Zach Knight
Shaking AmericaEpisodes
Episodes of Shaking America
Mark All
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In the 1870s locust swarms of biblical proportions descended onto the Great Plains, devouring everything in their path. Billions of locust blocked out the sun and devastated America’s agriculture, creating a national emergency unlike any other
The poor Irish farmers of Northern Ireland rose in armed rebellion in 1770 after their British landlords evicted thousands of them from their homes.Sources:A History of Ireland by Jonathan BardenLord Donegall and the Hearts of Steel by W.A. Mag
In 1862, during the American Civil War, Confederate rebels Gabriel Rains and his brother George Washington Rains changed warfare forever. They ordered their men to place specially made explosive torpedoes into the ground as they retreated fro
In rural Minnesota a farmer named Olaf Ohman found a mysterious runestone. Engraved into the stone was an epic tale of adventure and bloodshed, apparently written by Norse explorers. The discovery of the Kensington Runestone sparked a worldwi
The White Hand Gang was a coalition of Irish street gangs in Brooklyn known for terrorizing Italian immigrants. Even among New York criminals they were notorious for liberal use of violence, lynching dozens of Italians along the waterfront.
In 1969 it was not uncommon for American rivers to burst into flames. Filled with sewage, oil, and agricultural waste, several major rivers were so polluted that they caught fire multiple times.Here's the story of how the US almost destroyed i
During the Vietnam War the United States military attempted a strange form of psychological warfare. Hoping to demoralize and terrify the Viet Cong, American forces used helicopter-mounted speakers to project ghostly screams, distorted Buddhis
For hundreds of years an ancient Aztec temple laid buried beneath the busy streets of Mexico City, hidden and forgotten.Sources:The book Broken Spears: the Aztec Account of the Conquest of MexicoThe Book The Conquest of Mexico by Hugh ThomasThe
How tough was George Washington in a fist fight? Evidence suggests he was tougher than you.Sources:Washington: A Life by Ron Chernowhttps://nwhof.org/hall_of_fame/bio/131
Max Baer is known in boxing circles as one of the hardest hitting men in combat sports history. Widely feared in the early 1920s and into the 1930s, Baer is credited with killing two different fighters with the destructive power in his right h
How the Soviet Union conned the United States out of $600 million worth of grain subsidies.SourcesThe book The Great American Grain Robbery and Other Stories by Martha Hamiltonhttps://www.nasa.gov/feature/how-satellite-maps-help-prevent-another
The Yamato was the heaviest and most powerfully armed battleship ever constructed. She carried the most formidable array of naval firepower in history, including three turrets with 69.4 foot long gun barrels — the largest guns ever mounted at
For over two hundred and fifty years the isolated island nation of Japan was closed to all foreigners. American Commodore Matthew Perry changed all of that when he arrived in the bay outside of modern day Tokyo and demanded at gunpoint that th
North America has a long and consistent history of trains carrying hazardous chemicals derailing and destroying small towns. Let's go over a few examples.
The Cherokee written language was created entirely by one man, a silversmith, trader and soldier named Sequoyah. He remains the only person in history from an illiterate people to devise a system of writing.
After the Civil War around 10,000 Confederates left the country rather than rejoin the United States. They fled to Brazil, hoping to establish a new society of plantation slavery.
New York gangster Vincent Gigante feigned insanity for decades in an attempt to avoid prosecution, wandering the streets in a bathrobe and slippers.His lawyer claimed he was not mentally fit for trial, but in reality Gigante was the most powerf
During the Cold War the Soviet Union tricked the American military into believing that the US had less long-range bomber jets than the Soviets. This resulted in a massive increase in defense spending to combat a threat that didn't exist -- t
The presidency of Ulysses S Grant was riddled with scandals, including one of the largest cases of tax evasion in American history -- the White House Whiskey Ring.
Lady Six Sky was a warrior-queen of the Maya during their Classical Age. She took a ruined city on the brink of destruction and turned it into a powerful kingdom filled with monumental art.
Within the ranks of the United States Military the term “Ace” is given to pilots who manage to shoot down five enemy planes. The level of skill and ability necessary to achieve this dangerous accomplishment was and is incredibly rare. During
At the height of the Cold War the US government developed a plan to launch a nuclear warhead into the moon as a show of military strength. Named Project A119, this absurd program was spearheaded by the Air Force in 1958 and has since been dec
Abraham Lincoln is one of the most lauded presidents in American history. But could he fight? We take an in-depth look into Honest Abe's fighting ability.
Led by a woman named Elizabeth Peratrovich, Alaskan Natives campaigned for civil rights in 1945 -- twenty years before Martin Luthor King Jr.
During World War II more than six thousand Alaska Natives volunteered to serve as the eyes and ears of the US military in the northern territory. They were instrumental in defending America against a new type of weapon: Japanese balloon bombs
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