Armchair Historians Anne Marie Cannon

In this episode, Anne Marie chats with Ethan Healy about Mary Todd Lincoln and her desire to connect with the spirits of her loved ones, including two children who died in childhood, through seances and spiritualism.

Ethan Healey is a BA History student at New England College in Henniker, NH. His thesis is on John Adams during retirement and how Adams views the legacy he left behind. Ethan's work has been featured in The Henniker Review, a local college publication. He is currently in the process of graduate school applications and hopes to be studying for a Ph.D. in History next Fall.

Resources:
Ethan's Blog:  https://ethanhealey.home.blog/
Twitter:  @EthanHealey

Wikipedia
Mary Todd Lincoln: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Todd_Lincoln
Spiritualism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiritualism
Seance: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Séance
William H. Mumler, Spirit Photographer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_H._Mumler

LIncoln, Movie Trailer: https://youtu.be/lTA5rdz51XI

Episodes Mentioned: Caroline Welling Van Deusen, Elizabeth Dixon: https://bit.ly/3miVXAu

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In this episode Anne Marie is doing something a little bit different. You may recall that she  interviewed her great nephew Finley for Armchair Historian's New Year’s 2021 episode. If you haven’t done so we highly recommend listening to that episode (it’s one of our favorites) Well Finley and Anne Marie talked about a lot of things, some of which did not make into the final cut. In this installment of Armchair Historians we share one of the sidebar conversations they had from that interview about Finley’s favorite history in the form of a mini episode. 
One of the reasons we love to interview kids about history is the very unique way in which they relate to the historical characters and events. Who does the child cast as the hero and who does he cast as the villain? We believe the way we view the world and ourselves are evident in the way we tell the story of our history, children are no exception.

Resources for Blackfoot Tribe

Blackfeet Nation Website: https://blackfeetnation.com
Blackfoot Confederacy Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackfoot_Confederacy
Little Blaze: This is all I could find on Little Blaze: https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/5444896

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In this episode, Anne Marie talks to history geek, storyteller, and tour operator, Chris Albrecht about Golden Colorado's history, The town that almost became the capital of Colorado.

Chris says, "there’s no better way to get to know a city than having a local teach you about it through stories.  You can also get great recommendations for things to do, when to do them, and the places to avoid." So when he moved to Golden, Colorado, and realized there wasn't a guided history tour available in the historic wild west town at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, he decided to start his own tour company, Golden History Tours.

Chris tells some well-crafted stories about Golden, its early days as a town during the second half of the nineteenth century, and some of the historical characters and events that helped make the town what it is today.

Find out more about Chris Albrecht and Golden History Tours:
https://www.goldenhistorytours.com/more

Golden Colorado, Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden,_Colorado

Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave: https://www.buffalobill.org

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In this episode, Anne Marie talks to Caroline Welling VanDeusen. Caroline is the author of Diary of Elizabeth Dixon, 1845-47 published in White House History, Issue 33, by the White House Historical Association. You may wonder who Elizabeth Dixon is because Elizabeth actually worked hard to erase herself from history. She went so far as to pay off reporters not to write about her. She did, however, leave behind her diaries and letters, which were passed down from generation to generation until they landed in the hands of Caroline, Elizabeth’s direct descendent.
Caroline talks in-depth about her 3rd great-grandmother Elizabeth Dixon, whose presence was requested by first lady Mary Todd Lincoln during the dark hours following her husband’s fatal shooting. Elizabeth is depicted in the painting The Last Hours of Abraham Lincoln, by Alonzo Chappel seated next to Mary who is sprawled across the dead body of President Lincoln.

To find out more on Caroline Welling Van Deusen: https://bio.site/carolinewvandeusen

Elizabeth Dixon's published diary: https://bit.ly/3gmAgvU

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In this episode, Anne Marie talks to The Slave Dwelling Project founder Joe McGill. Joe shares his journey and passion project. According to theslavedwellingproject.com, The Slave Dwelling Project envisions a future in which the hearts and minds of Americans acknowledge a more truthful and inclusive narrative of the history of The Nation, one that honors the contributions of all our people, is embedded and preserved in the buildings and artifacts of people of African heritage and inspires all Americans to acknowledge their ancestors.

One of the ways Joe brings attention to his mission is he actually hosts sleepovers at intact slave dwellings throughout the United States. Joe has rolled out his sleeping bag at slave dwelling structures in 25 states! Each sleepover begins with an often difficult dialogue, led by Joe, with his fellow campers, unpacking the truth about the history of the institution of slavery in the United States.

The Slave Dwelling Project website: https://slavedwellingproject.org
Slave Dwelling Project Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slavedwellingproject/
Slave Dwelling Project Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SlaveDwellingProject/
Slave Dwelling Project Twitter: https://twitter.com/slavedwelling

Confederates in the Attic: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confederates_in_the_Attic

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In this episode Anne Marie talks  to La Percée du Bocage museum president, Billy Leblond and Men in the Shed Blogger, Colin Foster about Operation Bluecoat and the story behind Men in the Shed.

Men in the Shed tells the story of 18 Allied POWs who literally left their mark on the wall of a wooden shed owned by a French baker in Normandy. The shed (commandeered by the German military) became a temporary jail  for Allied POW's during the fighting following the D Day landings in 1944.

"Operation Bluecoat was a British offensive in the Battle of Normandy, from 30 July until 7 August 1944, during the Second World War. The geographical objectives of the attack, undertaken by the VIII Corps and XXX Corps of the British Second Army (Lieutenant-General Miles Dempsey), were to secure the road junction of Vire and the high ground of Mont Pinçon.

"The attack was made at short notice to exploit the success of Operation Cobra by the First US Army after it broke out on the western flank of the Normandy beachhead and to exploit the withdrawal of the 2nd Panzer Division from the Caumont area, to take part in Unternehmen Lüttich (Operation Liège) a German counter-offensive against the Americans."     — Wikipedia

Colin Foster has been interested in the Second World War from an early age. According to Colin, " being born in 1959 meant that he grew up in an age where good quality war movies were regularly made!"

He is a regular visitor to Normandy since 2002 when he started researching the Normandy campaign as the result of his friend stubmling upon the names, ranks, serial numbers and dates of capture of 18 Allied soldiers, written on one of the inside walls of his shed. The old wooden shed, which once served as a grainstore, sits behind what used to be the village bakery in the small Normandy village of St Vigor des Mézerets.  purchased the bakery (by now converted to a house) in 2000. His research to date is recorded on his website Men in the Shed.

Billy Leblond has a passion for the History of his paternal grandfather and father with whom he has visited many historical places.
His interset for WWII came in college and developed in Lycée.
His internships focused on  WW2 museums of Normandy and included Dead Man Corner,  Caen Memorial and Grand Bunker Ouistreham.

For the past 5 years Billy has  been  involved  in the  La Percée du Bocage Museum, of which he now serves as president of the museum's board, following Mark Kentell last year. Jean Ménard, the founder of the museum, helped and guided him throughout the years he has been involved. According to Billy Jean Ménard has been instrumental in helping him to understand "the perception of the human aspect of the battles and of the history of veteran to whom we owe so much."


Jean Ménard : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE_fgzNCpZ0
Museum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IONeDC5p7d4

La Percée Du Bocage Museum:  https://www.laperceedubocage.fr
Men in the Shed: https://menintheshed.com

Operation Bluecoat Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Bluecoat

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