On this episode of Our American Stories, Megan Bayer shares her touching letter of gratitude and healing to her constant companion through a struggle they will never forget.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, Megan Bayer shares her touching letter of gratitude and healing to her constant companion through a struggle they will never forget.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)</a>

Our American Stories tells stories that aren’t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we’ll be a place where listeners can refresh their spirit, and be inspired by our stories.

Our American Stories

Our American Stories tells stories that aren’t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we’ll be a place where listeners can refresh their spirit and be inspired by our stories.

Our American Stories tells stories that aren&rsquo;t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we&rsquo;ll be a place where listeners can refresh their spirit and be inspired by our stories.

A Wife’s Heartfelt Letter to Her Husband After Pregnancy Loss

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/96ecb587-caab-4fcd-842f-b3df01404b22/transcript

On this episode of Our American Stories, for most of his life, James Armistead Lafayette was known simply as James—not Lafayette. That last name came later, and from none other than the Marquis de Lafayette of the American Revolution. But why would an enslaved man take the last name of a French military officer? Here's Kirk Higgins of the Bill of Rights Institute with the story of one of America's most important, underappreciated, and little-known spies during the American Revolution.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, for most of his life, James Armistead Lafayette was known simply as James&mdash;not Lafayette. That last name came later, and from none other than the Marquis de Lafayette of the American Revolution. But why would an enslaved man take the last name of a French military officer? Here's Kirk Higgins of the <a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbillofrightsinstitute.org%2F&amp;data=05%7C02%7CUraelBlackshear%40iheartmedia.com%7C894112ad49b34bd70bca08de5dcbd7c5%7C122a527e5b714eba878d9810b495b9e3%7C0%7C0%7C639051327267908018%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=yxUdG2DA18OfTP1cJgAhH78x%2FbndSnANZHPAuHXwxLQ%3D&amp;reserved=0" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="2">Bill of Rights Institute</a>&nbsp;with the story of one of America's most important, underappreciated, and little-known spies during the American Revolution.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)</a>

The Enslaved Man-Turned-Spy Who Helped Washington Win America's Independence: James Armistead Lafayette

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/a3a147cb-711e-408f-b085-b3df01404b23/transcript

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On this episode of Our American Stories, they say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree—but Appleton Oaksmith landed on another planet. His mother was a feminist who knew top abolitionists; his father, a cartoonist admired across party lines. Appleton? He was hunted internationally for presumed slave trading and a failed kidnapping in Cuba that may have threatened Lincoln’s reelection. Yet he later fought for Black voting rights. Jonathan W. White, author of Shipwrecked, shares the story—courtesy of the U.S. National Archives.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, they say the apple doesn&rsquo;t fall far from the tree&mdash;but Appleton Oaksmith landed on another planet. His mother was a feminist who knew top abolitionists; his father, a cartoonist admired across party lines. Appleton? He was hunted internationally for presumed slave trading and a failed kidnapping in Cuba that may have threatened Lincoln&rsquo;s reelection. Yet he later fought for Black voting rights. Jonathan W. White, author of&nbsp;<a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FShipwrecked-Civil-Mutinies-Jailbreaks-Blockade-Running%2Fdp%2F1538175010&amp;data=05%7C02%7CUraelBlackshear%40iheartmedia.com%7C894112ad49b34bd70bca08de5dcbd7c5%7C122a527e5b714eba878d9810b495b9e3%7C0%7C0%7C639051327267888103%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=BMbMWH3qSEemfNA95AQhqcwi%2BCrXK694dXLMW2A4xlw%3D&amp;reserved=0" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="1">Shipwrecked</a>, shares the story&mdash;courtesy of the U.S. National Archives.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)</a>

America's Greatest Grifter? The Odd Story of Appleton Oaksmith: Presumed Slave Trader, Confederate Spy, and Voting Rights Activist

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/317d0f97-18a8-4e9d-b6bc-b3df01404b22/transcript

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On this episode of Our American Stories, in Victorian America, makeup was taboo. Respectable women didn’t enhance their eyes—unless they were silent film stars or prostitutes. That changed with one family experiment that quietly sparked a beauty revolution. At just 19, Thomas Lyle Williams created what would become Maybelline, inspired by his sister’s homemade eyelash treatments. Mixed in teapots and sold by mail, the product became so popular that the family once hauled orders from the post office by wheelbarrow.

Sharrie Williams, a member of the founding family and author of The Maybelline Story, tells the inside story of how a homemade beauty aid became a global brand—and how changing one small cultural rule helped change everything.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

On this episode of Our American Stories, in Victorian America, makeup was taboo. Respectable women didn&rsquo;t enhance their eyes&mdash;unless they were silent film stars or prostitutes. That changed with one family experiment that quietly sparked a beauty revolution. At just 19, Thomas Lyle Williams created what would become Maybelline, inspired by his sister&rsquo;s homemade eyelash treatments. Mixed in teapots and sold by mail, the product became so popular that the family once hauled orders from the post office by wheelbarrow. Sharrie Williams, a member of the founding family and author of&nbsp;<a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FMaybelline-Story-Spirited-Family-Dynasty%2Fdp%2F0984308113&amp;data=05%7C02%7CUraelBlackshear%40iheartmedia.com%7C894112ad49b34bd70bca08de5dcbd7c5%7C122a527e5b714eba878d9810b495b9e3%7C0%7C0%7C639051327267861524%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=8n8zz61nw8y22cfGhr%2BoW8mKHrX3R6dGdZtiHZYqSH0%3D&amp;reserved=0" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="0">The Maybelline Story</a>, tells the inside story of how a homemade beauty aid became a global brand&mdash;and how changing one small cultural rule helped change everything.
Support the show (<a href="https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)">https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)</a>

The Man Behind Maybelline and the Rise of Modern Makeup

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/eb22e6d5-2b01-42ba-be10-b3df01404b22/transcript

A Wife’s Heartfelt Letter to Her Husband After Pregnancy Loss

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