02/10/2024
Welcome to The Untold Old Dominion Podcast!
I can't thank you enough for stopping by the page to discover what this podcast is all about.
This show's goal is to bring to light the more fascinating, lesser understood aspects of Virginia's storied, complex, and at times troubled history. Doing so in an accessible, story driven format that isn't afraid to tackle tough subjects or controversial people, that allows the listener to imagine the fears, aspirations, and other emotions felt by our subjects over the years is what I'm hopeful you'll garner from a listen.
I'm hopeful that this show will help demonstrate that history is closer to us than we often think. That by discovering the WHY behind something, or someone, we can understand HOW something, or someone, played such an important role in our little slice of America's story.
I've managed to hammer out the format; each season of the show will highlight an overarching event, person, or place that, beyond simple facts, undeniably shaped the Commonwealth that exists today.
Each Season will have somewhere in the arena of 5 or so episodes. Also, there won't be much in the area of chronology, so expect to jump around from Indigenous American stories to events that may have occurred last month-- gotta keep you on your toes. 🙂 In truth, it's because my goal isn't to bore you with a set of interesting facts from beginning to end. Instead, it's to share these seasons, these stories, as separate pieces of their own puzzles. And by solving those, looking at the big picture hopefully becomes a little less overwhelming. Looking at the lesser known, but highly interesting, aspects of Virginia's past will hopefully give a voice to those whose stories should be told, be they happy endings or not.
That's what began my own decades- long fascination with history in general, but Virginia's in particular. I am born and raised in the Hampton Roads area, and still call the Tidewater region home. My grandfather inspired my love of history from a young age, and I can remember being fascinated with stories of Fort Monroe, of Jamestown, of the Civil War. Of Nat Turner and Nathaniel Bacon. Of how amazing it was to be able to visit those places, to connect myself to those watershed events and places over the years.
I earned my degree in History from Old Dominion University in 2010, and proceeded to give up on that passion for a while. Marriage, children, and a decade of non- related jobs later, I've decided to give this a go. I'm hopeful that once this gets on the tracks in true fashion, I'll be able to publish an episode once a week: for now, I'm thinking once every two.
I can't wait to bring you on this journey with me and will be posting more as we approach our launch.
Season one's production is well underway: an in depth examination into the utter collapse of British authority in Virginia in 1775, told through the experiences of John Murray, better known as Lord Dunmore, Virginia's last British Governor. We'll look at his own radical youth, his questionable decision making, and his truly revolutionary decision to offer freedom, and even guns, to Virginia's slaves in response for crushing American Independence.
