Our American Stories

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Latest Episodes:

EP200: The Titanic’s Last Hero and How I Came to Terms With My Navy Cross Mar 02, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Lowell Lytle, who witnessed the Titanic in person, tells his story and the story of The Titanic’s Last Hero. By the time Karl Marlantes left Vietnam, he had received a Bronze Star and a Navy Cross, our nation's second highest award for valor. But he also left with a burning question: why had so many done more than him and received less, and why had so many done less and gotten more?

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Time Codes:

00:00 - The Titanic’s Last Hero

23:00 - How I Came to Terms With My Navy Cross

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP199: Ohio Born, American Made and How a Fake Doctor Ran Carnival Sideshows and Saved Thousands of Infants and Changed Medical History Mar 02, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Bob Huff was born just outside of Dayton, Ohio, in the blue-collar factory town of Moraine City. Bob’s early life was anything but easy… but that clearly didn’t stop Bob.. Dr. Martin Couney carried a secret with him, but the results are unimpeachable and here to tell the story is Dawn Raffel, author of The Strange Case of Dr. Couney: How a Mysterious European Showman Saved Thousands of American Babies.

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Time Codes:

00:00 - Ohio Born, American Made

35:00 - How a Fake Doctor Ran Carnival Sideshows and Saved Thousands of Infants and Changed Medical History

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP198: When Character Stands Tall, The Colorful & Comical Civil War General and She Quit Her Corporate Job To Make Artisan Keycaps Mar 01, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Eric Motley shares how despite being generally liked by the fraternity he was rushing, some parents of the boys expressed their dismay at Eric's wanting to join the group. Gettysburg National Park Service Ranger Matt Atkinson tells the story of the Civil War General who claimed to be insane in court, got his leg shot off by General Longstreet's artillery, and helped form the Gettysburg National Military Park. Keycap artist, known as Tiny Makes Things, shares her story of when she decided that she wanted to quit her job and start her own business making artisan keycaps for mechanical keyboards.

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Time Codes:

00:00 - When Character Stands Tall

10:00 - The Colorful & Comical Civil War General

35:00 - She Quit Her Corporate Job To Make Artisan Keycaps

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP197: The Story Of Benjamin Franklin's Longest Lasting Persona and The “Ten Cent Beer Night” Riot Feb 28, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, we hear about how the 25-year publication started out of a need when someone pulled their publication and turned into an international phenomenon... which Mark Twain HATED! The History Guy tells how on June 4, 1974, in Cleveland, trouble was a brewin', the bleachers were loaded, and there was a distinct buzz in the air.

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Time Codes:

00:00 - The Story Of Benjamin Franklin's Longest Lasting Persona

35:00 - The “Ten Cent Beer Night” Riot

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP196: The Transatlantic Cable: A Thread Across the Ocean and I Retired At 50, And Was Bored....So I Served People Feb 25, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Historian John Steele Gordon tells the story of how the telegraph went from Samuel Morse to winning WWI and how one man spearheaded the effort to connect America to Great Britain and, in doing so, the rest of the world. Scott Gilbert shares the impact he has had as the president of the Roaring Fourth Valley Chapter of Habitat For Humanity by teaching life skills to people in prison.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

Time Codes:

00:00 - The Transatlantic Cable: A Thread Across the Ocean

35:00 - I Retired At 50, And Was Bored....So I Served People

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP195: The Night 2 H-Bombs Fell on North Carolina and I Found Out I Was Adopted at 30 Feb 24, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Earl Smith tells the story of how on January 23, 1961, a B-52 bomber crashed in Goldsboro, North Carolina. Two H-bombs—each 250 times more powerful than the bombs dropped on Japan, fell to the ground and he dismantled them. Skip Reeves tells the story of how he came to find out that he was adopted at 30 years old.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

Time Codes:

00:00 - The Night 2 H-Bombs Fell on North Carolina

35:00 - I Found Out I Was Adopted at 30

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP194: If I Could Talk With Anyone (Past or Present), It Would Be My Parents, From An African Foster Kid to An American Foster Dad and Colin Powell Eulogy Feb 23, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Stephen Rusiniak answer's the question: if you could spend one hour talking with anyone, living or not, who would you choose? Peter Mutabazi, a man who ran away from his abusive father in Africa, got adopted by another family, and eventually fostered and adopted children of his own. Colin Powell’s son, Michael, shares this eulogy from the day his life was memorialized.

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Time Codes:

00:00 - If I Could Talk With Anyone (Past or Present), It Would Be My Parents

10:00 -From An African Foster Kid to An American Foster Dad

35:00 - Colin Powell Eulogy

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP193: The National Disaster Photo Rescue Organization and Aaron Burr, The Opportunistic Patriot Feb 22, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Thad Beeler shares how he helped people find their family photos after the Joplin tornado of May 2011. Bill Bryk tells the story of America's first practical politician, Aaron Burr, in a tale of skill, bravery, honor, deception, and memory. Burr was so much more than the man who shot Alexander Hamilton.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

Time Codes:

00:00 - The National Disaster Photo Rescue Organization

23:00 - Aaron Burr, The Opportunistic Patriot

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP192: The Husband and Wife Doctors Who Risked Their Careers to Prevent Alzheimer’s, Feb 21, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dean and Ayesha Sherzai's shared experience of having grandparents succumb to dementia led them to "career suicide" which resulted in success.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EP191: Battling An Eating Disorder As A Mother and Tom Morton Goes to Boot Camp Feb 18, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Randy Wilson shares her journey dealing with an eating disorder and overcoming it as a mother. Tom Morton always wanted to join the military...but it took a while to get onto the yellow footprints at Parris Island.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

Time Codes:

00:00 - Battling An Eating Disorder As A Mother

23:00 - Tom Morton Goes to Boot Camp

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.