Historic Voices: Global History and Culture

Columbus was an Italian-born navigator sailing for the Crown of Castile in search of a westward route to Asia, to access the sources of spices and other oriental goods. This led to the discovery of a New World between Europe and Asia. Columbus made a total of four voyages to the Americas between 1492 and 1502, setting the stage for the European exploration and colonization of the Americas, ultimat...

Christopher Columbus (c.1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italian explorer, navigator, and colonizer. Born in the Republic of Genoa, under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean. Those voyages and his efforts to establish settlements on the island of Hispaniola initiated the permanent European colonization of the New World.

In a change of pace with this first podcast episode of the second season, we feature an episode from old time radio, the CBS News Radio Series, You Are There . The docudrama is " Columbus Sailing to the Americas on October 12, 1492 ". Created by CBS Radio, it blended history with modern technology, taking an entire network newsroom on a time warp each week reporting the great events of the past. T...

The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 by Walter Bedell Smith and Giuseppe Castellano, and made public on 8 September, between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies of World War II. It was signed at a conference of generals from both sides in an Allied military camp at Cassibile in Sicily, which had recently been occupied by the Allies. The armistice was approved by b...

The participation of Italy in World War Two was characterized by a complex framework of ideology, politics, and diplomacy, while its military actions were often heavily influenced by external factors. 

In this podcast episode, we feature Walter Winchell and his news broadcast that included information about Italy surrendering during World War Two. The imperial ambitions of the Italian Fascist regime aspired to restore the Roman Empire in North Africa and the Mediterranean were partially met with the annexation of Albania, occupation of British Somaliland, and other territories, but ultimately co...

(Video from the U.S. National Archives) 8:36 minutes The newsreel provides a brief summary of the aggressions by Japan during World War Two, the involvement of the U.S. and other nations to oppose them, and Japan's final defeat. The war ended August 2, 1945 and then one month later on September 2, 1945 Japan signed the formal documents of their surrender and the close to World War Two.

George Catlett Marshall, Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American statesman and soldier. He was Chief of Staff of the United States Army under presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, and served as Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense under Truman. He was hailed as the "organizer of victory" by Winston Churchill for his leadership of the Allied victory in Worl...

The Marshall Plan (officially the European Recovery Program, ERP) was an American initiative to aid Western Europe, in which the United States gave over $13 billion (approximately $130 billion in current dollar value as of June 2016) in economic support to help rebuild Western European economies after the end of World War II. The plan was in operation for four years beginning on April 8, 1948. The...

George Catlett Marshall, Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American statesman and soldier. He was Chief of Staff of the United States Army under presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, and served as Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense under Truman. He was hailed as the "organizer of victory" by Winston Churchill for his leadership of the Allied victory in Worl...

Secretary of State George C. Marshall explains to the American people the need for the U.S. to help rebuild Western Europe after WWII.

Mr. Wiesel was a Jewish writer, professor, and Holocaust survivor of the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps. He spent his life sharing the story of the concentration camps so people would not forget the Holocaust and advocated for ending of genocides occurring today. Much more information is available in the accompanying PDF document with his life story. The speech you are about to hear...

In this podcast episode, we feature Elie Wiesel and his speech " The Perils of Indifference ". Mr. Wiesel was a Jewish writer, professor, and Holocaust survivor of the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps. He spent his life sharing the story of the concentration camps so people would not forget the Holocaust and advocated for ending of genocides occurring today. Much more information is av...

Born in a farmhouse in Stonewall, Texas, Johnson was a high school teacher and worked as a Congressional aide before winning election to the House of Representatives in 1937. He won election to the Senate in 1948, and was appointed the position of Senate Majority Whip in 1951. He became the Senate Minority Leader in 1953 and the Senate Majority Leader in 1955. As a leader in the Senate, Johnson be...

President Johnson designed the " Great Society " legislation by expanding civil rights, public broadcasting, Medicare, Medicaid, aid to education, the arts, urban and rural development, public services, and his " War on Poverty ". Assisted in part by a growing economy, the War on Poverty helped millions of Americans rise above the poverty line during his administration. Civil rights bills he signe...

This PDF is the transcript of President Lyndon Johnson's speech " The Great Society ". President Johnson designed the " Great Society " legislation by expanding civil rights, public broadcasting, Medicare, Medicaid, aid to education, the arts, urban and rural development, public services, and his " War on Poverty ". Assisted in part by a growing economy, the War on Poverty helped millions of Ameri...

In this podcast episode, we feature President Lyndon Johnson and his speech " The Great Society ".  President Johnson designed the " Great Society " legislation by expanding civil rights, public broadcasting, Medicare, Medicaid, aid to education, the arts, urban and rural development, public services, and his " War on Poverty ". Assisted in part by a growing economy, the War on Poverty helped mill...

Women have been involved in aviation from the beginnings of both lighter-than air travel and as airplanes, helicopters and space travel were developed. Women pilots were also called "aviatrices" (singular: "aviatrix"). Women have been flying powered aircraft since 1908, however most, prior to 1970, were restricted to working privately or in support roles in the  aviation industry. Aviation also al...

Amelia Mary Earhart, July 24, 1897 – disappeared July 2, 1937) was an American aviation pioneer and author. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She received the U.S. Distinguished Flying Cross for this accomplishment. She set many other records, wrote best-selling books about her flying experiences and was instrumental in the formation of The Ninety-Nines, a...

With this podcast episode, we complete a three-part series on aviation leaders. We will listen to Amelia Earhart as she talks about the future of women in aviation. In addition to this audio episode, I also provide two PDF documents: first, a short overview of her life, and finally, a history of women in aviation. This podcast is part of the LifePodcast Network which is a group of family-friendly...

Apollo 11 was the spaceflight that landed the first two humans on the Moon. Mission commander Neil Armstrong and pilot Buzz Aldrin, both American, landed the lunar module Eagle on July 20, 1969, at 20:18 UTC. Armstrong became the first to step onto the lunar surface six hours later on July 21 at 02:56:15 UTC; Aldrin joined him about 20 minutes later. They spent about two and a quarter hours togeth...

Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut, engineer, and the first person to walk on the Moon. He was also an aerospace engineer, naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor. Before becoming an astronaut, Armstrong was an officer in the U.S. Navy and served in the Korean War. After the war, he earned his bachelor's degree at Purdue University and ser...

With this podcast episode, we are in the middle of a three-part series on aviation leaders. We will listen to the conversation between NASA and Neil Armstrong in the lunar lander as he prepares to be the first human to walk on the surface of the moon. In addition to this audio episode, I also provide two PDF documents: first, a short overview of his life, and finally, the story of Apollo 11 missio...

The Mercury Seven were the group of seven Mercury  astronauts announced by NASA on April 9, 1959.  They are also referred to as the Original Seven or Astronaut Group 1 . They piloted the manned spaceflights of the Mercury program from May 1961 to May 1963. These seven original American astronauts were Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, John Glenn, Gus Grissom, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, and Deke Sl...

John Herschel Glenn Jr. (July 18, 1921 – December 8, 2016) was a United States Marine Corps aviator, engineer, astronaut, and United States Senator from Ohio. In 1962 he was the first American to orbit the Earth, circling it three times. Before joining NASA, Glenn was a distinguished fighter pilot in World War II and Korea with six Distinguished Flying Crosses and eighteen Air Medals. He was one o...