History Dispatches

Robert Johnson died in 1938 at the age of 27. He only recorded 29 songs in his lifetime. Yet he is widely recognized as the King of the Delta Blues. His singing, guitar playing and songwriting have influenced musicians to this day. Yet the man’s life was filled with mystery. Was he murdered by a jealous husband? And what about that pact that he supposedly made with the devil? This is the story of blues legend Robert Johnson. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Johnson https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/devils-music-myth-robert-johnson/ https://magnoliatribune.com/2023/07/13/robert-johnson-the-man-myth-legend-and-legacy/ History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The root of most conflict is misunderstanding and miscommunication. But what if there was a universal language that everyone could speak? Would such a language help avoid communication problems. To a dress this, in 1887, Ludovic Zamenhof created a brand new language: Esperanto. This was a constructed language to try and facilitate communication across ethnic and geographic lines. Today it is spoken by tens of thousands of people. This is the history of Esperanto. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esperanto https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC61387/ https://zamenhof.info/en/biografio Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esperanto_bandera.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We like things that go boom. Cannons, fireworks, dynamite - you name it. Explosive blasts - big and small - have an 'aha' factor that’s hard to deny. The source of all those booms goes back nearly 2,000 years to the alchemists of ancient China. This is the story of gunpowder. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowderhttps://www.britannica.com/technology/gunpowder History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1961, the Soviet backed East German government grew tired of its citizens fleeing into West Berlin. And thus, the East Germans began construction of a fortified wall that would completely surround West Berlin from the world. This wall would become the most notable - and hated - symbol of the Soviet era. This is the story of the Berlin Wall. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://diplomacy.state.gov/berlin-wall/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Wall History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the worst ecological disasters in the 21st century was the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Thanks to greed, mismanagement, and poor practices, an explosion on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico caused the deaths of 11 people, and nearly 5 million barrels of oil spilled into the ocean, costing billions of dollars in damage and untold harm to the environment. This is the story of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-case-study https://ocean.si.edu/conservation/pollution/gulf-oil-spill https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_Deepwater_Horizon_oil_spill Image: by DVIDSHUB: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flickr_-_DVIDSHUB_-_Oil_Spill.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 1890s in South Australia, a murdering bushranger terrorized the area of Coorong. However, this was not a large scary outlaw on horseback - but instead, a small man wearing gold jewelry and riding an Ostrich. This is the story of John Francis Peggotty - the Birdman of Coorong. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://coorongcountry.com.au/coorong-bushranger/ https://aguidetoaustralianbushranging.wordpress.com/2018/02/21/john-francis-peggotty-the-birdman-of-coorong/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Francis_Peggotty History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One year ago today we dropped the first 10 episodes of History Dispatches. And except for a single week, we have released one episode every single weekday. And while we try our best, we are far from perfect. This is a catalog of every mistake - that we know of - from the past year. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On August 1, 1966, Marine veteran Charles Whitman murdered his mother and his wife, then went to the 28th floor observation deck of the University of Texas Austin's main building. When he was done,17 people were dead and 31 injured - making it one of the nation's worst shootings of all time. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-tower-shooting-1966 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Whitman Images: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charles_Whitman_(1963).jpg https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charles_Whitman%27s_arsenal.jpg" History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The nation with the most pyramids is not Egypt but its neighbor to the south, Sudan, with over 250. However, these were not built by the ancient Egyptians, but by the Kingdom of Kush, from 800 BC to the 4th century AD went on a pyramid building boom. And the crown jewel of these sites is the Pyramids of Meroë - a cemetery with 147 pyramids and the final resting place to dozens of Kushite kings. This is the story of the Pyramids of Meroë. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://artsexperiments.withgoogle.com/meroe/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramids_of_Meroë https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1336/ Image: by Chubbyrump - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Pyramids_of_Meroe.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Feb. 1, 1960, in Greensboro, NC, four young black students went into a Woolworth’s department store, sat at the lunch counter and ordered food. They were denied service. But instead of going home and not returning - the men came back the next day. And the next. And the next - until thousands of people were staging sit-ins all over the south in protest of segregated seating at restaurants. This is the story of the Greensboro sit-ins. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/greensboro-sit-in/ https://www.history.com/articles/the-greensboro-sit-in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greensboro_sit-ins Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Greensboro_Four.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the Halloween special of Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre on the Air, in 1938, they performed a radio adaptation of HG Wells’ landmark science fiction novel 'War of the Worlds.' The only problem is that it was so realistic, it caused panic amongst listeners, who thought a Martian invasion was imminent. At least, allegedly. This is the story of the 'War of the Worlds' broadcast. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9q7tN7MhQ4I https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Worlds_(1938_radio_drama) https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/infamous-war-worlds-radio-broadcast-was-magnificent-fluke-180955180/ Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Orson-Welles-Studio-1938.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On July 5, 1996, a Finn-Dorset sheep was born at the Roslin Institute in Scotland. The sheep’s name was Dolly - and she was the first mammal ever cloned from an adult somatic cell. This is the story of Dolly - the sheep that made history. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-scientists-kept-the-birth-of-dolly-the-worlds-first-cloned-mammal-a-secret-for-seven-months-180986009/ https://www.nms.ac.uk/discover-catalogue/the-story-of-dolly-the-sheep https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolly_(sheep) History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Being a democracy we often think of Athens as the good guys of ancient Greece. And in some ways they were - if such a label can be applied to a two and a half thousand year old civilization. But in other ways they were absolutely evil. Such as when they decided that their voluntary organization to help defend Greece now had mandatory membership, and defiance meant total destruction. This is the story of the Siege of Melos and the Melian Dialogue. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.thelatinlibrary.com/imperialism/readings/thucydides8.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Melos Image: By ZDE - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abandoned_sulfur_mines,_Milos,_153059.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the far north the Kennedy Channel - which is the border between Greenland and Canada - lies tiny Hans Island. The island was claimed by the two neighbors - but it was so inconsequential - no one really bothered with the specifics of who owned what. That was until 1984, when Canadian soldiers landed on the island - raised their flag - and - to help cement their claim - left a bottle of whisky. This is the story of the Whisky War. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/denmark-canadian-deal-hans-island-ends-49-year-old-feud-arctic-isle-rcna33644 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisky_War https://unric.org/en/the-whiskey-war-how-denmark-and-canada-used-diplomacy-to-solve-a-territorial-conflict/ History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the most internationally recognized symbols is the pride flag. While today it is synonymous with gay rights, it did not come from nowhere. It is the brainchild of the San Francisco based Gilbert Baker, whom many have declared the gay Betsy Ross. This is the story of Gilbert Baker, and the pride flag. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://gilbertbaker.com/history/ https://www.glbthistory.org/gilbert-baker Image: by Ludovic Bertron - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rainbow_flag_and_blue_skies.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the most beloved and tasty sweet treats all over the world is the Oreo cookie. More than 40 billion Oreos are consumed each year - making it the most popular cookie in the world. This is the story of the Oreo. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.seriouseats.com/history-of-oreos-bravetart-cookbook https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-the-oreo-cookie-1779206 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oreo History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of greatest authors in history is William Shakespeare. Renowned for numerous plays, poems, and more, he has produced some of the greatest contributions to the English literary canon. But that begs the question - did he write his plays? Yes he did. But that doesn’t mean the theory doesn’t have a fascinating history. This is the story of the Shakespeare authorship question. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.shakespeare.org.uk/explore-shakespeare/shakespedia/william-shakespeare/shakespeare-authorship-question/ https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/literature-and-writing/shakespeare-authorship-question https://shakespeareauthorship.com/ Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Title_page_William_Shakespeare%27s_First_Folio_1623.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 14th century - Mansa Musa - the ruler of the kingdom of Mali in West Africa - went on a Hadj to Mecca. To impress all that he met he had a retinue of as many as 60,000 - and brought with him 20 tons of gold. This has made many dub Mansa Musa the richest person in history. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://magazine.northwestern.edu/features/caravans-of-gold-fragments-in-time/a-golden-age-king-mansa-musas-reign https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mansa_Musa https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47379458 Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catalan_Atlas_BNF_Sheet_6_Mansa_Musa_(cropped).jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In October of 1923, a young Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party attempted to seize control of the German government. The attempt failed - but it would thrust Hitler onto the national political stage. This is the story of Adolf Hitler and the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_Hall_Putsch https://www.history.com/articles/hitler-failed-beer-hall-putsch https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/beer-hall-putsch-munich-putsch Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_119-1486,_Hitler-Putsch,_München,_Marienplatz.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Along the Nile river, deep in antiquity, there was a powerful kingdom. They built pyramids, constructed grand palaces, and crafted beautiful artwork. They conquered neighbors, and fought off invaders. And existed for over a thousand years. But I am not talking about the Egyptians. Just look a little farther to the south and you will see amazing people, often overlooked. This is the story of the Kingdom of Kush. Sponsor Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active. Sources https://www.britannica.com/place/Nubia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Kush Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nubian_pyramids.jpg History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices