EP 123: The War of 1812 (A Brief History)

This week on Hashtag History, we are discussing the Berlin Wall. This was a wall that was first erected in August of 1961 to essentially separate East and West Germany from one another. Following the Second World War, Germany - and Berlin itself - was split up into four allied occupation zones. The western portions were governed by the United States, Great Britain, and later France, while the eastern portion was governed by the Soviet Union. Between the years of 1949 and 1961, somewhere between 2.5 and 3.5 million Germans from the eastern side would flee to West Germany (for reasons we will get into later in this episode). In response to this mass exodus, East Germany would construct a wall through Berlin, closing off access to West Germany. What would begin as some cinder blocks and barbed wire would be converted over time into concrete walls that stood fifteen feet tall. These walls would be guarded 24/7 with soldiers in watchtowers ready to shoot at the first sign of escape. More than one hundred people (with the most widely accepted number closer to two hundred people) would be killed as they attempted to get to the other side of the wall. This wall quite literally separated families. It separated communities. It destroyed railroad lines that used to pass through the city. It destroyed daily activities. It meant that some people could no longer go to their jobs or go to their nearest grocery store; to go see movies or go to the park with friends. More than 5,000 East Germans - so desperate to make it to West Germany - did just that by climbing over the barbed wire, jumping out of windows that were close to the wall, going underneath the wall through the sewer system, even flying hot air balloons over the wall! This wall would stand for nearly thirty years before it was finally torn down in 1989. There was a huge celebration the day the wall fell with one Berlin resident spray-painting on the wall: “Only today is the war really over". Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

26 Juli 202254min

This week on Hashtag History, we are discussing Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to officially run the Boston Marathon. When she did this in 1967, let’s just say that men were not ready for women to have this much equality. Because during the race, the race manager Jock Semple assaulted her by running up behind her and attempting to rip her bib number off of her shirt in order to disqualify her from the race. Switzer’s boyfriend who was running alongside her was able to shove Semple to the ground and Switzer was able to finish the race. Following this incident, the Amateur Athletic Union (the governing body) would officially ban women from competing in long-distance running until 1972! Although we will be spending a lot of time talking about this infuriating setback in History, I do want to give a sneak peek to the ending so that we can all at least look forward to the eventual light at the end of the tunnel: Switzer would continue to run competitively and would even win the New York City Marathon in 1974, she would be named Female Runner of the Decade by Runner’s World Magazine, she became an author, was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2011, would actually end up becoming good friends with the race manager that tried to kick her out of the race, and - finally - in 2017, on the 50th anniversary of running the Boston Marathon that first time around, Switzer would run the race again - for the ninth time! - and would be assigned the same bib number that she had when she ran it that first monument, groundbreaking time in 1967. Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

19 Juli 202241min

This week on Hashtag History, Leah is taking over the episode to discuss an infamous and mysterious character from History, Lola Montez. Montez was an Irish dancer and actress who became famous in the mid-19th Century as a Spanish dancer, among many other pursuits, one of which landed her as the lover of an actual Bavarian king! Lola’s story comes with its fair share of controversies, especially when it comes to who the hell she actually was and what her true background was. Most of the controversy and confusion actually came directly from the source: herself. She fanned the flames of her own infamy, further propelling herself into the spotlight (her favorite place to be), and as historian Ralph Friedman, put it, “She changed her background to suit the occasion, and there were many occasions to suit.” Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

12 Juli 202239min

This week on Hashtag History, we are discussing historic torture techniques. We have all of course heard of some of these historic torture techniques before; think back to Medieval Europe and the stories we’ve heard of people being tied by their limbs and then stretched out to the point of dislocation. Or think of Rome and the horrendous torture technique of crucifixion; most widely known because of, of course, the story of Jesus. Or, of course, the technique of using the pillory - that wooden frame that was used to lock in the head and hands of a person primarily used for the purpose of public humiliation. These are all historic torture techniques that we are very familiar with. But there are so, SO many more that we are going to be diving into this week. We’re taking things all the way back to Ancient Greek culture, Ancient Chinese culture, and, of course, spending the majority of our time in Medieval Europe. I think this goes without saying but this week’s episode is particularly gruesome. If you have a bit of a queasy stomach, you have been warned. This is NOT an easy episode to get through. Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

5 Juli 202239min

This week on Hashtag History, we are discussing the Little Rock Nine. Little Rock Nine is the name given to the nine students that were the first Black students to attend Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, following the Brown v. Board of Education decision which ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. When these children went to Central High for their first day of school in September of 1957, they were met by an angry mob that threw things at them, spit on them, screamed horrible things at them, and more. The Arkansas Governor even called in the National Guard to block the students from being able to enter the school. It wasn’t until later that month that President Dwight D. Eisenhower engaged federal troops to get these nine students into the school by entering through a side door of the building to not draw the attention of the angry, racist mob. We of course know that this was not the end of their struggles and the horrid racism that they faced - and the bravery they exhibited - while attending this public school. Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

28 Juni 202229min

This week on Hashtag History, we are discussing the Enron Scandal, a major accounting fraud that took place in late-2001 when Enron Corporation - who, only the year prior, was considered to be one of the most successful companies in the world - announced that it was posting a $638 billion dollar loss in the third quarter…and then followed up that up shortly thereafter by filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In only a few months, the company’s stock price - which, at its height, was $90 per share - fell to less than $0.26 per share. Along with the demise of the company also came the demise of nearly $2.1 billion dollars in pension plans for its thousands of employees. In fact, as higher-ups in the company were selling off their stock - aware that things were going to tank soon - they were simultaneously telling lower-level employees to invest in more company stock. The Securities and Exchange Commission investigated what happened at Enron and found that they had been conducting shady accounting practices, such as writing future gains (that had not yet been received) into current income statements and transferring their bad assets into special purpose entities in order to keep them off the books. Essentially, Enron was lying about their profits, defrauding investors, their employees, and Americans as a whole. Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

21 Juni 202253min

Welcome back for Season Eleven! This week on Hashtag History, we are discussing War of the Worlds. And not necessarily the novel, The War of the Worlds, written by H.G. Wells, which is about aliens from Mars invading the Earth. No, more specifically, we are discussing an incident that occurred the day before Halloween in 1938 when actor Orson Welles (no relation to author H.G. Wells) read aloud an adaptation of The War of the Worlds on live radio. Innocent enough, right? HOWEVER, Welles delivered this adaptation of the story in a “breaking-news”, news-reporting alert type method. So when he told of Martians landing on Earth, Americans took him seriously. When this radio program - in the style of a news broadcast - played audio from people who appeared to be live witnesses to aliens landing on the Earth and using a heat ray to burn up American citizens, listeners went nuts. Americans became so alarmed that the results of this broadcast led to traffic jams, an outrageous amount of calls to local law enforcement, and a significant fleeing from the site of the alleged invasion, New Jersey. Following the incident, when it was realized that this had all just been a fictional tale (that all of these witnesses had actually been paid actors), there was complete outrage directed at the radio program for what many perceived to be a deceptive delivery of the tale of the War of the Worlds. It is worth noting though that more modern historians believe that this was not quite as large-scale as was originally reported. Many believe now that the mass hysteria resulting from this incident was actually grossly exaggerated by the media. But regardless, this whole thing - however big or small - was a hot mess. Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

14 Juni 202246min

This week on Hashtag History, we are continuing to revisit our coverage of the Chappaquiddick incident. If you have been with us for some time now, you will recall that we covered Chappaquiddick in our first ever podcast episode in July of 2019. With us now reaching Episode 100, we wanted to bring it back to where it all began. If you have listened to our original coverage of this incident, don't go anywhere! This time around will be a completely different experience! On July 18, 1969, Senator Ted Kennedy drove his car off of a bridge into a pond off Chappaquiddick Island in Massachusetts. Kennedy escaped from the car but left his passenger behind to die. This week, we are closing out coverage of this incident by discussing the graphic details found at the scene, the ramifications the incident had on the Kennedy family and the nation as whole, and an audio recording from Mr. Kennedy himself. Follow Hashtag History on Instagram @hashtaghistory_podcast for all of the pictures mentioned in this episode. Citations for all sources can be located on our website at www.HashtagHistory-Pod.com. You can also check out our website for super cute merch! You can now sponsor a cocktail and get a shout-out on air! Just head to www.buymeacoffee.com/hashtaghistory or head to the Support tab on our website! You can locate us on www.Patreon.com/hashtaghistory where you can donate $1 a month to our Books and Booze Supply. All of your support goes a long ways and we are endlessly grateful! To show our gratitude, all Patreon Supporters receive an automatic 15% OFF all merchandise in our merchandise store, bonus Hashtag Hangouts episodes, a shoutout on social media, and stickers! Check out Macy’s delicious wine here → https://glnk.io/rpln/hashtaghistory-podcast #macyswineshop THANKS FOR LISTENING!

24 Maj 202256min