Six Impossible Episodes: More Listener Requests

This 2020 episode covers one of the transitional events between the Black Death and the Renaissance. Wat Tyler’s Rebellion was also known as the Uprising of 1381 or the Great Rising.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

14 Kesä 34min

Holly and Tracy talk about Tracy growing up in a mostly Protestant community with little exposure to Catholicism. They also talk about the Gorsuch family's ties to John Wilkes Booth. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

13 Kesä 21min

The Christiana Incident offers a snapshot of the U.S. when the country was sorting into states where slavery was upheld and states that had abolished it, and what racist tension looked like at border states in the mid-1850s. Research: “The Christiana Affair Again.” New York Times. Sept. 20, 1851. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1851/09/20/87821677.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0 “Christiana Resistance 1851.” Christiana Historical Society. https://www.christianahistoricalsociety.com/christiana-resistance “The Christiana Trials.” New York Times. Nov. 4, 1851. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1851/11/04/87823549.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0 The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Fugitive Slave Acts". Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Feb. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/event/Fugitive-Slave-Acts “Fatal Fugitive Slave Riot.” Boston Evening Transcript. Sept. 12, 1851. https://www.newspapers.com/image/734734274/ Forbes, David R. “A True Story of the Christiana Riot.” The Sun Printing House. Quarryville, PA. 1898. https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.32044018986661&view=1up&seq=7 “Fugitive Slave Act 1850.” Yale Law School. Lillian Goldman Law Library. https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/fugitive.asp “Fugitive Slave Riot in Lancaster Co., Pa.” New York Times. Sept. 18, 1851. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1851/09/18/109920970.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0 “Christiana Riot Trial.” Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia. 2015. https://philadelphiaencyclopedia.org/essays/christiana-riot-trial/#national-history-day Parker, William. “A Freedman’s Story. The Atlantic. 1866. https://www.christianahistoricalsociety.com/_files/ugd/f64fcb_e6cde1713eb34263af1f191b3f349e21.pdf “Who was William Parker?” Christiana Historical Society. https://www.christianahistoricalsociety.com/william-parker See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

11 Kesä 35min

Pope Leo XIII sought to find a way forward for the Catholic church at a time when the world was rapidly changing and the church was often at odds with those changes. Research: Aubert, Roger-François-Marie. "Leo XIII". Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 May. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Leo-XIII “ELECTION OF POPE LEO XIII.” New York Times. Feb. 21, 1878. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1878/02/21/issue.html Jedin, Hubert and John Patrick Dolan. “History of the Church: The Church in the Industrial age.” Burns & Oates. 1981. https://books.google.com/books?id=h5LYAAAAMAAJ&source=gbs_navlinks_s Masci, David. “A look at popes and their encyclicals.” Pew Research Center. June 9, 2015. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2015/06/09/a-look-at-popes-and-their-encyclicals/ Miller, James Martin. “The life of Pope Leo XIII : containing a full and authentic account of the illustrious pontiff's life and work.” G.H. Harr. Omaha, Nebraska. 1908. Accessed online: https://archive.org/details/lifeofleo1300milluoft/page/n5/mode/2up O’Reilly, Bernard. “Life of Leo XIII, from an authentic memoir furnished by his order.” Sampson Low, Marston & Co. London. 1903. https://archive.org/details/lifeofleoxiiifro0000orei/page/n9/mode/2up Pope Leo XIII. “AETERNI PATRIS.” 1879. https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_04081879_aeterni-patris.html Pope Leo XIII. “INSCRUTABILI DEI CONSILIO.” 1878. https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_21041878_inscrutabili-dei-consilio.html Pope Leo XIII. “RERUM NOVARUM.” https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_15051891_rerum-novarum.html Pope Leo XIII. “Testem Benevolentiae Nostrae.” 1899. https://www.papalencyclicals.net/leo13/l13teste.htm “Religious.” Chicago Tribune. February 24, 1878. https://www.newspapers.com/image/349728621/?match=1&terms=Pope%20Leo%20XIII “Vatican country profile.” BBC. Nov. 17, 2023. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17994868 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

9 Kesä 33min

This 2022 episode covers Griswold v. Connecticut, the U.S. supreme court decision that overturned laws banning contraception – at least, for married couples. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

7 Kesä 37min

Tracy talks about her experiences with the Blue Ridge Parkway growing up, including her mixed feelings about it. Holly talks about the theft of the Mona Lisa.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

6 Kesä 19min

The Blue Ridge Parkway is the longest roadway in the U.S. that was planned as a single unit. Its origin is connected to government efforts to provide relief from the Great Depression, and conservation of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Research: "Restoring Western North Carolina's Infrastructure: NCDOT Receives $250 Million in Federal Emergency Relief Funds." National Law Review, 21 Feb. 2025. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A828346450/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=b22cedc8. Accessed 12 May 2025. "The Blue Ridge Parkway." NCpedia. Accessed on May 14th, 2025. https://www.ncpedia.org/anchor/blue-ridge-parkway. “Report In Full of Secretary Work’s Appalachian National Park Committee. “National Parks and Conservation Magazine.” 1924-11-25: Iss 42. https://archive.org/details/sim_national-parks_1924-11-25_42/page/n5/ Averill, Graham. “The Blue Ridge Parkway: A Monumental Drive.” Our State. 9/27/2021. https://www.ourstate.com/the-blue-ridge-parkway-a-monumental-drive/ Buxton, Barry. “Blue Ridge Parkway: Agent of Transition.” Proceedings of the Blue Ridge Parkway Golden Anniversary Conference. Appalachian Consortium Press/Boone, North Carolina. 1986. Coutant, Linda. “Helene Recovery, 7 Months After the Storm.” National Parks Conservation Association. 4/26/2025. https://www.npca.org/articles/8198-helene-recovery-7-months-after-the-storm Coutant, Linda. “Helene: Facing Loss and the Blue Ridge Parkway’s ‘Most Tremendous Challenge’.” National Parks Conservation Association. https://www.npca.org/articles/5459-helene-facing-loss-and-the-blue-ridge-parkway-s-most-tremendous-challenge “Driving Through Time: The Digital Blue Ridge Parkway.” https://docsouth.unc.edu/blueridgeparkway/ Jolley, Harley E., “Blue Ridge Parkway: The First 50 Years,” Appalachian State University Libraries Digital Collections, accessed May 14, 2025, https://omeka.library.appstate.edu/items/show/43667. Landis, Mark. “This 5,600-mile highway route was created to see 12 national parks in the West.” The Sun. 6/13/2022. https://www.sbsun.com/2022/06/13/this-5600-mile-highway-route-was-created-to-see-12-national-parks-in-the-west/ Mitchell, Anne V. “Culture, History, and Development on the Qualla Boundary: The Eastern Cherokees and the Blue Ridge Parkway, 1935-40.” Appalachian Journal , WINTER 1997, Vol. 24, No. 2. Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40933835 National Park Service. “Blue Ridge Parkway: Virginia and North Carolina.” From Highways in Harmony online books exhibit. https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/hih/blue_ridge/index.htm Roberts, Brett G. “Returning the Land: Native Americans and National Parks.” Ave Maria Law Review 148 (Spring, 2023). https://www.avemarialaw.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/v21.Roberts.final38.pdf Speer, Jean Haskell. “’Hillbilly Sold Here’: Appalachian Folk Culture and Parkway Tourism.” From Parkways: Past, Present and Future. International Linear Parks Conference. Appalachian State University. (1987). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1xp3kv8.33 S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration. “America's Highways 1776-1976.” U.S. Government Printing Office. https://archive.org/details/AmericasHighways1776-1976 Whisnant, Anne Mitchel. “Routing the Parkway, 1934.” Driving Through Time. DocSouth. https://docsouth.unc.edu/blueridgeparkway/overlooks/competing_routes/#footnote9 Whisnant, Anne Mitchell. “A Capsule History of the Blue Ridge Parkway.” Appalachian Voice. 10/11/2017. https://appvoices.org/2017/10/11/a-capsule-history-of-the-blue-ridge-parkway/ Whisnant, Anne Mitchell. “Super-Scenic Motorway: A Blue Ridge Parkway History.” University of North Carolina Press. 2006. Zeller, Thomas. “Consuming Landscapes: What We See When We Drive and Why It Matters.” Johns Hopkins University Press. 2022. https://dx.doi.org/10.1353/book.103002 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

4 Kesä 44min

Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park is a scenic road tied to the “See America First” movement of the early 20th century. The acquisition of land for the project was difficult, and displaced many families from their homes. Research: Harrison, Sarah Georgia. “The Skyline Drive: A Western Park Road in the East.” From Parkways: Past, Present and Future. International Linear Parks Conference. Appalachian State University. (1987). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1xp3kv8.13 Jolley, Harley E., “Blue Ridge Parkway: The First 50 Years,” Appalachian State University Libraries Digital Collections, accessed May 14, 2025, https://omeka.library.appstate.edu/items/show/43667. Jones, Jenny. “Skyline Drive: Engineered with Nature In Mind.” Civil Engineering. April 2001. Kyle, Robert. “The Dark Side of Skyline Drive.” Washington Post. 10/17/1993. Miles, Kathryn. “Shenandoah National Park Is Confronting Its History.” Outside. 9/23/2019. https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/hiking-and-backpacking/shenandoah-national-park-segregation-history/ Nash, Carole. “Native American Communities of the Shenandoah Valley: Constructing a Complex History.” 2020. https://cpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/sites.lib.jmu.edu/dist/9/133/files/2019/04/Native-American-Communities-of-the-Shenandoah-Valley.pdf National Park Service. “Shenandoah National Park: Skyline Drive: Virginia.” From Highways in Harmony online books exhibit. https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/hih/shenandoah/index.htm Roberts, Brett G. “Returning the Land: Native Americans and National Parks.” Ave Maria Law Review 148 (Spring, 2023). https://www.avemarialaw.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/v21.Roberts.final38.pdf Roosevelt, Franklin Delano. “The Dedication of Shenandoah National Park.” https://drive.google.com/file/d/134q1Gkk6Af0zl6bb_wekgqs0k2Wt9VPT/view Simmons, Dennis E. “Conservation, Cooperation, and Controversy: The Establishment of Shenandoah National Park, 1924-1936.” The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography , Oct., 1981. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4248512 S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration. “America's Highways 1776-1976.” U.S. Government Printing Office. https://archive.org/details/AmericasHighways1776-1976 Zeller, Thomas. “Consuming Landscapes: What We See When We Drive and Why It Matters.” Johns Hopkins University Press. 2022. https://dx.doi.org/10.1353/book.103002 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2 Kesä 43min