Milton D. Hays had two things: a dream of a railroad linking Pittsburgh to the coal fields of southwestern Pennsylvania, and a lack of ethics that would allow him to realize that dream. This is the story of the Castle Shannon Railway War.

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/such-was-railroading

Key sources for this episode include contemporary newspaper reports; the Bridgeville Area Historical Society, Brookline Connection, and Carrick-Overbrook Historical Society web sites; and N.A. Critchett's fantastic (and highly inaccurate) "Double Gauge."

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to the idea that that which is least known is best to know. Each episode we share a strange story or amazing fact, and no topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll cover about it!

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/orderjackalope
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

Octavius Valentine Catto was truly a man for all seasons: scholar, activist, politician, baseball star. He could have been the inspiring black leader Reconstruction-era Philadelphia needed... if he hadn't been murdered.

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/there-must-come-a-change

Key sources for this episode include Daniel Biddle and Murray Dubin's Tasting Freedom: Octavius Catto and the Battle for Equality in Civil War America; Joe William Trotter Jr and Eric Ledell Smith's African Americans in Pennsylvania: Shifting Historical Perspectives; Michael E. Lomax's Black Baseball Entrepreneurs: 1860-1901: Operating by Any Means Necessary; Ryan A. Swanson's When Baseball Went White: Reconstruction, Reconciliation, and Dreams of a National Pastime; and Stephan Segal's "An Unbreakable Game: Baseball and Its Inability to Bring About Equality During Reconstruction"

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to the idea that that which is least known is best to know. Each episode we share a strange story or amazing fact, and no topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll cover about it!

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/orderjackalope
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

The Tsarevich Dmitry Ivanovich died from an accidental self-inflicted knife wound in 1591... but that didn't stop him from popping up to try and reclaim his throne in 1604. And 1607. And 1611. And 1612. And...

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/samozvantsy

Key sources for this episode include Chester S.L. Dunning's Russia's First Civil War: The Time of Troubles and the Romanov Dynasty; Maureen Perrie's Pretenders and Popular Monarchism in Early Modern Russia: The False Tsars of the Time of Troubles; Paul Avrich's Russian Rebels, 1600-1800; and Peter Julicher's Renegades, Rebels and Rogues Under the Tsars.

Special thanks to Kristen Harkness for her help with Russian transliteration and pronunciation. (Sorry, Kristen, I still beefed it!)

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to the idea that that which is least known is best to know. Each episode we share a strange story or amazing fact, and no topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll cover about it!

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/orderjackalope
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

War! The balance of power in the Cola Wars has been shifting for years. In a stunning move, Coke has swept into NASA and is about to send its signature beverage into orbit... but not if the underdogs at Pepsi have anything to say about it...

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/the-choice-of-the-next-generation/

Key sources for this episode include Charles T. Bourland and Gregory L. Vogt's The Astronaut's Cookbook; David H. Harland's The Story of the Space Shuttle; Tony Reichart's Space Shuttle: The First 20 Years; numerous patent applications; and contemporary newspaper reports.

• You're Wrong About: The Cola Wars
• Coca-Cola Space Can at the Smithsonian
• Pepsi Space Can at the Smithsonian
• Pepsi MIR Ad

I'll be presenting at the Intelligent Speech conference on February 8, 2025! Register now at https://intelligentspeechonline.com/ and get 10% off with the promo code JACKALOPE!

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to sharing strange stories and amazing facts. No topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll do an episode about it!

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/orderjackalope.bsky.social
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://orderjackalope.tumblr.com
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

New Age types keep saying that there are twelve planets. Where does that number come from, and what are these three extra planets supposed to be? (Plus: a detour to the world of ancient astronauts.)

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/the-number-of-the-stars/

Key sources for this episode include Gottfried de Purucker's Fundamentals of the Esoteric Philosophy and The Fountain-Source of Occultism; Govert Schilling's The Hunt for Planet X: New Worlds and the Fate of Pluto; Maureen Temple Richmond's "The Threefold Rulership System in Esoteric Astrology"; Michael Heiser's website sitchiniswrong.com; and the collected works of Zecharia Sitchin.

• Unidentified: Zecharia Sitchin's Made-Up Ancient Aliens History
• Unidentified: Fear of a 12th Planet
• Unidentified: Nibiru Needs Gold (and Sperm, for Some Reason)
• 404 Media: If Planet X Exists, It's Running Out of Places to Hide

This week we're promoting our friends the Paranoid Strain, where the Fearful Jesuit and Dana Unicorn explain why so many people believe ridiculous conspiracy theories. https://www.theparanoidstrain.com/

I'll be presenting at the Intelligent Speech conference on February 8, 2025! Register now at https://intelligentspeechonline.com/ and get 10% off with the promo code JACKALOPE!

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to sharing strange stories and amazing facts. No topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll do an episode about it!

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/orderjackalope.bsky.social
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://orderjackalope.tumblr.com
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

Everybody always asks, "If this is the future, where's my jetpack?" but only Richard Timewell was bold enough to do something about it. And by "do something" I mean "sell jetpacks through the mail."

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/your-eyebrows-will-grow-back/

Presented by #42 (Alex Baumans): Pathologically interested in anything unusual and obscure. Closet goth, armchair general and amateur theologian. Favorite animals are ducks, octopodes and pigs. You will also find me surprisingly knowledgable about K-Pop girl groups.

Key sources for this episode include contemporary newspaper reports, with some added material from the Secret Projects forum.

• A Gluhareff engine in action
• The Secret Projects Forum

This week we're promoting our friends Imperfect Men, the show about the heroes, legends, and sometimes utter goobers who actually founded America. Join Steve and Cody every other week as they figure out who's a Founding Father and who's a Floundering Father. https://shows.acast.com/imperfect-men

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/orderjackalope.bsky.social
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orderjackalope/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orderjackalope/
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://orderjackalope.tumblr.com
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

I'll be presenting at the Intelligent Speech conference on February 8, 2025! Register now at https://intelligentspeechonline.com/ and get 10% off with the promo code JACKALOPE!

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to sharing strange stories and amazing facts. No topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll do an episode about it!

Helen Duncan was the last person persecuted in Britain for being a witch. Except she wasn't the last, she wasn't a witch, and she wasn't exactly persecuted either...

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/deeply-impressed/

Key sources for this episode include C.E. Bechhofer Roberts' The Trial of Mrs. Duncan; Gena Brealey and Kay Hunter's The Two Worlds of Helen Duncan; Harry Price's Leaves of a Psychist's Case-Book; Marion Gibson's Witchcraft: A Story in Thirteen Trials; Paul Tabori's Harry Price: The Biography of a Ghost Hunter; Ruth Paley and Simon Fowler's Family Skeletons: Exploring the Lives of Our Disreputable Ancestors; and contemporary newspaper reports.

This week we're promoting our friends The Penny Peepshow -- presenting a range of podcast-play series for your edification and delight. The Pirate Queen! The Devil's Bed & Breakfast! The Edge of Infinity! Our Lady of the Egregious Assumption! Humanity's Last Hope! A Process of Elimination! And more! https://shows.acast.com/the-penny-peepshow/

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/orderjackalope.bsky.social
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orderjackalope/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orderjackalope/
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://orderjackalope.tumblr.com
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

I'll be presenting at the Intelligent Speech conference on February 8, 2025! Register now at https://intelligentspeechonline.com/ and get 10% off with the promo code JACKALOPE!

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to sharing strange stories and amazing facts. No topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll do an episode about it!

George Gray Barnard's sculptures have been installed in front of the Pennsylvania State Capitol since 1911... but the story of their creation is a long and tortured one, featuring the strangest act of self-censorship you'll ever see.

https://order-of-the-jackalope.com/cloud-dongs/

Key sources for this episode include Dan Williams' "George Grey Barnard"; Ingrid Steffensen's "Toward an Iconography of a State Capitol: The Art and Architecture of the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg"; Ruth Hoover Seitz's Pennsylvania's Capitol; Samuel W. Pennypacker's The Desecration and Profanation of the Pennsylvania Capitol; the catalog of Pennsylvania State University's George Grey Barnard: Centenary Exhibition; the proceedings of the Dedication Ceremonies of the Barnard Statues, State Capitol Building, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Oct 4, 1911; and contemporary newspaper reports.

This week we're promoting our friends The Curiosity of!? -- where a father and son discuss things they are curious about, from science and history to monsters and games. They look at the quirky and unusual from around the world as well as seeking out local history, events, and characters. https://curiosityofpod.com/

• Email: jackalope@order-of-the-jackalope.com
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/orderjackalope.bsky.social
• Discord: https://discord.gg/Mbap3UQyCB
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orderjackalope/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orderjackalope/
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@orderjackalope
• Tumblr: https://orderjackalope.tumblr.com
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/orderjackalope
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@orderjackalope

I'll be presenting at the Intelligent Speech conference on February 8, 2025! Register now at https://intelligentspeechonline.com/ and get 10% off with the promo code JACKALOPE!

The Ancient and Esoteric Order of the Jackalope is a secret society devoted to sharing strange stories and amazing facts. No topic is off limits -- if it's interesting or entertaining, we'll do an episode about it!