Footnoting History
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footnotinghistory.bsky.social
Footnoting History
@footnotinghistory.bsky.social
The podcast where historians pluck lesser-known stories from the past and serve them to you one episode at a time. New episodes every other Saturday. Est. 2013.
New! Elizabeth Blackwell's goal was to prove that a woman could do anything a man could do. And once she got her medical degree, she set to work helping other women follow in her footsteps. Learn more:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/dr-blac...

YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=swiR...
November 9, 2025 at 2:15 AM
A dozen years of History for Halloween!? You bet! Our newest installment of creepy historical tales for the spookiest time of the year is out now:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/history...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zcys...
October 25, 2025 at 7:56 PM
Out now! Lucy explores the roots of Renaissance Faires in the US, and how communes, folk music, particolored tights, and a reimagined past turn out to be more closely linked than you might imagine.

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/ren-fai...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LCG...
October 12, 2025 at 7:48 PM
New! In 1612, nine-year-old Jennet Devize accused her mother in court of witchcraft. Her testimony led to the conviction of 11 people, 10 of whom were sent to the gallows. Find out about this infamous event now:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/the-pen...

YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBS_...
September 27, 2025 at 4:36 AM
New Episode! In the 19th century, George Leopold von Reisswitz and Georg Heinrich Rudolf Johann von Reisswitz brought strategic gaming to a whole new level with profound results. Learn more:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/playing...

YouTube: youtube.com/watch?v=fjMQeQg9p2Y&feature=youtu.be
September 13, 2025 at 5:17 PM
We are looking for one (or two!) folks to join our team of rotating historian hosts. If you have an MA (or higher!) in history and an interest in becoming one of us, please check out FootnotingHistory.com/Apply for details and how to contact us with questions. We'd love to hear from you!
September 8, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Napoleon wasn't the only Bonaparte who lived a fascinating life. This episode tells the stories of his three sisters, looking at their personalities, rise to prominence, and how they handled their brother's fall.

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/a-brief...

YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zbou...
August 30, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Fun news! We just learned our shop now carries lounge shorts. Who doesn't enjoy a new way to show your history love?

www.teepublic.com/stores/footn...
August 16, 2025 at 1:34 AM
We may be on hiatus, but we are still working behind the scenes! Check out our updated Teach page, which features new downloadable PDFs on classroom discussion questions and understanding primary sources, as well as our searchable episode spreadsheet:
FootnotingHistory.com/Teach
June 21, 2025 at 7:17 PM
We have new merch designs (including The Georgian Star, based on our most recent episode and seen below) and our entire shop is on sale! They are some of the best prices we have, especially for t-shirts, so check it out:

www.teepublic.com/stores/footn...
June 17, 2025 at 2:21 AM
New episode! We return to the Tower of London with two new tales. First, Jewish connections to the medieval Tower. Second, the scandalous murder of Sir Thomas Overbury.

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/tales-f...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6Zi...
February 22, 2025 at 5:22 PM
New episode! How do we know what it was like to come home from war in Ancient Greece? Lucy looks at The Illiad, The Odyssey, the modern film The Return, and more to explain:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/coming-...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk7i...
February 8, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Black History Month is here! We've got episodes on epic people like Bass Reeves, Jane Manning James, Yolande Du Bois, and James Weldon Johnson waiting for you:

www.footnotinghistory.com/black-histor...

YouTube playlist version: www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...
February 2, 2025 at 4:41 AM
Podcasts can be a great addition to any lesson! If you're considering using our episodes, check out our page for educators, which features a spreadsheet sorting episodes by era, location, and keywords:

www.footnotinghistory.com/teach.html
January 28, 2025 at 3:50 AM
We're back! We're kicking off 2025 with an episode about Hummel and Howe, a pair of infamous criminal attorneys from Gilded Age New York. Listen now:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/hummel-...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZ95...
January 25, 2025 at 6:51 AM
Wishing all the happiest of 2025s! We are excited to come back with new episodes on January 25th (check footnotinghistory.com/calendar to see that topic). Thank you for supporting us in this wild podcasting world.

Image: Waiting for Calls on New Year's Day, from Harper's Bazar, January 2, 1869
January 1, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Sale season continues! Every single item we have is marked down, just in time for your holiday purchases (or treats for yourself). Plus, you may notice, hats are a new addition to our shop!

www.teepublic.com/stores/footn...
December 1, 2024 at 8:47 PM
Happy December! We have ONE more new episode left for this year...History for the Holidays IV, coming December 7th!

Visit FootnotingHistory.com/Calendar for more info or check out the History for the Holidays playlist on our YouTube channel for past installments: www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxMl...
December 1, 2024 at 5:25 AM
Get ready for the holidays...or treat yourself! T-shirts are $16 and everything else, from stickers to totes, is up to 35% off in our shop right now.

www.teepublic.com/stores/footn...
November 15, 2024 at 2:52 AM
New episode! Before Dante took us on a tour through the afterlife, there was Thurkill, an English peasant from the 13th c who described his journey into hell and the edge of paradise. Hear the story now:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/thurkil...

YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qtzx...
November 10, 2024 at 12:35 AM
New episode! Not everyone who received the death penalty in medieval England was actually killed. Here, Samantha explores two more methods of avoiding execution: gaining sanctuary and buying pardons.

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/how-to-...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zNR...
October 12, 2024 at 5:13 AM
New episode! In medieval England, just because you received the death penalty for your crimes didn't mean you necessarily had to actually die. Learn two methods of avoiding having your sentence carried out.

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/how-to-...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu6s...
September 28, 2024 at 11:05 PM
New episode! Let's talk about the time a disgruntled general tried to take control of France's government by spreading the lie that Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte had died...

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/napoleo...

YouTube version: youtu.be/GPzgbuDFOxQ?...
August 31, 2024 at 5:40 AM
New episode! In 1527, Cabeza de Vaca was on an expedition to conquer Florida. It ended in disaster. As a result, he spent the next 8 years wandering what is now the Southwestern United States. Come learn about it.

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/the-adv...

YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqqx...
August 17, 2024 at 4:43 AM
New episode! Thanks to listener requests for more episodes about medieval occupations, Lucy is teaching you all about midwives in the Middle Ages here:

www.footnotinghistory.com/home/medieva...

YouTube version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WYV...
August 3, 2024 at 5:43 AM