Amazing Tales About History

One-room schoolhouses. A simpler time? No outhouses, poor ventilation and lighting, no insulation, and no drinking wells. Girls couldn't expose their ankles under their skirts and students had to carry firewood from home. Still, they served us for 200 years.

Putnam Park in Redding, CT, is called CT’s Valley Forge. 3,000 Patriot soldiers spent the winter of 1778 there, protecting Hudson River to Long Island Sound. Low pay and insufficient food and clothing led to a mutiny action and desertions. Two gruesome executions would follow, to teach the troops a lesson.

The first American unit to undertake a cavalry charge in combat was the Second Light Dragoons. They also started the Pony Express and the infamous Culper Spy Ring around New York City, while providing security for George Washington throughout the war, often riding at up to 40 miles an hour.

Ella Grasso. She was self-made in a man's political world at the time. She became the first female elected in her own right to a governorship in U.S. history, rising from a home of Italian immigrants where only broken English was spoken at home. A terminal illness ended her outstanding career.

Today, we drive by LED road signs. In the Colonial era, there were slabs of stone planted each mile by the side of the road. In-scripted on them: the abbreviation for the County seat and Roman Numerals to show how many miles were still to go. There were 600. Now, just 150 or so.

Eastern MA and CT hold acreage that's half the size of Grand Canyon Park that's still 85% undeveloped, with hiking, open space, bald eagles, and historic villages. The Last Green Valley is a designated National Heritage Corridor. On nighttime satellite photos, it's the only dark spot between Washington, D.C. and Boston.

William Campbell is the only British soldier during the Revolutionary War who was buried by Americans with honors. A monument and dedicated parcel of land includes the Union Jack flag flying next to his grave. Why was he honored right after 3,000 British soldiers had committed numerous atrocities during their raid?

Nuclear missiles hidden in silos in three towns without residents' knowledge, underground buildings built on springs to withstand shaking from nuclear blasts, an Army train moving highly radioactive nuclear material past elementary schools. Just some military activities from the 1950-60s.

More than a century of top aviation contributions. The first helicopter, leading jet engines, a famous air balloonist, and possibly the first to fly (earlier than the Wright brothers). Connecticut's offerings to aerospace have been enormous.

Stagecoaches were the main mode of transportation for 50 years, starting in the late 1700s, until trains came along. Stagecoach routes followed the early dirt turnpikes, delivering people and mail around the Colonies. They were cramped, bumpy, and subject to frequent breakdown.

Four trains collided with each other within 10 minutes in 1891, setting a record in U.S. history. Aside from the death, injuries and property damage, a railroad engineer's premonition of tragedy saved his life when he declined to work that day.

Imagine that you're renovating the dirt floor in your basement. You're trying to make it level. Instead, you uncover a skeleton. And then another. In all, four skeletons. And now, the state archeologist is knocking on your door because you've found the remains of Revolutionary War soldiers.

They could have gone undiscovered. Thousands of dinosaur tracks. Hidden beneath layers of compacted dirt. Uncovered by an alert backhoe operator. He saw three-toed prints and stopped his machine. The find was one of the largest in the eastern U.S.

It used to be a copper mine. Then, Newgate Prison in East Granby, CT. Revolutionary War captives were held there. Inmates were lowered 40 feet into damp, dark caverns. Many escaped through rear tunnels. Some climbed back out at night. And you can still experience those conditions today.

When you drop a pickle on the floor, it should bounce a little bit, right? If it doesn't, is it illegal? In Connecticut, this became an issue. In 1948, two men were arrested when their pickles didn’t bounce. It's not the only unusual law.

The British primarily attacked coastal towns in the Revolutionary War. Their superior navy overwhelmed communities. The one time they came inland in CT, they faced stiff opposition. Benedict Arnold took part in the Battle of Ridgefield. This forgotten encounter was significant in the war's development.

Sherlock Holmes. "Elementary my dear Watson." His trademark hat and pipe. These trademarks were created by CT stage actor William Gillette. He built a castle on a hill, which you can visit. One of the most iconic and mysterious homes you'll ever see.

They say some of Captain Kidd’s loot is buried there. But, watch out for the curse. At low tide, a magical sandbar appears allowing you to walk to Charles Island from shore. When the tide returns though, you're trapped. Did the curse burn the island's resort? Or kill a number of swimmers near the sandbar?

The Civil War wasn't just fought in the south. People in the north disagreed about the sense of fighting our countrymen in the south. Why not let them have slaves and maintain the Union? The other side: because slavery is wrong. When one argument got out of control, the Battle of Charcoal Run occurred.

It’s considered southern New England's worst natural disaster. Three storms - hurricanes and tropical storms; two in one week and the third two months later. Some communities were flooded twice. Mind-boggling flood waters. 80 deaths, thousands injured, billions in damage (in 1955 dollars) in CT, MA, and RI.

The Moravian sect is the oldest Protestant religion. They sent missionaries in the 1700s to convert Native Americans to Christianity. Over 15 years, they converted several dozen. In fact, their main preacher was so revered that Native Americans buried him on their land, an honor.

Minerals and gemstones. Highly profitable rock formations have been unearthed across CT. It's where the first gold strike occurred east of the Mississippi River. Iron deposits led to the first cannon balls. One mine supplied the granite for the Statue of Liberty, Grand Central Station, and the Brooklyn Bridge.

Grave robbing is rare today. It was common in the 1800s. Stealing valuables buried with the dead occurred. So did the removal of recently-buried corpses - used by medical institutions to learn more about the human body. One notorious case involved Yale University. Finally, the practice had to be outlawed.

Mass murders are common today. In the 1700s, they were unheard of in Colonial America. Until the case of Barnett Davenport. He brutally murdered 5 people in a farmhouse. As grisly as the murders were, so was the manner in which capital punishment was carried out in those days.

When the Hubble space telescope first sent back photos, NASA called it the single most important contribution to outer space knowledge since Galileo. It was the first telescope sent beyond the “waviness” of Earth’s atmosphere, giving crystal clear views. Building it was a monumental challenge.

International opera superstar Marian Anderson. Best remembered for singing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. She had been barred from singing in 1939 at Constitution Hall because she was Black. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt made sure Anderson would be heard.

The border between Massachusetts and Connecticut is straight. The King of England declared that in a charter issued in 1642. So where did the notch in the border come from, which juts into Connecticut? There's 160-years' worth of disputes about this one-square-mile of territory.

Trivia at a sports bar: who were the Hartford Blues? Most people can't answer correctly. They were the first and only pro football team based in Connecticut. They were part of the official National Football League and even played the New York Giants.

It's an old story. An industry comes to town, builds a factory, employs hundreds, and then closes - often leaving pollution that's expensive to clean up. The Gilbert & Bennett Company is the epitome of this story. In fact, they're were even featured in the movie "Other People's Money" about such situations.

There was a time when a man didn't venture out without a hat. He wouldn’t have been completely dressed otherwise. What killed the hatting industry? Many people say it was President John Kennedy. He didn't wear a top hat to his inauguration in 1961. Is that what really happened?

It was a hot, humid July afternoon in 1944. Families flocked to the Barnum & Bailey circus in Hartford. Fire somehow lit the tent of the main grandstand. It went up breathtakingly fast. 186 patrons killed. Mostly women and children. The worst circus fire in U.S. history. Who started it?

Charles Ives. Cacophony (discordant music). The two go together. Ives created sounds and symphonies way ahead of their time. It took the public several decades to appreciate his genius. Now, he's considered a composing giant. Did you know he was also a standout baseball player and started estate planning?

In part two of this two-part series, we learn of P.T. Barnum's successful career - the American Museum where we made the bulk of his fortune, the circus, Jumbo the elephant, and how overcoming multiple fire tragedies played an unusually strong role in his life.

You know that P.T. Barnum ran a famous circus. But, do you know about his childhood? He learned some critically important life lessons growing up that would prepare him for the incredible fame and fortune that would follow. Part one of a two-part series examines his early years.

Humorist Samuel Clemens actually faced several depressing tragedies. In part two of this two-part series, we'll cover some of those tragedies during his last two years of life in Redding, Connecticut, culminating in his own death at his famous mansion Stormfield.

Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) spent 25% of his life in Connecticut, including his last two years in Redding. In part one of this two-part series, we'll hear rare stories about those years. Included: the background of his famous house Stormfield and his friend Helen Keller.

July 7, 1977. The deadliest fire at a U.S. federal prison. Five inmates died and 70 were injured when deadly fumes overcame them at night as they were locked in a dormitory at the Danbury, Connecticut Federal Prison. Some of the lucky escapees helped fight the inferno and save their fellow prisoners.

In part two of this two-part series, we hear the inside story of why the Great Danbury State Fair in Connecticut really closed. The backroom deal was heartbreaking for many. A shopping mall would end the longest-running state fair in U.S. history after 122 years - and a key player was not privy to the discussions.

It was the longest running state fair in U.S. history. After 112 years, the Great Danbury State Fair closed in the 1980s – to make way for a shopping mall. In part one of this two-part series, we'll hear how this incredible enterprise began.

It was a horrific disaster. Two earthen dams, built in the 1800s, collapsed. It sent 140 million gallons of water barreling down into Danbury, Connecticut. The tragic deaths and mind-numbing property damage that it caused devastated the city - and worried reservoir managers nationwide about the safety of relatively new earthen dams.

Outdoor theater. Beautiful for the audience. Challenges galore for the staff. One operation has been at it for 37 straight summers. The actors and director share their tales about the challenges, mishaps, and pure satisfaction of outdoor theater.

They're an institution. Grange Halls are where agricultural communities gather to socialize and swap farming tips. As farming continues to cease in the northeast, the future of The Grange faces challenges. Their evolution into providing broad community support may be the key to their future.

It's been a primary U.S. food source for centuries. Native Americans cultivated the Eastern Oyster from Long Island Sound. European settlers did the same. New Haven, Connecticut was once the Oyster Capital of the World. Today, oyster harvesting is challenged by pollution, but aqua-culture is making inroads.

Arlo Guthrie's ballad Alice's Restaurant. The anti-Vietnam War folk song focused on a Massachusetts restaurant owner named Alice, and the arrest of Guthrie and a friend for littering after throwing debris from her house in a ravine on Thanksgiving Day. In this episode, an interview with the late Alice Brock.

The Sandemanian religious order was active for 200 years in Europe and the U.S., before going extinct. Congregants were known as “kissites” for their nearly hippie-like practices at services. Yet, they produced many successful businessmen during the 1700-1800s.

It was one of the most gruesome murder stories in history. The movie Fargo based its notorious murder scene on the case. A Connecticut man murdered his wife and then placed her body through a wood chipper. The case was solved with meticulous forensic work and a dedicated private eye.

French Commander Rochambeau marched 680 miles from Newport, Rhode Island to Yorktown, Virginia with his 5,000-troop army to help America win its revolution. Along the way, George Washington had to make an unbelievably important military decision – without sufficient information – that literally changed the course of history.

It’s called The Rochambeau Trail. 680 miles from Newport, Rhode Island to Yorktown, Virginia. French General Rochambeau marched his 5,000 troops to help George Washington's Patriot Army beat the British in the Revolutionary War. The logistics of this march were complex, as were France's reasons for helping America.

Monopolies. Under the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, they're supposed to be illegal. What about unions? Do they monopolize the labor they represent? This novel legal argument went to the Supreme Court in the early 1900s. A hat factory owner said he should be able to sue the union for damages.

Jonas Salk developed the polio vaccine. What would he think about today's arguments over vaccines? His nephew, Eric Salk, is an emergency room doctor. He knew his uncle and shares his recollections of him, his famous family, and thoughts on the anti-vaccine movement.