History Fix

This week kicks off a two part episode spectacular about women in STEM. Join me to learn about Elizabeth Blackwell who was admitted to medical school as a practical joke and went on to graduate first in her class, becoming the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States. Nettie Stevens discovered X and Y chromosomes and got none of the credit. Lise Meitner helped discover nuclear fission. Florence Siebert developed the tuberculosis test that is still used today. Cecilia Payne discovered what stars are made of. And Grace Hopper made computers accessible to the masses all while serving as the oldest ever officer in the US armed forces. Prepare to be amazed! 
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Sources: 
The College of Scholastica "12 historical women in STEM you've probably never heard of"
National Women's History Museum "Elizabeth Blackwell"
Wikipedia "Elizabeth Blackwell"
National Women's History Museum "Nettie Stevens"
US Women in Nuclear "Women in Nuclear History: Lise Meitner"
The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History "Lise Meitner"
The Royal Society "Florence Siebert: From polio survivor to medical pioneer"
American Museum of Natural History "Cecilia Payne and the Composition of Stars"
Yale University "Biography of Grace Murray Hopper"
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This week I'm uncovering the real story of Micaela Leonarda Antonia de Almonester Rojas y de la Ronde, Baroness de Pontalba. And, yes, everyone in this story has a super long name! Micaela is best known for helping to transform New Orleans' Place d'Armes into the Jackson Square we know today. She designed and oversaw the construction of the iconic Pontalba Buildings that flank the sqaure in the heart of the New Orleans' historic French Quarter. As the wealthiest woman in New Orleans, this isn't too surprising. But Micaela's life wasn't all sunshine and roses. Join me to uncover her darkest moments and to squash some pretty far out myths. 
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Sources: 
Frenchquarter.com "Micaela Almonester Pontalba: The Baroness of Extremes"
Wikipedia "Micaela Almonester, Baroness de Pontalba"
The Historic New Orleans Collection "The Woman Behind New Orleans' Famous Pontalba Buildings"
The Historic New Orleans Collection "How Did Louisiana Become Spanish?"
Laura Plantation "What is Creole?
Emerging Civil War "Micaela Almonester, Andrew Jackson, and Myths"
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As we transition from Black History Month to Women's History Month, I've chosen a topic that encompasses both, a topic that addresses a major misconception in American history. What role did white women actually play in enslaving people? For a very long time, historians assumed that women were merely passive enslavers. They enslaved because their husbands enslaved. They were involved only because of their roles as housekeepers. But, when we look at the actual evidence - documents, letters, interviews, etc. - we are forced to consider another reality. In many cases, white women played an active, possibly even dominant, role in buying, selling, punishing, and hiring out enslaved people. Let's fix that. 
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Sources: 
From Naming to Knowing "Women as Enslavers"
New York Times "Scholars Thought White Women Were Passive Enslavers. They Were Wrong"
Michigan Law Review "A Different Type of Property: White Women and the Human Property They Kept"
From Naming to Knowing "Junius Brickle"
Incidents of the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs
They Were Her Property: White Women as Slave Owners in the American South by Stephanie Jones-Rogers
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Get ready for a wild ride because this story is bananas! This week, I uncover the unbelievable true story that is the life of Harriet Jacobs. Born enslaved in Edenton, North Carolina in 1813, Harriet would go on to escape from slavery in the most remarkable way. I'm talking, hoodwinking various prominent white men and hiding in an attic crawl space for 7 years remarkable. But, most importantly, Harriet would later tell her story to the world, becoming the first woman to author a fugitive slave narrative in the United States. However, despite her bravery in coming out with a story viewed as very taboo and even shameful at the time, the masses refused to believe that "Incidents of the Life of a Slave Girl" was true or that it was written by Harriet herself for 120 years. Let's fix that. 
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Join the Patreon (patreon.com/historyfixpodcast)
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Sources: 
"Incidents of the Life of a Slave Girl" by Harriet Jacobs
PBS "Harriet Jacobs"
Documenting the American South "Harriet A. Jacobs"
NCPedia "Norcom, James Sr."
Wikipedia "Harriet Jacobs"
Wikipedia "Lydia Marie Child"
Wikipedia "Nathaniel Parker Willis"
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In this episode, I unpack the dynamic character that is Dangerfield Newby, the real life inspiration for Quentin Tarantino's title character in the film "Django Unchained." For many years Dangerfield Newby was viewed as a villain. He took part in John Brown's 1859 raid on the military arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. These raiders took people hostage. They killed people. But when we take a closer look at their motives for carrying out these violent offenses, when we read the letter removed from the pocket of Dangerfield's lifeless body, a letter written by a desperate and terrified wife, the question emerges: were these men actually villains? Or were they heroes? 
Support the show! 
Join the Patreon (patreon.com/historyfixpodcast)
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Venmo @Shea-LaFountaine
Sources: 
History.com “John Brown’s Raid on Harpers Ferry”
History.com “John Brown”
Harriet Newby Letters
Black Past “Dangerfield F. Newby”
American Battlefield Trust “Dangerfield Newby”
Emerging Civil War “The Newby Family Fights for Freedom”
WTRF “Black History: Former slave and Ohioan Dangerfield Newby’s life story ranges from hopeful to horrific”
Wikipedia “Dangerfield Newby”
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