Stuff You Missed in History Class

Stuff You Missed in History Class

Join Holly and Tracy as they bring you the greatest and strangest Stuff You Missed In History Class in this podcast by iHeartRadio.

Episodes

A lot of sewing techniques being taught and used today came from the mind of one innovator: Helen Blanchard. She held 28 patents, most related to sewing, and she shaped the way the garment industry functioned.

Research:

  • “1854 – Walter Hunt’s Patent Model of a Sewing Machine.” Smithsonian. National Museum of American History. https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object/nmah_1070410
  • “1873 - He...
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December 28, 2024 32 mins

This 2019 episode covers F.W. Murnau, most well known for directing the first vampire film. But the German-born creator went on to make a number of influential films before his early death.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Tracy and Holly discuss the seasonal nature of pumpkin spice, and medicinal uses of nutmeg. They then talk about artificial versus real Christmas trees.

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December 25, 2024 37 mins

This episode looks at the early days of Christmas trees, the origin of glass ornaments, and the practice of mounting lit candles on trees before electric bulbs were invented. 

Research:

·     “36 Perish as Party Guests Stampede to Flee Flames.” The Minneapolis Star. Dec 25, 1924. https://www.newspapers.com/image/178762039/ 

·     “Accident From a Chri...

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December 23, 2024 39 mins

Nutmeg is native to the Banda Islands in Indonesia. Once Europeans discovered nutmeg, they had an enormous - often violent - impact on the islands it was growing on.

Research:

  • Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "nutmeg". Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Oct. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/topic/nutmeg. Accessed 22 November 2024.
  • Esarey, Logan. “The Literary Spirit Among the Early Ohio Valley Settlers.” The Miss...
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December 21, 2024 46 mins

This 2020 episode covers the iconic figure of mysticism, Madame Blavatsky. She was the founder of the theosophical movement, and lived a life of adventure that's hard to believe.

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Holly talks about the many, many organizations that Joaquín Torres-García formed. Tracy discusses how there was no plan in place before the SL-1 accident to deal with radioactive bodies.

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December 18, 2024 43 mins

The Stationary Low-Power Plant Number 1 was a small boiling-water reactor built at the National Reactor Testing Station, west of Idaho Falls, Idaho. On January 3, 1961, during a restart of the reactor, a catastrophic tragedy unfolded when the reactor went supercritical. 

Research:

  • Divison of Technical Information Extension, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. “SL-1 The Accident, Phases I and II.” https://www.osti.g...
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December 16, 2024 33 mins

Joaquín Torres-García was Uruguayan-born artist who wanted to bring Constructivism and Modernism to Latin America, and worked for much of his life promoting the idea that Latin-American voices should be part of the Modernist art movement. 

Research:

·     Bollar, Gorki. “Primitive Paintings: Connections to Realism and Constructivism.” Leonardo, vol. 17, no. 1, 1984, pp....

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December 14, 2024 34 mins

This 2020 episode covers the sphere of plutonium-gallium alloy that the U.S. made for use in an atomic bomb during World War II known as the Demon Core was  It was the source of two fatal criticality accidents. 

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December 13, 2024 6 mins

Tracy relays how Sarah Winnemucca's story inspired this week's episodes, though they were recorded about a month apart, and also how Ely S. Parker is one of the most complicated figures she has ever written about. 

 

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December 11, 2024 43 mins

While working for the Treasury Department, Ely S. Parker met someone who would become a big part of much of the rest of his life – Ulysses S. Grant. It was through this connection that Parker gained a good deal of power, and cemented a controversial legacy.

Research:

·       Adams, James Ring. “The Many Careers of Ely Parker.” National Museum of the American Indian. Fall 2011.

...

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Ely S. Parker was instrumental in the creation of President President Ulysses S. Grant’s “peace policy." Parker was Seneca, and he was the first Indigenous person to be placed in a cabinet-level position in the U.S. and the first Indigenous person to serve as Commissioner of Indian Affairs.

Research:

·       Adams, James Ring. “The Many Careers of Ely Parker.” National Mu...

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December 7, 2024 37 mins

This 2020 episode covers scurvy, a deficiency in vitamin C. Its story goes way back in history – all the way to our evolutionary ancestors living more than 60 million years ago. 

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December 6, 2024 17 mins

Tracy talks about getting listener requests, and wonders about the details of one the stories from Monday's show. Tracy and Holly talk about the size of Lynn, Massachusetts, and Holly waxes rhapsodic about shoes. 

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December 4, 2024 33 mins

The shoes you’re wearing today likely were made possible by an invention from the late 19th century. But the inventor of that machine, who had little to no formal education, didn’t really get to enjoy the fruits of his labor.

Research:

·     “29c Jan E. Matzeliger single.” Smithsonian National Postal Museum. https://postalmuseum.si.edu/object/npm_1993.2015.160

·     Biography.com Editors. “Jan Matzeliger Biography.” Biography.com. ...

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This episode includes six stories requested by listeners that wouldn't quite work as standalone episodes. The topics include: Nellie Cashman, Ela of Salisbury, Charles "Teenie" Harris, Jane Gaugain, Edward A. Carter Jr., and Alice Ball.

Research:

·       National Parks Service. “Nellie Cashman.” https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/nellie-cashman.htm Arizona Women’s Hall of Fame. “Nellie Cashman.” https://www.azwhf.org/copy-of-pauline-...

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November 30, 2024 25 mins

This 2016 episode covers the introduction of Hansen's disease to Hawaii, when businessmen, especially from the U.S., were having an increasing influence on the Hawaiian government. 

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Tracy talks about the SYMHC calendar, and the controversial nature of Sarah Winnemucca's life story. She also discusses the different ways people have labeled Sara's autobiography. 

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November 27, 2024 42 mins

As an adult, Sarah Winnemucca spent a lot of time trying to advocate for the Northern Paiute, although her legacy in that regard has some complexities.

Research:

·       Carpenter, Cari M. “Sarah Winnemucca Goes to Washington: Rhetoric and Resistance in the Capital City.” American Indian Quarterly , Vol. 40, No. 2 (Spring 2016). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5250/amerindiquar.40.2.0087

·       Dolan, Kathryn Cornell. “...

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Tracy V. Wilson

Tracy V. Wilson

Holly Frey

Holly Frey

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