Best Shea LaFountaine Podcasts (2024)

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Ep. 87 Residential Schools: How the US Government Forced Indigenous Children to Give Up Their Identities 34:48

4d ago34:48

34:48

Buy a History Fix shirt! Join the Patreon! Starting in the 1800s, the US government forcibly removed hundreds of thousands of indigenous children from their homes and sent them to boarding schools hundreds of miles away where they ruthlessly tried to destroy all traces of their culture, to assimilate them into white society. Upon arrival, their hai…

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Ep 86 Mt. Rushmore: How Sacred Indigenous Land Was Stolen and Defaced by the US 36:27

11d ago36:27

36:27

Buy a History Fix shirt! In the Black Hills region of South Dakota stands a massive American monument, the faces of four US presidents blasted into the side of a mountain. George Washington represents the birth of the nation. Thomas Jefferson represents its growth. Theodore Roosevelt development and Abraham Lincoln preservation. Mount Rushmore Nati…

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Ep. 85: The Exorcist: How a Real Life Story Inspired the Cult Classic Horror Film 45:50

18d ago45:50

45:50

This week, I'll explore the peculiar true story that inspired William Peter Blatty to write the book and screenplay for the 1973 hit film "The Exorcist." This is the story of a boy around 14 years old who experienced something truly bizarre back in 1949. And unlike Regan in the exorcist, whose story is completely fabricated, this one is well docume…

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Ep. 84 Salem: Why the Witch Trials of 1692 Should Still Scare You Today 44:31

26d ago44:31

44:31

It’s January of 1692 and there’s something very wrong with 9 year old Betty Parris. Her father, the minister Samuel Parris, rushes to her bedside. Betty screams. Her body writhes under the blankets, twisting and contorting into grotesque shapes. She grunts, she moans, she snorts, and shrieks. She grabs a candle from the bedside table and hurls it a…

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Ep. 83 Historical Hauntings: How Characters Throughout History Have Reappeared From the Afterlife 43:34

1M ago43:34

43:34

This week, I'll examine several cases of historical hauntings. These are ghost stories where you actually get to find out the single most important question... who was that? We'll go all the way back to ancient Babylon, cruise through ancient Greece and Rome and then spend some time in London and, later, Washington DC. Several of the "ghosts" we'll…

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Ep. 82 Mary Shelley: How the Mind Behind Frankenstein Pushed All the Boundaries 44:31

1M ago44:31

44:31

Mary Shelley was just 18 years old when the idea for Frankenstein struck her on a rainy night in Geneva, Switzerland. Cooped up on vacation with nonstop rain, famous poet Lord Byron had challenged the group of literary geniuses to come up with a ghost story. Mary struggled. She could think of nothing. Then one night, as she struggled to sleep, she …

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Ep. 81 Columbus Part 2: How a Villain Was Twisted Into America's Greatest Hero 27:25

2M ago27:25

27:25

This is part 2 of last week's episode on Christopher Columbus. This week, you'll learn about Columbus' disastrous third voyage to the Americas when he finally pays the price for governing like a power hungry tyrant. And yet consequences, of course, will be few, and he'll return once again for his fourth and final voyage. We'll also delve into the s…

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Ep. 80 Columbus Part 1: How a Villain Was Twisted Into America's Greatest Hero 35:47

2M ago35:47

35:47

Few humans in history have sent out more shockwaves than Christopher Columbus. His four voyages to the Americas changed our whole existence, culturally, spiritually, ethnically, economically, politically, geographically, morally possibly more than any single person ever has. When Columbus' ships first dropped anchor off the islands of the Bahamas o…

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Ep. 79 Lucrezia Borgia: How History May Have Cast This Infamous Daughter All Wrong 37:28

2M ago37:28

37:28

Before Henry VIII, before Louis XVI, there was a dynasty in Italy so corrupt, so scandalous, gluttonous, hedonistic, that the others don’t even compare. But this was not a royal family. These were not kings, they were popes, cardinals, bishops. These were holy men, men of the church. Men whose unholy actions may very well have helped spark the diss…

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Ep. 78 Childbirth: How a Deadly Ordeal Got Deadlier Before It Got Safer 40:44

2M ago40:44

40:44

The bloody history of childbirth is riddled with death and despair. It's a burden that was carried almost entirely by women, behind closed doors, something men took no part in. And, because of that, we know very little about it today. What we do know is that it was an extremely dangerous affair. Mortality was so high, many women wrote a will as soo…

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Ep. 77 Triangle Factory Fire: How a Horrific Tragedy Sparked a Movement to Save Workers Lives 42:48

3M ago42:48

42:48

On March 25th, 1911, a fire erupted on the 8th floor of the Asch building in New York City. The 8th, 9th, and 10th floors of this building housed the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory which employed around 500 people, mostly young immigrant women, to sew women's blouses under sweatshop conditions. The owners, Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, believed the bui…

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Ep. 76 Michael Rockefeller: How a Famous Son's Mysterious Disappearance May Not Be Such a Mystery After All 42:13

3M ago42:13

42:13

Michael Rockefeller was the great grandson of John D. Rockefeller, the founder of Standard Oil and the richest man in the world. He was also the son of Nelson Rockefeller, New York governor, Vice President of the United States, and a well known art collector. Michael had big shoes to fill. To do that, he followed in his father's art collecting foot…

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Ep. 75 Jockey's Ridge: How a Fearless Mother Stood Down a Bulldozer to Save a Natural Wonder For All the People 45:25

3M ago45:25

45:25

Perched between the ocean and the sound in Nags Head, completely dominating the narrow sliver of land that makes up part of North Carolina’s Outer Banks, is a monumental sand dune, a mountain of lush golden sand. This dune system, known as Jockey’s Ridge, is somewhere around 4,000 years old and can reach heights of over 100 feet. It’s majestic, it’…

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Ep. 74 Polio: Why a Disease Existing Since Ancient Times Took Millennia to Become a Problem 41:12

3M ago41:12

41:12

Polio has been around since ancient times but it was a very quiet disease for most of history, affecting few people and raising little alarm. It wasn’t until the 20th century that polio began to appear among the masses, terrifying epidemics, a mysterious disease that seemed to target children out of nowhere, paralyzing them, killing them. No one kn…

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Ep. 73 Theodosia Burr: How a Famous Daughter's Disappearance Remains a Mystery 37:15

3M ago37:15

37:15

Check out Outer Lore! In January of 1812 a schooner named The Patriot disappeared off the coast of North Carolina's Outer Banks. This dangerous stretch of coastline has claimed some 3,000 ships, earning it the nickname "Graveyard of the Atlantic." Aboard the Patriot was Theodosia Burr Alston, daughter of infamous US vice president Aaron Burr, on he…

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Ep. 72 Khmer Rouge: How a Violent Government Murdered 1/4 of Cambodia's Population 45:19

4M ago45:19

45:19

In 1975, the Khmer Rouge stormed into Cambodia's capital city of Phnom Penh victorious after 5 years of civil war. The people rejoiced. They thought the victors were there to liberate them, to restore peace and order after years of fighting. That couldn't have been farther from the truth. Over the next 4 years, the Khmer Rouge communist regime woul…

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Ep. 71 Aqua Tofana: How A Ring of Female Serial Killers Liberated Italian Women 43:10

4M ago43:10

43:10

This episode explores the famed poison, Aqua Tofana, that desperate housewives used to murder their husbands in 17th century Italy. I'll delve into the legend of Giulia Tofana, the apparent namesake behind the poison who was supposedly responsible for the deaths of 600 men in the mid 1600s and do my best to separate fact from fiction to uncover wha…

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Ep. 70 Coffee: How Coffee Changed the World, for Better and for Worse 34:48

4M ago34:48

34:48

Coffee may seem like an innocent breakfast beverage to accompany your bacon and eggs, a mid afternoon office pick me up. But did you know, coffee is so much more than that? Did you know that coffee helped spark human enlightenment, the scientific revolution, the industrial revolution, capitalism, helped build the world as we know it? Let’s fix that…

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Ep. 69 Washington: How We Barely Know America's First President 39:49

4M ago39:49

39:49

George Washington - most of you know him as America’s first president, Revolutionary War hero, founding father, face of the one dollar bill, chopped down a cherry tree, wooden teeth, real man’s man if you know what I mean. I think that’s all most people know or think they know about him. But the cherry tree thing, that never happened. The wooden te…

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Ep. 68 Lost Technology: How Ancient Knowledge Has Been Erased By Time 43:25

5M ago43:25

43:25

This episode is all about inventions, techniques, and resources that have been lost or forgotten throughout the ages. From ancient construction techniques to puzzling inventions like the Antikythera mechanism, Greek Fire, and the Archimedes Heat Ray, I'll try to unravel the mysteries of the past and get to the bottom of how advanced technology beco…

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Ep. 67 Bone Wars: How Dueling Fossil Hunters Put Dinosaurs on the Map 38:42

5M ago38:42

38:42

Join the Patreon for exclusive bonus content! Othniel Charles Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope were American paleontologists during the second half of the 19th century. Although they started as friends, they soon turned bitter enemies, competing against one another for 20 years to find and name the most fossils. This duel, often dubbed the “bone wars”…

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Ep. 66 Uncivil: How Lack of Punishment for Confederate Leaders Set a Dangerous Precedent 43:11

5M ago43:11

43:11

I recently stumbled across a photograph of Confederate president Jefferson Davis with his family. He is sitting on the porch of his Mississippi home bouncing his granddaughter on his knee while a Black woman stands behind him in a servants uniform. I was somewhat shocked to learn that this photo was taken in 1885... 20 years after the Civil War. Da…

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Ep. 65 Laundry: "The Most Trying Department of Housekeeping" with Lori Davis 37:44

5M ago37:44

37:44

This week, as promised, I welcomed special guest Lori Davis, host of Her Half of History podcast. Join Lori and me as we chat about the unknown history of laundry. Find out just what has made laundry a complete nightmare throughout pretty much all of history and why few people today are even aware of this millennia old struggle. For more, check out…

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Ep. 64 Ranavalona I: How This Powerful Queen of Madagascar Might Be Totally Misunderstood 38:50

6M ago38:50

38:50

Ranavalona I, Queen of Madagascar has a bad reputation, to say the least. Few biographical sources exist about her but they all make their opinions well known in the titles alone: "Ranavalona I: Reign of Terror,” “Female Caligula: Ranavalona the Mad Queen of Madagascar,” “The Terror of Queen Ranavalona I in Madagascar.” But, I see reason to questio…

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Ep. 63 Nazca Lines: How These Magnificent Creations Became One of History's Greatest Mysteries 40:43

6M ago40:43

40:43

Join me as I explore the Nazca lines of Peru, one of the most enduring historical mysteries. We'll talk about the Nazca people including all of the juicy details... like pooping in people's mouths? Yeah. We'll also explore some of the prevailing theories as to why the Nazca put so much effort into etching these gigantic lines, shapes, and pictures …

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Mini Fix #9: How Antibiotics Ruined My Life 13:52

6M ago13:52

13:52

PLEASE SHARE! This is the tell all story of how fluoroquinolone antibiotics led to disabling and potentially permanent side effects for my previously healthy 32 year old husband. Since taking Cipro in March of 2021, Joey has suffered from non-stop chronic pain, weakness, and joint and muscle injuries that do not heal. This particular class of antib…

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Ep. 62 Antibiotics: How This Accidental Discovery Changed the World Forever 43:51

6M ago43:51

43:51

This week, I'll delve into the surprising history of antibiotics. You'll learn how penicillin was discovered by accident and how its development was helped along by a moldy cantaloupe from a Peoria, Illinois farmers market. I'll also uncover how it went on to act as a secret weapon, helping the allied forces to victory during World War II. Plus I'm…

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Ep. 61 Feral Children: How Mysterious Wild Children Dot the Pages of Our History Books 45:27

6M ago45:27

45:27

This week I tell the stories of 9 feral children found surviving alone in the wilderness. Some even appear to have been cared for by wild animals - wolves, bears, dogs, and monkeys. Most walked on all fours, ate raw meat, and could only communicate in grunts, growls, and "wild cries." Some would never gain the ability to speak, burying their backst…

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Ep. 60 Mental Health: How the Human Mind Has Been Misunderstood and Mistreated Throughout History 42:52

6M ago42:52

42:52

Mental health has been one of the greatest mysteries throughout human history. An illness with an invisible cause, no surgery will fix it, no tonic, no bandage. Is it supernatural? Evil spirits? Demonic possession? Our lack of understanding about the human mind and stigmatization of mental health issues has led to untold horrors throughout time. An…

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Ep. 59 Hawaii: How the US Stole This Island Paradise and Why It Isn’t Technically a State 38:51

7M ago38:51

38:51

Uncover the history of Hawaii from its earliest habitation to its illegal overthrow by the US government in 1893. Join me as I discover exactly how the United States sank its claws into this island paradise, erased its native culture, and violently forced its queen to relinquish her throne without the approval of the US government. By the end, I th…

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Ep. 58 Bread: How This Universal Food Staple Is Way More Important Than You Thought 41:58

7M ago41:58

41:58

Join me as I uncover the unknown history of bread and how it has shaped our entire world. From its earliest existence 14,400 years ago, bread has played a major role in the formation of human civilizations. This week, we'll follow the path of bread from ancient Egypt, to ancient Rome, to medieval Europe, revolutionary France, and early America to d…

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Ep. 57 Marilyn Monroe: How the Most Visible Woman in the World Went Completely Unseen 40:53

7M ago40:53

40:53

Few celebrities have captured the public’s attention like Marilyn Monroe. Mention of her immediately evokes images of platinum blonde curls, beauty marks, and that white dress, flapping in the updraft of a New York City subway grate. But despite being almost universally known, no one knows the real Marilyn Monroe because she never existed. She was …

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Ep. 56 Cannibalism: How Humans Throughout History Have Used and Abused This Ancient Taboo 45:06

7M ago45:06

45:06

Join me as I uncover the history of cannibalism starting with the butchered bones of ancient hominids dating as far back as 780,000 years all the way to the present day. I'll explore examples of ritual cannibalism and delve into four horrifying stories of survival cannibalism. Finally, I'll examine the freaky psychology behind pathological cannibal…

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Ep. 55 Crucifixion: What We Actually Know About the Easter Story and How Bunnies Got Involved 40:35

8M ago40:35

40:35

Easter is the foundation of the Christian religion. It commemorates the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ and whether or not you believe this story is the difference between being a Christian and not being a Christian. It’s the single defining event of that religion. So Easter is a very religious holiday. But it also has a historical sid…

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Ep. 54 Women of the SOE: How Female Agents Helped “Set Europe Ablaze” During WWII 42:55

8M ago42:55

42:55

This week, I tell the inspiring stories of 6 women who served in the top secret British espionage and sabotage organization, the SOE, during World War II. In the late 1930s, Hitler's Nazi Germany quickly expanded throughout Europe, grabbing up country after country in its quest for world domination. When France finally fell to the Nazis in 1940, Br…

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Ep. 53 St. Patrick's Day: How This Irish Holiday Actually Got Its Start in America 31:14

8M ago31:14

31:14

This week, I discuss the history of Saint Patrick's Day including who Saint Patrick was, what he did, and how the modern holiday actually got its start with Irish immigrants living in America and not Ireland. This one is packed full of bombshells you won't want to miss! Sources: History.com "History of Saint Patrick's Day" History.com "How St. Patr…

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Ep. 52 The Great Hunger: Why the Irish Potato Famine Was a Completely Unnatural Disaster 44:03

8M ago44:03

44:03

In this episode, I discuss the centuries long toxic relationship between Ireland and England that led up to the devastation of the potato famine in 1845. During the 7 year period of "The Great Hunger," one million Irish people died and two million left Ireland. But while the blight that caused the potatoes to rot may be considered a natural disaste…

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Ep. 51 "A Common Life: A Voice From the Progressive Era" with Sue E. Burns 41:44

9M ago41:44

41:44

In this episode of History Fix I speak with Sue Burns about her book "A Common Life: A Voice From the Progressive Era." When Sue's great great grandmother's 100 year old diary was discovered disintegrating in an attic, she went to great lengths to help her mother preserve it. Then she took it even further, researching the historical context in whic…

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Ep. 50 Mary Richards: How a Black Female Spy Helped Bring Down the Confederacy 39:42

9M ago39:42

39:42

In this episode of History Fix, I bring you the story of Mary Richards and Elizabeth Van Lew, two women who worked together to feed Confederate secrets to Union forces during the American Civil War. These daring women put it all on the line, demonstrating exceptional bravery and above average intellect to do what they thought was right. At a time w…

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Ep. 49 Buffalo Soldiers: How America Forced Desperate Men to Do Its Dirty Work 33:23

9M ago33:23

33:23

In this episode of History Fix I discuss the history behind the Buffalo Soldiers mentioned in Bob Marley's hit 1983 song by the same name. Recruited just after the Civil War, these all Black army regiments were sent out west to claim land already inhabited by Indigenous Americans during the decades long "Plains Wars." Despite being forced by desper…

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Ep 48 Valentine's Day: How No One Really Knows Where This Holiday Even Came From 28:00

9M ago28:00

28:00

In this episode of History Fix, I unpack the history of Valentine's Day. Join me to discover more about the holiday's bizarre Roman roots (there are naked, drunk priests!), how no one really knows who Saint Valentine was or what he did, and who sent the first valentine and when. You'll also learn about Esther Howland, the 18th century Massachusetts…

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Ep. 47 Marie Laveau: How the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans helped to forge the city as we know it 45:19

10M ago45:19

45:19

This week on History Fix, I have a chat with New Orleans tour guide Tanya de Fazen to uncover the true story of the infamous "Queen of Voodoo" Marie Laveau. Get a look inside the culturally colorful and unique history that has made New Orleans a one of a kind city. Learn why Marie Laveau is closer to a saint than a witch and how her story got so tw…

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Ep. 46 Eugenics: How the Eugenics Movement Led to the Murder of 6 Million People 38:57

10M ago38:57

38:57

In this episode of History Fix, I reveal the dark history of the eugenics movement and how it led to the forced sterilization of over 60,000 Americans. I'll also reveal how American sterilization policies influenced similar policies enacted in Hitler's Nazi Germany that led to the forced sterilization of 400,000 Germans, the "euthanasia" of 250,000…

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Ep. 45 Rats: How Underrated Rodents Took Over the World 38:51

10M ago38:51

38:51

In this episode of History Fix, I discover how rats have impacted history. I'll go way back to uncover how the brown rat came to occupy every continent (except Antarctica) as well as how rats have impacted human health throughout history - their ties to the Bubonic plague and how they are used in medical and scientific testing today. Join me to lea…

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Ep. 44 Drowned Towns: How the US Has Strategically Flooded Historically Black Towns 43:26

10M ago43:26

43:26

In this episode of History Fix, I tell the stories of four historically Black towns that are now underwater: Oscarville, Georgia, Kowaliga (Benson), Alabama, Vanport, Oregon, and Seneca Village in New York City. We'll take a look at how and why these fledgling towns were destroyed and the ripple effect it's had on Black Americans even today. www.hi…

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Ep. 43 Mona Lisa: How a Boring Portrait of an Unknown Woman Became the Most Famous Painting In the World 38:13

10M ago38:13

38:13

This episode is all about the Mona Lisa. Who was Mona Lisa and how did her portrait become the most famous work of art, ever? How does everyone know her face but nothing at all about the woman herself? Join me to uncover the history behind the famous painting - the subject, the artist, and how it came to be so very famous. www.historyfixpodcast.com…

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Ep. 42 Y2K with Peter de Jager: How an Actual Threat Was Twisted Into a Comical "Hoax" 48:32

11M ago48:32

48:32

As the clocks ticked down to midnight on December 31st, 1999, as each final second of the last millennium slipped away, people all over the world collectively held their breath. If all the hype was to be believed, if the Y2K threats were real, their New Years merrymaking - the fireworks, the champagne, the confetti - might all come crashing down am…

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Ep. 41 Christmas: How a Specific Religious Event Exploded Into a Worldwide Phenomenon 40:43

11M ago40:43

40:43

In this episode, I explore the history of Christmas traditions including Santa Claus, stockings, and Christmas trees. I'll also uncover the pagan roots behind Christmas and examine how it has evolved from a religious holiday celebrating the birth of Christ to a secular day of excessive spending. Chances are you've been celebrating Christmas your en…

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Ep. 40 Iditarod: How Heroic Sled Dogs Saved the Children of Nome, Alaska 36:15

11M ago36:15

36:15

In this episode, I share how heroic sled dogs and their mushers achieved the impossible in 1925 to deliver a life saving serum to the children of Nome, Alaska. I'll recount their harrowing journey along the Iditerod Trail in subfreezing whiteout conditions and explore why one dog, Balto, seemed to get all the credit while the real hero of Nome, Tog…

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Ep. 39 Mayanism: How the 2012 Doomsday Debacle Stemmed From Centuries Old Racism 42:46

11M ago42:46

42:46

In this episode of History Fix, I explore the concept of "Mayanism" - the centuries old notion that the Maya were a mystical, lost civilization with abilities, knowledge, and powers that modern humans no longer possess. And how these beliefs were started by European conquistadors who couldn’t fathom that the Maya were possibly capable of their impr…

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