American History Hit

Just twenty years after independence, the United States fought a lesser-known war against the Barbary States of North Africa... some use the term 'Corsairs', others referred to them as 'Pirates'. But why was America there? How was diplomacy conducted during this time? And how did these conflicts help transform a fragile republic into an emerging naval power?Our guest today is Dr. Abby Mullen, professor at the United States Naval Academy. Her work includes hosting the ‘Consolation Prize’ podcast, and her book ‘To Fix a National Character: The United States in the First Barbary War, 1800–1805’, which won the ‘John R. Lyman Book Award’ in 2024.All opinions expressed here are Abby's, and not those of the US Naval Academy, US Department of Defense or the US Government.Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

This is one of the deadliest conflicts in North American History. But who was King Philip? What started the war? And how did it change history?Don is joined by Professor David Silverman from George Washington University to head back to the late 17th century.Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia in a deal that reshaped the map of North America... but what did that moment mean for the people already living there? In this episode, we explore Alaska before European contact, the rise of Russian colonial settlement, and eventually the American takeover.Our guest today is Professor Thomas Swensen at the University of Utah. He’s the author of Where Next, Columbus?: A Native Punk Mixtape and his new book, The Great Land: An Indigenous History of Alaska, will be published in October of 2026.Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

From being locked up in the Tower of London to founding the 5th most populous state in the country, and the city at the heart of the Revolution, today we are charting the unlikely rise of William Penn and the founding on Pennsylvania.Don is joined by Thomas Hamm, Emeritus Professor of History and Quaker Scholar in residence at Earlham College.Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

It was Robert E. Lee's greatest strategic triumph but it came at a heavy cost - the loss of his talismanic leader and friend Stonewall Jackson among thousands of Confederate casualties. Guiding Don Wildman through what happened back in 1863 is Dr Bradford Wineman. His new book is called 'Francis H. Smith, VMI, and the Rise of Southern Military Education'.Don's new documentary on Fort Laramie is available to watch now for all History Hit subscribers. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

What if we told you that puritans were actually sex-crazed? Well maybe not crazed but definitely not opposed to it.What if we told you that, actually, the entire mainstream belief of puritans being bound to strict moral and religious codes isn't totally true?In this episode of American History Hit, Don is joined by Lori Rogers-Stokes to answer some of the big questions. Did the Puritans really wear all black? What's the difference between a Puritan and a Pilgrim? And was anyone ever marked with a scarlet letter?Lori is an independent scholar, public historian, and contributing editor for New England’s Hidden Histories. She is the author of two books on the Puritans: 'Records of Trial from Thomas Shepard’s Church in Cambridge, 1638–49: Heroic Souls', and 'Gathered into a Church: Indigenous-English Congregationalism in Woodland New England'.Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

During the Revolutionary War a vital web of intelligence was established, with General Washington at its head. Operating through coded letters, hidden signals, and a chain of ordinary civilians turned spies, their secrecy and precision proved that even the quietest network could alter the course of a revolution.Our guest today is Dr. Alexander Rose, historian and author of Washington's Spies: The Story of America's First Spy Ring, was adapted into the AMC period drama series, Turn: Washington’s Spies.Don's new documentary on Fort Laramie is available to watch now for all History Hit subscribers. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

Geronimo's name is famous across the world: the Apache warrior who led a resistance movement against the United States out in the South West for years...But what happened to Geronimo (or Goyaałé) that led to his campaign of resistance? Why did the US and Mexico feel like they had to bring him down? And how did his story end?Our guest today is Dr. Veronica Tiller, a writer of Native American History and editor & publisher of the award-winning economic reference guide Tiller’s Guide to Indian Country. Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Hannah Feodorov. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.

From fur traders to rulers of the New York social scene - how did the Astors rise to the top? What did it mean to be 'Old Money' in the Gilded Age? And where did that power go?Don is joined by New York Times best-selling historian and novelist, Katherine Howe. From the Titanic, to the slums of New York, to the penthouse of the Waldorf Astoria, Katherine today guides us through a family story like no other.Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  All music from Epidemic Sounds.American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.