In 1848, James Marshall's discovery of gold in California's American River kicked off one of the biggest Gold Rushes in U.S. history. But what was life really like in California's Gold Fields? Who was actually making money? And how did gold fever shape a nation? Our guest today is Stephen Aron, Calvin and Marilyn Gross Director and President and CEO of the Autry Museum of the American West. Stephe

Did you know that almost 40% of the land that is now Canada was once owned by a single commercial company? The Hudson's Bay Company surrendered this area for the sum of £300,000 in 1869. But how did they come to control it? What was life like for fur traders in North America? And what was the Pemmican War? Don is joined today by Stephen R. Bown, author of ‘The Company: The Rise and Fall of the Hud

After suffering defeat after defeat, George Washington’s battered army was forced to retreat into the forests of rural Pennsylvania, where they set up camp to wait out the winter. The encampment at Valley Forge would be their home for the next six months, during which thousands would endure freezing temperatures, hunger and disease... Our guest today is Prof. Rick Herrera, Senior Historian at the

Why would the United States have welcomed Nazis after the Second World War? Through Operation Paperclip, more than 1,500 German and Austrian scientists and engineers moved to America to share technology developed in the Third Reich. Don is joined by Eric Lichtblau in this episode to find out who these people were, why the US needed them, and whether any of them should have faced punishment. Eric L

When did the first humans arrive in America? Archaeologists have long pushed the theory that human habitation in the Americas dates back only to about 10,000 years. But now there's overwhelming evidence that humans have been in the Americas for over 30,000 years. And perhaps much longer. Our guest today is Dr. Paulette Steeves, professor of geography, archeology, and land stewardship at Algoma Uni

How did a President who was so reluctant to ramp up America's presence in Vietnam become the one who increased it more than any other? When Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as President, he had big plans for his domestic agenda... but it would be his foreign policy decisions that eventually brought him down. Our guest today is Pierre Asselin, professor of American Foreign Relations at San Diego Stat

What drew the Latter Day Saints to Utah? Was anyone living there before the arrival of Brigham Young? And how did the city develop? Max Perry Mueller joins Don today to discuss Salt Lake City. Max is an associate professor of Religious Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He writes more about this topic in 'Wakara’s America: The Life and Legacy of a Native Founder of the American West'.

Thomas Jefferson has had no issue being remembered in American History. Ask anyone, this man was fundamental to Independence. But did he fight in the Revolutionary war itself? Don is joined by Michael Hattem, author of 'The Memory of ’76: The Revolution in American History'; 'Past and Prologue: Politics and Memory in the American Revolution'; and 'The Declaration of Independence: A Concise History

76 people died on 19th April 1993 when the compound of a religious sect, the Branch Davidians, went up in flames. It had been under siege by government agencies for 51 days, but no one knows what started the fire. Don is joined by Jeff Guinn, investigative reporter and author of ‘Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Dividians, and a Legacy of Rage’ to find out why the United States’ Government was inter

General William Tecumseh Sherman's famous invasion of the Confederacy in 1864 has become American legend... but what did Union troops do along their route and how consequential was it to the final defeat of the Confederates? Our guest today is Anne Sarah Rubin, professor of history at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is the author of ‘ Through the Heart of Dixie: Sherman’s March a

What makes a bad President? Who was the worst of all time? In this episode from the archive, Don is joined by Professor Jeremi Suri, author of The Impossible Presidency and co-host of This Is Democracy . Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long. Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-fr

Signatory of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, James Wilson was a sitting Supreme Court justice when he died. So why is he missing from popular history? From inspiring the phrase 'we the people' to starting the ball rolling on the Electoral College, Jesse Wegman joins Don to discuss Wilson's influence on the United States. Jesse is Senior Fellow at the Brennan Center for J

We're all taught in school about the Louisiana Purchase, supposedly the greatest bargain in American history. Napoleon's deal with the Americans is widely remembered as a triumph for the United States… but is this history really as simple as we’re often taught? Our guest today is historian Alexander Mikaberidze, Professor of History at Louisiana State University in Shreveport. He is the author of

When and where did the Civil War end? Was it really over when Lee surrendered at Appomattox? Don is joined for this episode by Caroline E. Janney, Professor at the University of Virginia and author of 'Ends of War: The Unfinished Fight of Lee’s Army after Appomattox'. Listen to hear why Lee's and Grant's armies ended up at Appomattox Court House, what the terms of surrender were, and when the war

Over the course of this series, we've discussed the extraordinary promise of Reconstruction, as well as the relentless attacks these efforts came under. In this final episode, we're stepping back from the events themselves to ask the biggest question of all: why did Reconstruction fail? For today's episode, we welcome Prof. Aaron Sheehan-Dean of Louisiana State University back onto the show. His w

On March 5 1911, 146 people died in a fire that lasted just 18 minutes. This event was to change the history of New York, and has an ongoing impact in each of our workplaces. Don is joined for this episode by David Conrad-Pérez to find out what made the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire so deadly, who is to credit for the changes made after it, and whether anyone ever faced justice for it. David is

Reconstruction promised freedom and political equality, but how quickly did that promise begin to unravel? Why did white Southern resistance become so violent, and why did Northern support for Reconstruction begin to fade? In this episode, we explore the rise of Jim Crow, the retreat of federal protection, and the political choices that transformed the South for generations. Our returning guest to

In March 1862, wooden warships had dominated global warfare for centuries. In less than 48 hours off the coast of Virginia, two experimental metal monsters made every Navy on Earth obsolete overnight. Don Wildman is joined by Dr Howard Fuller reader in war studies at University of Wolverhampton, UK. His first book was Clad in Iron: The American Civil War and the Challenge of British Naval Power .

With the end of the Civil War, four million formerly enslaved people in the South were now free. It was the beginning of a remarkable experiment: rebuilding the South on the foundations of freedom and equal citizenship. For a brief moment, the United States of America begins its first real attempt at establishing a multi-racial democracy. Our guest today is Bradley Rebeiro, Associate Professor of

In 1896 the Supreme Court ruled that Jim Crow segregation laws were not unconstitutional in the case of Plessy v. Ferguson. This is the case that Brown v. Board of Education would eventually overturn but not until six decades of Jim Crow laws had been endured. Who was Plessy? Who was Ferguson? And how on earth did the Supreme Court reach its conclusions? Don Wildman's guest today is Dr Michael Ros