The Age of Jackson | Washington Burns | 1
In August 1814, the White House burned. A fire that would eventually consume the entire nation in Civil War was already burning. This is Antebellum America.This is the adolescence of...
Recent Episodes
Prohibition | Interview with Lillian Cunningham | 8
Do you know the record for the longest ratification period of any constitutional amendment? Lillian Cunningham did. She’s an editor with the Washington Post, host of two outstanding American History...
Prohibition – We Want Beer | 7
The people had spoken: They wanted beer, and they wanted it now, but not just for drinking. Protestors wanted the jobs that came with breweries, and the country was desperate...
Prohibition – Down and Out | 6
Closing Time by Daniel Francis provides a good account of the border wars and smuggling across the northern border. Robert Rockaway’s article “The Notorious Purple Gang” details the gang’s origin...
Prohibition – Poisoning the Well | 5
The rise of the speakeasy was one of many unintended consequences of Prohibition - and others were much deadlier.Not coincidentally, at the same time Prohibition was taking effect, the Klu...
Bonus | Prohibition Recap | 4
It's another bonus episode of American History Tellers! Missed episodes 1-3? You can catch up here. If you already listened to those episodes, you may hear something new...
Prohibition – Speakeasy | 3
While Prohibition was successful in closing the saloon, it didn’t quench America’s thirst. Enterprising bootleggers found more ways to provide more alcohol to parched Americans – so much that there...
Prohibition – Drying Out | 2
When a German U-boat torpedoed the RMS Lusitania on Friday, May 7th, 1915, Americans found two new enemies: Germany and the beer it was so associated with. Anti-German sentiment grew,...
Prohibition – Closing Time | 1
On January 17, 1920, the United States passed the 18th Amendment to the US Constitution, ushering in a 13-year dry spell known as Prohibition. But how did a country that...
The Cold War – Interview with Audra Wolfe and Patrick Wyman | 8
We’re closing out our series on the Cold War with two interviews with fascinating historians. First, we’re talking with Audra Wolfe, the author of Competing with the Soviets: Science, Technology,...