Curious World History

Ep 16, Telephone Operators

Albert and Colleen explore the history of telephone switchboard operators. This is a job that no longer exists like it once did. The "Hello Girls" connected hundreds of calls each hour. There are some wild parts of the history, like... how WWI operators connecting calls near the front lines, that an undertaker invented the automated switchboard because he was convinced business opportunities were being stolen from him, and how a measles outbreak led to the phone number system. In this episode we hear snippets of two copyright free songs: "Hello! ma Baby" by Arthur Collins and "Over There" by Arthur Fields. Remember to visit our website for more episodes and our merch shop at curiousworldhistory.com.

Ep 15, The History of Ice Cream

Albert and Colleen dig into another tasty treat in this episode of Curious World History. Learn all about the 2500 year history of ice cream. From ancient Persian and Chinese history to presidents, ice cream has been enjoyed by many people around the world. If you want to see Thomas Jefferson’s handwritten recipe, visit this website: https://www.monticello.org/encyclopedia/ice-cream On our episode page, you can see ice cream photos from the Library of Congress from the 1920s, 40s, and 50s. https://www.curiousworldhistory.com/e/ep-15-the-history-of-ice-cream/

Ep 14, The National WWII Museum, Part 1

Albert and Colleen share their recent experience on a visit to the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana. In Part 1, they go into the history of the battles in the Pacific Theater, and how shrimp boats, M&Ms, Julia Child, and a secret in a soldier's journal all factor into the war. To learn about or visit the museum, go to https://www.nationalww2museum.org/. Thank you to our listeners -- who now represent 40 countries and 41 of the United States!

Ep 13, The Edmund Fitzgerald

Albert and Colleen share the story of the Edmund Fitzgerald, the largest ship on the Great Lakes until its sinking in a terrible storm in November of 1975. All 29 souls on board were lost. "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", a song written and performed by Gordon Lightfoot, made this deadly event even more famous. Unfortunately, for copyright reasons, we could not play the song on our podcast. You can listen to it here. We want to thank Mike Barry (Albert's grandfather) for his portrayal of the Captain's final transmission. We asked AI to generate an image of the ship battling the storm and are sharing it on our podcast website: curiousworldhistory.com

Ep 12, The Titanic

Did you know that there were only enough lifeboats for half of the people on the Titanic? Have you heard that some newspapers printed mistaken stories about all of the passengers surviving? Albert and Colleen learn a lot about the Titanic -- the boat, the captain, the collision with the iceberg and more. And, they do a segment on Myth vs Fact! Within this episode, you will hear snippets of songs that we found on the Library of Congress website. We also share parts of an amazing interview that Pony Horton did in 1982-3 with one of the Titanic survivors. Learn more and access links to the resources on our website: https://www.curiousworldhistory.com/

Ep 11, The Statue of Liberty

Have you ever wondered how the Statue of Liberty was built or what it symbolizes? Did you know that she is clad in 31 tons of copper? Or that there are broken chains at her feet? Join Albert and Colleen as they dig into the history of the Mother of Exiles, herself, along with the poem emblazoned on the statue. Here are several images to show you more about the statue -- all from the Library of Congress. Also from the LOC, we feature the song, "For Your Country and My Country" by Irving Berlin. We have now had listeners in 21 countries and 35 states, plus Washington DC! If you have an idea for an episode or just want to contact us, you can do so by emailing us at ideas@curiousworldhistory.com. Don't forget our merch shop on our website, too! We now have cold weather gear.

Ep 10, The Dixon Bridge Collapse

In this episode, Albert and Colleen talk about the terrifying Dixon Bridge collapse over the Rock River in Dixon, Illinois. This deadly disaster took place in 1873 and wasn’t the only bridge by L. E. Truesdell that caused deaths. Below is one picture from Lee County Historical & Genealogical Society and the Loveland Community House (public domain) and the other from the Associated Press story linked beneath it. You can read more about it here. There is now a Curious World History merch store! Browse our shirts, bags, and water bottles.

Ep 9, Alfred Nobel

Join Albert and Colleen as they discuss the curious life of Alfred Nobel. You might know his name from the Nobel Peace Prize. But, peace is not what he was known for during his lifetime.

Ep 8, D-Day

In this episode, Albert and Colleen look at the harrowing invasion of the beaches of Normandy, France on what is called D-Day. They even hear from war hero, Charles Norman Shay, a medic who saved many soldiers. You can hear more from Mr. Shay on the Library of Congress website, where we found his interviews. There is now a Curious World History merch store! Browse our shirts, bags, and water bottles.

Ep 7, How We Do It

This is our first mini episode. In episode 7, Albert and Colleen talk a little about how the podcast started and how they record and distribute it. If you are interested in making a podcast, here are the tools we use: RODE mini wireless mics from Sweetwater Riverside.fm recording and editing software Podbean.com distribution software and website Printful is our merch shop Chat GPT for part of the research And if you are curious about the amazing recordings in the Library of Congress, you can peruse it here. And, if you decide to, we hope you may start your own podcast! Find out more on curiousworldhistory.com.

Ep 6, Harriet Tubman

In this episode, Albert and Colleen learn a lot of surprising facts about American hero and abolitionist, Harriet Tubman. Born Araminta Ross in 1822 in rural Maryland, Tubman would go on to become one of the bravest Americans ever. This episode features the song, "Go Down Moses" by the Tuskegee Institute Singers, recorded in 1914: Inclusion of the recording in the National Jukebox, courtesy of Sony Music Entertainment or EMI Music. View more here. Photo credit for the image we use in our social post: Lindsley, Harvey B, photographer. Portrait of Harriet Tubman. New York, None. [Auburn, n.y.: harvey lindsley, taken between 1871 and 1876?, printed between 1895 and 1910] Photograph. View more here.

Ep 5, The History of Chocolate

Albert and Colleen explore the 5,000 year history of chocolate -- from the cacao trees of ancient Mesoamerican civilizations to the magic of Dubai chocolate. Thank you to Taza Chocolate for a fun tour and to A Chocolate Dream for the Dubai chocolate!

Ep 4, The Milkman

This week Albert and Colleen explore the history of the milkman. This is a job that was very prevalent around the world until the mid-to-late 20th century. This episode is the first in a series that we will come back to from time to time, where we talk about jobs that no longer exist like they once did. Below are some links to the media and providers we discussed: Cloverland Dairy ad 1965: https://youtu.be/JFHyeY18A1A?si=mvKxj4z01TeEEKjw Milkman documentary: https://youtu.be/a11YbyI3zy4?si=h2UM5aran8EYHl87 The Merry Milkman board game: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/board-game-merry-milkman-exciting-game-and-toy-hassenfeld-bros-inc/0wEIM5MYKHxpeQ?hl=en Sweetwater is where we got our new mics: https://www.sweetwater.com/

Ep 3, The Hindenburg

Albert and Colleen explore a brief history of the Hindenburg, the terrible crash, and how it changed the world. You can watch original newsreel footage and Herb Morrison's emotional broadcast, which were combined here by the National Archives: https://archive.org/details/SF145

Ep 2, The Battle of Gettysburg

Albert and Colleen explore the bloodiest battle of the American Civil War and learn about President Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.

Ep 1, The Molasses Flood

Albert and Colleen explore one of Boston's tragedies, The Molasses Flood of 1919.

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