Our American Stories

Copyright: 2024 iHeartMedia, Inc. © Any use of this intellectual property for text and data mining or computational analysis including as training material for artificial intelligence systems is strictly prohibited without express written consent from iHeartMedia

Latest Episodes:

Josephine Earp: The Woman Who Shaped the Legend of Wyatt Earp Jan 26, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, for nearly fifty years, Josephine Marcus Earp stood beside one of the most famous lawmen of the Old West. But she was more than Wyatt Earp’s wife. She helped shape how his story would be told. Historian Ann Kirschner, author of Lady at the O.K. Corral, shares the story of a Jewish immigrant who chased adventure across the frontier and worked quietly to turn Wyatt Earp into a national legend.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Earning the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor: One Man’s Journey Through Marine Boot Camp Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Tom Morton always felt called to serve, but the path there was anything but straight. After trying college twice and walking away both times, he made a decision that put him on a bus to Parris Island and onto the yellow footprints of Marine Corps boot camp.
Our American Stories listener Tom Morton takes us inside the physical and mental grind of Marine training, from relentless discipline and sleep deprivation to the final crucible that strips recruits down and rebuilds them as something new. What begins as a search for purpose becomes a hard-earned transformation, culminating in the moment he received the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor and learned it wasn't just a piece of metal, but a way of life.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Story of America: The Roots of Revolution [Ep. 4] Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, after the French and Indian War, Britain emerged victorious, but deeply in debt. Parliament believed the colonies should help pay the bill. Many colonists believed that demand crossed a line.
In Episode 4 of our ongoing Story of America Series, Hillsdale College professor Bill McClay, author of Land of Hope, explains how new taxes, imperial control, and growing resentment collided with powerful cultural forces already at work in the colonies. The Great Awakening emphasized individual conscience. The Enlightenment elevated reason and self-rule. Together, they reshaped how Americans saw authority, liberty, and themselves.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Union Colonel Who Treated Confederate POWs With Mercy Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, during the Civil War, Boston’s Fort Warren held more than 2,000 Confederate prisoners of war. Unlike many prison camps of the era, it was not a place of cruelty or mass death. That was largely due to its commander, Union Colonel Justin Dimick. A career Army officer with deep Christian convictions, Dimick insisted that prisoners be treated with dignity, even after losing his only son in battle. Under his command, only thirteen Confederate prisoners died at Fort Warren, a fraction of the mortality rate elsewhere.
Historian Christopher Klein tells the largely forgotten story of a Union officer who proved that mercy and humanity could endure even in the midst of war.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A DNA Test, a Long-Lost Son, and a Journey Back to Vietnam Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Brent Evanoff thought he had life figured out until one phone call changed everything. He learned he had a son he never knew, conceived during his time in the Army and now serving overseas in the U.S. Navy.
What followed was more than a reunion. A journey through Southeast Asia brought a family together, led Brent deep into the jungles of Vietnam, and set the stage for an unexpected act of healing when he returned a long-lost dog tag to a fellow American veteran. A story of fatherhood, service, and the surprising ways life can come full circle.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How Abraham Lincoln Used the Telegraph to Win the Civil Wa Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, long before texts, emails, or instant messaging, Abraham Lincoln found a new way to lead a nation at war. By embracing the telegraph, Lincoln became the first “wired” president, using near real-time communication to track battles, direct generals, issue orders, and project presidential authority in ways no American leader ever had before. He spent countless hours in the War Department’s Telegraph Office, reading dispatches from the front, firing off brief, decisive replies, and even sleeping there during critical moments of the Civil War.
Historian and Our American Stories regular contributor Christopher Klein tells how Lincoln’s fascination with technology and mastery of concise communication reshaped the presidency, strengthened the Union war effort, and helped change the course of American history.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Police Chaplain Who Showed Up on Oklahoma City’s Worst Day Jan 22, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, Greg Giltner spent nearly three decades with the Oklahoma City Police Department and later served as a police chaplain. His role was not to preach or persuade, but to show up. On the worst days of an officer’s life, and on the worst day in Oklahoma City’s history.
Giltner shares how a mentor known simply as Chaplain Poe taught him that real ministry often means silence, presence, and compassion. From officer-involved shootings to line-of-duty losses, and from personal grief to the aftermath of the bombing at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, this is the story of what it means to serve those who serve, and why sometimes just being there is everything.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Great Chicago Fire Was Devastating. The Recovery Was Extraordinary. Jan 22, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, most people know the story of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Fewer know what happened next. After flames destroyed the heart of the city and left more than 100,000 people homeless, Chicago didn’t collapse. It rebuilt faster and bigger than anyone thought possible. Businesses reopened while the rubble was still smoking. New buildings rose within months. And in just a few decades, the city transformed itself into a global center of commerce, architecture, and innovation.
Chicago historian Tim Samuelson, the city’s first official cultural historian, tells the largely forgotten story of how Chicago’s location, grit, and can-do spirit made one of the greatest urban recoveries in American history possible, and how that recovery gave birth to the modern skyscraper and the Chicago we know today.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why Men Grow Beards: A Cultural History of Masculinity and Facial Hair Jan 22, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, beards may feel like a modern trend, but they’ve been shaping ideas about manhood for thousands of years. In some eras, a clean-shaven face signaled order, discipline, and respectability. In others, a beard stood for strength, rebellion, or independence.
Christopher Oldstone-Moore, the author of Of Beards and Men, and a history teacher at Wright State University, tells the surprisingly rich story of how facial hair has risen and fallen alongside changing ideals of masculinity — from ancient Egypt and Greece to royal courts, revolutions, Hollywood, and today’s bearded resurgence.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Sister’s Love Through the Tragic Loss of Her Three Brothers Jan 22, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of Our American Stories, growing up in rural Alabama, Edie Hand shared an idyllic childhood with her three younger brothers, known as the Blackburn boys. Days were filled with horses, imagination, and dreams of the futures they would one day live.
Those dreams were cut short by tragedy. One by one, Edie lost all three brothers, each death arriving in a different season of her life and leaving a deeper mark than the last. What remained was grief, memory, and a promise made to the last brother she held, to tell their story and live with kindness, courage, and purpose.

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

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.