The People’s Recorder: A Lost Cause?
This episode looks at communities that have suffered neglect from official history, and the example of African American landmarks and burial grounds in Virginia. Some families and communities have pushed…
The People’s Recorder: A New Kind of History
The Federal Writers’ Project set out to create a series of books that held up a mirror to America, and chronicled communities that had long been ignored. Howard University professor…
Who Were the Last Pagans of Europe?
Europe was supposedly Christian by the Middle Ages, but the reality is more complicated. From the Sámi in Fennoscandia to the Baltic countryside, sacred groves, sacrifices, and animist traditions survived…
Vodou: Haiti’s African-Derived Religion
Religion for Breakfast
Smaller Than a Fingernail: Unboxing the World’s Tiniest Books
Have you ever seen a book smaller than a fingernail? In this unboxing, we explore some of the tiniest books ever created — from fairy-sized poetry, religious texts and miniature…
The People’s Recorder: A Giant Listening Project
During the height of the Great Depression, the U.S government hired out-of-work writers and laid-off reporters and sent them out to record the stories of all kinds of Americans. Called…
Writers’ History Lessons: The People’s Recorder podcast
The first episode of the People’s Recorder podcast begins with host Chris Haley declaring: “In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, when many said America was at her lowest point, something…
Imaginary Worlds: Sinners Gives Hoodoo Its Due
Sinners got a historic 16 Academy Award nominations, which was remarkable for a film with vampires. But the film is also a rich exploration of race, religion, culture and music…
Secrets of the Dead: Mozart’s Sister
Maria Anna Mozart was a musical prodigy just like her younger brother Wolfgang. Although the children toured Europe together, once Maria Anna came of age, she was left behind while…
Not Just the Tudors: When Elves & Fairies Lived Among Us
In the mist‑shrouded Highlands, a quiet minister dared to trespass into forbidden realms. Convinced that fairies were not mere fables but a hidden nation with laws and lives of their…