

History Dispatches
Matt and McKinley Breen
History Dispatches is a daily history show hosted by father and son duo Matt and McKinley Breen. The show covers people, places, events and even objects from throughout history. While any topic is fair game, Matt and McKinley hold a soft spot for the offbeat and wacky stories that most people don’t know about.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 30, 2026 • 22min
Saint Patrick's Battalion
In the Mexican-American War a unique detachment of soldiers was put together. It consisted of, mostly, Irish immigrants. And the amazing thing was they fought for Mexico - not the United States. This is the story of the Batallón de San Patricio - or Saint Patrick’s Battalion.
Sponsor
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Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Patrick%27s_Battalion
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/mexican-american-war-irish-immigrants-deserted-us-army-fight-against-america-180971713/
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 27, 2026 • 19min
Nazca Lines
If you flew over the Nazca Desert in southern Peru, you would be astounded to see hundreds of miles of lines drawn into the earth. These lines created massive shapes - including animals and plants. The designs - called geoglyphs - were made more than 2,000 years ago. But who made them? And why? Was it aliens? This is the story of the mysterious Nazca lines.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
Sources
https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/700/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazca_lines
https://www.livescience.com/22370-nazca-lines.html
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
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Mar 26, 2026 • 21min
Patriot War
A dramatic retelling of the 1837–38 cross-border rebellions and how U.S. sympathies complicated British Canada. The rise of a secretive Hunters' Lodge and its promise of land and revolution. A bizarre Navy Island republic, bold raids on Prescott and Windsor, and the bloody siege at a stone windmill. The chaotic campaigns that nearly ignited an international crisis.

Mar 25, 2026 • 21min
Robert Johnson: King of the Delta Blues
Robert Johnson died in 1938 at the age of 27. He only recorded 29 songs in his lifetime. Yet he is widely recognized as the King of the Delta Blues. His singing, guitar playing and songwriting have influenced musicians to this day. Yet the man’s life was filled with mystery. Was he murdered by a jealous husband? And what about that pact that he supposedly made with the devil? This is the story of blues legend Robert Johnson.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Johnson
https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/devils-music-myth-robert-johnson/
https://magnoliatribune.com/2023/07/13/robert-johnson-the-man-myth-legend-and-legacy/
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com
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Mar 24, 2026 • 18min
Esperanto Language
The root of most conflict is misunderstanding and miscommunication. But what if there was a universal language that everyone could speak? Would such a language help avoid communication problems. To a dress this, in 1887, Ludovic Zamenhof created a brand new language: Esperanto. This was a constructed language to try and facilitate communication across ethnic and geographic lines. Today it is spoken by tens of thousands of people. This is the history of Esperanto.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esperanto
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC61387/
https://zamenhof.info/en/biografio
Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esperanto_bandera.jpg
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 23, 2026 • 20min
The Story of Gunpowder
We like things that go boom. Cannons, fireworks, dynamite - you name it. Explosive blasts - big and small - have an 'aha' factor that’s hard to deny. The source of all those booms goes back nearly 2,000 years to the alchemists of ancient China. This is the story of gunpowder.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowderhttps://www.britannica.com/technology/gunpowder
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 20, 2026 • 29min
Berlin Wall
In 1961, the Soviet backed East German government grew tired of its citizens fleeing into West Berlin. And thus, the East Germans began construction of a fortified wall that would completely surround West Berlin from the world. This wall would become the most notable - and hated - symbol of the Soviet era. This is the story of the Berlin Wall.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
Sources
https://diplomacy.state.gov/berlin-wall/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Wall
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 19, 2026 • 22min
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
One of the worst ecological disasters in the 21st century was the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Thanks to greed, mismanagement, and poor practices, an explosion on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico caused the deaths of 11 people, and nearly 5 million barrels of oil spilled into the ocean, costing billions of dollars in damage and untold harm to the environment. This is the story of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
Sources
https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-case-study
https://ocean.si.edu/conservation/pollution/gulf-oil-spill
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_Deepwater_Horizon_oil_spill
Image: by DVIDSHUB: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flickr_-_DVIDSHUB_-_Oil_Spill.jpg
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 18, 2026 • 15min
The Birdman of Coorong - John Francis Peggoty
In the 1890s in South Australia, a murdering bushranger terrorized the area of Coorong. However, this was not a large scary outlaw on horseback - but instead, a small man wearing gold jewelry and riding an Ostrich. This is the story of John Francis Peggotty - the Birdman of Coorong.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
Sources
https://coorongcountry.com.au/coorong-bushranger/
https://aguidetoaustralianbushranging.wordpress.com/2018/02/21/john-francis-peggotty-the-birdman-of-coorong/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Francis_Peggotty
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 17, 2026 • 19min
A Year of Mistakes
One year ago today we dropped the first 10 episodes of History Dispatches. And except for a single week, we have released one episode every single weekday. And while we try our best, we are far from perfect. This is a catalog of every mistake - that we know of - from the past year.
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at advertising@airwavemedia.com
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices


