Our American Stories

On this episode of Our American Stories, while plowing his field in the Ozarks, Ed Stilley suffered a heart attack and experienced a vision that would change his life. He believed God asked him to build musical instruments and give them to children, with a promise that his family would be cared for in return. The problem was simple: Ed had never made an instrument before.Musicians Kelly and Donna Mulhollan, founders of the Ozark Instrument Museum, tell the story of a poor farmer who taught himself to build guitars from scrap wood and metal, creating hundreds of deeply personal instruments meant not for profit or fame, but for faith. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, James Bradley Thayer and Chauncey Wright grew up in rural Massachusetts with little to suggest they would one day enter Harvard’s elite world. Yet both rose into Harvard Yard, where their paths sharply diverged. Thayer became a towering figure at Harvard Law, shaping generations of Supreme Court justices, while Wright’s brilliance was undone by personal struggle.Historian Andrew Porwancher, a professor at Arizona State University and a Jack Miller Center Fellow, tells the story of ambition, friendship, and the thin line between promise fulfilled and promise lost. The story is adapted from his book The Prophet of Harvard Law. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Elizabeth Smith Friedman helped build modern American cryptography, though much of her work remained classified for decades. From World War I through World War II, she broke enemy codes, trained military intelligence officers, dismantled Prohibition-era smuggling networks, and exposed Nazi spy rings operating in South America.Lindsay Larkin, who attended Friedman's alma mater, shares the story of a pioneering codebreaker whose quiet work shaped U.S. intelligence and national security long before her contributions were publicly recognized. We'd like to thank Constituting America for turning us onto this tale.  Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Gladys Gonzalez once held a senior banking position in Bogotá, earning a dollar salary and managing major financial institutions. When Colombia’s drug war forced her employer to shut down operations, she was suddenly starting over in the United States.Her credentials didn’t transfer. The executive experience that once defined her career meant little in America, and she took whatever work she could find—cleaning offices, caring for people with disabilities, delivering newspapers—just to support her family. What followed wasn’t a single break, but a true example of the American Dream in action. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Becky Shaffer grew up in severe neglect and abuse, cycling through hunger, violence, and instability before entering foster care as a teenager. After aging out of the system herself, she built a life marked by faith, family, and hard-earned resilience.Years later, while fostering young women, Becky recognized a familiar pattern as girls left care without support and faced the same dangers she once had. That recognition led to the creation of Saving Grace, a residential program designed to help young women aging out of foster care learn practical life skills, build stability, and find direction. Becky shares how her past shaped her purpose, and how Saving Grace grew from an idea into a refuge for girls with nowhere else to turn. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, each fall at Brooks Camp in Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, brown bears race to gain as much weight as possible before winter. Ranger Lian Law shares the story of how Fat Bear Week began as a small educational project and grew into a worldwide event, showcasing how fat equals survival for bears that must live off their reserves through months of hibernation. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, many music critics consider Duke Ellington one of the most important composers of the 20th century, in or out of jazz. The late Wall Street Journal culture critic Terry Teachout, author of Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington, shares the sweeping story of Ellington’s rise from segregated Washington, D.C. to the Cotton Club and national radio, examining his creative methods, collaborative tensions, and the music that carried him from Harlem stages to Newport in 1956 and ultimately to the White House. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Cecil Wax grew up in rural Iowa in the 1920s, when a simple errand could turn into an adventure. When his family runs out of vinegar during harvest season, young Cecil and his brother are sent on horseback to the local general store. What follows is a childhood journey filled with small dangers, hard lessons, and a moment that stayed with him for the rest of his life. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, long before Portland became a destination, one businessman helped shape its future through hospitality, civic pride, and vision. Alex Adler, better known as Alex the Historian, shares the story of a logger named Simon Benson, the immigrant entrepreneur behind the iconic Benson Hotel, and explains how his investments helped put Portland on the national map. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, in Pea Ridge, Arkansas, horse jumping was nothing new. So locals decided to see whether a mule could do better. What began as a friendly dare among coon hunters grew into an annual mule-jumping competition that blends skill, stubbornness, and small-town pride. Locals, longtime competitors, and families who helped shape the tradition share how this unlikely sport took root and why it has endured. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.