Our American Stories

On this episode of Our American Stories, John Clay Wolfe had already built a successful career in the car business when his life began to come apart. His marriage collapsed, a motocross accident left him paralyzed, and then he discovered that millions of dollars had disappeared from his companies while he was unable to keep a close eye on the business.Wolfe, founder of GiveMeTheVin.com and host of The John Clay Wolfe Show, tells how he fought his way back by combining radio with an unusual idea: buying cars sight unseen directly from the public. What began as a workaround for a man who could no longer get to the auctions grew into one of the largest car-wholesale businesses in the world. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, when Jake Keiser left city life behind and moved to a farm outside Oxford, Mississippi, she was not quite prepared for what came next. One neighbor arrived on a tractor to explain the property lines. Another pulled up on a four-wheeler with a dog and a pie from Piggly Wiggly. Then a third insisted on taking her to dinner because leaving a new neighbor alone on her first night simply would not be neighborly.Keiser, author of Daffodil Hill: Uprooting My Life, Buying a Farm, and Learning to Bloom, shares the funny culture shock story of learning what country life is really all about. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Red Cloud was born fatherless on the Great Plains in 1821 and rose through courage, intelligence, and skill to become one of the most powerful Oglala leaders of the 19th century. As settlers, miners, and soldiers pushed farther west, he brought together warriors from different Sioux bands and allied tribes to resist the growing American presence in their territory.Authors Bob Drury and Tom Clavin, authors of the New York Times bestseller The Heart of Everything That Is, tell how Red Cloud waged a relentless guerrilla war against the U.S. Army, destroyed Captain William Fetterman’s command, and eventually forced the government to negotiate the Treaty of Fort Laramie in 1868. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, during the Great Depression, millions of Americans faced hunger, unemployment, and poverty. Families across the United States found inventive ways to survive when jobs disappeared and banks failed. In Iowa, one family turned to canning corn, repairing old shoes, and biking from farm to farm to kill sparrows, a job that paid just enough to get by.Our regular contributor Joy Neal Kidney shares a Depression-era story passed down through her family, offering a glimpse into what life was like in the 1930s. Be sure to check out Joy's great book Leora's Dexter Stories: The Scarcity Years of the Great Depression for more stories like this one. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Brownie Wise didn't invent Tupperware, but she turned it into an American institution. A single mother with little formal education, Wise discovered a talent for direct sales and eventually convinced inventor Earl Tupper to take his plastic containers out of department stores and sell them through parties held in American homes: Tupperware parties.Mary Lisa Gavenas tells how Wise rose to become Tupperware's vice president of sales, built a nationwide army of mostly female sellers, and transformed the Tupperware party into a cultural phenomenon of 1950s America. But after landing on the cover of Business Week and becoming increasingly identified with the company's success, Wise was abruptly fired in 1958 and largely erased from the history of the business she had helped build. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.