In this special Holiday Finale of Behind the Headlines of History Season Four, join our cozy historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hulme as they deck the halls and dive into the festive and fascinating headlines that stood out to them during this time of year. Discover the lengths that an eleven year old girl went through to get her Christmas wish—which may or may not have included breaking and entering! And peek into the origin of the iconic newspaper phenomenon, “Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus”, spurred by a particularly philosophical eight year old’s now-classic Letter to the Editor. Thank you for listening, enjoy our gift to you, and Happy Holidays!

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

Links to Articles:

Is there a Santa Claus? (1897)

Wanted Live Doll So Kidnapped Baby (1930)

Christmas marks his birth, death (1937)

Now there's Clint Ozmond (1894)

All newspaper articles referenced in this episode were sourced on Newspapers.com, with additional research conducted by Brad and Michala using Ancestry® and other resources.

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming with a fun surprise: Listen now to Ancestry's collaboration with History Hit’s podcast After Dark, where hosts Maddy and Anthony dig into their own family history in collaboration with Ancestry’s very own genealogists and family historians Joe Buggy, Christina Copeland, and Jennifer Utley! After Dark takes you to the shadiest corners of the past, unpicking history’s spookiest, strangest, and most sinister stories.

If you haven’t yet, head to here to start your own family history journey today for free. The AncestryDNA kit makes an amazing stocking stuffer. Be sure to subscribe to the Ancestry YouTube Channel too!

Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Freddy Chick, Peta Stamper and Charlotte Long.

Watch After Dark on YouTube! www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit

Yes, you read that right. Dive into this episode of Behind the Headlines of History, where our brave hosts Brad and Michala trek through a treasure trove of stories laden with some of history's shadier characters, including a Peaky Blinders origin story. An Owl Gang? Rattlesnake Dick? Turkey-time thievery? No, this episode isn't animal themed (although we understand why you would think that), but brace yourself for some rough and rowdy stories. The coup de grâce? A shootout with infamous western highwayman, "Rattlesnake Dick"!

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

Links to Articles:

Three Years Penal Servitude (1924)

Encounter with Highwaymen: Death of the Notorious "Rattlesnake Dick" (1859)

Thanksgiving Robbery: Servant steals $20,000 (1903)

The Owl Gang (1929)

All newspaper articles referenced in this episode were sourced on Newspapers.com, with additional research conducted by Brad and Michala using Ancestry® and other resources.

Historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hume present more staggering headlines from old newspapers that are just as bizarre today.

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

Links to Articles:

The Old Maid Miser (1870)

Has 11 Husbands (1896)

Extraordinary Affair (1846)

Letter Came too Late: Printer Praised for Brave Attempt to Save County Official from The Thames (London, 1928)

Story-loving historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hulme gather around the newspapers of yesteryear for stories involving a brave dog and a bizarre hoax.

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

Links to Articles:

The Moon Hoax (1871)

Big Dog Saves Boy Sinking in River (1911)

Queer Death of Thomas Foote, an animal impersonator (1895)

A Thanksgiving Game (1905)

Adam Locke family tree

All newspaper articles referenced in this episode were sourced on Newspapers.com, with additional research conducted by Brad and Michala using Ancestry® and other resources.

Story-loving historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hulme gather around the newspapers of old to learn more about the $400,000,000 fortune that one man reportedly came into in 1906.

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

Links to articles:

Old Man Heir To $400 million (1906)

Opal's Diary is Refuted by Grandmother (1921)

Beer Flood Drowns Eight (1919)

Library Notes (Ohio, 1946)

All newspaper articles referenced in this episode were sourced on Newspapers.com, with additional research conducted by Brad and Michala using Ancestry® and other resources.

This week’s episode of Behind the Headlines of History finds our story-loving historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hulme dive into two fascinating headlines from our service history archives. Plus– a war hero pigeon?

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

All newspaper articles referenced in this episode were sourced on Newspapers.com, with additional research conducted by Brad and Michala using Ancestry® and other resources.

Story-loving historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hulme gather around the newspapers of two of the messier stories from history.

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

Links to articles:

The Mourdaunt Divorce Case (1870)

Sensational Shooting (1902)

An Extraordinary Affair - A Wedding Indefinitely Postponed (1872)

Neck tie parties are all the rage (1870)

All newspaper articles referenced in this episode were sourced on Newspapers.com, with additional research conducted by Brad and Michala using Ancestry® and other resources.

Story-loving historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hulme gather around the newspapers of old for their first two spooky stories from history.

Watch the video episode on Ancestry's YouTube channel.

Links to articles:

The Strange Case of Alice Nutter

Ghosts Upstairs and Down

The Rochester Knockings

Girl Flees Screaming into Street from 'Ghost'

All newspaper articles referenced in this episode were sourced on Newspapers.com, with additional research conducted by Brad and Michala using Ancestry® and other resources.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Your favorite story-loving historians Brad Argent and Dr. Michala Hulme are back! Join us as we gather 'round the newspapers of old and return for Season 4 of Behind the Headlines of History, this Thursday October 30th. The wait is over at long last!

Behind the Headlines of History is a podcast series from Ancestry and ⁠⁠⁠Newspapers.com⁠⁠⁠ that explores intriguing news stories from the past, hosted by historian and genealogist Michala Hulme and Ancestry’s Brad Argent.