Random History

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In today’s episode, you will hear the of a legend of a curse that dates back to 1811, although its first victim did not pass until 1841. It is the curse of the Zero Presidencies, and some say it is responsible for the deaths of seven president. In today’s True Hero segment, I will be speaking of another of my childhood heroes, and the first I have a memory of the event for which he is remembered—w...

Not long ago, a friend of mine suggested I write about the great aunt of one of our mutual friends… he said that she was “one of the pivotal code breakers of World War II [and] from our area.” Once I got her name, I began to research her—This episode will give you a glimpse of her life. Today’s True Hero segment continues with the “hometown” theme to the episode. I had often heard this man’s name...

Your Nvg8r takes you through the history of the USS Pueblo and Gus Grissom. All show links can be found here: https://randhist.bio.link

In a previous episode I mentioned that the wife of Colonel Jesse Atwood was a distant relative of John Chapman, better known to people as Johnny Appleseed. He was, by all accounts, a rather eccentric frontiersman that traveled throughout Ohio and Indiana (often depicted with a cooking pot for a hat) planting apple trees along the way. In our True Hero segment, we will hear about one of my generati...

Every year that I taught World History, I would spend some time talking about the origins of various things;  songs, sayings (or idioms), names of places, and surnames. The look on students’ faces when they realize that a song and game they played as little kids, talks about dying from the plague, is entertaining. I just discussed this with my AP World History class last week and decided to devote...

This episode is a gift for my wife and her family. My wife has done extensive genealogical research on our families. Her family goes back to the Mayflower, while mine are more recent immigrants coming over in the 1880s. Both our families have had many members through the generations serve in the military. In fact, her family fought in every war this country has been in—from the Revolutionary war t...

It was pointed out to me that I tend to do a lot of stories on aviators. That is true, and today is no exception. I myself was an aviator in my younger days, and to be honest, since about 3rd grade, that is all I wanted to do. I looked up to these men and women. I read every book I could find on the Wright Brothers, Chuck Yeager, Charles Lindberg, Amelia Earhart, and Jimmy Doolittle. Even some tha...

In this episode, we will hear about an unusual man-made disaster that, like all man-made disasters, could have been avoided if common sense and decency had only prevailed. We have seen countless industrial accidents caused by corporations cutting corners or allowing greed to get in the way of human decency; the Ford Pinto fiasco, the Bhopal explosion, or the Triangle Shirtwaist fire for example. T...

In this episode, we will hear about one of the most inspiring and daring escapes in history. The story of Robert Smalls is one that should have been made into a movie long ago. The man stole a Confederate gunboat and sailed it, full of runaway slaves, to freedom. He would later become one of the first African Americans to serve in Congress. In our True Heroes segment, I will introduce you to Danie...

In this episode, we will discuss a World War II battle which took place in the final days of the war. It found units of the US Army teaming up with members of the German Wehrmarcht, Austrian Resistance, and a handful of French prisoners of war, to defeat a Nazi SS unit. In our True Heroes segment, I will introduce you to Mary Walker, the only female recipient of the Medal of Honor. Her’s is a stor...

In this episode, I am going to tell you the story of Bob Pardo. His is undoubtedly a name your history teacher did not bring up, but after hearing this story, you may be surprised how far servicemen and women will go to save a comrade in arms. You can find the episode transcripts by visiting the random history subreddit r/RandomHistory (This episode was remastered on 09.27.24)

In this episode The Navigator talks about the Submarine that sank a train and her commander, and Admiral Jeremiah Denton. You can find the episode transcripts by visiting the random history subreddit r/RandomHistory (This episode's audio was remastered on 09.27.24)

Welcome to Random History! A show telling you about some pretty cool people an events your teachers may not have had time to tell you about.