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Mysterious Stories Neighborhoods Podcasts

Ghost Stories of the Five Boroughs: The Bowery Boys Halloween Special

 On January 1, 1898, Greater New York was formed from the union of two cities – New York and Brooklyn, along with other towns and villages of the region, creating the five boroughs we know and love today.  But each of those five boroughs brings their own unique histories and personalities. And so for this… Read More

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Mysterious Stories Podcasts

Urban Legends of New York City: Alligators, Maniacs and Aliens, Oh My!

New York City has its fair share of famous ‘urban legends’ — persistent rumors, too good to be true, often macabre and dark.  No, we’re not talking about just about ghost stories. (Those arrive next episode.) We mean far fetched, reality defying fantasies sometimes rooted in science fiction and horror – with just enough bearing to… Read More

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Mysterious Stories Podcasts

Gotham’s Greatest Ghosts: The Bowery Boys Halloween Specials

Our first ghost stories show was released on October 11, 2007, featuring New York City’s famous haunted tales and urban legends (with historical context). Since that time we have released seventeen Halloween-related shows as well as a recording of our Joe’s Pub live show. Take a spooky trip down memory lane with a re-listen to… Read More

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Gilded Age New York Mysterious Stories Neighborhoods Podcasts

The Recluse of Herald Square: The Mystery of Ida Wood

Ida Wood had a secret. Born Ida Mayfield in New Orleans, Ida moved to New York in the 1850s and through her marriage to Benjamin Wood, publisher of the New York Daily News, she entered society.  By the 1870s and 80s, Ida’s name was found in the social columns of the city’s newspapers. So why,… Read More

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Mysterious Stories Podcasts

The Ghosty Men: The Story of the Collyer Brothers

You better clean your room or you’ll end up like the Collyer Brothers. New York City, a city crammed of 8.6 million people. It’s filled with stories of people who just want to be left alone – recluses, hermits, cloistering themselves from the public eye, closing themselves off from scrutiny. But none attempted to seal… Read More

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Amusements and Thrills Neighborhoods Podcasts Those Were The Days

When Longacre Square Became Times Square: Before the Bright Lights of Broadway

What was Times Square before the electric billboards, before the Broadway theaters and theme restaurants, before the thousands and thousands of tourists? What was Times Square before it was Times Square? Today it’s virtually impossible to find traces of the area’s 18th and 19th century past. But in this episode, Tom and Greg will peel away… Read More

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American History Amusements and Thrills Holidays Podcasts

The History of the Ticker-Tape Parade: A Very New York Way to Celebrate

In 1886, during a miles-long parade celebrating the dedication of the Statue of Liberty, office workers in lower Manhattan began heaving ticker tape out the windows, creating a magical, blizzard-like landscape. That tradition stuck. Today that particular corridor of Broadway — connecting Battery Park to City Hall — is known as the “Canyon of Heroes”… Read More

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It's Showtime Music History Podcasts

The Ramones at CBGB: A musical revolution on the Bowery

One-two-three-four! The Ramones, a four-man rock band from Forest Hills, Queens, played the Bowery music club CBGB for the very first time on August 16, 1974. Not only would Joey, Johnny, Tommy and Dee Dee reinvigorate downtown New York nightlife here — creating a unique and energetic form of punk — but they would join… Read More

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Adventures In Old New York New Amsterdam Podcasts

The Bowery Boys Adventures in the Netherlands: All Episodes Now Available

Our epic ‘road trip’ to the Netherlands is at an end and it was mission accomplished! We learned so much about New York’s Dutch roots — from the settlement of New Amsterdam to the European settlers who first populated the island which would become Manhattan. Along the way we also found interesting connections — and… Read More

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Podcasts Revolutionary History

Aaron Burr vs. Alexander Hamilton: The terrible consequences of an ugly insult

Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr met at a clearing in Weehawken, NJ, in the early morning on July 11, 1804, to mount the most famous duel in American history. But why did they do it? This is the story of two New York lawyers — two Founding Fathers — that so detested each other that… Read More

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Neighborhoods New Amsterdam Podcasts

Haarlem, Breukelen, Utrecht: Exploring New York’s Dutch Roots

Follow along with Greg and Tom in this travelogue episode as they visit several historic cities and towns in the Netherlands — Utrecht, De Bilt, Breukelen and Haarlem — wandering through cafe-filled streets and old cobblestone alleyways, the air ringing with church bells and But of course, their mission remains the same as the past… Read More

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Black History New Amsterdam Podcasts Politics and Protest

Finding Peter Stuyvesant (Amsterdam/New Amsterdam Mini-Series)

The name Stuyvesant can be found everywhere in New York City. — in the names of neighborhoods, apartments, parks and high schools. Peter Stuyvesant, the last director-general of New Amsterdam, is a hero to some, a villain to others — and probably a caricature to all.  What do we really know about Peter Stuyvesant? In… Read More

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American History New Amsterdam Podcasts Religious History

The Radical Walloons: Amsterdam/New Amsterdam (Bowery Boys mini-series)

Our adventure in the Netherlands continues with a quest to find the Walloons, the French-speaking religious refugees who became the first settlers of New Netherland in 1624. Their descendants would last well beyond the existence of New Amsterdam and were among the first people to call themselves New Yorkers. But you can’t tell the Walloon… Read More

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American History Museums New Amsterdam Podcasts

Amsterdam/New Amsterdam: Empire of the Seas (New Bowery Boys Mini-Series)

The epic journey begins! The Bowery Boys Podcast heads to old Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, to find traces of New Amsterdam, the Dutch settlement which became New York. We begin our journey at Amsterdam’s Centraal Station and spend the day wandering the streets and canals, peeling back the centuries in search of New… Read More

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New Amsterdam Podcasts

New Amsterdam Man: An Interview with Russell Shorto

The Bowery Boys Podcast is headed to Amsterdam and other parts of the Netherlands for a very special mini-series, marking the 400th anniversary of the Dutch first settling in North America in the region that today we call New York City. But before they go, they’re kicking off their international voyage with a special conversation… Read More