Backroad Odyssey : Travel Stories, Van Life & Road Trip Oddities

Today's topic - RESEARCH!

A lot of research goes into each episode; today we explore the process we use to ensure each episode is accurate, detailed and thoughtfully written.

We'll talk ....

1. Primary Sources

2. Academic Articles and Books

3. Alternative Opinions and Personal Experience

... each is used for every episode you listen to ...


For the curious:

https://www.amazon.com/Gettysburg-Frank-Haskell/dp/0553298321

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Robert E Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia press onwards …   Marching confidently into Southern Pennsylvania after a string of Confederate  victories. 

Talk of independence circulates among the southern troops … a shared belief solidifies - this march north will solidify Southern independence. 

Meanwhile, Northern hopes to preserve the union remain dangerously low and leadership of the army of the Potomac changes just THREE days before one of the largest and most consequential battle in American history. 

The Battle of Gettysburg is here … 

What then, will be the experiences and ultimate fate of Confederate Colonel William Oats and Union Lieutenant Frank Haskell? 

Works Cited: 


Gettysburg : The Confederate and Union Views of the Most Decisive Battle of the War - In One Volume 


https://www.jstor.org/stable/2116615?read-now=1&seq=8#page_scan_tab_contents

https://acwm.org/blog/myths-misunderstandings-what-caused-civil-war/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/resrep02487.pdf?refreqid=fastly-default%3A0ddb2c76d8c983455602f559b926b2e1&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2_SYC-7149%2Ftest&origin=&initiator=&acceptTC=1

https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep02487?searchText=causes+of+the+civil+war&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcauses%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bcivil%2Bwar%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2_SYC-7149%2Ftest&refreqid=fastly-default%3Aa133a6037338dba4e02368034c584234

https://www.history.com/news/slavery-profitable-southern-economy

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1010169/black-and-slave-population-us-1790-1880/

https://source.colostate.edu/what-really-started-the-american-civil-war/

https://www.history.com/topics/19th-century/whig-party

https://civilwarintheeast.com/confederate-regiments/alabama/15th-alabama-infantry/

https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/slavery/experience/education/narratives2.html

https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/first-battle-of-bull-run#section_2

https://www.battlefields.org/learn/biographies/william-c-oates

https://www.history.com/news/why-the-civil-war-actually-ended-16-months-after-lee-surrendered

https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/battle-of-gettysburg

https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS2548

https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/he-was-full-of-pluck/

https://www.npr.org/2003/06/29/1305860/the-battle-of-gettysburg-a-timeline

https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/july-02

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/33121/33121-h/33121-h.htm

http://npshistory.com/series/symposia/gettysburg_seminars/4/essay5.htm

https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS2548

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Throughout my travels I’ve interviewed over 100 taprooms across the nation. 

With that said, I want to share my personal TOP 5 TAPROOMS along with what makes each of them so special.

Here’s the criteria : 

• They have to make beer 
• You have to be able to drink at location 
• And - most importantly - the people have to be nice. 

I also consider location, community, story, aesthetic and of course - the beer. 

Listener question today include: 

• How was Bok able to afford "The Singing Tower"? 

• Why was General Lee so revered? 

• Can you see the bells inside the tower? 

• Where are you going next? 

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

A symphony of bells play hypnotic melodies … 

Harmonies and compositions sound out daily in the small town of Lake Wales in Central Florida.

The peculiar source of the music - a grandiose marble-lined pillar affectionately named ‘ The Singing Tower” - is as wonderful as it is unexpected. 

The story behind it’s construction, however, is yet more interesting… 

Works Cited: 

https://boktowergardens.org/2021/06/28/the-origins-of-the-singing-tower/

https://www.gcna.org/about-carillons/what

https://fcit.usf.edu/florida/lessons/boktower/boktower.htm

https://boktowergardens.org/edward-bok/

https://boktowergardens.org/the-singing-tower/

https://verobeachmagazine.com/features/inside-the-bok-singing-tower/

https://www.floridacurrents.com/the-singing-tower/

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ladies-Home-Journal

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Not everyday is perfect when you live in a van ... 

You’ve likely run into the classic “coffee-pour” video made by people living in vans - stepping out to unveil STUNNING locations as they open the doors of their van.

This is  - to put it lightly - not always the case.

Here are the  top three things I've found to NOT be STUNNING while living in a van. 

 I love living in a van, but it’s important to be real about what the experience entails. :) 

With that said - let's grab a drink and chat! 




Listener questions today include: 

• What’s so special about Gettysburg? 

• What’s your favorite state? 

• If you could recommend just one series to first get into the civil war what would it be? 

• Can you show us the van renovation soon? 

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

The story continues ... 

Two men, shaped by their opposing upbringings and lived experience, write about the pivotal conflict of the Civil War from opposing sides. 

We examine differences in outlook and writing styles that insight into both men as well as the larger forces behind the war itself. 

Works Cited: 


Gettysburg : The Confederate and Union Views of the Most Decisive Battle of the War - In One Volume 


https://www.jstor.org/stable/2116615?read-now=1&seq=8#page_scan_tab_contents

https://acwm.org/blog/myths-misunderstandings-what-caused-civil-war/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/resrep02487.pdf?refreqid=fastly-default%3A0ddb2c76d8c983455602f559b926b2e1&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2_SYC-7149%2Ftest&origin=&initiator=&acceptTC=1

https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep02487?searchText=causes+of+the+civil+war&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcauses%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bcivil%2Bwar%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2_SYC-7149%2Ftest&refreqid=fastly-default%3Aa133a6037338dba4e02368034c584234

https://www.history.com/news/slavery-profitable-southern-economy

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1010169/black-and-slave-population-us-1790-1880/

https://source.colostate.edu/what-really-started-the-american-civil-war/

https://www.history.com/topics/19th-century/whig-party

https://civilwarintheeast.com/confederate-regiments/alabama/15th-alabama-infantry/

https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/slavery/experience/education/narratives2.html

https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/first-battle-of-bull-run#section_2

https://www.battlefields.org/learn/biographies/william-c-oates

https://www.history.com/news/why-the-civil-war-actually-ended-16-months-after-lee-surrendered

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Tired of searching for the best - most comprehensive and entertaining - historical podcast series?!

No worries - we did the work for you! 

Today we cut  through the weeds of endless podcast episodes and share the top three history series within podcasts. 


We answer listener questions, which include: 

• What do you say to people who insist on the important of states rights as a cause of the civil war? 
• Any books movies or series you’d recommend about the civil war?
• What surprised you about Gettysburg? 
• How long does it take you to make an episode? 

Recommendations for your convince: :) 


The Last Podcast on the Left - Mormonism Series: 

• https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0fi5zxiqhFLLUfuzVuGptm

The Rest Is History (The Nazi Rise to Power) : 

•      https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-rest-is-history/id1537788786?i=1000640028826

Dan Carlin's Hard Core History (A deep dive into WW2 and Japan) : 

• https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/supernova-in-the-east-i/id173001861?i=1000415837465

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

No single account of the Civil War can adequately tell the entire story; its causes, challenges, and societal impact are - to put it mildly - complicated. 

However, firsthand narratives of the war's great battles, daily struggles and accompanying frustrations provide a snapshot - a partial lens from which we can attempt to better understand the entire picture. 

In this three part series, we explore the life and writings of Northern Lieutenant Frank Haskell and Confederate Colonel William Oats.

We’ll use their lives to better understand the causes of the civil war, the experience had by common soldiers during it and explore personal accounts at the battle of Gettysburg. 

Works Cited: 


Gettysburg : The Confederate and Union Views of the Most Decisive Battle of the War - In One Volume 


https://www.jstor.org/stable/2116615?read-now=1&seq=8#page_scan_tab_contents

https://acwm.org/blog/myths-misunderstandings-what-caused-civil-war/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/resrep02487.pdf?refreqid=fastly-default%3A0ddb2c76d8c983455602f559b926b2e1&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2_SYC-7149%2Ftest&origin=&initiator=&acceptTC=1

https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep02487?searchText=causes+of+the+civil+war&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcauses%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bcivil%2Bwar%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2_SYC-7149%2Ftest&refreqid=fastly-default%3Aa133a6037338dba4e02368034c584234

https://www.history.com/news/slavery-profitable-southern-economy

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1010169/black-and-slave-population-us-1790-1880/

https://source.colostate.edu/what-really-started-the-american-civil-war/

https://www.history.com/topics/19th-century/whig-party

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

We meet the composer behind our theme song, pull up clips while having fun with music and answer listener questions - which include: 

• Is Jesse James worth looking into? He was not a good person. 

• How many people were at the healing springs when you were there? 

• How long did it take you to find the right setup for your podcast? 

• Could someone actually live in Lucy the Elephant? 

• How many licks did it take for him to find the center of a tootsie pop? 

Check out the fantastic composer for the Backroad Odyssey Theme: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nd1imWePcbA&list=PLRAs8nFucLFttvPnbrnuA4XwGF3kw3jRv

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/

Lucy the Elephant has loomed over the Jersey shoreline since 1881…

This 65 foot behemoth Elephant-shaped structure consists of nearly one million pieces of wood, 22 windows and is deceptively large inside. 

After entering up a spiral staircase on either back leg, you’re greeted by a vast inner chamber accentuated by two round windows overlooking the crashing Atlantic sea.

After climbing yet another staircase to visit the covered patio atop Lucy’s back, which overlooks Margate, Atlanta City and the ocean, one begins to wonder … 

Who built this and perhaps more curiously … why was Lucy built in the first place? 

Works Cited: 

https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1555&context=master201019

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/27/nyregion/lucy-elephant-nj-airbnb.html

https://roadtrippers.com/magazine/lucy-the-elephant/

https://lucytheelephant.org/history/chapter-1-elephant-to-starboard/

https://weirdnj.com/stories/lucy-the-elephant/

https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2162

Noah and Noodles here!

We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.

Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.

Follow each adventure visually at:

https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/