The Resident Historian Podcast

The battle of the Middle School Fight Songs

In the final spring and summer of Washington’s territorial era, fires ravaged major sections of downtowns on both sides of the Cascades, from Seattle, to Ellensburg, to Spokane.

Feliks Banel discussed the 1889 Seattle fire on "Seattle's Morning News" on its 135th anniversary on June 6, 2024.

June 6 will mark the anniversary of the Allied landings at Normandy to begin the liberation of France and eventual defeat of Nazi Germany, and bring an end to World War II in Europe.

In addition to what it meant as a great turning point in world history, D-Day is also unique in how it was broadcast by American radio networks, as CBS, NBC and what would become ABC pooled their reporters, engineers and other resources, and cooperated closely with military officials to present, for the first time, what would now be called “wall-to-wall” coverage of a developing major international news event for American audiences.

A tiny part of downtown Everett where a stretch of brick road is crossed by an old railroad bridge is the only part of the city’s landscape unchanged from the time of one of the darkest days in its history more than 100 years ago.

Earlier in May, KIRO Newsradio spoke to a pair of federal officials directly involved for a preview of what's to come in what will be a long process to develop and build the new National Archives facility.

We're on a mission to collect recordings of as many Puget Sound area junior high/middle school fight songs as possible to document history and celebrate our alma maters as summer approaches. If we get some good ones shared via Facebook, we'll play audio of them on the radio as part of a future broadcast of All Over The Map.

They're considered one of the most influential bands to emerge from Seattle in the 1980s. And while they may not be as well-known as some of their "grungier" counterparts, the Young Fresh Fellows are still going strong, and this week, they're marking the 40th anniversary – and new remix reissue – of their debut album "Fabulous Sounds of the Pacific Northwest."

At their regularly scheduled meeting Monday night, the Sumner City Council will likely vote on a resolution that could determine the ultimate fate of the Ryan House — a historic structure dating as far back as the 1860s.

The bustling Eastside city's mostly hidden origin story will come up a lot during this year's annual history tour of Kirkland Cemetery, presented by the non-profit Kirkland Heritage Society.

For this year's observance of the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, KIRO Newsradio caught up with a retired longtime employee of the Cascades Volcano Observatory who shared her memories of the event.

Members of the Parkland Community Association announced Friday that the group has officially assumed ownership of historic Parkland School.

A tiny village near London will soon commemorate Captain George Vancouver, as it does every year, at the churchyard where he was buried more than 225 years ago.

Remember the “mystery cottage” in Kirkland’s newest public park which KIRO Newsradio first reported on back in January? A former neighbor shared some of its additional history and backstory earlier this week.

A decision from an administrative authority within the Vatican has reportedly decided in favor of a community group working to save Tacoma’s Holy Rosary Catholic Church from the wrecking ball.

Old Seattle Buildings and How They Got Their Nicknames

The Everett Historical Commission voted to postpone taking action on the city's request for permission to demolish the Clark Park gazebo.

As Sound Transit gets ready to inaugurate commuter trains between Bellevue and Redmond beginning next weekend, the question arises about the last time regular passenger rail service was offered on the Eastside.

There’s some good-natured historical debate about the specific moment when the last passenger train rolled through what’s now an assortment of urban areas and dense suburbs, but a handful of local rail historians consulted by KIRO Newsradio agree it was sometime on or around July 19, 1922.

Edward Saylor volunteered to be a flight engineer on a dangerous mission more than 80 years ago. Saylor grew up in rural eastern Montana and lived in Enumclaw for many years before passing away in January 2015. He spoke with KIRO Radio in 2013 about his time in the Army Air Force during World War II.

New book reveals the 'street trees' of Seattle

A Cold War air raid siren that stood atop a tower in a Seattle park for more than 70 years remains in the hands of a private salvage yard. And the man who owns the giant artifact says it’s going to stay there.

The tale of the missing Cold War Tower & Siren

Those see-through uniforms of the Mariners’ road opponent in this weekend’s three-game series in Wisconsin may say “Milwaukee Brewers,” but everybody knows that the team is really the Seattle Pilots in disguise.