Category: Uncategorized

Ep. 3: James Garfield v. the World. Click to listen

Leave a comment

LISTEN HERE:

Episode 3: James Garfield v. the World. Alex tells a story he’s waited years to share, the improbable rise and tragic death of our 20th President, Cleveland’s own James Garfield. We’re joined by one of Alex’s favorite authors and historians, the incomparable Candice Millard. Millard, the Ohio native, is the author of the award-winning book Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President (2012). BUY THIS BOOK here, you won’t be sorry. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/114423/destiny-of-the-republic-by-candice-millard/

Alex goes to Garfield’s home in Mentor, OH and meets with Todd Arrington, site manager of the James A. Garfield National Historic Site. Todd and Alex discuss Garfield’s humble beginnings in NE Ohio, his brilliance in all disciplines, rise to General in the Union Army and his career in the US Congress. We also discuss his dark horse nomination and narrow election to the Presidency in 1880. We encourage you to visit the National Park Service’s site that Todd manages in Mentor. http://www.nps.gov/jaga

Lastly, we met with Sarah Chase, graduate of Garfield’s alma mater Hiram College in NE Ohio and producer of the awesome podcast, Clear and Vivid w/ Alan Alda. https://alanalda.com

We focus on Garfield’s unlikely election in 1880 and his short presidency. His rivalry with powerful Senator Roscoe Conkling and their battle over civil service reform dominates his healthy months in office. Candice introduces us to his assassin, the deranged office seeker, Charles Guiteau. She takes us through the medical malpractice that dooms the President’s recovery and the political fallout of his slow and agonizing death. 

Don’t forget to rate and review the show and you can always email us ohiovtheworld@gmail.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter (@ohiovtheworld) and Instagram. 

Episode 2: Ulysses S. Grant v. the World is out now. Click here to Listen!

Leave a comment

LISTEN HERE:

Episode 2: Ulysses S. Grant v. the World. Alex is back with the story of one of the most famous Ohioans of all time, our 18th President Ulysses S. Grant of Georgetown, Ohio. We explain why Grant, the hero of the Civil War, is one of America’s most underrated Presidents. In fact no President is rising faster in 21st Century presidential rankings than US Grant. Our episode will focus on Grant’s youth near the Ohio River in Georgetown, OH and his presidency from 1869-77.  We’ll leave his Civil War heroics for a different show. Or just go watch the new mini-series, GRANT, out Memorial Day 2020 on the History Channel.

Alex is joined by biographer and historian, Dr. Ronald C. White, Jr., to discuss his New York Times bestseller, American Ulysses (2016). This incredible biography of General Grant helped to spark a new analysis among historians of President Grant’s administration and his standing in presidential rankings. Buy Ron’s book here:  https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/200282/american-ulysses-by-ronald-c-white/

Alex is also joined Lee Schweickart from the US Grant Homestead Association. Lee joined us to discuss Ulysses’ youth in SW Ohio, his time at West Point and how he got the name Ulysses S. Grant, because that’s not his given name at his birth in April 1822 in Pt. Pleasant, OH. You can visit the historical sites in Georgetown, Ohio at: www.usgrantboyhoodhome.org. 

Lastly, Alex sits down with Ryan Semmes from the US Grant President Presidential Library. This beautiful new building dedicated to Grant and the era of Reconstruction is located on the campus of Mississippi State University in Starkville, MS. Ryan joins the show to talk about the Grant Administration’s major foreign policy initiatives, his 1872 reelection and his eventful post presidential years.

Don’t forget to Subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, etc. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram (ohiovttheworldpodcast) and Twitter (@ohiovtheworld). Or just email us at ohiovtheworld@gmail.com. Happy Memorial Day! 

Episode 1: William McKinley v. the World is OUT! Click to hear both parts of our Season 5 premiere

Leave a comment

LISTEN TO PART 1:

LISTEN TO PART 2:

EP. 1: William McKinley v. the World (Part 1). We’re back and ready to get presidential in 2020. We kickoff Season 5 with a two-part episode on our 25th President, William McKinley from Canton, OH. Part One examines McKinley’s childhood in NE Ohio, Civil War service (he was the final Civil War vet to be POTUS), rise in Ohio and national politics and his election to the White House in 1896 against the Democrat challenger, William Jennings Bryan.  

We are joined in Part One by Robert Merry, author of the book President McKinley: Architect of the American Century (Simon&Schuster, 2017). Buy that book! It’s fantastic. Here’s a link: https://www.amazon.com/President-McKinley-Architect-American-Century/dp/1451625448

Robert will let us know just how President McKinley became the architect of the American Century with his understated style of leadership and why that has lead to his distinguished career to be too often forgotten in American history. 

Alex also speaks with University of Akron history professor Kevin Kern about McKinley’s career and life in Ohio and in Congress in the 19th century. We meet with Amber Farris, the museum director at the McKinley Birthplace Museum in  Niles, OH about the Will McKinley’s early years in the Youngstown area, his Civil War years and his move to Canton, OH. Visit that great museum online (for now) at https://mckinleybirthplacemuseum.org. 

It’s great to be back for our 5th season which will focus on Ohio and the Presidency. Don’t forget to listen to the exciting conclusion of Episode One in Part 2 of “William McKinley v. the World” which is always out now! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram (@ohiovtheworldpodcast) and Twitter (@ohiovtheworld). You can reach us at ohiovtheworld@gmail.com as well. 

EP. 1: William McKinley v. the World (Part 2). Thanks for listening to the exciting conclusion of our Season 5 premiere. We discuss with our guests McKinley’s relationship with Theodore Roosevelt, the “Splendid Little War” known as the Spanish American War, the economic boom of the McKinley years and his tragic assassination in Buffalo, NY in 1901. 

We are joined in Part One by Robert Merry, author of the book President McKinley: Architect of the American Century (Simon&Schuster, 2017). Buy that book! It’s fantastic. Here’s a link: https://www.amazon.com/President-McKinley-Architect-American-Century/dp/1451625448

Robert helps us breakdown how the United States became a world power and an empire in McKinley’s 4.5 years as Commander in Chief. We look at the success of the Spanish American War and McKinley’s complicated legacy following his death. 

Alex also speaks again with University of Akron history professor Kevin Kern about McKinley’s foreign policy successes, the humanitarian crisis in Cuba that lead to the Spanish American War and the President’s assassin, Leon Czolgosz. We are also joined by Anthony Greco from the Buffalo History Museum to discuss the McKinley’s tragic killing at the Pan American Exposition in 1901. Visit the great Buffalo History Museum (online for now) at www.buffalohistory.org. 

Make sure you listen to Part 1 of “William McKinley v. the World” before enjoying Part 2 of our Season 5 premiere episode. Thanks for joining us in 2020 for our season on Ohio and the Presidency. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram (@ohiovtheworldpodcast) and Twitter (@ohiovtheworld). You can reach us at ohiovtheworld@gmail.com as well.

Season 5 Preview of Ohio v. the World is finally here—CLICK TO LISTEN

Leave a comment

LISTEN HERE:

Season 5 Preview: We’ll preview Season 5 of Ohio v. the World with clips and sneak peaks of all 13 episodes for our election year season. We’re calling Season 5: “Ohio v. the Presidency.” From President Monroe to President Trump we’ll relive all the famous presidents and presidential moments from the history of the Buckeye State. 

Episode 1: William McKinley v. the World will premiere on Sunday May 10th. It’a two-part episode on our 25th President from Canton, Ohio. New episodes come out every other Sunday all the way up until Election Day 2020. 

Subscribe to the pod on iTunes, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram (ohiovtheworldpodcast) and Twitter (@ohiovtheworld). Email the show directly at ohiovtheworld@gmail.com and check out our website www.ohiovtheworldpodcast.com.

Season 5 Premiere Date Announced: Sunday May 10th!

Leave a comment

Ohio v. the World is back! Season 5: Ohio v. Presidency will launch with a two-part episode, “William McKinley v. the World” on Sunday May 10th! Thirteen episodes are planned every other Sunday.

Season 5 of “Ohio v. The World”: Ohio and the Presidency, Launches May 10th

PRESS RELEASE—APRIL 20, 2020

COLUMBUS, OH— The world’s only Ohio history podcast, “Ohio v. the World”, will launch its fifth season of the show on May 10, 2020. The entire season will focus on the eight U.S. Presidents from the Buckeye State and presidential history from Ohio, with multiple bestselling authors and historians joining the show as guests.

Ohio v. the World, the 2019 Columbus Podcast Award winner, returns to do a deep dive into the eight Ohioans who lived in the White House and episodes about all of the conventions, debates, campaigns, failed candidates and the First Ladies from Ohio. The state of Ohio is known as the “Mother of Presidents”, tied with Virginia having produced 8 chief executives.

The show airs every other Sunday beginning on May 10th with the episode, “William McKinley v. The World.” McKinley is one of four Ohio presidents to die in office, along with James Garfield, William Henry Harrison and Warren Harding. Season 5 of Ohio v. the World will also share the lives and presidencies of William H. Taft, Ulysses Grant, Benjamin Harrison and Rutherford B. Hayes.

Bestselling historians joining the show in Season 5 include: Candice Millard (Destiny of the Republican), Dr. Ronald White (American Ulysses), Robert Merry (President McKin- ley), and Ron Shafer (The Carnival Campaign), among others.

“This will be our best season ever. The health crisis has had one upside and that’s all these big names in American history being available to join the show. Ohio has pro- duced some exceptional Presidents and this year we’ll shine a light on some of histories most forgotten U.S. Presidents and show that most of them are very underrated in the presidential rankings”, said Alex Hastie, producer and host.

Producer and Host Alex Hastie is an Ohio historian, attorney and Mr. Hastie is on the Board of Trustees with the Ohio History Connection in Columbus, Ohio.

Contact Alex at ohiovtheworld@gmail.com or call 614.557.9639 for interviews. For more information visit http://www.ohiovtheworldpodcast.com. Download the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or Spotify.

Celebrate Siblings Day with Ohio’s best siblings: the Wright Bros! Listen to “Ohio v. Flight” from Season One

Leave a comment

LISTEN HERE:

It’s Siblings Day! Are there more important siblings in human history than Dayton, OH’s Wright Brothers. Ohio, the birthplace of aviation, is home to some famous siblings but Orville and Wilbur take the cake.

Click the links and learn the largely unknown story of how two average, bicycle shop owners from Western Ohio changed the world.

It’s Women’s History Month! All of Ohio v. the World’s episodes on Women’s History are in one spot

1 Comment

It’s Women’s History Month 2022. Ohio v. the World has several episodes on the most important women in Ohio’s 200+ year history. All the links are below. Click the link to enjoy.

Our most recent female-based episodes are two of our favorites:

“Judy Resnik v. the World” Tells the story of the Challenger Disaster and the life and career of Ohio-native and astronaut Judy Resnik. One of our best episodes from Season 6 in 2021. Click to listen. 

Judy Resnik v. the World

and

“Ohio v. First Ladies” We sit down historians to discuss all 8 First Ladies of Ohio’s Presidents. Including our favorite Cincinnati’s Helen Taft. Click here to listen.

Ohio v. First Ladies

Here’s seven other episodes about Women’s History in Ohio. And we’ve got some great episodes upcoming in 2022.

“Ohio v. Abolitionists”: the story of Harriet Beecher Stowe is discussed. The author and abolitionist that ignited the country’s hatred of slavery with her best-selling book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852).

\Ohio v. Abolitionists
  1. .”Ohio v. the Patriarchy”: we share the little-known story of Madeline Pollard, the woman who brought down a presidential candidate by telling the truth in the 1890s. This was we believe the first court case of the MeToo Movement just 125 years before the movement. CLICK TO LISTEN
  2. “Jerrie Mock v. the World”: the incredible story of “the Flying Housewife”, Jerrie Mock of Bexley, OH. Mrs. Mock became the 1st woman to fly solo around the world in 1964. CLICK TO LISTEN
  3. “Ohio v. Suffrage”: Our comprehensive look at the women’s suffrage movement in Ohio and nationally on this 100th anniversary of the women’s vote. CLICK TO LISTEN
  4. “Ohio v. Celebrity”: America’s first celebrity that was just famous for being famous, Ohio’s own Kate Chase. We discuss the life and times of the “Belle of the Civil War North”. CLICK TO LISTEN
  5. “Ohio v. Espionage”: the top codebreaker in US Navy before WWII was a woman from Westerville, Ohio. Enjoy the story of Agnes Meyer Driscoll. CLICK TO LISTEN
  6. “Ohio v. the Wild West”: the story of one of the most famous females from the Buckeye State, Annie Oakley of Darke County, OH. CLICK TO LISTEN

Click to hear Season 4 finale “Ohio v. Segregation”

Leave a comment

LISTEN HERE:

Episode 12: Ohio v. Segregation (Tuskegee Airmen). Our Season 4 finale celebrates Black History Month 2020 by studying the trailblazing Tuskegee Airmen of World War II. Alex meets with Dr. Anthony Milburn and Warren Mott to discuss the segregation of the US military and the courage of the “Red Tails” as well as their years in the Buckeye State following the war. We learn how the Tuskegee Airmen’s service helped accelerate the long-stagnant civil rights movement.

Dr. Milburn, a professor of history and the chairman of the Humanities Dept. at Ohio’s Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio shares the proud history of African American service in the military and the racism and discrimination faced by the pilots at Tuskegee. Alex and Dr. Milburn discuss the journey to full desegregation of the armed forces and the impact of the Harlem Hellfighters, Eleanor Roosevelt, William Hastie and the complicated roles of FDR and President Truman. 

Warren Mott, Director of Mott’s Military Museum in Groveport, Ohio, shares his favorite stories of the Tuskegee Airmen and his personal relationships with late Red Tails. A number of Tuskegee Airmen from Ohio are discussed as well as their years following the war stationed at Lockbourne Air Base in Central Ohio. Go visit Mott’s Military Museum, a true hidden gem of US military history. www.mottsmilitarymuseum.org

Thanks for listening to Season 4 of Ohio v. The World. Stay tuned to our website www.ohiovtheworldpodcast.com and our Facebook page for updates on Season 5: The Presidents coming in May 2020. Don’t hesitate to email the show at ohiovtheworld@gmail.com and please rate/review the show on iTunes.

Episode 11: “Ohio v. Water” CLICK to LISTEN

Leave a comment

LISTEN HERE:

Episode 11: “Ohio v. Water” (Mark Hanna). Alex discovers the important life and even more important death of Cleveland’s Mark Hanna. The political kingmaker’s rise to the top of American politics is analyzed with Case Western Reserve Univ. professor, John Grabowski. We also discuss the dangerous history of drinking water in the United States and how Hanna’s death in 1904 led to a comprehensive change and improvement in water treatment known as the “Great Columbus Experiment.” We talk about water with author and former Columbus Dept. of Water manager, Conrade Hinds and his excellent book, “The Great Columbus Experiment of 1908: Waterworks That Changed the World.” 

Click link to purchase. https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/9781609497798/The-Great-Columbus-Experiment-of-1908-Waterworks-that-Changed-the-World

Alex travels to Case Western to learn about Mark Hanna’s meteoric rise from middle class everyman to Gilded Age robber baron and his ultimate ascension to the top of the political world through his support of Ohio’s leading politicians. John and Alex discuss Hanna’s invaluable campaign managing of Ohio legends: James Garfield, John Sherman and William McKinley. His role in McKinley’s famous 1896 presidential victory is discussed and how it made the most powerful man in not just Ohio but Washington DC as well. 

Conrade Hinds leads us through the history of drinking water in the US in the 19th Century. We discuss how Hanna’s untimely death was blamed on an illness caused by Columbus’ tainted water supply. Hinds shows us how Hanna’s death helped to spark a giant civic effort in Columbus to transform and modernize their water treatment process. This “experiment” would become the model of the world and it’s Mark Hanna’s shocking death the helped to change the world forever. The future of water is also discussed in the ever-changing 21st Century. 

Rate and review the show and don’t forget to email us at ohiovtheworld@gmail.com with thoughts and show ideas. Only one episode left in Season 4! Buy Conrade’s book and get a much deeper dive into how Columbus’ water changed the world. https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/9781609497798/The-Great-Columbus-Experiment-of-1908-Waterworks-that-Changed-the-World

New episode is out! Click to hear “Ohio v. the Copperheads”

2 Comments

LISTEN HERE:

Episode 10: “Ohio v. the Copperheads” (Clement Vallandigham). Alex talks with US Air Force Academy Professor of History, Jennifer Weber, about the copperhead political movement in the North during the Civil War. We travel back to the homefront in Ohio and the Midwest during the war and find out millions of Americans were against the war effort and President Lincoln. We discuss the life of leading Copperhead politician, Clement Vallandigham, from Dayton, Ohio and Jennifer Weber’s great book: Copperheads: the Rise and Fall of Lincoln’s Opponents in the North. https://www.amazon.com/Copperheads-Rise-Lincolns-Opponents-North-dp-0195306686/dp/0195306686/ref=mt_hardcover?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=

Alex and Jennifer analyze the rise of the Peace Democrats in American Civil War politics and their ultimate collapse after the fall of Atlanta and the 1864 re-election of Lincoln. Events such as the Emancipation Proclamation, the suspension of Habeas Corpus and the New York City Draft Riots are discussed as the Copperheads nearly ascend to the White House where they would surely sue for peace from the South. We follow the arrest, exile and eventual gubernatorial run of Vallandigham in the State of Ohio in 1863 and his ultimate banishment from the history books. 

We look at the misguided political movement of Copperheadism and come to realize just how close this country was to giving up on the Civil War and officially recognizing the Confederate States of America. We follow Clement Vallandigham from Capitol Hill to Mount Vernon, OH to behind Confederate lines to exile in Canada and back to Ohio and his death in Lebanon, Ohio in 1871. 

Special thanks to Jenny Weber and go buy this book! It’s ground-breaking and a real page turner. https://www.amazon.com/Copperheads-Rise-Lincolns-Opponents-North-dp-0195306686/dp/0195306686/ref=mt_hardcover?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=

Disclaimer: *Everything Jennifer discussed was her opinion and not the position of the US Air Force Academy or the Department of Defense*