Our American Stories

On this episode of Our American Stories, it’s hard to imagine now, but there was a time when the automobile was hailed as an environmental savior. Cities at the turn of the century were suffocating under the burden of their own success. The horse had built them, but it was also destroying them. Streets were thick with waste, and the air carried the scent of disease. Into that chaos rolled the automobile—a machine that seemed to offer a vision of progress that was clean, modern, and under control. Miles C. Collier, founder of the Revs Institute, shares the story. 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, it began with a few rare bottles and a collector who thought he’d found perfection. But what looked like the discovery of a lifetime turned out to be one of the most elaborate wine scams in modern history. Billionaire Bill Koch, known for his meticulous taste and love of authenticity, discovered that his prized collection included counterfeits, some forged so well that even experts were fooled. Rather than quietly move on, he poured millions into uncovering the truth. The investigation led to Rudy Kurniawan, a charismatic con artist whose deception stunned the wine world and exposed the lengths people will go to chase prestige. Here's Bill with the story. 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, before he became America’s most celebrated poet, Walt Whitman was simply a man searching for his brother on a battlefield. What he discovered there transformed him. The war showed him suffering on a scale he had never imagined, yet it also revealed the resilience of the human spirit. In makeshift hospitals and tents, he tended to both Union and Confederate soldiers, writing, comforting, and listening when few others could. Those encounters reshaped his poetry and deepened his belief that every life, North or South, carried the same worth. Hillsdale College professor Kelly Scott Franklin shares the story. 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, when American troops left for war, they carried reminders of home that came in the simplest form: food. Spam and Hershey’s chocolate became symbols of comfort in a world that had lost its sense of safety. Spam filled mess kits and fueled long marches through mud and heat. Hershey’s chocolate brought a quick burst of sweetness that could steady a soldier’s nerves or break the monotony of rations. Together they fed the body and the spirit, helping to turn familiar tastes into a quiet kind of strength that followed the American army wherever it went. 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, during the darkest years of World War II, a woman from Baltimore slipped behind enemy lines with a fake passport, a limp, and a mission that would alter the course of the war. Her name was Virginia Hall, and the Gestapo called her “the most dangerous of all Allied spies.” Working for the Office of Strategic Services, she built resistance networks across France, trained fighters, and smuggled intelligence to London while evading capture again and again. Author Judy Pearson tells the story of how one woman with a wooden leg and an unbreakable will became a symbol of courage in a world ruled by fear. 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, when Brandon Burlsworth first stepped onto the University of Arkansas practice field, almost no one believed he belonged there. He had no scholarship, no athletic pedigree, and nothing to recommend him beyond an unshakable work ethic. Yet every morning, he showed up before the sun and stayed long after the lights went out. Over time, the kid from Harrison earned his place among the Razorbacks’ best. His discipline transformed him from an overlooked walk-on into an All-American lineman, respected by coaches, teammates, and fans who saw something rare in his character. Brandon’s family and coaches share the story of the man for whom the national award for the best walk-on player is named. 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, when Led Zeppelin stormed onto the music scene, their sound felt untouchable. It was raw, electric, and entirely new. Yet beneath the roar of the guitars was a rhythm that didn’t begin in London. Its roots were planted in the American South, crafted by a bluesman whose work shaped the foundation of rock long before the world knew Jimmy Page or Robert Plant. Years later, echoes of that melody landed Led Zeppelin in a courtroom, where a judge had to decide whether the greatest band of its era had borrowed too much from the past. Stephen Davis and Kirby Ferguson share the story of how a single blues riff forced rock and roll to face its origins. 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, few thought a quiet cartoon about a sad little tree could work on television. But Charles Schulz believed that A Charlie Brown Christmas would speak to people in a way that noise and spectacle never could. The animation was rough, the dialogue understated, and the jazz soundtrack unlike anything audiences had heard before. But when it aired in December of 1965, families across the country sat down to something that felt simple and true. Lee Habeeb shares the story of how the now-famous festive cartoon special was made. 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, only weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Prime Minister Winston Churchill made an all-important stop in the United States to meet with President Roosevelt and address Congress about the difficult road ahead. He knew better than anyone what that path looked like—he had been walking it alone for some time. 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, Nancy "3" Hoffman has spent her life chasing delight in the unexpected. A professional accordionist and world traveler, she built a museum that no one else in the world had thought to create: a home for umbrella covers. On Peaks Island, Maine, her collection began as a joke among friends and grew into a destination that celebrates the overlooked details of everyday life. Visitors come from across the country to laugh, browse, and rethink what it means to find meaning in small things.  Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.