Discovering America Podcast

By Terry Noorda

Society & Culture History

What's Discovering America Podcast about?

This podcast will be a history narrative collected from various sources. I will be covering the stories of events and people that played a part in creating America. My goal is to give the listener an entertaining dialog of history and walk away (or ear away) with a, “I didn’t know that”, feeling.

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LAST EPISODE

144-Taking Possession of th...

04.11.2021

Sir Humphrey Gilbert invested a great portion of his fortune; this first attempt ended in disappointment. It became a starting point for the next one, taking encouragement from his stepbrother Sir Walter Raleigh. The second attempt took the lives of ...

Discovering America Podcast episodes:

04.11.2021 144-Taking Possession of the Carolina Coast Sir Humphrey Gilbert invested a great portion of his fortune; this first attempt ended in disappointment. It became a starting point for the next one, taking encouragement from his stepbrother Sir Walter Raleigh. The second attempt took the lives of ...
04.07.2021 143-King Philip's War part three The colonial forces along with Indian allies start to close in on the man named Phillip. This would also include many of his close leaders and many of his followers.
03.01.2021 142-King Philip's War part two The war continues and it appears that there is no end in sight. Benjamin Church makes his way to meet with Awashonks and her tribe, the meeting is a positive endeavor, they are willing to side with the English.
02.20.2021 141-King Philip's War A series of events lead to this clash between the English Colonies and some of the New England Indian tribes, this episode starts to cover this unfortunate time known as King Philip’s War.
08.25.2020 140-Colonization of Rhode Island part six The New England colonies are visited by the commissioners of England to sort things out; finally there will be peace among the colonies, in your dreams. Even after they left the in-fighting continued.
07.04.2020 139-John F. Kennedy speech on July 4,1962 To celebrate this great holiday, I read a great speech, one by Pres. John F. Kennedy on July 4, 1962 at Independence Hall. Please listen to the words, hear what was important back then and maybe compare to what is ...
05.07.2020 138-A reading of the 1663 Rhode Island Charter I read the Rhode Island charter of 1663 for your enjoyment and enlightenment.
04.11.2020 137-Colonization of Rhode Island part five The Rhode Island’s government had to stand its ground against the on slot of those who tried to take away its territory. What finally arrives is the charter of 1663; I think we made it, well sort of.
03.25.2020 136-stay safe Time on your hands? Listen to a podcast. Above all stay safe during these unsettling times.
12.16.2019 135-A Christmas Story by Richard Armour I read a Christmas story entitled, “the Year Santa Went Modern,” written by Richard Armour. May you have a great time during the holidays with family and friends and may the New Year fulfill everything good you envision.
12.03.2019 134-Letter by Sir Henry Vane-1653 A letter written by Sir Henry Vane sent to Roger Williams wondering why the people of the Plantations and Aquidneck could not see their way through their differences and become a union of one government.
11.23.2019 133-a colonial document written in Dec 1647 The colonial settlers and leaders were trying to set a government through their own general assemblies far away from the mother country of England, a representative type from the local communities of freeman and landholders. This is one of those ...
11.14.2019 132-Colonization of Rhode Island part four You would think the charter of 1644, the plantations and Rhode Island had all they needed to move forward, that was not the case. The Bay (or Massachusetts) or Plymouth felt they had jurisdiction over the Narragansett Bay. The charter ...
08.15.2019 131-Colonization of Rhode Island part three Rhode Island and the plantations just did not have a firm foundation of government, which gave Massachusetts reasons to find ways to incorporate those lands under their jurisdiction. It also didn’t help that Samuel Gorton had beliefs that didn’t quite ...
07.16.2019 130-Colonization of Rhode Island part two The separation of Williams’ plantations settlements and Coddington’s Rhode Island settlements from that of the more pronounced settlements of Massachusetts and Plymouth was having its toll. There were those in Williams’ camp that wanted the safety and governmental arm that ...
05.22.2019 129-Colonization of Rhode Island The other English colonies didn’t like the opinions or the teachings of Roger Williams and it was decided he must go. He headed off to plant a colony away from the rest of society although, many found his presents more ...
03.27.2019 128-A Letter Home from Richard Ffrethorne A letter sent home from a young indentured servant expressing his situation and begging for money so he could come back home.
03.20.2019 127-Maryland Colonization part four The final parts describing Maryland really comes down to a few major items, the succession of the Calverts through the years. The conflicts between government and citizens, starting in Virginia, Bacon’s rebellion, an action that could have spilled over into ...
02.20.2019 126-Maryland Colonization part three Lord Baltimore had control of Maryland but, this was short lived. The disputes in Europe lead some to take advantage of the New World’s venerability. It didn’t help matters with the execution of Charles I. Claiborne and this time with ...
01.29.2019 125-Maryland Colonization part two William Claiborne sailed over from England in 1621, became secretary of the province and was later appointed treasurer of Virginia for life. He created a trading post on Kent Island, a convenient place for trading with the Indians, far up ...
01.09.2019 124-Maryland Colonization King James I was gracious enough to grant Lord Baltimore or George Calvert a stretch of land at the South Eastern promontory in Newfoundland a region that was known as Ferryland. It was great in the beginning but, a little ...
11.29.2018 123-Jamestown part three It seems tough times for Jamestown and Virginia were behind them, not quite. King James annuls the Virginia Company’s charter and then he passes away. The new King, Charles allows them to continue as they were, basically governing themselves in ...
11.22.2018 Thanksgiving Message 2018 Happy thanksgiving, may you enjoy the day with friends and family.
10.17.2018 122-Jamestown part two Jamestown and Virginia were having a hard time keeping colonists alive. Jamestown was not located in a prime location. Sanitation and unfit drinking water lead to disease and grave sickness. Yet new colonists continued to pour into the settlements. These ...
08.28.2018 121-Jamestown continued After Captain John Smith’s terrible accident, how did this affect the colony of Jamestown, well quite a bit actually. The man kept the colony fed and maintained somewhat friendly terms with the local Indians. Once he left, contentions grew between ...
08.21.2018 A request A quick update and couple requests to my listeners.
08.03.2018 120-New England Expansion part two The New England settlers were still breaking away and creating new colonies. The behavior of Massachusetts was an ache in the side of King Charles II and New Haven wasn’t much better. To bring them back in line he created ...
07.10.2018 119-New England Expansion After describing the colonization by the Dutch, I realized there was a lot movement by the English in New England, I wanted to further investigate their progress. What I found were groups breaking off to form their own colonies due ...
06.08.2018 118-Dutch Colonization part 7 The Dutch could no longer maintain control of their holdings. The English had surpassed them in population numbers and the Duke of York wanted his territory. The unsettled European politics didn’t help matters. Pieter Stuyvesant was not willing to let ...
06.02.2018 117-Dutch Colonization part 6 With the treaty of Munster in 1648, it gave the United Netherlands a new start from the control of the Spanish crown. The English and the Dutch had been always been on friendly terms, that was about to change. It ...
04.26.2018 116-Dutch Colonization part 5 I start off by talking about the most successful Patroon; Killian Van Rensselaer yet he never saw his estate in America. The further travels of the director general, Pieter Stuyvesant, he did a great job for the company but, not ...
04.07.2018 115-Dutch Colonization part 4 The choices for Director Generals over New Netherland were poor. Willem Kieft was only in the leadership position for himself and his relation with the Algonquin Indians was deplorable, created a war lasting two years. Their retaliation was devastating. I ...
03.14.2018 114-Dutch Colonization part 3 The Dutch had a hard time increasing their colony populations, due to a couple of factors. Reputable people were not making the trip most likely because of the patroon system and the leaders of the New Netherland. Once Wouter Van ...
02.20.2018 113-Dutch Colonization part two The Dutch had to contend with the English claims over American territory. In one form or another, the English laid claim to everything, maybe not so much with the French. It’s unfortunate that the Dutch claims were between those of ...
01.22.2018 112-Dutch Colonization Many explorers had sailed down and mapped the eastern coast of America, each claiming for their sovereign nation a stretch of land. The English were complaining about the Dutch encroaching on English territory, setting up trading posts, and trading with ...
12.28.2017 111-Massachusetts Colonies New colonies were springing up all over New England. The Massachusetts Bay Company needed to keep an eye open to maintain its own legitimacy and legal patients. There was always someone bending the ear of the king. If one Puritan ...
11.29.2017 110-Sir Ferdinando Gorges part three Gorges was trying to gain COMPLETE control of New England. His latest scheme was to relinquish the present patents desiring King Charles I to reissue a series of new charters, eight to be exact. Each to be given to eight ...
11.23.2017 109-Sir Ferdinando Gorges part two For a time we find Gorges defying the orders of Admiral Thomas Pennington to allow French sailors to board English ships and sail off to fight for the French in a war the English captains wanted no part of. He ...
11.10.2017 108-Sir Ferdinando Gorges There were many tied to the colonization efforts, I think none more than Captain John Smith and that of Sir Ferdinando Gorges. Through his patents acquired a substantial amount of North America land, even against the vocal discontent of the ...
10.03.2017 107-Christopher Levett Christopher Levett determined to make his mark, gained a patent for 6000 acres, turned to his friends but, they didn’t have the same ambition that he had. Sailed off in 1623, explored & meet with New England’s neighbors, he put ...
09.18.2017 106-Plymouth Colony Continues On The Plymouth colony continues to grow and prosper. Bradford would on and off for the next several years act as their governor with others filling in as elected. What became the biggest problem was the paying down on the debt ...
08.29.2017 105-Plymouth Colony 1623-1625 Bradford was a well respected Governor and was not allowed to retire. He and the colonists had to put up with what Weston’s group had done among the Indians and the Plymouth trouble makers John Lyford and Oldame passing letters ...
08.06.2017 104-Pilgrims Proving Themselves With the arrival of the Fortune, more colonists were added to Plymouth and not being well prepared, more of a hindrance than anything else. Next to show up is a group of adventurers posing to establish a new colony in ...
07.20.2017 103-Pilgrims Meeting the Neighbors Half of the original colonists made it through that first winter; they were still bound and determined to make a go of it. They had a valuable ally in the Indian interpreter, Tisquantum or called by Bradford, Squanto. He would ...
07.04.2017 102-Pilgrims Start Setting Up Shop After a couple more ventures to pick that final spot, construction started on the Pilgrims new home. Many of these first colonists had already passed away from the cold. It was mentioned that this was a “mild” winter, what if ...
06.20.2017 101-Pilgrims Searching for Ideal Spot While the Mayflower sat anchored, many ventured forward searching for the perfect location to start a colony. Time was of the essence, winter was all around them and they must start building shelter or else the health and safety of ...
06.13.2017 100th Episode To celebrate my 100th episode, family and friends were directed to ask me questions about history. I tried to make the answers not so serious but, then history is a serious matter. Come listen to a question and answer episode ...
05.04.2017 99-Starting Point for the Pilgrims The so-called pilgrims had to find a country where their Puritan beliefs could be practiced without persecution. The King of England had his own beliefs and his own supremacy of which must be followed and obeyed. The group made their ...
04.11.2017 98-Pocahontas So I have here my own take on the life of Pocahontas, from the writings of John Smith, letters written and authors, Charles D. Warner and Williams Simms. No it is not like the movie so many have watched but, ...
03.30.2017 97-John Smith the Writer After his accident, Smith returned to England, never to see Virginia again. During his down time and most likely recuperating form his injuries, he wrote and published in 1612, a descriptive book including a map about Virginia. Two years later ...

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