In 1864, Nine Union Officers Escaped fro...

The Disney version of Johnny Appleseed has a cheerful barefoot man in a tin pot hat scattering apple seeds for grateful pioneers to bake into pies. The real John Chapman collected his seeds for free from cidery waste, planted them into strategically fenced nurseries on land he bo ... Show More

For the last 5,000 years, empires ruled the world — Rome administered hundreds of languages across three continents, and the Ottomans governed Christians, Jews, and Muslims under a single legal canopy. The nation-state as we know it is barely a century old for most of the world's ... Show More

The Cambridge Five did more damage to the Western Bloc than any other intelligence outfit of the Cold War. They were five Cambridge graduates who drank gin at the right clubs, moved through the right corridors of British intelligence at the height of WW2, and quietly handed Stali ... Show More

<p>In early 1864, a group of Union prisoners made a daring escape from Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia - the capital of the Confederacy. Known for its sadistic guards and horrific conditions, Union Officers at Libby suffered from hunger, lice, and the freezing cold. In this ep ... Show More

During the Civil War, Black people in America took the opportunity to free themselves and to serve the Union cause. At great personal risk, tens of thousands of refugees -- men, women and children -- fled Southern slave owners for Union lines. They enlisted in the Union Army and ... Show More

Today in our series, Secrets of the Civil War, we’ll meet some of the key players in the Abolition Movement–a persuader, an agitator, and a conductor. Their ideals and actions helped foster the success of the Underground Railroad and the path to emancipation. How did so many ensl ... Show More

<p>Robert Smalls was born into slavery in Beaufort, South Carolina in 1839. He escaped from enslavement during the U.S. Civil War, in a particularly dramatic fashion.</p><p> </p> Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheart ... Show More

On 20 December 1848, Ellen Craft placed a top hat on her head, slipped her arm into a sling, and perched dark green glasses on her nose. Once her disguise was complete, Ellen and her husband William embarked on almighty journey. The couple were enslaved, and had assumed fake iden ... Show More

“It is hard to believe that Southern soldiers—and Texans at that—have been whipped by a mongrel crew of white and black Yankees … there must be some mistake.”This is the story of Black Soldiers in the Civil War.Black patriots are ready to fight from day one. The Lincoln Administr ... Show More

On the morning of April 16th, 1848, dozens of Washington, D.C. slaveowners woke up to find that their slaves were gone. The previous night, 77 enslaved men, women, and children had quietly run away and boarded a ship docked in the Potomac River.It was the largest single escape at ... Show More

In the early 1800s, slavery rapidly expanded across the American South. But each year, thousands of courageous enslaved men, women, and children fled their owners in search of freedom. And in Philadelphia, secret allies came to their aid. Quaker abolitionists collaborated with fr ... Show More

When the Sun comes back And the first quail calls Follow the Drinkin’ Gourd. For the old man is a-waiting for to carry you to freedom If you follow the Drinkin’ Gourd. -“Follow the Drinkin’ Gourd” author unknown (possibly Peg Leg Joe) They left in the middle of the night, o ... Show More

The Underground Railroad helped up to 100,000 enslaved people to freedom. It was America’s first civil rights movement, operated by Black and white people united in their abhorrence of slavery. But how was it established? Who were its passengers, and the people risking everything ... Show More