

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

Aug 5, 2025 • 18min
Ned Kelly: Australia's Most Notorious Outlaw
From 1878 to 1880 Ned Kelly and his gang terrorized the Australian Outback. Perpetrating numerous robberies and murders, and even capturing an entire town. And he did so, while clad in a suit of armor. This is the story of Ned Kelly.
Sources
"Ned Kelly, a Short Life" by Ian Jones
Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_strange_apparition_Ned_Kelly%27s_last_stand.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

Aug 4, 2025 • 16min
1904 Olympic Marathon
The men's marathon at the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis was one of the oddest moments in the sport’s history. Officials ran the race during the hottest part of the day and purposely limited the water the 32 participants could have. Men would ride in cars for the part of the race, get chased by wild dogs, become violently ill, and suffer hallucinations. One man even fell unconscious and nearly died. This is the story of the 1904 Men’s Olympic Marathon.
Sources
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-1904-marathon-became-one-of-the-weirdest-olympic-events-of-all-time-14910747/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1904_Summer_Olympics_%E2%80%93_Men%27s_marathon
Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marathon_Hicks1904.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

Aug 1, 2025 • 15min
John Colter's Run
In 1809, one of America’s first mountain men - John Colter - was captured by hostile Blackfeet warriors. His companion was killed. But Colter - stripped naked and without any weapons - was given a chance to live. It was a cruel game pitting him against hundreds of armed Blackfeet. The only advantage he had was a few hundred yards lead. This is the story of John Colter’s Run.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Colter
https://lewis-clark.org/members/john-colter/
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

Jul 31, 2025 • 15min
The Mystery of the Tunguska Incident
In the early hours of June 30, 1908, a massive explosion devastated the Tunguska region of Siberia. Despite leveling thousands of square kilometers of forest, and locals describing it as artillery fire, the Tunguska event went unsolved for decades. And even today, speculation remains. This is the mystery of the Tunguska Incident.
Sources
https://www.nasa.gov/history/115-years-ago-the-tunguska-asteroid-impact-event/
https://www.britannica.com/event/Tunguska-event
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event
Image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event#/media/File:Tunguska_Ereignis-1.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

Jul 30, 2025 • 25min
Knights Templar
Everyone knows about the Knights Templar. And despite existing for less than 200 years, they are a part of a million stories, myths and legends. There are video games, movies, books, songs and so much more about the order. But all that aside - this is the real story of the Knights Templar.
Sources
https://www.livescience.com/knights-templar.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_Templar
https://www.galapagos.org/conservation/project-isabela/
Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:JacquesdeMolay.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

Jul 29, 2025 • 16min
Project Isabela: The Galapagos Goat War
The Galapagos Islands are some of the most incredible, but fragile, ecosystems in the world. Isolated for millions of years, the 1800s saw the introduction of goats, leading to extreme devastation. To combat this, in 1997, the ambitions Project Isabela was conceived. And the goal was simple - eradicate 140,000 goats on three separate islands.
Sources
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281292713_The_Atlas_of_Isabela_Project_An_illustrative_document_of_the_biggest_successful_goat_eradication_project_on_islands
https://www.galapagos.org/conservation/project-isabela/
Image: https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-and-white-goat-on-brown-and-green-grass-3782880/
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

Jul 28, 2025 • 19min
Assassination attempt of Teddy Roosevelt
On Oct. 14, 1912, Theodore Roosevelt departed his hotel in Milwaukee Wisconsin - on his way to a campaign speech. He got into an automobile, and as he gave a wave to the cheering crowd, a man stepped forward and shot Roosevelt in the chest. Despite a blood stained shirt and a bullet lodged in his chest, Roosevelt drove to the location of his campaign stop - and gave a 50 minute speech. This is the story of the Assassination Attempt on Teddy Roosevelt.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempted_assassination_of_Theodore_Roosevelt
https://blogs.loc.gov/headlinesandheroes/2019/07/the-pocket-items-that-saved-the-life-of-theodore-roosevelt/
Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Theodore_Roosevelt_speaking_from_a_car_in_Milwaukee_Wisconsin_on_Oct._14,_1912.webp
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

Jul 25, 2025 • 17min
Versailles Rail Accident
On May 8, 1842, the locomotive of a train traveling to Paris from Versailles, broke an axle. The carriages behind the locomotive piled into it, and caught fire - leading to a catastrophic inferno. Upwards of 200 people were killed. This is the story of the Versailles rail accident - the first major railway disasters in history - and the deadliest in the world at the time.
Sources
https://www.geriwalton.com/versailles-railway-accident-of-1842/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Versailles_rail_accident
Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meudon_1842.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

Jul 24, 2025 • 13min
Jack Black: The Greatest Rat Catcher
In Victorian London rats were one of the nastiest pests, responsible for numerous diseases, and untold economic damages. To combat these rodents, the profession of rat catcher evolved. And the greatest of these rat catchers was a man named Jack Black - the self styled Royal Rat Catcher of Queen Victoria.
Sources
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-selfappointed-king-of-victorian-rat-catchers
https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/roundtable/her-majestys-rat-catcher
Image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Black_(rat_catcher)#/media/File:Jack_Black.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

Jul 23, 2025 • 30min
Zofia Kielan-Jaworowska and the "horrible hand" dinosaur
Zofia Kielan-Jaworowska was a Polish scientist and the first woman to lead a dinosaur excavation expedition. On her explorations of the Gobi Desert, she discovered many famous animals, including Deinocheirus—a dinosaur that, for decades, was known only by its enormous, terrifying claws. But when we finally found the rest of its body, it turned out to look more like Jar Jar Binks. This is the story of Zofia, and the dinosaur that surprised us all - as told with our guests - Sabrina and Garret from the I Know Dino podcast.
Sources
Thanks to Sabrina and Garret from the I Know Dino Podcast. Listen to them. It's a great show.
I Know Dino Website: https://iknowdino.com
I Know Dino Book: https://books.disney.com/book/i-know-dino/
(The book is awesome - we highly recommend it).
https://archive.org/details/inpursuitofearly0000kiel/page/n5/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/huntingfordinosa00kiel
https://iknowdino.com/deinocheirus-episode-527/
https://www.nature.com/articles/520158a
https://www.nature.com/articles/nature.2014.16203
https://www.nature.com/articles/nature13874
https://www.nature.com/articles/nature13930
Image: Photo by Garret Kruger
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


