The Atlas Obscura Podcast

By Stitcher Studios & Atlas Obscura

Society & Culture Places & Travel

What's The Atlas Obscura Podcast about?

An audio guide to the world’s strange, incredible, and wondrous places. Co-founder Dylan Thuras and a neighborhood of Atlas Obscura reporters explore a new wonder every day, Monday through Thursday. In under 15 minutes, they’ll take you to an incredible place, and along the way, you’ll meet some fascinating people and hear their stories. Our theme and end credit music is composed by Sam Tyndall.

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LAST EPISODE

The Dedan Kimathi Post Offi...

09.26.2023

The Dedan Kimathi Post Office played a notable role in Kenya’s struggle for Independence. GREAT NEWS: We’re up for an award - and you can help us win! Our podcast has been named a finalist for the Signal Awards! Go ...

The Atlas Obscura Podcast episodes:

09.26.2023 The Dedan Kimathi Post Office Tree (Classic) The Dedan Kimathi Post Office played a notable role in Kenya’s struggle for Independence. GREAT NEWS: We’re up for an award - and you can help us win! Our podcast has been named a finalist for the Signal Awards! Go ...
09.25.2023 Twin Oaks An intentional community in rural central Virginia has been testing an interesting premise for decades — that maybe three, or four, or more parental figures are even better than two.
09.22.2023 Moses Gates and the Chrysler Building Eagles (Classic) Urban planner, Moses Gates, shares his unlikely experience with the residents of the 61st floor of one of New York City’s most iconic buildings..
09.21.2023 The Fear Lab At Denmark’s largest haunted house attraction, it’s not just about the screams. Researchers are studying the effects – good and bad – that fear has on humans READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-science-of-horror-fear
09.20.2023 The Ark of Citrus There are thousands of varieties of citrus, many more than just the navel oranges. And they’re all being preserved in a collection at the University of California Riverside. Learn more here.
09.19.2023 Getting lost in Golden Gate Park Many of us rely on digital maps and GPS to get anywhere these days. Hear what happens when Producer Amanda McGowan finds herself lost in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park for a sport you may have never heard of – ...
09.18.2023 Italy’s Bomb Squad We chat with writer Alessio Perrone about what he learned from the people who hunt for Italy’s unexploded bombs, leftover from times of war. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/italy-unexploded-ordnance
09.15.2023 Harvard Bridge Smoots (Classic) How an MIT fraternity pledge instituted a new, unique unit of measurement. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/harvard-bridge-smoot-measurements
09.14.2023 The Atomic Clock How do we determine the time? Believe it or not, there is an official clock. It’s located in Boulder, Colorado at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and we go there to visit. LEARN MORE: NIST doesn’t give public ...
09.13.2023 Onöhsagwë:de’ Cultural Center We go to the Allegany territory of the Onödowá'ga people to learn about "The Creator's Game” – which evolved into the sport now known as lacrosse – and their constant fight to be recognized. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/onohsagwe-de-cultural-center
09.12.2023 Bridget Cleary We explore the power of myth and folklore through the story of an Irish woman, whose husband murdered her because he believed she’d become a fairy. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/bridget-cleary-changeling-murder-ireland
09.11.2023 Fenway Victory Gardens One of the last remaining World War II Victory Gardens in the U.S is quietly growing across from Boston’s Fenway Park.
09.08.2023 Rites of Passage School is back in session. So for this episode, Jonathan Carey and Michelle Cassidy of the Atlas Places Team bring two stories - one from the campus of Gallaudet University and the other from Cornell University to tell us about ...
09.07.2023 Mini Golfing in Myrtle Beach In Myrtle Beach, mini golf is not so mini. It’s over the top! This episode was produced in partnership with Visit Myrtle Beach, and to find a list of all mini golf courses, go to VisitMyrtleBeach.com.
09.06.2023 Face to Face Yet Again Our team has shared memorable encounters they’ve had with animals, and some were very unexpected. So this time we asked YOU about those experiences – and some of them are wild! TELL US YOUR STORY We want to hear your ...
09.05.2023 Kennett Square Just an hour west of Philadelphia, there’s a charming town in Pennsylvania that produces about two thirds of all the mushrooms sold in the US. We visit during the town’s annual festival and check out the mycelium madness. This Small ...
09.04.2023 Carousel of Happiness (Classic) A music box given to Scott Harrison while he served in Vietnam inspired him to hand-carve all the animals for the Carousel of Happiness in Nederland, Colorado. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/carousel-of-happiness
09.01.2023 Maine Windjammers We go back in time to another era of travel and take a trip on the oldest commercial sailing vessel in the United States. Click here to learn more about windjammers and here to book a trip with Captain Becky. ...
08.31.2023 The Last White Deer of Mount Madonna (Classic) The story of the white deer on Mount Madonna, the two robber barons who put them there, and the last survivor of the herd.
08.30.2023 How to Quarantine in a Ghost Town Back in 2020, a lot of people moved to faraway places to escape urban life amid a global pandemic. Brent Underwood bought and moved to an abandoned town. We check in, three years later. To learn more about Brent Underwood ...
08.29.2023 It’s Getting Hot in Here Let’s all go to hell. Seriously. Hell, Michigan, that is :) READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/hell-michigan
08.28.2023 Villa de Vecchi An abandoned mansion in Italy has become the source of rumors about ghost activity that some believe is justified by its very real gothic past. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/villa-de-vecchi
08.25.2023 Dead Companions (Classic) We nearly stump host Dylan Thuras with a seemingly simple question: Who are the top five dead people he would like to go on a road trip with?
08.24.2023 Arthurdale The New Deal is known for ushering a string of social safety net programs. But in this episode, we tell the saga of an ambitious, government-backed homestead project in West Virginia that never quite lived up to its hype. READ ...
08.23.2023 Mysterious Sinkholes of Mt Baldy One family’s regular day of exploring some sand dunes at the edge of Lake Michigan turned into a wild tale of a little boy being sucked into a sinkhole, and the discovery of underground tunnels. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: ...
08.22.2023 Embracing Adventure in Fayetteville A tiny town in West Virginia takes “living lift to the fullest” to a different level, with its embrace of extreme adventure activities. Like, for instance, a day where people sign up to jump off a bridge. This Small Town, ...
08.21.2023 A Whale of a Tale with Daniel Kraus We chat with writer Daniel Kraus, who let his imagination run deep into the ocean after hearing a wild news story about an encounter between kayakers and a whale. And we get the backstory to Kraus’ new novel Whalefall, about ...
08.18.2023 Spacecraft Cemetery (Classic) Where does space stuff go after it dies? To this spot deep, deep in the Pacific Ocean. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/spacecraft-cemetery
08.17.2023 Demon Wall A small church in a village in Norway is home to an unusual and perplexing mural that’s become known for its demonic illustrations. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/demon-wall-norway
08.16.2023 APOPO Rats This episode may have you reconsidering what you think about rats. That’s because at this training and research center in Tanzania, African Giant Pouched Rats are being raised up to sniff out landmines and disease, proving to be the heroes ...
08.15.2023 Texas Painted Churches A series of churches in Texas that look unassuming from the outside in fact have some of the most intricately painted interiors. And for one of our listeners, these churches mean home – religiously and culturally.
08.14.2023 Snake Island A tiny island off the coast of Brazil is known for being a dangerous place … purely because its inhabitants are, well, snakes. But we speak to a researcher who’s seen it up close and says it’s time for this ...
08.11.2023 Winchester Mystery House (Classic) Does this sprawling mansion in San Jose, California live up to its reputation as one of the most haunted places in the world? READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/winchester-mystery-house
08.10.2023 Hartsdale Pet Cemetery The oldest operating pet cemetery in the world is just north of NYC, and it’s where dearly departed four-legged friends come to rest – and sometimes, even their owners. Grab your tissues. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/hartsdale-pet-cemetery
08.09.2023 Gullah Museum We visit a museum in Georgetown, SC that’s dedicated to preserving and prioritizing the rich and historic Gullah Geechee culture. READ MORE: http://www.gullahmuseumsc.com/
08.08.2023 Burj Al Babas An incomplete luxury housing development in Turkey is a mashup of fairy tale and ghost town, and almost everyone has an opinion of (or wants to see) this place. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/turkey-castle-ghost-town
08.07.2023 Pā‘ula‘ula / Russian Fort Elizabeth Producer Johanna Mayer and Atlas Obscura associate editor Sarah Durn tell us the story of a fort in Hawaii with two names – and how those names both preserve and erase its history. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/hawaiian-history-russian-fort-elizabeth
08.04.2023 Sunny Jim Cave (Classic) We follow a long set of wooden stairs deep underground to a sea cave with a mysterious and colorful past, and take in a spectacular, hidden view of the Pacific Ocean in La Jolla. Learn more about The Cave Store: ...
08.03.2023 Jacko Steps We go to the Caribbean island of Dominica and hear the story of Jacko, a formerly enslaved man who became a national hero for his ingenious escape and emancipation efforts READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/jacko-steps
08.02.2023 Dmanisi An archeological site in the country of Georgia, which features the oldest human skull fossils found outside of Africa, challenges what we think we know about our deep past. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/dmanisi-hominins-brain-shape
08.01.2023 Heating things up in Hatch Today we're headed just a couple hours south of Albuquerque to Hatch, New Mexico, a town where the heat doesn’t just come from the sun. It also comes from the signature crop: Hatch, New Mexico chiles. This Small Town, Big ...
07.31.2023 Bone Vinyl In the Soviet Union, x-rays didn’t just give you a look inside the human body. They also gave you a glimpse of the outside world, thanks to music that was imprinted onto this unassuming medical tool. READ MORE IN THE ...
07.28.2023 Beale Treasure (Classic) Grab your pickaxes, your shovels, and your code breaking supercomputers because today we’re going on a treasure hunt.
07.27.2023 Knight’s Spider Web Farm The family behind this farm relies on itsy bitsy helpers to produce one-of-a-kind art. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/knight-s-spider-web-farm
07.26.2023 Amazon Night Hikes Hear how a trip to the jungle, and a series of nighttime hikes, cured producer Chris Naka’s bug-phobia, once and for all.
07.25.2023 Spaces for Spies Places editors Jonathan Carey and Michelle Cassidy bring us two stories about two particular places whose histories intersect with real world American espionage. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: Check out our entry on the FBI House here and on the ...
07.24.2023 Mapping the Gay Guides For decades, a one of a kind travel guide opened up the world for gay travelers. Today, historians are using them to create an interactive map of LGBTQ spaces in midcentury America. LEARN MORE: https://www.mappingthegayguides.org/
07.21.2023 Rödstensgubben (Classic) A trip to Sweden prompts former show producer Sarah Wyman to dig into a superstitious story passed through generations about the Red Stone Man
07.20.2023 Face to Face Our show often focuses on interesting people and places. But in this episode, the team shares memorable encounters they’ve had with animals – everything from parakeets to a very special opossum. TELL US YOUR STORY: We want to hear your ...
07.19.2023 Darién Gap An infamous break in the road that links North and South America has been in and out the news for more than 100 years – for good reason. This stretch of jungle has been a magnet for adventure junkies, but ...

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