Every runner and casual sports observer knows that the Boston Marathon is a big deal. What most don't realize, however, is that it is directly connected to the first Modern Olympics in Athens and, thus tied to the birth of the sport. Listen to hear how the Boston Marathon came into being and how it was an offshoot of the Athens Games.

A spring day in 1780 was like no other. It was so dark at noon that candles were needed at lunchtime, animals returned to the barn, and the crickets chirped as if it were night. Some thought the end of the world was at hand. Others looked for a rational explanation, and some just took the time to goof off. Although there have been many plausible hypotheses, no one has ever been absolutely sure what happened on that long ago May 19th.

The Davis Cup Tournament is viewed as the World Cup of Tennis: Nation vs. Nation vying for top honors. The competition moves from city to city, around the globe, but almost forgotten is that very edition in 1900 - the inaugural event staged in Boston. In fact, the tournament was the brainchild of a Harvard tennis player, and the trophy, emblematic of the championship, was created by a venerable Boston jeweler.

You don't often hear of nobility in New England, but if you drive through Woburn Square - about four miles from where the American Revolution began, that would free this country of royal and noble titles - you might just spot a statue labeled "Count Rumford." How did this happen? Why is he honored as such? Listen in to find out about this genius inventor and politician, and a man on the wrong side of the American cause.

In the middle of the depression era the city of Boston had not just one, but two professional football teams. They didn't play in the same leagues, but they were rivals nonetheless - not on the field, but at the box office. They both fought for more than championships. They were in battles for survival.Both teams were slated to host their respective title games, but circumstances got in the way. Listen to the story of how the Boston Redskins and the Boston Shamrocks vied for the football fandom of Boston with neither coming out on top.

The early 1900s was a more innocent time in some ways. Access to the governor’s office was not complicated. Anyone could walk in and ask to speak with the state’s chief executive. One day in 1907, a would be assassin walked in and began shooting. The governor survived the attack and was actually one of the heroes of the day. Listen in to hear the complete story of the attack on Massachusetts governor, Curtis Guild.

Every year the city of Boston receives a gift from the city of Halifax and the province of Nova Scotia - a Christmas tree. Its purpose is to bind the two regions in friendship, but it also commemorates the response to a terrible tragedy that happened more than a century ago. On Dec. 6, 1917, a series of explosions devastated Halifax, killing thousands and injuring many more. Massachusetts responded immediately, before knowing any details, and saved, or relieved the suffering, of thousands more. This is the back story; the saga of the amazing response to those awful events that prompts Nova Scotia's annual present to Boston.

There are all sorts of holiday traditions. Some come steeped in history, honoring great turning points or important people, while others, inexplicably, grow organically from small - almost meaningless events.

One such unusual Thanksgiving rite is based on a relatively trivial matter that happened back in 1965. If it had happened to anyone but a folksinger it would never be remembered today. He wrote a song about it which became a hit and later spawned a movie. Today hundreds, maybe thousands, pull out the song and play it some time before feasting on turkey. It's become part of the annual ritual.

Now, we all know that the story behind the song "Alice's Restaurant" can't possibly be true, right? But it is - at least, partly. Listen in to get the lowdown on the real story of Alice's Restaurant.

On October 24, 1961, a young mother of two toddlers went about her daily routine: A dentist appointment in the morning, some grocery shopping, checking in with her best friend who just gave birth, she sent her husband's suits to the dry cleaners, fed the children, and then vanished without a trace. Newspapers across the country covered the story in its early days, the local press kept with the story for the rest of the year, but, with no breakthroughs, it faded from the consciousness of the area. Whatever happened to Joan Risch, of Lincoln, MA? Was she murdered? Was she abducted? Did she plan her own disappearance, and, most intriguing of all, at 91, could she still be out there? "Vanished in Lincoln" answers some, but not all, of the questions.surrounding this enduring mystery.

As the Civil War raged across the country, one North Shore town became part of the great recruitment. The crossroads village of South Lynnfield, with its train station, access to Suntaug Lake, and plenty of flat open fields, was the site of the Eastern Massachusetts recruitment center. The tiny town saw an influx of people, raising the temporary population to heights only recently surpassed. Hear about the two summers in the early 1860s when Lynnfield was transformed into the epicenter of Massachusetts military activity.