Stuff You Missed in History Class

Part two of the spring 2025 installment of Unearthed! features the potpourri category, plus drones/radar/lidar, books and letters, animals, edibles and potables, shipwrecks, swords (sort of) and cats. Research: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first part of our springtime edition of Unearthed! for 2025 features so many updates! There are also finds related to Egypt and artwork. Research: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This 2016 episode covers George Wallace, one of the most prominent voices against the Civil Rights Movement and its objectives. He spent multiple campaigns for both governor and president on an explicitly pro-segregation platform. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tracy shares how she went from concern that there wouldn't be enough research material for an episode to developing this week's topic into two. Both Tracy and Holly discuss their family connections to the war. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vandalism at draft board offices as U.S. involvement in Vietnam was escalating was deeply divisive. Opponents of the war were stereotyped as dirty hippies and sanctimonious white college kids, but the anti-Vietnam-war movement in the U.S. was really broad. Research: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The draft board raids were part of an antiwar movement, largely grounded in Catholic religious convictions, that spanned almost four years. Part one covers the basic context of the Vietnam War and why the U.S. was involved in the first place, and the earliest raids on draft boards. Research: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This 2017 episode covers Lucille Ball, the grande dame of American comedy. The famed star worked in modeling, radio and film, but she really made her mark in television, and her work set the standard for the TV sitcom. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tracy and Holly talk about Dorothy Arzner's reluctance to talk about her past projects. Holly questions some of the statistics about strawberry consumption. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The story of how strawberries went from small forage item to one of the world’s most popular fruits – though they're technically not a true fruit – involves lots of crossbreeding experimentation, as you might expect, but also a bit of spy craft. Research: Encyclopedia BritannicaEncyclopedia BritannicaNew World Objects of Knowledge: A Cabinet of CuriositiesJSTOREncyclopedia BritannicaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dorothy Arzner wasn’t the first female film director in the U.S., but she was really the only one working in the studio system during most of the period that’s known as the Hollywood Golden Age. Her short career was still incredibly prolific. Research: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This 2017 episode covers the early days of Hollywood, and its reputation for debauchery. When a high-profile director was murdered, it added to that image, and revealed that Taylor, like so many in Hollywood, had lots of secrets. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tracy talks about the difficulty of finding English-language writing about another strike she'd like to cover. Holly talks about why Kurt Vonnegut appeals so deeply to teenagers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Holly is joined by guest host Bryan Young for a live show at Indiana Comic Con, focused on the life and work of the author Kurt Vonnegut, known for his dark humor and dystopian visions of the future. Research: Encyclopedia BritannicaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The 1946 Oakland General Strike was part of a massive wave of strikes that took place in the U.S. in 1945 and 1946. Over two days in Oakland, California, and the surrounding area, thousands of strikers shut the city down. Research: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This late 2021 episode covers a strike in Flint, Michigan, which was at the heart of auto manufacturing for General Motors in 1936. And while the strike was largely centered around Flint, it also involved workers at GM factories all over the U.S. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Holly and Tracy discuss the creepy nature of the Children's Morality Code project. Tracy covers the varied conflicts that Mary Hunter Austin had with numerous people. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mary Hunter Austin was a U.S. writer known for walking throughout the American Southwest. But her life of activism was far more complicated than brief bios usually mention. Research: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 1916, the National Institution for Moral Instruction had a contest to see who could come up with the best morality code. For kids. Evolving views on childhood, child labor laws, patriotism, and eugenics influenced this effort. Research: The Clearing HouseJSTORReligious Education25The Journal of EducationJSTORSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This 2019 episode looks at Couney's incubator sideshows of premature babies. This is complicated; Couney made money from this, and his medical experience was questionable. But premature babies weren’t getting a lot of care otherwise. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tracy notes the wild array of incorrect information that circulates about Lillian Exum Clement. Then she and Holly talk about childhood reading habits. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.