Listen in as rural Americans talk about the work -- creative, unique, and sometimes exhausting -- they do. It's a revealing look at how work helps form the backbone of American society, no matter where you live. We all contribute our efforts (paid or unpaid) to the life, economy, and character of our communities. Rural communities today are at a new crossroads -- a meeting point of ideas where they can chart their future. In this episode, we're exploring the past, present and future of work in rural America through the voices of everyday people. First jobs, hard jobs, odd jobs, unusual jobs, ancient jobs ... these storytellers have seen it all.

View the episode transcript.

Visit the Museum on Main Street website's story portal to share your own story about rural America!

Thanks to our storytelling partners at Be Here Stories at The Peale, Baltimore's Community Museum. Use the online recording tool to tell the Smithsonian about how you have experienced rural America.

This episode was produced for the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service by Better Lemon Creative Audio. Hannah Hethmon and Bobby Harley are your hosts. Produced, written and edited by Hannah Hethmon.

Welcome back to the Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street podcast! The stereotypical view of rural America is that life is quiet, people all think the same, there's not much fun stuff to do, and there are few opportunities. The truth is, just like in cities and suburbs, small-town Americans focus on family and community, work hard to make ends meet, and want their hometowns to thrive. The success of rural communities is important to all Americans. Like the rest of the country, rural America has changed remarkably in the last 100 years. Listen in as people from all over America share the good memories, hard times, and lessons learned as they reflect on how change has an impact on their hometowns.

Visit Museum on Main Street at www.museumonmainstreet.org.

Explore fascinating stories from around the country or share your own at www.museumonmainstreet.org/stories.

Our waterways are one of our most precious shared resources. But in some places, we risk losing them to pollution, climate change, or overuse. In this episode, we hear from folks around the country talk about why their local waterways matter and why they believe in protecting them.

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Stories used in this episode:

Violet Spolarich on fighting pipelines and protecting water in her rural community

Climate Change at the White Earth Reservation

The Singing River Has the Blues

Why Are There So Many Weeds

Grandpa Bill's Big Lake Mistake

Visit the Museum on Main Street website's story portal to share your own water story!

Explore the Women Mind the Water project.

Thanks to our storytelling partners at the Peale Center! Visit their website, The Peale Center for Baltimore History and Architecture.

This episode was produced for the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service by Better Lemon Creative Audio. Produced, written, narrated, and edited by Hannah Hethmon.

We sometimes take for granted that we humans have figured out how to swim and dive, and travel across great bodies of water on boats. But it is really quite amazing when you think about it. In this episode, we soak in stories about swimming, diving, and boating ... and think about leaving our natural habitat behind to explore.

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Stories used in this episode:

Hok-Si-La Municipal Park, Minnesota

Swimming with a Horse in Minnesota

Diving in Minnesota Lakes

Diving Beyond the Cliff, Caribbean Sea

Kayaking with Seals, Maine

Mississippi Gulf Coast Waterways

The Green Dean and Hurricane Gloria, Rhode Island

The Ocean as a Retreat, California

Canoeing Adventures in Minnesota

Visit the Museum on Main Street website's story portal to share your own water story!

Explore the Women Mind the Water project.

Thanks to our storytelling partners at the Peale Center! Visit their website, The Peale Center for Baltimore History and Architecture.

This episode was produced for the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service by Better Lemon Creative Audio. Produced, written, narrated, and edited by Hannah Hethmon.

What is it about water that can instantly improve our mood, stir up joy, or awaken our inner child? In episode 4, we dive into the joy of playing in the water as we listen to stories of swimming in summer, splashing in puddles, and letting the waves lick our toes.

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Stories featured in this episode:

One Dock at a Time, Maine to Florida

Summers at the River in South Georgia

A River Girl and Her Fly Fishing and Outdoor Business in Todd, North Carolina

Learning to Swim

Trout Fishing and the Love for Water

Building the Fish Pond with Dad, Hawaii

Camping on the Blue Earth River, Minnesota

Playing in the Mud, Virginia Beach

Catching Fish in Mud Puddles, Missouri

Baptisms at Games Lake

Visit the Museum on Main Street website's story portal to share your own water story!

Explore the Women Mind the Water project.

Thanks to our storytelling partners at the Peale Center! Visit their website, The Peale Center for Baltimore History and Architecture.

This episode was produced for the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service by Better Lemon Creative Audio. Produced, written, narrated, and edited by Hannah Hethmon.

Simply add water and watch it grow! In episode 3, we dig into the ways water contributes to almost everything we need to survive, and drink in stories from the people who grow our food and tend to our gardens. How does water help sustain you and your community?

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Stories used in this episode:

How Chester Worked: Cotton, Hogs and Dairy

DeKalb County Community Gardens, Illinois

Colonial Farming Practices

Seaweed Farming in Connecticut

Farming Near the Cobb River, Minnesota

Rhubarb Farming in Minnesota

Minnesota Fish Hatcheries

These things are certain: the passage of time, the flow of water, and the labor of humankind. In episode 2, we navigate stories of work and the water, stories that highlight the wide range of livelihoods that exist for the water and because of the water.

Stories used in this episode:

Mississippi Gulf Coast Waterways

The Ancient Warren River Valley and the Vetter Stone Company, Minnesota-Donn Vetter

A Winding Career Path Leads to Water, Florida

A River Girl and her Fly Fishing and Outdoor Business in Todd, North Carolina-Kelly McCoy

Watermen Community of Crisfield, Maryland

Watermen: Observers of the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland

History, Recreation and Preservation--Bruce Conmy Talks about Minnesota Lakes

Download Episode Transcript

Visit the Museum on Main Street Stories from Main Street to share your own water story!

Explore the Women Mind the Water project.

Thanks to our storytelling partners at the Peale Center in Baltimore, Maryland

This episode was produced for the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service by Better Lemon Creative Audio. Produced, written, narrated and edited by Hannah Hethmon.

Welcome to the water. In episode 1, join host and producer Hannah Hethmon as she explores stories that highlight the many ways water connects and defines us.

Stories used in this episode:

Take Me to the Water

Seaweed Farming in Connecticut

Violet Spolarich on fighting pipelines and protecting water in her rural community

History, Recreation, and Preservation--Bruce Conmy Talks about Minnesota Lakes

Baptisms at Games Lake--Carolyn Lange Hatlestad

From Bulgaria to Boston: A Water Journey

Angela's Memorable Encounter with the Dead Sea

Connections to Water in Greece

The Magic of Water

Spirit of the Water, New York

Water as Spirit in Minnesota--Mike Swan

The Need for Wetlands Restoration--Scott Glup

A Magical Encounter with Whales in Hawaii

Download Episode Transcript

Visit the Museum on Main Street website's story portal to share your own water story!

Explore the Women Mind the Water project.

Thanks to our storytelling partners at the Peale Center! Visit their website, The Peale Center for Baltimore History and Architecture.

This episode was produced for the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service by Better Lemon Creative Audio. Produced, written, narrated, and edited by Hannah Hethmon.

Experience the voice of small-town America, one story at a time. Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street is a new podcast from Museum on Main Street, a program of the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service that brings Smithsonian exhibitions to small-town America. Since 2011, people in rural communities have shared thousands of stories with the Smithsonian!

Season 1 explores stories about water gathered from towns that hosted the Water/Ways exhibition. Curated and hosted by podcaster Hannah Hethmon and produced by Better Lemon Creative Audio, Season 1 of Smithsonian's Stories from Main Street is a chance to slow down, hear from everyday Americans living in small towns, and think more deeply about one of our most precious shared resources.