The 1919 Torrent, Kentucky Nitro Explosion
In 1919, a nitroglycerin explosion near Torrent, Kentucky, killed four men and leveled a factory. Today we tell the story of that tragedy and the explosive history of oil well “torpedoes” in Appalachi...
6 Sep 202519min
Christopher Gist and the Opening of Appalachia
In 1750, surveyor Christopher Gist set out to explore the wilderness of what’s now Southwest Virginia, Eastern Kentucky, and West Virginia. Hired by the Ohio Company, Gist mapped the Appalachian front...
30 Aug 202512min
Bloody Vengeance in Appalachia: The Battle of Dug Hill/The Officer House Massacre
In March 1864, Union Colonel William B. Stokes and his cavalry were ambushed at Dug Hill, in Tennessee, leaving dozens of his men dead. Enraged, Stokes led a brutal raid on William and Cynthia Officer...
23 Aug 202517min
The Rhea County Spartans: The South's All-Female Cavalry Unit
In the final years of the Civil War, a group of young women in Rhea County, Tennessee, made American history as the only known all-female cavalry unit: the Rhea County Spartans. Born from loyalty to t...
16 Aug 202515min
The Kentucky Longhunter, Henry Skaggs
In this episode, we tell the story of Henry Skaggs, one of the legendary Kentucky longhunters of the 18th century and his remarkable journey from his early days in Maryland to his time as an explorer ...
9 Aug 202515min
Mountains, Moonshine and Mutiny: WW1 Desertion in North Carolina
In 1918, the mountains of North Carolina erupted in quiet rebellion. Dozens of young men dodged the World War I draft, hiding in the backcountry with help from friends and family. When a deadly shooto...
2 Aug 202514min
Michael Stoner, Legendary Longhunter of Appalachia
In this episode we tell the story of Michael Stoner, a German-born frontiersman, longhunter, and close companion of Daniel Boone. From his early days in Pennsylvania to brutal battles like Blue Licks ...
26 Jul 202526min
The Assassination of William Taulbee
On February 28, 1890, a long-simmering feud turned deadly in the halls of the U.S. Capitol. Former Kentucky Congressman William P. Taulbee was shot on the marble stairs by journalist Charles Kincaid a...
19 Jul 202512min
