The Atlas Obscura Podcast

About 100 years ago, the Great Lakes were inundated with an unwelcome visitor – the leech-like, blood-sucking, creepy-looking sea lamprey. For decades, a small governmental organization has kept the lampreys (aka Vampire Fish) in check. But now, thanks to federal budget cuts, it's not clear who will win: the Great Lakes or the sea lamprey. Read Katie Thornton’s full story in the New Yorker: https:...

Artist and architect Danny Shaddick and the rapper Shad have known each other since high school, and they both wound up in Toronto making art together. Now, they’ve made an unusual musical robot that incorporates drums, found objects, and field recordings from around their shared city.  Watch a short documentary about Danny and Shad, and listen to their original song in full: https://www.atlasobsc...

We go to Tokyo, to a particular place that is both nemesis and best friend to all those procrastinators out there. (Yes, we’re looking at you :)  LEARN MORE: The Manuscript Writing Cafe is open Saturdays and Sundays and you can reserve your seat online.  https://koenji-sankakuchitai.blog.jp/ManuscriptWritingCafe/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about o...

This San Francisco museum, curated by a super-fan of the Beats, is a shrine to an incredibly influential cultural movement and a destination for folks keeping it alive today. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Journalist Eliot Stein explores the tradition of the djeli – African storytellers who memorize and pass down oral histories – tracing it all the way back to the Mali Empire. Along the way, he tracked down a modern djeli, who is upholding and remixing the tradition. And he found him in an unexpected place: working in a convenience store.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.c...

A while ago, we asked you to send us stories about your collections – and we got so many great responses, that we decided to make another episode about it.      Plus, we want to hear stories about the fictional places you wish were real. Tell us why this place lives in your imagination. What resonates with you about this place? And how did you discover it? Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave...

On the heels of the World Series, Kelly and Amanda discuss an unusual tradition in baseball: the fact that, before each game, every single ball is rubbed with mud sourced from a secret location in the Delaware River Basin. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Sigmund Freud’s famous psychoanalytic couch is preserved in his final office in London, England. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/freud-museum-london Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Finnish Museum of Natural History in Helsinki has been home to an infestation of Chilean recluse spiders for more than 50 years. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

There’s a mansion in New Orleans with a truly horrific past. Author Colin Dickey, who has joined us every Thursday this month, reveals the real life horrors that took place here, its once sadistic owner and its haunted reputation. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

When the city of Buffalo, New York invited landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted to town in the late 1860s, they were hoping he’d replicate the success of his most famous design: New York City’s Central Park. But Olmsted had other ideas. Instead of creating one centralized park, he argued, why not make Buffalo a city within a system of interconnected parks? It was a plan that would change the...

From long flights to strenuous trips, listeners share stories about traveling with their kids for the first time.  Plus, we want to hear stories about the fictional places you wish were real. Tell us why this place lives in your imagination. What resonates with you about this place? And how did you discover it? Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave us a message telling us your name and story. O...

A city in Uzbekistan used to be the site of one of the world’s largest seas. Now it’s a dusty reminder of one of the largest and most forgotten environmental disasters. READ MORE: Visit the Stihia website here  to learn more about the music festival that happens in Moynaq, including where it may be this year. And this news article  is a good primer on some of the current conflicts and issues in th...

We go to the former estate of the Davies sisters, two unusually wealthy Welsh women who traveled the world, fell in love with art, served their country, and then dedicated their home to culture and community. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/gregynog-hall Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of persona...

There’s a special tree in Portland that’s full of a city’s hopes, dreams, and wishes. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/portland-wishing-tree Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The West Virginia Penitentiary in Moundsville, West Virginia was once a home to thousands of prisoners. Today, it’s a tourist attraction. But its past continues to haunt the town of Moundsville to this day.  Every Thursday this month, writer Colin Dickey joins us to talk about the cultural history behind some of our favorite spooky legends and creatures. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. S...

Over the course of 50 years, a father and son team made exquisite glass botanical models that would transform our understanding of the natural world.  Learn more about the Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants: https://www.hmnh.harvard.edu/glass-flowers    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for ad...

Maybe you associate Las Vegas with slot machines more than with pinball machines. But what you might not know is that pinball, today found in every family friendly arcade in America, was once considered a form of gambling – and was the center of a culture war in the US. We go to the Las Vegas Pinball Hall of Fame to play through the history of the game. This episode was brought to you in partnersh...

This archaeological dig in Phonsovan, Laos is one of the most important and dangerous prehistoric sites in Southeast Asia.  READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/plain-of-jars Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Sets from the original 1960’s Star Trek have been recreated for fans and actors alike in Ticonderoga, New York. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/star-trek-original-series-set-tour Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Colin Dickey is no stranger to dubious ghost tales. But when he went to Nevada to report at a brothel called the Mustang Ranch, he experienced something that to this day he can’t explain. Every Thursday this month, writer Colin Dickey joins us to talk about the cultural history behind some of our favorite spooky legends and creatures. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com f...

In the months leading up to Labor Day, a dedicated team of craftspeople and volunteers gather in the Santa Fe Plaza Mall to build…a puppet. Not just an ordinary puppet, but a gigantic, 50-foot tall marionette with moving arms, eyes, and legs. It looks kind of like a big, somewhat-scary, somewhat-cuddly ghost. This ghost will get stuffed with shredded paper, and then around 50,000 people get togeth...

In 1915, a devastating fire destroyed the Chinatown in Walnut Grove, California. In its aftermath, a group of Chinese immigrant residents founded the town of Locke – not just another Chinatown, but a self-sustaining Chinese community nestled in the California Delta. Today, Locke stands as one of the last remaining rural Chinese towns in the United States. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company....

The Atlas Places Team bring two stories - one from the campus of Gallaudet University and the other from Cornell University to tell us about usual traditions that take place in these universities. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A basketball fan goes to the hall of fame – and no, it’s not the big one in Massachusetts that you may be thinking about. Hear the story behind a Midwest state’s special link to the sport. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/indiana-basketball-hall-of-fame-museum Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of pe...