In this episode we’re stepping back into the Gilded Age with a writer who didn't just report on history—he lived it.

Richard Harding Davis was the ultimate 'journalist-adventurer,' a man who charged up San Juan Hill with Teddy Roosevelt and narrowly escaped execution as a spy during the Great War. But when he wasn't on the front lines, Davis was the undisputed chronicler of New York high society.

In this episode’s story, Love Me Love My Dog, the sophisticated atmosphere of a house-party is shattered when the hostess’s beloved dog goes missing. What follows is a chaotic search that spills out from the warm, candlelit parlors and into the biting cold of a snowy night.

At the center of it all is our recurring hero, Cortlandt Van Bibber.

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In this episode of Narrated Archives, we explore the sophisticated yet surprisingly tender world of the Gilded Age through three of Richard Harding Davis's most evocative stories: "A Walk Up the Avenue," "Van Bibber and the Swan-Boats," and "Van Bibber as Best Man." These narratives offer more than just a glimpse into high-society New York; they capture the universal tension between public persona and private longing, proving that even the most polished "man-about-town" is humanized by moments of quiet empathy and romantic missed connections.

It is a must-listen for anyone who enjoys sharp social observation paired with the bittersweet nostalgia of a vanished era.

• A Walk Up the Avenue - follows a young man walking through New York City as he reflects on his break-up with his fiance. 
• Van Bibber and the Swan-Boats - Van Bibber finds himself on a bench in Boston’s Public Garden when he encounters 3 little girls from a different side of the city. The tale highlights his capacity for kindness and the experience of bridging class divides.
• Van Bibber as Best Man - centers on Van Bibber assisting a distraught couple with a secret marriage. He utilizes his social influence and resources to ensure the success of the plan.

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In the bonus episode of Narrated Archives we’re stepping further into a world that feels like a fantasy in Rootabaga Country.

In 1922, the legendary American poet Carl Sandburg decided that American children didn’t need any more stories about European knights or kings. He wanted a folklore that belonged to the prairies, the skyscrapers, and the railroads. The result was Rootabaga Stories—a collection so lyrical and nonsensical it feels like jazz put to paper.

Here is The Skyscraper to the Moon and How the Green Rat with the Rheumatism Ran a Thousand Miles Twice

And 

Shush Shush, the Big Buff Banty Hen Who Laid an Egg in the Postmaster’s Hat

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In this episode we’re celebrating the pure, nonsensical joy of Carl Sanburg’s Rootabaga Stories and Rootabaga Pigeons.  Know for his monumental 6 volume biography of Abraham Lincoln, Sandburg also wrote poetry and children's fairy tales.  These stories are set in a world where the railroad tracks run off into the sky and the Village of Cream Puffs floats away in the wind! Join me to step into this whimsical past together letting our imaginations soar with the echoes of these delightful tales!

• How Gimme the Ax Found Out About the Zigzag Railroad and Who Made It Zigzag
• How to Tell Corn Fairies If You See ’Em
• Many, Many Weddings in One Corner House”
• How Six Pigeons Came Back to Hatrack the Horse After Many Accidents and Six Telegrams
• Never Kick a Slipper at the Moon

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Audiobooks narrated by Sally Barron can be found at:

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In this bonus episode we’re looking at a moral and legal puzzle by the Scottish-Canadian master of irony, Robert Barr.  We’ve heard from Mr. Barr in the episode “The Doom of London”.  

First published in his 1896 collection Revenge!, Barr’s story “Which Was the Murderer?”  presents a case that feels modern in its critique of the justice system. It’s a story where the body is cold, the assailant is caught red-handed, and yet… the law might let him walk free on a technicality.

It’s a tale that forces a grieving woman into an impossible, chilling choice.  Enjoy!

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Audiobooks narrated by Sally Barron can be found at:

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In this episode we’re unearthing a chillingly prescient piece of Victorian science fiction by Robert Barr that feels all too modern.

In 1892, Robert Barr—a writer who influenced the likes of Agatha Christie—penned a pioneering harrowing account of urban catastrophe titled “The Doom of London”. Set in a then-future mid-20th century, our narrator looks back on the final days of the 19th century, when a freak meteorological coincidence turned London's iconic fog into a lethal atmospheric trap.

Step back in time together and listen to the voice of the past with “The Doom of London”.

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Audiobooks narrated by Sally Barron can be found at:

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In this episode of Narrated Archives we step into the brief, blazing life of Stephen Crane, author of The Red Badge of Courage.  In the four stories presented, Stephen Crane captures the intersection of quiet human longing and the harsh often indifferent realities of society. 

• “An Eloquence of Grief” - written around 1896, captures a routine New York City police court.
• “The Auction” - a public auction features the possessions of a former sailor named Ferguson and his wife. Crane explores the collision of financial tragedy and social humiliation.
• "A Great Mistake" - a brief, atmospheric scene that centers on the silent, intense longing and hunger of a small child gazing at an elaborate fruit stand.
• “A Fishing Village" - a descriptive piece, originally published in the August 1899 issue of The Philistine, that captures the rugged isolation, quiet endurance and daily rhythms of a coastal community with his characteristic impressionistic detail.

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In this episode are 2 stories froma collection all written by H. D Umbstaetter, entitled “The Red Hot Dollar and Other Stories from The Black Cat”.   Also included is the Introduction to the collection written by Jack London

•  “One Chance in a Million” tells of an entrepreneur so secretive that he   almost loses his live
• “In Hell’s Cañon” a prospector is determined to locate a "lost lead". 

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This week we’re listening to a sample from Harris Newmark’s memoir, “Sixty Years in Southern California".

We’ll be listening to the first 2 chapters in which Newmark recounts his upbringing and how he ended up traveling to California from Prussia covering the years 1834-1853

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In this episode we’re meeting the 19th century humorist, journalist and author known for his witty satirical columns and depictions of western life.

1. Mush and Melody has Mr. Nye attempting to provide a grand solution for a non-problem, providing that if you squint hard enough anything can turn into a crisis. 
2. ‘Flying Machines’ showcases a range of aerial contraptions that hover somewhere between ‘mildly impressive’ and ‘why on Earth would anyone try that?’ 
3. In ‘The Amateur Carpenter’ Nye really  leans into the amateur part; the results of these carpentry projects may resemble disasters.
4. Up next is ‘One Kind of Fool’ with Nye’s portrait of a young drifter who’s about as skilled at lying as a toddler trying to play poker. 
5. And to wrap up, Bill Nye draws a curious parallel between his prose and the illustrious Noah Webster, proving that even in writing, comparisons can stretch the limits of credulity.

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Audiobooks narrated by Sally Barron can be found at:

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