Relative Disasters

Latest Episodes:

The 1944 Hartford Circus Fire (Episode 81) Jan 02, 2023

Show notes

On July 6, 1944, the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus began their Hartford, Connecticut, matinee show with an audience of 7,000 ticketholders, mostly women and children. A few minutes into the show, however, the massive Big Top, which had been waterproofed with a paraffin-and-gasoline cocktail, caught on fire. On this episode, we’re discussing circus superstitions, city inspections, and a whole lot of fire safety.

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources for this episode include:

“Circus Fire 1944”

“The Hartford Circus Fire: Tragedy Under the Big Top” by Michael Skidgell, 2019

“Hartford Circus Holocaust” by W.Y. Kimball for National Fire Prevention Association’s The Quarterly, 1944

The Franklin Expedition (Episode 80) Oct 17, 2022

Show notes

We're going back to the Arctic for our final episode of the season! Join us as we talk about how dangerous the arctic sea is, what pack ice can do to ships (again), and why maybe listening to the people who live where you're trying to explore might be a good idea. We'll touch on the interesting lives and deeds of John Rae and James Fitzjames, talk about the weird politics that led to the expedition, and how everything was basically never going to work no matter how they prepared. Also, we found another place to visit and we'll preview a little bit of next season!

Thank you all for lending us your ears for a little while each week - we really appreciate all of the feedback, constructive criticism, and kind words you've had to share over these last few years. We'll see you again in January!

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources:

Ice Ghosts by Paul Watson

The Man Who Ate His Boots by Anthony Brandt

Deadly Winter by Martin Beardsley

Fatal Passage by Ken McGoogan

Unraveling the Franklin Mystery: Inuit Testimony collected by David Woodman

https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/what-happened-to-erebus-terror-crew-true-story

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1279489/

https://www.history.com/news/franklin-expedition-mystery-northwest-passage

https://www.thecollector.com/the-franklin-expedition-canadian-maritime/

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/heres-how-amc-producers-worked-inuit-fictionalized-franklin-expedition-show-180968643/

https://www.canadianmysteries.ca/sites/franklin/archive/text/DickensHouseholdWords1_en.htm

The Story of the Kate Shelley High Bridge (Episode 79) Oct 10, 2022

Show notes

In the summer of 1881, a heavy thunderstorm caused a flash flood in the Des Moines River valley of central Iowa, in the midwestern United States. The flood caused a small railway trestle bridge to weaken, which in turn caused a steam locomotive to plunge into Honey Creek - killing two of the crew and stranding the rest in the still-rising water. So begins one of the most remarkable rescue efforts in the history of American railways.

On this episode, we're talking bridges, bad luck, Victorian poetry, and the remarkable tenacity of an Iowa teenager.

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.

Sources for this episode include:

"Iowa’s Railroad Heroine" (blog post at ISU Special Collections)

"Kate Shelley: Heroine of the High Bridge" (website)

"Kate Shelley: A Girl’s Heroic Journey", by T. Beck for Historynet, 2019

"Our Kate" poem by J. B. Kaye, 1901

Leser v Garnett and attempts to repeal the Nineteenth Amendment (Episode 78) Oct 03, 2022

Show notes

We're headed back to court again for a look at the 1922 Leser v Garnett supreme court decision! Join us as we discuss how women's right to vote has been a really weird issue in the US, what kind of folks were trying to prevent them from voting in the first place, and how is this stuff still going on today? Also, Greg's dog really wanted to be on the podcast this week, so listen for her tappy-toes in the background.

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources:

The United States Constitution and Amendments

Leser et al v. Garnett et al Supreme Court Decision

How a Little-Known Supreme Court Case Got Women the Right to Vote by Lily Rothman

Visit your local library for books on voting rights in the United States.

The 1955 Disappearance of the MV 'Joyita' (Episode 77) Sep 25, 2022

Show notes

In October of 1955, a ship named 'Joyita' set sail from Apia, Samoa, to the Tokelau Islands. The 300-mile trip should have taken 2 days, but she never arrived, and an extensive search failed to find any traces of either the 'Joyita' or the 25 people she carried. Not that she'd sunk; in fact, a month later, she was found floating off the coast of Fiji, with no one aboard and no sign of what had happened to her passengers and crew.

On this episode, we're discussing ghost ships, Old Hollywood, iron pipes vs. the Pacific Ocean (the ocean wins, every time), and the curious and unlucky life of a luxury yacht turned into a patrol boat, a fishing vessel, and a merchant ship.

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources for this episode include:

"Joyita: Solving the Mystery" by D. G. Wright, 2002

"MV Joyita: The Ghost Ship That Couldn't Sink" by B. Dimri for Historic Mysteries, 2022

"25 People Got Lost At Sea; The Ship Was Found, But The People Weren't", by C. Leigh for Medium, 2018

Bessie Coleman and the Barnstormers of the 1920's (Episode 76) Sep 19, 2022

Show notes

Come join us in the friendly skies, where danger is a constant co-pilot and daredevils risked their lives to entertain the onlookers below. We're going to talk about the 13 Black Cats flying troupe, Gladys Ingle's amazing "mid-air wheel replacement" stunt, and the incredible life of Bessie Coleman, the first African-American woman to get a pilot's license, along with barnstorming stunts and safety equipment (or lack thereof).

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources:

William J. Powell - Black Wings, published 1934

Doris Rich - Queen Bess: Daredevil Aviator, published 1993

The 13 Flying Black Cats

The Gladys Ingle Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oAzdbd0J2A

The 1937 Hindenburg Disaster (Episode 75) Sep 12, 2022

Show notes

On a rainy May evening in 1937, thousands of spectators gathered at the Lakehurst, New Jersey, airfield to watch the German luxury zeppelin 'Hindenburg' land. Instead of the landing, however, they were shocked to see the massive airship catch fire and burn to the ground in a minute and a half.

On this episode, we're discussing airships and airship travel; hydrogen vs. helium; how the crash was documented; and the Hindenburg's short life and last voyage.

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources for this episode include:

"Scenes from Hell - Herb Morrison and the Hindenburg Disaster", digital exhibit by the National Archives, n.d.

"What Really Sparked the Hindenburg Disaster", J. Stromberg for Smithsonian Magazine, 2012

"LZ-129 Hindenburg" page on Airships.net, n.d.

The 1958 Wintle V Nye Decision (Episode 74) Sep 05, 2022

Show notes

On its surface, it's a complicated legal case that took an appeal all the way to the House of Lords to settle. In reality, it's what happens when you attempt to swindle the relative of Lt. Colonel Alfred Daniel Wintle MC - a man who lived an utterly remarkable life and wasn't about to lose this last battle. Come join us for a discussion about a complicated military career, a case that changed the British legal system, and pants!

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources for this episode:

The last Englishman: An autobiography of Lieut.-Col. Alfred Daniel Wintle, M.C. (1st the Royal Dragoons)

The last Englishman - the unbelievable wartime exploits of AD Wintle by Sky History

Foreign News: Here Is an Englishman from Time Magazine, Monday, Aug. 08, 1955

Wintle v Nye: HL 1959

Judgement of Wintle V Nye, HL 1958 Nov-Dec

The 1971 'D.B. Cooper' Hijacking (Episode 73) Aug 29, 2022

Show notes

On the busiest travel day in 1971, a hijacker commandeered Northwest Airlines' Flight 305, as it was en route from Portland, Oregon to Seattle, Washington. Upon landing in Seattle, he got what he'd asked for - four parachutes and $200,000 cash - and when the passengers had disembarked, he ordered the plane on to Mexico. But they'd only been in the air for a few minutes when the hijacker tied the cash to his body, strapped on the parachute, and jumped off the plane, disappearing forever into the dense forest of southeast Washington State.

On this episode, we're talking plane travel, air piracy, flight attending, and of course, the mystery of DB Cooper.

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.

Sources for this episode include:

The official FBI report, which is online at FBI.gov

"The Hunt for D.B. Cooper Continues", by D. Tolentino for MuckRock, 2018

"Diatoms constrain forensic burial timelines: case study with DB Cooper money", by T. G. Kaye & M. Meltzer, Scientific Reports, 2020

The Practice of Baby-Farming, 1860-1910 (Episode 72) Aug 22, 2022

Show notes

Content Warning: In this episode, we talk about the deliberate murder of infants for profit. Please skip this episode if you'd like to avoid hearing about that subject.

When there's money to be made, there will always be people who will go too far to make it. The practice of "baby farming" - on paper - looks almost like a direct ancestor to adoption agencies or foster care. In reality, it was a way for people to make a lot of money, providing they didn't mind killing infants. It's a horrifying look at a system wherein lack of protection under the law, lack of body autonomy, and lack of option led to inhuman decisions and massive human suffering.

Love the show? Support us on Patreon, at ⁠www.patreon.com/RelativeDisastersPodcast⁠.⁠

Sources:

The Baby Farmer (Thames Valley Police Museum)

Regulating sexual behaviour: the 19th century (UK Parliament)

Minutes of Evidence Taken Before The Select Committee on Infant Life Protection Bill

Baby Farming (The Adoption History Project)

"Baby Farming" – a tragedy of Victorian times

Amelia Dyer: The Victorian nurse who strangled babies by Sarah Lee

Victorian baby killer Amelia Dyer evidence found in loft (BBC)