Join Don Wildman twice a week for your hit of American history, as he explores the past to help us understand the United States of today. We’ll hear how codebreakers uncovered secret Japanese plans for the Battle of Midway, visit Chief Powhatan as he prepares for war with the British, see Walt Disney accuse his former colleagues of being communists, and uncover the dark history that lies beneath Central Park. From pre-colonial America to independence, slavery to civil rights, the gold rush to the space race, join Don as he speaks to leading experts to delve into America’s past. Ne...
Latest episodes
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54 min
Salem Witch Trials
It all started with two young girls and three accused women. It ended with more than 200 accused, 20 executed and the name Salem forever connected with another word: witch.Don is j…
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1 h 11
Takeover of Alcatraz Island
In November 1969 a group of Native American activists, protesting against centuries of forced relocation, broken treaties and the erosion of tribal sovereignty, launched a daring o…
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45 min
The Truth About Alexander Hamilton
We're rerunning a classic episodes today from a mini-series we did all about Alexander Hamilton. Who really was he, and what do we actually know about his life?A Founding Father, h…
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33 min
The Boston Courthouse Bombing
On April 22, 1976 a bomb went off at Suffolk County Courthouse in Boston. 22 people were injured in the blast, but no one was ever tried for the crime.Kevin Galvin joins Don today…
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55 min
Life Down a California Goldmine
In 1848, James Marshall's discovery of gold in California's American River kicked off one of the biggest Gold Rushes in U.S. history. But what was life really like in California's…
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43 min
Fur Trapping, Empire & the Hudson’s Bay Company
Did you know that almost 40% of the land that is now Canada was once owned by a single commercial company?The Hudson's Bay Company surrendered this area for the sum of £300,000 in…
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44 min
Winter at Valley Forge: Washington's Darkest Hour?
After suffering defeat after defeat, George Washington’s battered army was forced to retreat into the forests of rural Pennsylvania, where they set up camp to wait out the winter.…
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40 min
Nazi Scientists in America: Operation Paperclip
Why would the United States have welcomed Nazis after the Second World War? Through Operation Paperclip, more than 1,500 German and Austrian scientists and engineers moved to Ameri…
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48 min
Early Humans of Ice Age America
When did the first humans arrive in America? Archaeologists have long pushed the theory that human habitation in the Americas dates back only to about 10,000 years. But now there's…
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56 min
LBJ & the Vietnam War
How did a President who was so reluctant to ramp up America's presence in Vietnam become the one who increased it more than any other? When Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as Presid…
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50 min
The Mormon Founding of Salt Lake City
What drew the Latter Day Saints to Utah? Was anyone living there before the arrival of Brigham Young? And how did the city develop?Max Perry Mueller joins Don today to discuss Salt…
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41 min
Jefferson & the Revolutionary War
Thomas Jefferson has had no issue being remembered in American History. Ask anyone, this man was fundamental to Independence. But did he fight in the Revolutionary war itself?Don i…
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54 min
What Really Happened At Waco?
76 people died on 19th April 1993 when the compound of a religious sect, the Branch Davidians, went up in flames. It had been under siege by government agencies for 51 days, but no…
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56 min
Sherman's March: Invading the South
General William Tecumseh Sherman's famous invasion of the Confederacy in 1864 has become American legend... but what did Union troops do along their route and how consequential was…
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32 min
America's Worst President
What makes a bad President? Who was the worst of all time? In this episode from the archive, Don is joined by Professor Jeremi Suri, author of The Impossible Presidency and co-host…
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41 min
The People's Founding Father
Signatory of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, James Wilson was a sitting Supreme Court justice when he died. So why is he missing from popular history?Fro…
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43 min
The Truth About the Louisiana Purchase
We're all taught in school about the Louisiana Purchase, supposedly the greatest bargain in American history. Napoleon's deal with the Americans is widely remembered as a triumph f…
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41 min
Did Lee's Surrender End the Civil War?
When and where did the Civil War end? Was it really over when Lee surrendered at Appomattox?Don is joined for this episode by Caroline E. Janney, Professor at the University of Vir…
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49 min
Why Did Reconstruction Fail?
Over the course of this series, we've discussed the extraordinary promise of Reconstruction, as well as the relentless attacks these efforts came under. In this final episode, we'r…
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46 min
The Fire That Changed New York
On March 5 1911, 146 people died in a fire that lasted just 18 minutes. This event was to change the history of New York, and has an ongoing impact in each of our workplaces.Don is…