History Dispatches

History Dispatches

History Dispatches is a daily history show hosted by father and son duo Matt and McKinley Breen. The show covers people, places, events and even objects from throughout history. While any topic is fair game, Matt and McKinley hold a soft spot for the offbeat and wacky stories that most people don’t know about.

Episodes

Lascaux Cave

November 20, 2025 • 13 mins
In September of 1940, near Montignac, France, an 18-year old boy and his dog went to investigate a hole left by an uprooted tree. What they found was a network of caves - hidden from the world for 20,000 years. These caves feature some of the most magnificent pre-historic art that exists in the world today. This is the story of the Lascaux cave. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lascaux https://lascaux-ii.fr/en/ https:/...
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Concord Video Game Flop

November 19, 2025 • 18 mins
In 2024, the video game Concord released to the public after eight years of development and hundreds of millions of dollars spent. After release it would stay online for just two weeks, becoming one of the biggest flops in not just video game history, but any entertainment medium. Sources https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultassi/2025/08/23/a-year-ago-concord-had-the-worst-video-game-launch-of-all-time/ https://www.theverge.c...
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Nellie Bly

November 18, 2025 • 17 mins
In the late 1800s, a young woman from Pennsylvania arrived in New York City with dreams of being a news reporter. It took her four months to land her first assignment - a shattering undercover expose of the city’s mental institution for women. Many more adventures would follow, and the woman, Nellie Bly, would go on to become one of the nation’s most famous reporters. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nellie_Bly "Eight...
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William Buckley - The Wild Man of the Australian Wilderness

November 17, 2025 • 16 mins
After being wrongly accused and sentenced to prison, William Buckley managed to make a daring escape. He slipped into the Australian wilderness, and was saved by several Australian Aboriginal tribes. He spent the next 32 years among them, before returning to British society. This is the story of William Buckley. Sources https://ergo.slv.vic.gov.au/explore-history/colonial-melbourne/convicts/william-buckleys-escape https://ad...
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Resolute Desk

November 14, 2025 • 18 mins
The Resolute Desk has been used by American Presidents since 1880, and resided in the Oval Office for nearly 50 years. So, where did this stout wooden desk come from? And where did it get its formidable name? You might be surprised that all those answers rest with a British exploration vessel from the 1850s. This is the story of the Resolute Desk. Sources https://www.whitehousehistory.org/photos/treasures-of-the-white-house-r...
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Joan Anderson - The Hula Hoop Queen

November 13, 2025 • 13 mins
In the mid 1950s, Australian-born Joan Anderson brought back an innocuous bamboo hoop from her home country to the United States. She would dub it the hula hoop, and present it to a major toy manufacturer. What followed was the hula hoop craze. Unfortunately, she did not see a single penny from the wildly popular toy. This is the story of Joan Anderson and the Hula Hoop. Sources https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6J32JLRNOk ht...
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Vikings of Greenland

November 12, 2025 • 20 mins
In 982 AD, Vikings came to Greenland. Several colonies were established, and for more than 400 years there was a Scandinavian presence on the island. But then, there was silence. And when Europeans finally returned - they found nothing but the ruins of farmhouses and churches. This is the story of the Vikings of Greenland. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norse_settlements_in_Greenland https://medium.com/a-maverick-trav...
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John Basilone

November 11, 2025 • 22 mins
John Basilone served in the United States Army, then enlist in the Marine Corps just before the outbreak of WWII. He earned a Medal of Honor on Guadalcanal, conducted war bond tours stateside, and gave his life on Iwo Jima. This is the story of John Basilone - perhaps the greatest United States Marine to ever where the uniform. Sources https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-2005-11-18/pdf/CREC-2005-11-18-pt1-PgS13334-2.pdf ...
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Blarney Stone

November 10, 2025 • 16 mins
By kissing the famed blarney stone a person is said to be imbued with the gift of gab. But what is the story behind his fanciful tale? Did the stone come from the Holy Land? Or Scotland? Did it involve Queen Elizabeth or Robert the Bruce? This is the story of the Blarney Stone. Sources https://blarneycastle.ie https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blarney_Stone Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kissing_the_Blarney_Ston...
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James Holman - the Blind Traveler

November 7, 2025 • 14 mins
From 1819 to 1846, James Holman traveled throughout the world - going to every continent - except Antarctica - and circumnavigating the globe. It’s estimated he traveled 250,000 miles in his days - making him one of the most well-traveled people in the world. And the even more amazing thing is that Holman was blind. This is the story of James Holman, the Blind Traveler. Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Holman http...
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H.L. Hunley

November 6, 2025 • 17 mins
During the American Civil War a group of inventors and privateers got together to build a submarine. The result was the H.L. Hunley. Launched in 1864, the Hunley would go on to be the first submarine in history to sink an enemy vessel. It then disappear without a trace for 130 years. This is the story of the H.L. Hunley. Sources https://www.history.navy.mil/research/underwater-archaeology/sites-and-projects/ship-wrecksites/hl...
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Hoover Flight Promotion Fiasco

November 5, 2025 • 15 mins
In 1992, one of Great Britain’s most revered and trusted brands - Hoover - began a marketing campaign giving away two plane tickets to the United States - a value of 600 pounds at the time - if you bought at least 100 pounds worth of appliance products. If that seems like an insanely bad idea - you are right. This is the story of the Hoover Flight Promotion - perhaps the most costly and catastrophic marketing campaign in history. ...
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History of Legos

November 4, 2025 • 17 mins
One of the most iconic and influential toys ever is the simple Lego brick, with a history stretching back over a century. The Lego has captured the hearts and minds of millions - kids and adults alike. They are a simple, elegant toy with infinite complexity and creativity. This is the history of legos. Sources https://www.lego.com/en-us/history Image: By Arto Alanenpää - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lego_dublo_art...
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John F. Kennedy and PT-109

November 3, 2025 • 26 mins
On August 2, 1943, a patrol boat commanded by a young John F. Kennedy was rammed by a Japanese destroyer in the waters of the Solomon Islands. Despite his own injuries, the 26-year old Kennedy spent the next week attempting to get himself and the surviving crew to safety. He even used a life jacket strap clenched between his teeth to tow an injured crewman in the water for more than five hours. This is the story of John F. Kennedy ...
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History of Zombies

October 31, 2025 • 18 mins
We celebrate today - Halloween - by diving into the history of the zombie. From Haitian voodoo folklore, to one of the cornerstones of horror movies, serious and silly alike, this is the history of zombies. Sources "The undead in culture and science," by Nugent C, Berdine G, Nugent K. https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/12/13/250844800/zoinks-tracing-the-history-of-zombie-from-haiti-to-the-cdc Image: https://commo...
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Gimli Glider

October 30, 2025 • 19 mins
On July 23, 1983, Air Canada Flight 143 was in route from Montreal to Edmonton when the plane - astonishingly - ran out of fuel midway through the flight. The crew would thus have to glide the Boeing 767 - and their 61 passengers - from an altitude of 41,000 feet - to an emergency landing at an old Air Force base in Manitoba - which had recently been converted to a racetrack - and was hosting an event at the time of the emergency l...
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Eradication of the Screwworm Fly

October 29, 2025 • 20 mins
For decades the New World screwworm fly devastated agriculture across the southern United States, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. At least until the 1950s when a strange combination of radiation, and releasing billions of the very fly they sought to eradicate into the wild. And today, the screwworm has all but disappeared from North America. This is the story of the Eradication of the Screwworm Fly. Sources Stop...
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Establishment of Liberia

October 28, 2025 • 19 mins
In 1847, a group of former slaves from the Americas established the nation of Liberia on the west coast of Africa. Many people hailed the move as an option for other blacks in the Americas. And while that sounds all well and good, it would be a much more complex and divisive effort. This is the story of the establishment of Liberia. Sources "https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/liberia-proclaims-its-independence ...
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Erfurt Latrine disaster

October 27, 2025 • 13 mins
On a summer day in 1184 a large group of nobles and clergy were gathered in Erfurt, modern day Germany, debating control over the city. The event was being presided over by the son of the Holy Roman Emperor. All was normal until the floor gave way and dozens of people fell into the cesspit below the castle. 60 people died, many drowning in human waste. This is the story of the Erfurt Latrine Disaster. Sources The Fort Weekly...
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Oleg Gordievsky - MI6's most valuable Cold War Spy

October 24, 2025 • 44 mins
In 1983, the Kremlin became convinced NATO was preparing to strike first with nuclear weapons. However, British Intelligence had a man inside London’s Soviet Embassy who discovered just how dangerously close the world was to nuclear war. His warnings to MI6 and Washington may be the only reason the Cold War didn’t go hot. This is the story of Oleg Gordievsky - MI6's most valuable Cold War Spy. Presented by Ian Sanders of the Cold W...
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