History Briefs

Ep: 010 This week Brad Shreve shares information some people won't like, and some people will like. Plus, he makes a recommendation.

Queer Writers of Crime Website

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Brad's recommendation:  Halfwit History

Ep: 002 The Combat Zone, Boston's adult entertainment district, was given its moniker by the Boston Daily Record. "An adult Disneyland" is how it was described by the Wall Street Journal. In this episode you'll learn how an elegant neighborhood near a shopping district called Scollay Square turned into one of the most popular districts of the city, with burlesque shows and vaudeville acts.  While scandalous at the time, they were nothing compared to the strip clubs, adult bookstores, peep shows, and pornographic movie theaters that popped up in the Combat Zone as Scollay Square was coming down.  And it all happened with the support of the leaders of the city of Boston.

Anthony Sammarco joins Brad and shares a seedy side of Boston many citizens wish to forget.

You can get "The Other Red Line, Washington Street from Scollay Square to the Combat Zone" and many of his other books about the Boston area on his Amazon Author Page. 

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Ep: 007 After Alfred Nobel invented dynamite large shipments of them were sold around the world to companies and for building infrastructure., which kept him busy opening new factories and laboratories. In 1871, on the Ardeer Peninsula in Scotland, he opened his 6th factory. In this episode get inside the plant and hear some former employees describe the dangers, friendships, and fun they had while working there. 

Thank you, Jack Dickson for inspiring this episode. You can watch Jack's videos on YouTube.

Nobel Explosives at Ardeer 1871 - 2021

Shifting Sands 150 Years of Nobel Explosives

History Briefs Website: historybriefs.com

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Ep: 004 In 1883 a devastating tornado hit Rochester, Minnesota  united a Franciscan school administrator and an agnostic doctor. The hard work of the sisters who worked as teachers at the school gave William Worrall Mayo no choice but to take over a small 12 bedroom hospital they built. This is their story.

You can learn more about the Mayo Clinic on their websites:

Mayo Clinic History Timeline

Video: A Leap of Faith - The Founding of St. Mary's Hospital

Video: My Brother and I: The Founding of Mayo Clinic

History Briefs Website: historybriefs.com

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Each week History briefs serves bits of history you may know very little bit about or not at all presented each week in 20 minutes or less.  Sometimes dramatic. Sometimes shocking. Sometimes just plain silly.  You never know what you're going to get, but you do know it will be brief.