially made him a free man. He went on to use the knowledge he gained during his time in hiding to become one of the most successful U.S. Deputy Marshals of his day.

Ancient Authoritative Animals

(Lesley) Today's modern economy allows those with resources to lavish love and attention on their pets. In 2017, the pet industry represented $96 billion in sales in the US alone. Countless hours are spent calming our anxiety by watching cute cat videos. Is this behavior so new and modern? In this episode, Lesley explores the ancient world and three case studies when an adored pet was lavished with unparalleled praise and opportunity -- our animals have always had a special meaning in our hearts.

Special Edition: The Marriage of John Quincy and Louisa Adams

(Christine and Elizabeth) This weekend Britain celebrates the wedding of Prince Harry and American actress Meghan Markle, and we at Footnoting History are thrilled. Join us as we mark the occasion by discussing another cross-Atlantic union: the marriage of US President John Quincy Adams and Louisa Johnson of London, England.

The Blazing World of Lady Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle

(Nathan) Poet, playwright, philosopher, science theorist, and science fiction author--just a few of the occupations held by the 17th-century noblewoman, Lady Margaret Cavendish. One of the towering intellects of her day, Cavendish was a prodigious writer who was by her own account painfully shy, but whose works were revolutionary in their imaginativeness and insight. In this episode, we will explore the life of this remarkable woman, the story of her family during the tumult of the English Civil War, and how she navigated the male-dominated intellectual world of Stuart England.

Yolande Du Bois and the Weight of W.E.B. Du Bois's Dreams

(Elizabeth) In the 20th Century, W.E.B. Du Bois was one of the leading intellectuals of the movement to gain equality for African-Americans. His daughter, Yolande Du Bois, found much of her life shaped by her father's desire for his daughter to be the exemplar of the abilities and potential of African-Americans. In this episode, Elizabeth examines Yolande's life and to what it extent it was shaped by her father.

Ambition, Anxiety, and the Unseen Universe: Science and Victorian Fiction

(Lucy) It’s a truism to say that the Victorian age was a period of rapid technological and social change. It was also a period when science, increasingly, posited proofs for the unseen, from bacteria to mental illness to sexual orientation. Scientific discoveries and debates were cause for anxiety, as well as excitement. Whether through fictional scientists or science fiction, literature could be a place to explore society’s complex relationships to scientific change.

Evacuating the Loyalists

(Christine) During the American Revolution, not everyone living in the rebellious colonies wanted to separate from Great Britain. In this episode, find out how loyalists (those still devoted to King George III) coped with the war ending and the colonies achieving independence.

Hoelun the Stolen Bride

(Samantha) Some time before 1162, a Mongol girl named Hoelun was kidnapped and taken as a bride. A short time later she gave birth to a future emperor. Although the details of her story are shrouded in mystery, the tales that are told of her reveal a wealth of information about steppe culture and hint at the motivations of her son as he rewrote the very fabric of that society.

The Papal Pornocracy

(Nathan) When popes are elected today, the cardinals of the Catholic Church meet in secret conclave. But it wasn't always so. In the 9th through 11th centuries, control of the Chair of St. Peter was fiercely contested between several Roman families, who put their sons, brothers, and lovers on the papal throne. In this episode, we will look at the murders, depositions, adultery, illicit relationships, trials of papal cadavers, and debauched behavior that allegedly characterized this period, as well as the important role played by two Roman noblewomen--Theodora and Marozia Theophylacti--that led some 19th century German historians to label this as a "pornocracy."

Censorship in Reformation England

(Lesley) The arrival of the printing press on the scene of early modern Europe helped to spread seditious ideas that became the Protestant Reformation. Monarchs across Europe and beyond had to establish new policies governing regarding the publication and distribution of potentially dangerous ideas. In this episode, Lesley describes a few laws designed to keep information under control and shares what might happen when a printer ignored the law to publish radical, challenging ideas.

Jewish Fighters of Medieval Europe

(Elizabeth) When we think of medieval Europe, knights, jousting, and sword fights come to mind. New light has been shed on fighting practices in medieval Europe, however, by the discovery of treatises, some of which describe the techniques employed and taught by Jewish fighting masters. Join Elizabeth as she delves into this little known field of fighting styles, and learn about how you too can learn to fight like a medieval European.

How to Be a Beguine

(Lucy) In late medieval Europe, groups of women called beguines assembled in twos and threes, or in large communities, to practice the religious life. They lived simply, served the poor and sick, and sometimes engaged in business. But unlike nuns, they didn’t take vows. So what did it mean to be a beguine? This episode takes on that question, on which both medieval authorities and modern scholars have disagreed.

Back of Every Great Work: The Story of Emily Warren Roebling

(Samantha) According to a plaque on the Brooklyn Bridge “back of every great work we can find the self-sacrificing devotion of a woman.” Indeed, when John Roebling died and his son, Washington, was struck ill, it was Washington’s young wife, Emily Warren Roebling, who worked day and night to ensure that the Brooklyn Bridge was built.

Napoleon Bonaparte's Near-Fatal Christmas

(Christine) December may be a celebratory time for many, but in 1800 it caused Napoleon Bonaparte a giant headache. This episode is all about the attempted Christmas Eve assassination of France's future emperor.

The Malleus Maleficarum

(Nathan) In 1486, two German inquisitors published a treatise on the nature and prosecution of witches: the Malleus Maleficarum or "Hammer of the Witches."  This work overturned centuries of Catholic teaching regarding sorcery and witches, turning them into dark agents of evil who drew power from sexual union with the Devil himself. In this episode, we look at the origins of this text and how it led to the deaths of thousands of innocent people in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Distrust of Chinese-Americans in Early 20th-Century New York City

(Elizabeth) In 1910, Ida Delancey lost custody of her niece because her neighbors complained to child services that Ida, a white woman living in Brooklyn, was known to move in the same circles as Chinese-Americans. Elizabeth explores why this was a cause to have the child removed and how fears had increased after a 1909 murder of a young woman in New York City.

History for Halloween IV

(Christine, Lesley, Lucy) German ghosts, medieval inspirations, and horrors in the attic abound! We're back with bite-sized eerie tales in our fourth installment of History for Halloween.

Cemeteries: Washington Park Cemetery and Early 20th-Century Atlanta

(Elizabeth) In this episode, we return once again to the stories of three people buried in a cemetery in the Atlanta metro area. Second-sight, sharecropping, and a street called Auburn Avenue provide context for the lives of three people interred at Washington Park Cemetery.

Belle Gunness, Black Widow Serial Killer

(Nathan) In the quiet town of La Porte, Indiana at the beginning of the 20th century lived a widow farmer with three children. Originally from Norway, Belle Sørenson Gunness was, like many widows in the period, in search of a husband to help work her lands and provide for her family--until one night, a tragic fire revealed that all was not as it appeared. In this week's episode, we examine the grisly tale of how the outwardly unassuming Belle killed at least nine male suitors and probably two husbands, and the terrible methods that she used to evade capture.

John Dee: Astrologer, Courtier, Mystic...Spy?

(Lucy) ​John Dee has been variously described as a visionary, a philosopher, and a “real-life Gandalf.” Internationally renowned, he served at the Elizabethan court as a consultant on matters worldly and otherworldly. The possessor of a legendary library, Dee himself was a legend in his own day, and has remained so ever since. Scholar and scientist, he was also convinced that he could talk to angels. This episode attempts to disentangle fact from fiction.

The Invention of the Chocolate Chip Cookie

(Samantha) Who doesn’t love the chocolate chip cookie? Today, chocolate chip is the most popular variety of cookie in the United States, but it did not exist until the 1930s. This episode traces the confection from its invention in the kitchen of Mrs. Ruth Wakefield to your own home.

The Murderess in History

(Lesley) Serial killers can be fascinating subjects. The men who hunt strangers are terrifying and interesting studies of the human mind. Yet women in history have also killed, and in some cases they have killed in large, unexpected numbers. In this episode, Lesley discusses five lesser-known serial killers from throughout history and analyzes how the female motivations from the past may differ from the more famous serial killers of modern day.

Cemeteries: Local History of Mid-20th Century Atlanta

(Elizabeth) Taphophilia is the love of cemeteries and headstones. In this episode, Elizabeth indulges her taphophilia as she uses stories from East View Cemetery on the outskirts of Atlanta to learn about life in the city in the early to mid-20th century as she traces the lives of three people buried there. Golf, textile mills, and military service help us complete the picture.

Guy de Montfort and Dante’s Inferno

(Christine) When your grandfather was a leading crusader and your father was a famous rebel, what is left for you to do? For Guy de Montfort the answer was to earn a spot in one of the circles of hell imagined by Dante in his Inferno. Find out how this medieval man came to such a fate in this episode.

Secret Santa: The History of Santa Claus

(Nathan) We kick off the Christmas season and celebrate the Feast of St. Nicholas (Dec. 6th) with a look at the history of Santa Claus, from his origins as a fourth-century bishop to the creation of Rudolph in the 20th century.

The Husband-Killing She-Wolf: The Life of Joanna of Naples

(Nathan) Joanna I of Naples led a fascinating life marked by both triumph and tragedy.  Orphaned as a child, married four times, and rumored to have had her first husband killed outside her own bedchamber, she was a controversial figure even in her own day.  Join us as we examine the ups and downs of one of the most powerful (yet oft-forgotten) women of the fourteenth century.

The One-Legged Nazi-Fighting Jesuit: Rupert Mayer

(Lucy) Fr. Rupert Mayer’s pastoral career ranged from serving as a chaplain for German troops during the First World War, to finding people jobs and housing. Then, after Hitler came to power, Fr. Mayer defied the Gestapo, and lived to tell the tale.  Join Lucy for an episode about this remarkable Nazi-fighting Jesuit.

Jumbo the Elephant

(Christine) In May of 2016 the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus’ elephants performed for their final time before entering retirement. Over 130 years earlier, in 1882, Jumbo the elephant left London for New York and joined P.T. Barnum’s traveling menagerie. In this episode, Christine explores Jumbo’s life as one of the Victorian era’s most famous animals.

How to Punish a Witch in 16th-Century England

(Lesley) We've all seen movies burn witches at the stake. But how did England's lawmakers propose to punish these evil-doers? You might be surprised. This week, we explore the various ways a sorcerer or witch could be punished in early modern England.

The Great Unpleasantness? World War One in Whodunits

(Elizabeth and Lucy) The First World War was, infamously, a source of both transformation and trauma. In this episode, Lucy and Elizabeth find evidence of the ways in which the War to End all Wars influenced some of the greatest British mystery novels of the mid-20th century, especially how experiences of WWI were normalized, memorialized, or condemned within their pages.

Curious George Escapes Nazi Europe

(Samantha) Everyone knows the beloved children’s character Curious George, but how many of us know about his creators? When Hans and Margaret Rey created the mischievous monkey, they were German Jews living in Paris. As the Nazis swept through Europe, the dynamic pair escaped with their precious manuscript on a homemade bicycle.

Early American Newspapers and Freedom of the Press

(Nathan) In the First Amendment to the US Constitution, tucked between the freedom of speech and right of assembly, is a protection of the freedom of the press. But why did the Framers feel the need to include it? The answer lies in the early history of the newspaper, when broadsheet publications were small-time startup operations that were sometimes suppressed by the British government. In this week's episode, we'll look at the early history of print media in the United States, the role of libel and censorship, and the trial of a German immigrant printer that changed it all.

A Royal Son: Henry the Young King

(Christine) What is it like to be a king but still have to answer to your father? In the twelfth century, Henry the Young King lived in the shadow of one of Europe’s most powerful monarchs: Henry II of England. This episode delves into the life of a man who was crowned twice but never ruled the kingdom.

The Trotula and Medieval Gynecology

(Nathan) Imagine you were a medieval woman suffering from fertility problems or an irregular period. How would you deal with these issues, and what kinds of treatments might your physician prescribe? To what lengths would you be willing to go, what substances would you be willing to ingest or insert in order to solve menstrual cramps? In this week's episode, we'll talk about one of the most famous manuals of medieval gynecology and the ways women in the Middle Ages cared for their health.

Tuxedo Park: Inside the Gate

(Elizabeth) At the end of the 19th century, one of the earliest planned communities in the United States was created just over an hour north of New York City. Learn about the founding of Tuxedo Park, some of its more famous inhabitants, why the tuxedo is named after it, and the role it played in radar innovation during WWII.

The Woman and the 20-Pound Tumor

(Lesley) In the age before anesthesia, what would you do with a pregnancy that would not end? Would you accept a doctor's diagnosis of death or would you press to find any possible treatment? This episode follows the story of Jane Todd Crawford, who traveled 60 miles by horseback to end a two-year "pregnancy"... and rode herself into the history books.

54° 40' or Fight: How a Latitude Line became a Rallying Cry

(Elizabeth) How could a line of latitude become a rallying cry for war in the 19th century? Elizabeth examines the Oregon Border Dispute and explains the myths and passions surrounding the slogan.

Ghosts of Christmas Past

(Lucy) The Victorians gave the English-speaking world a lot of Christmas traditions: trees, the exchange of cards… and, less famously, ghost stories. This week’s episode looks at the historical origins of Victorian England’s Christmas hauntings, and how they expressed the beliefs and anxieties of the age, and even, sometimes, its sense of humor as well.

Olga Nethersole and the Sapho Scandal

(Christine) ​In early 1900, actress Olga Nethersole and several of her colleagues were indicted for their roles in the production of a play. Find out what caused them to be called "of wicked and depraved mind and disposition" when Christine covers the scandal that made New York City headlines.

Martha, the Last Passenger Pigeon

(Elizabeth) How did passenger pigeons, which numbered in the millions in the mid-19th century, become extinct in just over 50 years? Elizabeth explains the birds’ sudden decline as she discusses the life and death of Martha, the last passenger pigeon.

The Un-Engagement of Jane Austen

(Christine) Jane Austen’s novels contain many courtships and brides, but the author herself never married. In this episode, Christine will delve into the time in Jane’s life when she could have become a wife and introduce you to Harris Bigg-Wither, the man who sought her hand.