History Notes
By Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective
Check out origins.osu.edu for the written versions of these podcasts and more!
History NotesSep 07, 2023
The Remarkable Life of Robert Smalls
In the early morning of May 13, 1862, several enslaved crewmembers of the Confederate steamer CSS Planter boarded the vessel along with their families. Taking advantage of the fact that their white officers had left the ship against regulations, they successfully maneuvered the ship through the Charleston harbor, past Confederate fortifications, and to the Union fleet blockading the city. The architect of this daring escape to freedom was Robert Smalls, whose leadership and courage would go on to make him important to the Union war effort and, afterwards, one of the most influential Black political leaders of the 19th century. Written by Paul McAllister. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Textual and video versions of this podcast are available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/remarkable-life-robert-smalls. Podcast and video production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Japan’s Meiji Restoration
Japan’s Meiji Restoration, or Meiji Ishin, occurred on January 3, 1868, and marked the return of the Japanese emperor to a position of power for the first time in more than 500 years.
Written by Tristan Grunow. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Video and textual versions of this video are available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/japans-meiji-restoration. Video production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The World Conference on Women: 1975 Mexico City
In 1975, the first United Nations World Conference on Women took place between 19 June and 2 July in Mexico City, bringing together individuals from a wide range of backgrounds with the goal of promoting gender equality. The World Conference of Women (WCW) was the capstone event of International Women’s Year, the UN’s response to the transnational women’s liberation movement sweeping the globe.
Written by Gisel Valladares. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Textual and video versions of this podcast are available at https://origins.osu.edu/connecting-history/world-conference-women-mexico-city. Audio production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to this channel to receive updates about our podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The 19th Amendment: Women's Right to Vote
The Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified on August 18, 1920, stating “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Written by By Maxine Wagenhoffer. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio and video production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Textual and video versions of this podcast are available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/nineteenth-amendment-womens-suffrage. This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Beatles, Rock, and Race in America
After John, Paul, George and Ringo brought the British Invasion across the Atlantic, rock and roll saw a resurgence that helped cement what many people called “race music” as a core part of American identity.
Written by Karen Robertson. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Laura Seeger, Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle, and Cody Patton. Textual and video versions of this podcast are available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/february-2014-50-years-ago-beatles-rock-and-race-america.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Stonewall and the Unfinished Gay Revolution
On June 28th, 1969 a belligerent and diverse crowd led an uprising at New York’s Stonewall Inn. The event has become iconic in popular memory as the spark for a new radical lesbian and gay activism.
Written by Marc Arenberg. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Podcast production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Textual and video versions of this podcast are available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/june-2019-stonewall-fifty-unfinished-gay-revolution-riot.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Sterilization of Carrie Buck
Among the many states with eugenics legislation, Virginia is infamous for its legal campaign to forcibly sterilize Carrie Buck in 1927 and thereby entrench sterilization abuse as the law of the land.
Written by Alexandra Fair. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Podcast production by Laura Seeger, Cody Patton, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A video and textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/sterilization-carrie-buck.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Boston Massacre
The “Boston Massacre,” was a turning-point in relations between American colonists and British authorities, and provided one of the sparks that would ignite the American Revolution.
Written by Michael Kraemer. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Video production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/boston-massacre-american-revolutionary-war
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Dawes Act
The 1887 passage of the Dawes Act upended this system of communal land ownership and, in doing so, struck a historic blow at Native Americans’ political rights, economic sufficiency, and cultural heritage.
Written by John Bickers. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Video production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/dawes-act.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Cossacks, Ukraine’s Paradigmatic Warriors
The Zaporozhian Cossacks were a daring and fearsome people of the fifteenth through eighteenth centuries whose adventures fill Ukrainian lore and inspire an enduring Ukrainian spirit of independence and daring.
Written by Alisa Ballard Lin. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Video production by Svetlana Ter-Grigoryan, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/cossacks-ukraines-paradigmatic-warriors
Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Religious Roots of the War in Ukraine
Many observers have been surprised that this war has a religious dimension. Yet its roots lie in the intertwined but separate religious histories of Ukraine and Russia.
Written by Heather J. Coleman. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Svetlana Ter-Grigoryan, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Textual and video versions of this podcast are available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/religious-roots-war-ukraine.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Kent State Massacre
Just past noon on Monday May 4, 1970, a squadron of Ohio National Guardsmen opened fire at a loose collection of students gathered across an expanse of leafy lawns and campus parking lots at Kent State University in northeastern Ohio. Four students were killed. Nine others were wounded. With that, the forces of order in the United States had launched a shooting war against their own children.
Written by David Steigerwald. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/kent-state-shooting-massacre-vietnam-student-protests
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
November 11, 1918: The End of World War I?
On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, the Armistice went into effect, silencing the guns of the Western Front and ending the First World War. Or so the story goes. But when did the First World War end? November 11, 1918? June 28, 1919? Or was it later?
Written by Julie M. Powell. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available here.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans, 1962
Andy Warhol’s 32 Campbell’s Soup Cans have become a canonical symbol of American Pop Art. Warhol, an American commercial illustrator from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania turned fine artist, author, publisher, painter, and film director, first showed the work on July 9, 1962 in the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles, California. It was his first solo exhibition.
Written by Brenna Miller. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available here.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Captain America: Changing Conscience of a Nation
Created by writer Joe Simon and artist Jack Kirby in the eponymous Captain America Comics #1, the patriotic hero became a breakout star for Timely Comics.
Written by R. Joseph Parrott. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Video production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/captain-america-changing-conscience-nation.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
“No Victor and No Vanquished” - The Biafran War
Barely three years after independence from British colonial rule, Nigeria, the most populous nation in Africa, collapsed into a civil war.
Written and narrated by Ousman Murzik Kobo. Audio production by Svetlana Ter-Grigoryan, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/nigerian-civil-war-biafra-anniversary.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Guatemala Inoculation Experiments
Between 1946-1948, around 1,500 people in Guatemala—including prisoners, soldiers, prostitutes, psychiatric patients, and children—were enrolled without consent in unethical studies related to the testing and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including syphilis, gonorrhea and chancroid.
Written by Lydia Dixon. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/june-2016-guatemala-inoculation-experiments.
The Suez Crisis (1956)
In July 1956, the international order was disrupted by the Suez Crisis, a complicated imbroglio marked by the intersection of European decolonization, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the Cold War, and the growth of U.S. power.
Written by Peter Hahn. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Video production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/suez-crisis-1956.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Nature of World War II
World War II was a total war—a mobilization of nearly all human and natural resources. That meant it was also a war that shaped and was shaped by nature.
Written by Thomas B. Robertson. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/connecting-history/nature-world-war-ii-operation-husky-environmentalism-defense-industry
West Ukraine's War Stories: A New Chapter?
The region of western Ukraine makes up just a small percentage of the territory and population of present-day Ukraine, but has historically played an outsized role in the 20th century struggles for control of eastern Europe.
Written by Kathryn David. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Svetlana Ter-Grigoryan, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/west-ukraines-war-stories-new-chapter.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit https://origins.osu.edu.
Fly Me to the Moon
On July 21, 1969, American astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human being to set foot on an entirely different world. His famous words crackled across 238,900 miles of space and electrified those listening back home on Earth: “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Written by Lisa Ruth Rand. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger, and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/apollo-11-moon-landing-Armstrong-Aldrin-1969-mars.
The Second Opium War
The Second Opium War not only forced that narcotic drug deep into China’s politics, public health, and economics but also cemented the country’s status as both a prize and a battleground for Euro-American imperialist powers.
Written by Miriam Kingsberg Kadia. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Svetlana Ter-Grigoryan, Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/second-opium-war.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Liu Bang, from Peasant Rebel to Emperor
It is undeniable that some individuals do change the course of history through sheer force of will – not to mention a remarkable degree of luck. Such a person was Liu Bang, who rose from obscurity to be crowned emperor of China 2215 years ago on the 28th of February, 202 BCE.
Written by Benjamin Breen. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/february-2013-liu-bang-peasant-rebel-emperor
Süleyman the Magnificent
Süleyman, who would be known to the west as “the Magnificent,” began his reign as sultan of the Ottoman Empire in September 1520.
Written by Colin Jude Murtha. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/suleyman-suleiman-the-magnificent-ottoman-empire
Audio production by Cody Patton, Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, and Facebook: @Origins OSU
The Greek Civil War, 1946–1949
When the Second World War (WWII) ended in 1945 and the rest of Europe was beginning to rebuild itself, Greece entered into a second war, more vicious than that fought against the Axis powers. Written by Amikam Nachmani. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. The author dedicates this video in memory of Prof. Andre Gerolymatos (1951-2019).
A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/march-2016-greek-civil-war-1946-1949.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu. Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, and Facebook: @Origins OSU
The Bangladesh Liberation War
December 16, 1971 marked the end of the Bangladesh Liberation War, a short-lived conflict between India and Pakistan that established the People’s Republic of Bangladesh from the territory of the former province of East Pakistan.
Written by Eric A. Strahorn. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/bangladesh-liberation-war.
Video production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Remembering Rachel Carson’s "Silent Spring"
Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring shocked the American public when it was published in the summer of 1962. Carson hooked readers by describing a fictional town where spring no longer marked the singing of birds, the buzzing of bees, or the laughter of children.
Written by Cody Patton. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/world-drenched-pesticides-rachel-carson-silent-spring.
Ukrainian Architecture at war
Architecture is a way of understanding the world: recording its history, sharing its culture, and connecting with people. We need to consider Ukraine’s architecture during war first and foremost because it is important to the Ukrainian people. Ukrainians are not only fighting for the right to live on their territory, they are fighting to preserve their heritage and collective memory.
Written and narrated by Ashley Bigham. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/ukrainian-architecture-war.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
For more information about the Co-Haty Project, please visit https://www.metalab.space/co-haty-ukr
Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, and Facebook: @Origins OSU
The Bataan Death March
Although Americans today may take the tactical and operational brilliance of their military forces for granted, such has not always been the case. Perhaps no historical event illustrates the potential disaster awaiting military forces put in a hopeless strategic situation than the fall of the Philippines in the spring of 1942.
Written by Peter Mansoor. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/april-2017-bataan-death-march.
Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, Facebook: @Origins OSU and Tumblr: at osuorigins.tumblr.com.
Ukrainian Theater on the Soviet Stage
On a summer day in August 1920, in the middle of war, a group of Ukrainians performed Macbeth. In these wartime conditions, they did a play about the murder of a king and the ensuing chaos and devastation, painfully relevant to all audiences who had endured not only World War I, but also the fierce battles for control of this region after the Romanov and Habsburg empires collapsed. Audiences and artists knew uncertainty, violence, and pain.
Written by Mayhill Fowler. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/ukrainian-theater-soviet-stage.
Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, Facebook: @Origins OSU and Tumblr: at osuorigins.tumblr.com.
The Fall of Tenochtitlan
The war cost tens of thousands of lives, civilian and warrior alike. It was a war of atrocity, massacre, and systematic violence. By the end, a few thousand Spaniards under the command of Hernando Cortés fighting alongside many times more Indigenous warriors from places like Tlaxcala and Huexotzinco had destroyed one of the greatest cities of the early modern world, the seat of the Aztec Empire.
Written by Diego Javier Luis. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Video production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/fall-tenochtitlan. Video production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, Facebook: @Origins OSU and Tumblr: at osuorigins.tumblr.com.
Taras Shevchenko, Poet of Ukraine
When Ukrainian troops liberated the town of Borodyanka from Russian occupation in early April, 2022 they discovered the damage done to its Taras Shevchenko monument. Bullets had hit the great poet’s forehead. The pillar holding him up had been damaged by shells. The symbolism of the Russian attack on the monument was obvious. Taras Shevchenko is not just the founder of the modern Ukrainian literary language, he is also the most important symbol of modern Ukrainian nationhood.
Written by Stephen M. Norris. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/taras-sh....
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Ukraine in War and Revolution
The decade of war and revolution between 1914 and 1924 is critical for understanding both Russian and Ukrainian statehood up to the present day.
Written by Joshua A. Sanborn. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/ukraine-war-and-revolution.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Soviet Ukraine in a Nutshell
When the Russian Empire collapsed in 1917 during World War I, the lands of today’s Ukraine became a battleground of violence and instability until 1922. Multiple communities of former tsarist imperial subjects imagined the future in radically different ways.
Written by Mayhill Fowler. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at origins.osu.edu/read/soviet-ukraine-nutshell
Heroes Never Die: The Legacies of Euromaidan
Emily Channell-Justice explores the goals and lived experiences of Ukraine’s watershed Euromaidan protests of 2013-14. The dreams, values, and actions of Maidan’s heroes remain a driving force in Ukraine’s perseverance today, and they will empower Ukrainians to rebuild their country after the war.
Written and narrated by Emily Channell-Justice. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/heroes-never-die-ukraine.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Origins of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein"
On January 1st, 1818, Mary Shelley, at age nineteen, published the gothic novel Frankenstein. The novel dramatizes the clash of two cultures—the Enlightenment that celebrated reason and science and the Romantic age that celebrated passion and art. Our video highlights how Mary Shelley's family and those around her influenced her creation of the novel.
Written by Stephen Kern. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/march-2018-mary-shelleys-frankenstein.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Ukraine: The Breadbasket of Europe
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine has returned to its pre-revolutionary position as a major agricultural exporter of key commodities. With Russia currently controlling a large portion of Ukraine’s cultivated agricultural land in the south, as well as blockading ports on the Black Sea, a significant amount of grain for export is stranded in Ukraine.
Written by Ian M. Sheldon. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/ukraine-food-war-agriculture.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Rus Not Russia
The Russian government’s rationale for the war in Ukraine is not about oil, coal, or natural resources. It is about asserting specious historical claims. However, It is important to understand the history of Rus to place this conflict in its proper historical context.
Written by Christian Raffensperger. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/read/kyiv-rus-ukraine-russia.
The Murdered Churchwomen in El Salvador
On December 2, 1980, four churchwomen—Maryknoll Sisters Maura Clarke and Ita Ford, Ursuline Sister Dorothy Kazel, and lay missionary Jean Donovan—became victims of escalating violence toward church members who sided with the poor in El Salvador.
Written by Stephanie M. Huezo. Narration by Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Textual and video versions of this podcast are available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/murdered-churchwomen-el-salvador.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
The Tour de France and The Yellow Jersey
In 1919, Eugene Christophe was awarded the first yellow jersey, but he did not win the Tour de France that year. Learn about the history of the yellow jersey and why it was adopted as a symbol of the race. [Correction: As of 2022, France has held 7 races solely in France since 1947.]
Written by Darcy Benson. Narration by Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/watch/tour-de-france-and-yellow-jersey
Magellan and Elcano: The First Circumnavigation of the Earth
On September 20, 1519, five ships carrying about 270 men sailed westward from the Spanish port of Sanlúcar de Barrameda. Their goal was to reach the Spice Islands of Maluku and open a new trading route for Spain.
Written by Dani Anthony. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available athttps://origins.osu.edu/milestones/magellan-circumnavigation-earth.
Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our videos and podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
Copernicus, Galileo, and the Catholic Church
In February-March 1616, the Catholic Church issued a prohibition against the Copernican theory of the earth’s motion. This led later (1633) to the Inquisition trial and condemnation of Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) as a suspected heretic.
Written by Maurice A. Finocchiaro. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/february-2016-400-years-ago-catholic-church-prohibited-copernicanism.
Gavrilo Princip and the Beginning of World War I
On June 28, 1914, one event changed the world. A Bosnian-Serb youth Gavrilo Princip, aged only 19, shot and killed the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir apparent to the Austrian throne, and his wife Sophie as their motorcade passed by on the streets of Sarajevo.
Written by Brenna Miller. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/june-2014-assassin-s-shadow-beginning-world-war-i-and-legacy-gavrilo-princip.
Bombing Hiroshima
The atomic age began between heartbeats at 8:15 am on August 6, 1945 when the Japanese city of Hiroshima was leveled by an atomic bomb. Three days later, the United States dropped a second bomb on Nagasaki, marking the first time humanity broke atoms in anger.
Written by Craig Nelson. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/august-2015-hiroshima.
Mendeleev's Periodic Table
In March 1869, Mendeleev delivered a full paper to the Russian Chemical Society spelling out the most significant aspect of his system, that characteristics of the elements recur at a periodic interval as a function of their atomic weight. This was the first iteration of the periodic law. Come along with us as we explore the history of the periodic table of elements.
Written by Ann E. Robinson. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. A textual version of this is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/mendeleev-periodic-table-UN-chemistry-radioactivity-noble-gases.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit origins.osu.edu.
COVID, the New Deal, and the Importance of Leadership
The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated the United States—and the world—in ways that hearken back to the Great Depression of the 1930s. In this country, in 1933, 25 percent of the workforce was unemployed, another 25 percent underemployed. We haven’t reached those figures yet, but there’s a very real possibility we may arrive there soon.
Written by Allan M. Winkler. Narration by Nicholas Breyfogle. Audio Editing by Laura Seeger. The Origins' editorial team includes: Editors Nicholas Breyfogle, Steven Conn and David Steigerwald; Managing Editors Cameron Givens, Damarius Johnson, and Brionna Mendoza; Copyeditor Sarah Brady Siff; Article Layout Kristin Osborne; and Video Production Specialist Laura Seeger.
A textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/connecting-history/covid-new-deal-economy-leadership
This content is made possible, in part, by Ohio Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this content do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
We thank the Stanton Foundation for their funding of this and other Origins projects. http://thestantonfoundation.org/
Early American Contagions
Epidemics figure prominently in what we call “Early” American history—a past often animated by the meeting between Africans, Native Americans, and Europeans in the Americas. The idea that diseases such as smallpox, measles, typhus, and influenza decimated Indigenous communities in the Americas is a commonly held one. Like so many of our popular conceptions of Early American history, however, this simple narrative obscures a great deal.
Written by Cameron Shriver. Narration by Nicholas Breyfogle. A text version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/connecting-history/covid-smallpox-colonialism-native-american. Audio editing by Laura Seeger. Audio production by Paul Kotheimer, College of Arts & Sciences Academic Technology Services. The Origins' editorial team includes: Editors Nicholas Breyfogle, Steven Conn and David Steigerwald; Managing Editors Cameron Givens, Damarius Johnson, and Brionna Mendoza; Copyeditor Sarah Brady Siff; Article Layout Kristin Osborne; and Video Production Specialist Laura Seeger.
This content is made possible, in part, by Ohio Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this content do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
We thank the Stanton Foundation for their funding of this and other Origins projects. http://thestantonfoundation.org/
The People Power Revolution, Philippines 1986
From February 22 to 25, 1986, hundreds of thousands of Filipinos gathered on Epifanio de los Santos Avenue to protest President Ferdinand Marcos and his claim that he had won re-election over Corazon Aquino. Find out more about the People Power Revolution in the Philippines in this piece written by Mark John Sanchez.
Narration by Nicholas Breyfogle. A textural version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/people-power-revolution-philippines-1986
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit http://origins.osu.edu.
We thank the Stanton Foundation for their funding of this and other Origins projects. http://thestantonfoundation.org/
Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, Facebook: @Origins OSU and Tumblr: at osuorigins.tumblr.com.
The Death of Franco
On 20 November 1975, Spanish General Francisco Franco died in bed, signaling the unceremonious end of one of Europe’s longest dictatorships (1939-1975).
Written by Andrea Davis. Narrated by Nicholas Breyfogle. A textual version of this podcast is available at https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/death-franco-spanish-civil-war
What HIV Teaches Us: The Need for Affordable Health Care
Written by Erin V. Moore. Narration by Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle.
A textual version of this video is available at https://origins.osu.edu/connecting-history/hiv-covid-affordable-health-care-lessons.
This is a production of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective at the Goldberg Center in the Department of History at The Ohio State University and the Department of History at Miami University. Be sure to subscribe to our channel to receive updates about our podcasts. For more information about Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, please visit http://origins.osu.edu.
Production by Laura Seeger and Dr. Nicholas B. Breyfogle. Audio production by Paul Kotheimer, College of Arts & Sciences Academic Technology Services. The Origins' editorial team includes Editors Nicholas Breyfogle, Steven Conn and David Steigerwald; Managing Editor Brionna Mendoza
This content is made possible, in part, by Ohio Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this content do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
We thank the Stanton Foundation for their funding of this and other Origins projects. http://thestantonfoundation.org/
Follow us on Twitter: @HistoryTalkPod, @ProloguedPod and @OriginsOSU, Facebook: @Origins OSU and Tumblr: at osuorigins.tumblr.com.