The 1897 Ghost Who Solved Her Own Murder
History Shorts
In January 1897, a young woman named Elva Zona Heaster Shue was found dead inside her home in rural Greenbrier County. Her death was quickly ruled natural, despite troubling questions surrounding her husband, Erasmus Stribbling Trout Shue. The case seemed destined to fade into obscurity. Then Zona's mother began having dreams. In this episode of History Shorts, we explore one of the strangest murder cases in American history—the legend of the Greenbrier Ghost. According to her mother, Zona appeared night after night, describing how she had really died and identifying her killer. Driven by...
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The Complicated History of Miss America
History Shorts
For more than a century, the Miss America Pageant has reflected America's changing ideas about beauty, femininity, ambition, and culture. What began as a tourist attraction in Atlantic City evolved into one of the most recognizable institutions in American life—launching careers, awarding scholarships, and sparking national debates along the way. In this episode of History Shorts, we explore the surprisingly complex history of Miss America. From its origins in the Roaring Twenties to controversies over race, gender roles, and the famous protests of the 1960s and 1970s, the pageant often...
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How Medieval Guilds Invented Modern Commerce
History Shorts
The next time a package arrives at your doorstep—tracked, inspected, and delivered by a company whose reputation depends on reliability—you can thank a group of people who lived hundreds of years before the modern corporation existed: medieval guilds. In this episode of History Shorts, we explore how the craftsmen and merchants of medieval Europe created many of the foundations of modern commerce. From the bustling trading centers of London, Bruges, Hamburg, and Venice came systems for quality control, professional certification, business reputation, apprenticeship training, contract...
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Hitler on Trial: The Lawyer Who Put the Fuhrer on the Stand
History Shorts
Before he became the dictator of Germany, Adolf Hitler was a political agitator whose movement often relied on intimidation and street violence. Few people dared challenge him in court. One man did—and for a time, he succeeded. In this episode of History Shorts, we tell the extraordinary story of Hans Litten, the young Jewish attorney who forced Hitler to testify under oath in a Berlin courtroom in 1931. Through relentless questioning, Litten exposed contradictions in Hitler’s claims about the Nazi Party’s commitment to legality and democracy, embarrassing the future dictator before...
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The Catnip Riot of 1909
History Shorts
In the summer of 1909, G. Herman Gottlieb set out through New York City carrying two baskets filled with fresh catnip. His plan was simple: sell the herb to wealthy cat owners along Fifth Avenue. What he didn't account for was the city's stray cats. In this episode of History Shorts, we tell the bizarre true story of how a few dropped leaves of catnip attracted dozens of feline followers, turning Gottlieb into an unwilling Pied Piper of East Harlem. As the parade of increasingly enthusiastic cats grew larger, curious onlookers gathered, traffic slowed, and police were called to intervene....
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One Last Run: Billy the Kid’s Great Escape
History Shorts
In the spring of 1881, the days of the American frontier outlaw were numbered. Captured, convicted, and awaiting execution, Billy the Kid appeared to have reached the end of the trail. But Billy had one more astonishing chapter left to write. In this episode of History Shorts, we follow the legendary outlaw's daring escape from the courthouse jail in Lincoln. Facing the gallows, Billy seized a fleeting opportunity, overpowered his guards, and vanished into the New Mexico wilderness in one of the most dramatic jailbreaks in Old West history. For a brief moment, he was free again—sparking a...
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The Two Ships that Divided America, w/ David S. Reynolds
History Shorts
In this episode, I sit down with acclaimed historian and cultural biographer David S. Reynolds to discuss his powerful new book, Two Ships: Jamestown 1619, Plymouth 1620, and the Struggle for the Soul of America. Just months apart in 1619 and 1620, two ships landed on American shores—the White Lion, bringing the first enslaved Africans to Jamestown, Virginia, and the Mayflower, carrying the Pilgrims to Plymouth, Massachusetts. What started as nearly simultaneous arrivals became enduring symbols of America’s foundational divide: one representing bondage and hierarchical Cavalier culture,...
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The Alaska Triangle - America's Own Bermuda Triangle
History Shorts
Few places in North America inspire as much mystery as the vast wilderness of Alaska. Stretching between the cities of Anchorage, Juneau, and Utqiagvik, the region known as the "Alaska Triangle" has become the focus of countless stories involving unexplained disappearances, missing aircraft, and people who seemingly vanished without a trace. In this episode of History Shorts, we investigate the legend of the Alaska Triangle, exploring famous cases that have fueled its reputation—from lost adventurers and missing planes to one of the most puzzling disappearances in American political history....
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Rome's Forgotten Female Gladiators
History Shorts
For centuries, the gladiators of Ancient Rome have been imagined as powerful men battling for glory in the arena. But hidden within the historical record is a far more surprising reality: some gladiators were women. In this episode of History Shorts, we uncover the fascinating story of Rome’s female gladiators—known as gladiatrices. Drawing on ancient writings, archaeological evidence, and surviving artwork, we explore how these women entered the arena, the reactions they provoked among Roman audiences, and why emperors eventually moved to restrict and ban their participation. SUPPORT THE...
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The Lost Tribes of Israel
History Shorts
One of the greatest mysteries in biblical history begins with a disappearance. After the ancient Kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Neo-Assyrian Empire in the 8th century BC, ten of Israel’s twelve tribes seemingly vanished from the historical record. What became of them has puzzled scholars, theologians, explorers, and believers for more than two thousand years. In this episode of History Shorts, we trace the origins of the legend of the Ten Lost Tribes, examining the Assyrian conquest, the exile of Israel’s population, and the countless theories that emerged afterward. From claims...
info_outlineIn this week’s Conversation Series, Peter sits down with bestselling historian and adventurer Peter Stark to discuss his gripping new book, The Lost Cities of El Norte. Together, they journey into the brutal and little-understood world of Spanish exploration in North America, following Francisco Vázquez de Coronado and his ill-fated quest for legendary cities of gold.
Stark brings cinematic detail to a story often overshadowed by later colonial narratives, revealing a landscape of immense hardship, cultural collision, and fierce Indigenous resistance. The conversation explores not only the myth of El Dorado, but the very real consequences of that myth—for both the explorers chasing glory and the Native societies they encountered.
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