The Ordinary, Extraordinary Cemetery

Jennie Johnson & Dianne Hartshorn
  • 4.5 (58)
  • HISTORY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

The Ordinary, Extraordinary Cemetery is a podcast for cemetery lovers, preservationists, and even those who've never walked among the graves. Join hosts Jennie and Dianne as they explore old cemeteries and learn the stories of those buried within their walls. After all, every death had a life, and every life had a story.

  1. 4D AGO

    Episode 267 - The Brigadier, The Bluebird, and a Lifetime of Love

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. In this episode of the Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery, we're diving into a tale of wartime romance, enduring love, and a connection forged across continents. Dalhousie University, 1914. She was a music student, he was an athlete. They were just friends... until the Great War changed everything. Discover the captivating journey of Reg Roome and Helen Jones – a Canadian soldier fighting on the front lines and a brave 'bluebird' nurse – whose wartime letters unexpectedly blossomed into a passionate romance and a secret proposal. Tune in for this beautiful Ordinary Extraordinary true love story that defied the trenches and atrocities of the First World War.  To read not only Reg and Helen's love story, but also those of others who experienced the Great War, check out "True Love Stories from World War One" by Amelia Kenton. https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/true-love-stories-from-world-war-one-wwi-inspiring-couples-from-back-in-time_amelia-kenton/39802706/?srsltid=AfmBOopf27MIIxxyJ069HImP1S_M6EOGXNPUzk1vO2h-RfA7y_WiCeQ9#edition=68156381&idiq=59204071 Support the show

    36 min

  2. FEB 5

    Episode 266 - Tracks of Change: The Pullman Porters' Legacy

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. All aboard! Join Jennie and Dianne this week as they "ride the rails" with the Pullman Porters, unsung heroes of American history! These men overcame unimaginable prejudice and racism; from being called "George" by passengers, regardless of their name, to working 400+ hours a month with little time off, their struggles were real. Yet, they persevered, forming the first all-Black labor union, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, and paving the way for the Civil Rights Movement. Their legacy extends far beyond the railroad, influencing leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and shaping the course of American history.  Need an Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery Podcast tee, hoodie or mug? Find all our taphophile-fun much here: https://oecemetery.etsy.com Family Tales: A free printable, is now available! Gather 'round the table and dig into your roots! This interactive family history game is perfect for holidays, reunions, or just because. Ask, listen, and laugh your way through generations of stories and secrets. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UT_R56qEwNTIxIBrTy8KFyVmGnFOe7g8/view?usp=sharing *Images: Sleeping car, Pullman Porter portrait & Pullman Porter making the bed are in the public domain • Gates to The Haven of Rest Cemetery in Little Rock, Arkansas by Richard Theilig 3/2/2018 posted to findagrave.com • James William Warren Jr.grave by Mizzizzippy 10/24/2018 posted to findagrave.com • grave of Prince Albert Smith by Richard Theilig 4/23/2019 posted to findagrave.com Resources used to research this episode include: Dorsey-Burke, Ethelda. "Ordinary Men—Extraordinary History: A Proud Pullman Porter ." https://www.tacomaartmuseum.org/. 22 Dec. 2021. www.tacomaartmuseum.org/tamblog-proud-pullman-porter/ . Accessed 1 Feb. 2026. Hutchinson , Brittany. "The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters ." https://www.chicagohistory.org/. 4 Sep. 2020. www.chicagohistory.org/brotherhood-sleeping-car-porters/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026. Harris, Kathy Lynn. "Haven of Rest Cemetery ." https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/. 22 Oct. 2025. encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/haven-of-rest-cemetery-14603/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026. "Cemetery Map." https://friendsofhavenofrestcemetery.com/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026. Dover, Elicia. "Community Connections: Friends of Haven of Rest." https://katv.com/. 24 Feb. 2022. katv.com/community/community-connections/community-connections-friends-of-haven-of-rest. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026. , Museum Of The American Railroad . "The Pullman Porter ." https://www.historictrains.org/. 24 Apr. 2025. www.historictrains.org/collection/philippe-9z32w. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026. Demirel, Evin. "Cemetery holds 27 Pullman porter graves ." Editorial. Arkansas Democrat Gazette [Little Rock], 16 Aug. 2009, p. 17,22. Support the show

    56 min

  3. JAN 29

    Episode 265 - The Price of Freedom: Exploring Bleeding Kansas

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. Tune in this week to The Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery podcast as Jennie and Dianne dive into the turbulent history of Kansas from 1854-1856, sparked by the New England Emigrant Aid Company's efforts to make Kansas a free state. What they uncover are eerie echoes of today's headlines. Don't miss this timely exploration of history's parallels to modern America. Join them to unearth the beginning of "Bleeding Kansas's" legacy, and why more than ever, it's important not to forget the stories of the past! Learn more about Bleeding Kansas with this video: https://youtu.be/ASM1sel--d4?si=VLibuqP_q94ojesl Need an Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery Podcast tee, hoodie or mug? Find all our taphophile-fun much here: https://oecemetery.etsy.com Family Tales: A free printable, is now available! Gather 'round the table and dig into your roots! This interactive family history game is perfect for holidays, reunions, or just because. Ask, listen, and laugh your way through generations of stories and secrets. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UT_R56qEwNTIxIBrTy8KFyVmGnFOe7g8/view?usp=sharing Support the show

    58 min

  4. JAN 22

    Episode 264 - Death and Dying 101 with Ryan Seidemann: Episode 7

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. This week on the Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery podcast Dianne and Jennie sit down with Ryan Seidemann for our first Death and Dying 101 episode of 2026. We discuss the Victorian morals of using ground up mummies for miracle cures, the burial practices of Neanderthals, the law regarding modern-day the grave robbing (specifically two very recent cases in the state of Pennsylvania), odor control in mausoleums and more. This is a conversation you don't want to miss! Need an Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery Podcast tee, hoodie or mug? Find all our taphophile-fun much here: https://oecemetery.etsy.com Family Tales: A free printable, is now available! Gather 'round the table and dig into your roots! This interactive family history game is perfect for holidays, reunions, or just because. Ask, listen, and laugh your way through generations of stories and secrets. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UT_R56qEwNTIxIBrTy8KFyVmGnFOe7g8/view?usp=sharing Support the show

    1h 6m

  5. JAN 15

    Episode 263 - Family Tales the Game

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. New year, new memories! Tune in to this week's Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery podcast as Jennie and Dianne share heartwarming family stories from listeners who played our game "Family Tales" with us online as we closed out 2025 and ushered in 2026. It's not too late to play for yourself. Grab the free game on our website and start collecting your own family's stories! Need an Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery Podcast tee, hoodie or mug? Find all our taphophile-fun much here: https://oecemetery.etsy.com Family Tales: A free printable, is now available! Gather 'round the table and dig into your roots! This interactive family history game is perfect for holidays, reunions, or just because. Ask, listen, and laugh your way through generations of stories and secrets. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UT_R56qEwNTIxIBrTy8KFyVmGnFOe7g8/view?usp=sharing Support the show

    53 min

  6. JAN 8

    Episode 262 - The Doctors' Riot of 1788: A Conversation with Writer Andy McPhee

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. What happens when medical progress clashes with public outrage? Body snatching, bloodletting, and a riot that shook America's founding fathers: join Jennie and Dianne on this latest episode of The Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery as they chat with writer Andy McPhee about his latest book "The Doctors' Riot of 1788". But the story starts earlier - at The African Burial Ground, where New York City's Black community had long been fighting against desecration. We'll explore the complex history of anatomy, ethics, and dignity in death, and why this 1788 riot still resonates today. View this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/xbmtMzzJyeg?si=CkUAXc7IFn_EgTLg To learn more, purchase Andy's book through your local bookstore by visiting: https://bookshop.org/beta-search?keywords=The+Doctors%27+Riot+of+1788 Need an Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery Podcast tee, hoodie or mug? Find all our taphophile-fun much here: https://oecemetery.etsy.com Family Tales: A free printable, is now available! Gather 'round the table and dig into your roots! This interactive family history game is perfect for holidays, reunions, or just because. Ask, listen, and laugh your way through generations of stories and secrets. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UT_R56qEwNTIxIBrTy8KFyVmGnFOe7g8/view?usp=sharing Support the show

    1h 4m

  7. JAN 1

    Episode 261 - The Wondrous Mrs. Claus with Pamela McColl

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. Kick off the new year with The Ordinary, Extraordinary Cemetery podcast! Join Jennie and Dianne for a delightful chat with Pamela McColl, author of "Wondrous Mrs. Claus: a Literary and Pictorial Review of the Christmas Character". As we bid farewell to 2025, let's take a moment to appreciate a true unsung hero of the holiday season, Mrs. Claus! Join us as we celebrate the woman behind the man in red and appreciate all the love and care she brings to this final festive season of the calendar year. View this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/NeY4abu6j1Y?si=HfMC3MCoDyesM4LC Purchase your copy of "Wondrous Mrs. Claus: a Literary and Pictorial Review of the Christmas Character" by Pamela McColl here: https://a.co/d/0eWM2Iw Family Tales: A free printable, is now available! Gather 'round the table and dig into your roots! This interactive family history game is perfect for holidays, reunions, or just because. Ask, listen, and laugh your way through generations of stories and secrets. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UT_R56qEwNTIxIBrTy8KFyVmGnFOe7g8/view?usp=sharing Need an Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery Podcast tee, hoodie or mug? Find all our taphophile-fun much here: https://oecemetery.etsy.com Support the show

    1h 13m

  8. 12/18/2025

    Episode 260 - Candlelight and Liberty

    Send us a text! We love hearing from listeners. If you'd like a response, please include your email. “Hanukkah is about the freedom to be true to what we believe without denying the freedom of those who believe otherwise. It’s about lighting our candle, while not being threatened by or threatening anyone else’s candle.” Rabbi Jonathan Sacks z”l -- This week Jennie and Dianne invite everyone to cozy up with a cup of latke-friendly brew and join them as they revisit their first ever Hanukkah episode (#10!), exploring the connections between Hanukkah and the American Revolution through the stories of war heroes buried in Chatham Square Jewish Cemetery in New York City. We hope this episode inspires all our listeners to find their light in the darkness.  Episode available on YouTube:https://youtu.be/X1NBLsOqIoY?si=eZSOGgFi4GBuDqQH Family Tales: A free printable, is now available! Gather 'round the table and dig into your roots! This interactive family history game is perfect for holidays, reunions, or just because. Ask, listen, and laugh your way through generations of stories and secrets. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UT_R56qEwNTIxIBrTy8KFyVmGnFOe7g8/view?usp=sharing Need an Ordinary Extraordinary Cemetery Podcast tee, hoodie or mug? Find all our taphophile-fun much here: https://oecemetery.etsy.com Support the show

    40 min
See All (266)

4.5
out of 5
58 Ratings

About

The Ordinary, Extraordinary Cemetery is a podcast for cemetery lovers, preservationists, and even those who've never walked among the graves. Join hosts Jennie and Dianne as they explore old cemeteries and learn the stories of those buried within their walls. After all, every death had a life, and every life had a story.

Information

  • Creator
    Jennie Johnson & Dianne Hartshorn
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    266
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Ordinary, Extraordinary Cemetery
  • Show Website
    The Ordinary, Extraordinary Cemetery

You Might Also Like