064 Native American Slavery in New France
Most early Americans practiced chattel slavery: the practice of treating slaves as property that people could buy, sell, trade, and use as they would draught animals or real estate. But, did you know...
12 Jan 201658min
063 Ruin Nation: Destruction and the American Civil War
The American Civil War claimed more than 620,000 American lives. Did you know that it also cost American forests, landscapes, cities, and institutions? Today, we explore the different types of ruina...
5 Jan 201657min
062 The Bill of Rights
Did you know that when James Madison originally proposed the Bill of Rights, it consisted of 36 amendments and that the House of Representatives did not want to consider or debate Madison’s proposed a...
29 Dec 201549min
061 George Washington in Retirement
If you had only six years to enjoy retirement what would you do? Would you improve your plantation? Build canals? Or work behind-the-scenes to unite your country by framing a new central government? ...
22 Dec 201555min
060 Braddock's Defeat: The Battle of the Monongahela and the Road to Revolution
Did Washington really start the French and Indian War? Why should we remember a battle that took place over 260 years ago? In this episode, we investigate the answers to those questions as we explor...
15 Dec 201557min
059 Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad
Between the 1830s and 1860s, a clandestine communications and transportation network called the “Underground Railroad” helped thousands of slaves escape to freedom. Today, we will investigate and exp...
8 Dec 201543min
058 Fighting over the Founders: How We Remember the American Revolution
Why do we refer to the men who founded the United States as the “founding fathers?” Why do we choose to remember the American Revolution as a glorious event that had almost universal, colonial suppor...
1 Dec 201534min
057 War, Money, and the American State, 1783-1867
Do you know what we have in common with our early American forebears? Taxes. As Benjamin Franklin stated in 1789, “nothing is certain but death and taxes.” Given the certainty of taxes it seems impo...
24 Nov 201550min
