If you follow boxing, you've heard of Claressa Shields. At the 2012 Olympics, she became the first American woman to... more

Former Oklahoma senator Fred Harris died recently, at 94 years old. In 1967, Fred Harris and 10 senators came together... more

November 23, 1936 was a good day for recorded music. Two men, an ocean apart, sat before a microphone and... more

In today’s political climate, conspiracy theories are commonplace. But they’re nothing new. In fact, back in the 1960s, there was... more

During the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, millions of desperate Americans abandoned their homes, farms and businesses. It was one... more

In the spring of 1981, the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Rochester Red Wings met for a minor league baseball... more

Ever since Texas became a state, the Rio Grande has been the border between the U.S. and Mexico. But rivers... more

This week we're featuring a story we loved from the StoryCorps podcast.  In 1964, a 12-year-old paperboy from suburban Long Island... more

Hart Island is America’s largest public cemetery—sometimes known as a “potter’s field.” The island has no headstones or plaques, just... more

When it comes to the space race, we all know names like Neil Armstrong and Yuri Gagarin. But in most... more

Humanity isn't great at eradicating diseases. But there is one disease that humanity has managed to eradicate: smallpox. Smallpox was around... more

Most beauty pageants promote the fantasy of the ideal woman. But for 35 years, one contest in New York City... more

This year marks 90 years since Claude Ely wrote "Ain't No Grave Gonna Hold My Body Down." The song was... more

This month marks 30 years since Nelson Mandela became South Africa's first democratically elected president. However, the story of Mandela's... more

50 years ago, radio broadcaster Studs Terkel published a book called WORKING: People Talk About What They Do All Day,... more

Paul Alexander, one of two people in the U.S. still relying on an iron lung to survive, died on March... more

We’re revisiting one of our favorite stories from years ago — with a new twist. Laura Rothenberg spent most of... more

In 1921, a man named Harry Pace started the first major Black-owned record company in the United States. He called... more

This week, we’re featuring an episode of a podcast we’re big fans of: The Last Archive! The Last Archive tells... more

At the age of 16, he played with the Duke Ellington Orchestra. He went on to make landmark recordings with... more

We bring you a lot of stories each year, but we don’t often get to share the work behind them.... more

Today marks 60 years since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. There are many photos from that day in... more

Back in 1995, LaMont Dottin was 21 years old and a freshman at Queens College when, one evening, he didn’t... more

The Belvedere Hotel is in the heart of New York City’s theater district. Many of its guests come to see... more

Angel Irizarry spent years working as a detective, and in 2021 he set out on a personal investigation to track... more

Dawn Powell wrote novels about people like herself: outsiders who’d come to New York City in the early twentieth century... more

For more than a century, it was almost impossible to find out much about people buried on Hart Island. But... more

When Annette Vega was in elementary school, she found out the man she called “dad” wasn’t her biological father. But... more

When Noah Creshevsky learned he was dying of bladder cancer two years ago, he decided to decline medical treatment. Soon,... more

A few years ago, a young man who called himself Stephen became a fixture in Manhattan’s Riverside Park. Locals started... more

On September 28th, we’re launching a new series: The Unmarked Graveyard: Stories from Hart Island. Hart Island is America’s largest public... more

In the spring of 1981, the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Rochester Red Wings met for a minor league baseball... more

On July 19, 1963, at least 15 Black girls were arrested while marching to protest segregation in Americus, Georgia. After... more

One day in 1947, NYC bus driver William Cimillo showed up to his daily bus route, but instead of turning... more

This week we’re featuring a story from NPR’s Embedded podcast. It’s the first episode in a new series called Buffalo... more

This is the story of a song, “Ain’t No Grave Gonna Hold My Body Down.” It was written by a... more

In the spring of 1981, the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Rochester Red Wings met for a minor league baseball... more

Beauty pageants promote the fantasy of the ideal woman. But for 35 years, one contest in New York City celebrated... more

This week we’re bringing you a story about the 10th Mountain Division, a World War II military experiment to train... more

Sofia Bretl has lived in New York City for the last decade. But she was born and raised in the... more

On Valentine’s Day 2020, Peter Fodera’s heart broke. It stopped working. He collapsed in the middle of teaching a dance... more

In 1921, a man named Harry Pace started the first major Black-owned record company in the United States. He called... more

It’s been 80 years since the release of the Hollywood classic, Casablanca. When the film opened in 1943—just a year... more

One of the questions we often ask ourselves is: How can we produce stories about history that can air alongside... more

November 23, 1936 was a good day for recorded music. Two men, an ocean apart, sat before a microphone and... more

Voting rights was just as hot an issue in 1872 as it is today. In 1872, Susan B. Anthony and... more

100 years ago, George F. Johnson ran the biggest shoe factory in the world. The Endicott-Johnson Corporation in upstate New... more

In October 1968, Mexico City was preparing to host the Olympics - the first Latin American country to do so.... more

This week we’re featuring an episode from our fellow Radiotopia show, Ear Hustle. Ear Hustle is produced inside San Quentin... more

In the early 1970s, radio host and oral historian Studs Terkel went around the country, tape recorder in hand, interviewing... more

In the spring of 1981, the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Rochester Red Wings met for a minor league game... more

This week we’re bringing you a story from independent producer Erica Heilman, who makes the Rumble Strip podcast. The story is... more

In the 1960s, the U.S. was in a tense space race with the Soviet Union - and was losing. The... more

On June 15, 1904, a steamship called the General Slocum left the pier on East Third Street in New York... more

Only one human disease has ever been completely eradicated: Smallpox. Smallpox was around for more than 3,000 years and killed... more

Before the U.S. Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade, abortion was illegal throughout most of the country. But that doesn't... more

You probably don’t know her name, but you definitely know her songs. Rose Marie McCoy would’ve turned 100 years old... more

Paula Bernstein and Elyse Schein were both born in New York City and adopted as infants. When they were 35... more

Sofia Bretl has lived in New York City for the last decade. But she was born and raised in the... more

This week, the Senate unanimously passed legislation that would make lynching a federal hate crime. It was a historic moment.... more

Nine months before Rosa Parks, a 15-year-old Claudette Colvin refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on... more

Nowadays we’re very accustomed to recording and hearing the sound of our own voices. But in the 1930s many people... more

When we first met Majd Abdulghani, she was a teenager living in Saudi Arabia, one of the most restrictive countries... more

A journey back to the very beginning of recorded sound and the strange, random, beautiful things people captured more than... more

A new movie version of West Side Story is hitting theaters this week. The musical, which tells a story of... more

November 23, 1936 was a good day for recorded music. Two men, an ocean apart, sat before a microphone and... more

Every day, we go about our lives doing thousands of routine, mundane tasks. And sometimes, we make mistakes. Human error. It happens... more

In the first half of the 20th century, the disease known as poliomyelitis panicked Americans. Just like COVID today, polio... more

Ever since Texas became a state, the Rio Grande has been the border between the U.S. and Mexico. But rivers... more

Asa Carter and Forrest Carter couldn’t have been more different. But they shared a secret. The Education of Little Tree, by... more

On the 20th anniversary of September 11th, 2001, we’re bringing you a story about the World Trade Center. But it... more

Decades before our current debate over critical race theory, the 1968 Kerner Report pointed the finger at structural racism for... more

During the war in Vietnam, there was a notorious American military prison on the outskirts of Saigon, called Long Binh... more

This is the story of a song, “Ain’t No Grave Gonna Hold My Body Down.” It was written by a... more

One hundred years ago, in 1921, a man named Harry Pace started the first major Black-owned record company in the... more

Twenty-five years ago, Josh Cutler was a 16-year old living with Tourette’s Syndrome, a brain disorder that often causes physical... more

On May 31, 1921, white mobs attacked a prosperous Black neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, known as “Black Wall Street.” As... more

This week we continue celebrating Radio Diaries’ 25th anniversary by catching up with Juan from the Teenage Diaries series, which... more

This week marks a very special anniversary for Radio Diaries. It’s been 25 years since we first started giving people... more

One day in 1947, NYC bus driver William Cimillo showed up to his daily bus route, but instead of turning... more

For the past year, most nursing homes and assisted living facilities have been in lockdown. Residents have been kept apart—not... more

Soon after he entered office, President Biden issued an executive order allowing transgender people to serve in the military. It... more

On August 8, 1988 — a date chosen for its numerological power — university students in Burma sparked an uprising... more

One year ago, on Valentine’s Day 2020, Peter Fodera’s heart broke. It stopped working. He collapsed in the middle of... more

In 2012, Claressa Shields was a 16-year-old boxer in Flint, Michigan. She had an audacious dream: to be the Muhammad... more

After the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, we've all been trying to grapple with an event that... more

Robert and Wendy Jackson have been socially distancing under the same roof for 8 months. Robert is 71 and had... more

When the pandemic hit back in March, Gali Beeri and Joshua Boliver decided to quarantine together, after their very first date.... more

It’s been 9 months since Joe Newman (107) and Anita Sampson (100) recorded their story about surviving the 1918 pandemic,... more

Presidential campaigns are essentially dramas, and we’re in the final act of this one. The curtain is about to come down.For... more