The story of how strawberries went from small forage item to one of the world’s most popular fruits – though they're technically not a true fruit – involves lots of crossbreeding experimentation, as you might expect, but also a bit of spy craft.

Research:
“A Transatlantic Tango: The Story of the Strawberry. Royal Horticultural Society. https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/grow-your-own/features/history-of-the-strawberry#:~:text=It%20is%20hard%20to%20believe,back%20on%20fortifications%20near%20Concepci%C3%B3n. 
Allen, Mike. “The 18th-Century Spy Who Gave Us Big Strawberries.” Atlas Obscura. Nov. 16, 2017. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/big-strawberries-spy-chile-france 
Barnes, Monica. “Frezier, Amédée François (1682-1773).” American Museum of Natural History. January 2008. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280567727_Frezier_Amedee_Francois_1682-1773
Darrow, George M. “The Strawberry: History, Breeding and Physiology.” New York. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. 1966. Accessed online: https://archive.org/details/strawberryhistor00darr/mode/1up
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "strawberry". Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Jun. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/plant/strawberry
Folta, K.M., Barbey, C.R. “The strawberry genome: a complicated past and promising future.” Hortic Res 6, 97 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41438-019-0181-z
Grubinger, Vern. “History of the Strawberry.” University of Vermont. June 2012. https://www.uvm.edu/vtvegandberry/factsheets/strawberryhistory.html
Hancock, J.F. “Strawberries.” Oxford University Press. 2000.
Petruzzello, Melissa. "list of plants in the family Rosaceae". Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Mar. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/topic/list-of-plants-in-the-family-Rosaceae-2001612
Sevilla, Elisa, and Ana Sevilla. “STRAWBERRY.” New World Objects of Knowledge: A Cabinet of Curiosities, edited by Mark Thurner and Juan Pimentel, University of London Press, 2021, pp. 207–12. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1vbd275.34
“Strawberry Facts.” University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center. https://gcrec.ifas.ufl.edu/fruit-crops/strawberries/strawberry-facts/
Sytsma, Kenneth J.. "Rosaceae". Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Feb. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/plant/Rosaceae

The story of how strawberries went from small forage item to one of the world&rsquo;s most popular fruits &ndash; though they're technically not a true fruit &ndash; involves lots of crossbreeding experimentation, as you might expect, but also a bit of spy craft.
Research:
<ul>
<li>&ldquo;A Transatlantic Tango: The Story of the Strawberry. Royal Horticultural Society. https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/grow-your-own/features/history-of-the-strawberry#:~:text=It%20is%20hard%20to%20believe,back%20on%20fortifications%20near%20Concepci%C3%B3n.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Allen, Mike. &ldquo;The 18th-Century Spy Who Gave Us Big Strawberries.&rdquo; Atlas Obscura. Nov. 16, 2017. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/big-strawberries-spy-chile-france&nbsp;</li>
<li>Barnes, Monica. &ldquo;Frezier, Am&eacute;d&eacute;e Fran&ccedil;ois (1682-1773).&rdquo; American Museum of Natural History. January 2008. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280567727_Frezier_Amedee_Francois_1682-1773</li>
<li>Darrow, George M. &ldquo;The Strawberry: History, Breeding and Physiology.&rdquo; New York. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. 1966. Accessed online: https://archive.org/details/strawberryhistor00darr/mode/1up</li>
<li>The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "strawberry".&nbsp;Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Jun. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/plant/strawberry</li>
<li>Folta, K.M., Barbey, C.R. &ldquo;The strawberry genome: a complicated past and promising future.&rdquo;&nbsp;Hortic Res&nbsp;6, 97 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41438-019-0181-z</li>
<li>Grubinger, Vern. &ldquo;History of the Strawberry.&rdquo; University of Vermont. June 2012.&nbsp;https://www.uvm.edu/vtvegandberry/factsheets/strawberryhistory.html</li>
<li>Hancock, J.F. &ldquo;Strawberries.&rdquo; Oxford University Press. 2000.</li>
<li>Petruzzello, Melissa. "list of plants in the family Rosaceae".&nbsp;Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Mar. 2024,&nbsp;https://www.britannica.com/topic/list-of-plants-in-the-family-Rosaceae-2001612</li>
<li>Sevilla, Elisa, and Ana Sevilla. &ldquo;STRAWBERRY.&rdquo;&nbsp;New World Objects of Knowledge: A Cabinet of Curiosities, edited by Mark Thurner and Juan Pimentel, University of London Press, 2021, pp. 207&ndash;12.&nbsp;JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1vbd275.34</li>
<li>&ldquo;Strawberry Facts.&rdquo; University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center. https://gcrec.ifas.ufl.edu/fruit-crops/strawberries/strawberry-facts/</li>
<li>Sytsma, Kenneth J.. "Rosaceae".&nbsp;Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Feb. 2025,&nbsp;https://www.britannica.com/plant/Rosaceae</li>
</ul>

Join Holly and Tracy as they bring you the greatest and strangest Stuff You Missed In History Class in this podcast by iHeartRadio.

Stuff You Missed in History Class

The story of how strawberries went from small forage item to one of the world’s most popular fruits – though they're technically not a true fruit – involves lots of crossbreeding experimentation, as you might expect, but also a bit of spy craft.

Strawberries

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/7a215493-1323-40bd-b80c-b2b100023283/transcript

Part 1 of this 2020 two-parter covers background on the FBI and on the origins of its counterintelligence programs, as well as one specific operation, called COINTELPRO-White Hate.

Part 1 of this 2020 two-parter covers background on the FBI and on the origins of its counterintelligence programs, as well as one specific operation, called COINTELPRO-White Hate.

SYMHC Classics: COINTELPRO 1

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/a007cbe8-2d8b-4833-835b-b3f001828ae8/transcript

Tracy shares her desire to see the rest of the letter that was quoted in this week's episodes on Anthony Burns. Talk also turns to the fact that many of the things that are surprising people today are, in fact, precedented.

Tracy shares her desire to see the rest of the letter that was quoted in this week's episodes on Anthony Burns. Talk also turns to the fact that many of the things that are surprising people today are, in fact, precedented.

Behind the Scenes Minis: It's Not Unprecedented

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/a344bef1-bb63-45b4-999c-b3f00059535e/transcript

Our second episode on the life of Anthony Burns begins with his detention in Boston, which outraged Massachusetts abolitionists. Even after Burns was returned to Virginia to be enslaved once again, his supporters in Boston continued to work for his freedom.

Research:
Buehrens, John A. “Spiritual friendship and social justice.” UU World. Fall 2019. https://www.uuworld.org/articles/spiritual-friendship
Sutton, Robert K. “’We waked up stark mad Abolitionists.’” From "Stark Mad Abolitionists.” Salon. 8/5/2017. https://www.salon.com/2017/08/05/we-waked-up-stark-mad-abolitionists/
Sutton, Robert K. “The Wealthy Activist Who Helped Turn ‘Bleeding Kansas’ Free.” Smithsonian. 8/16/2017. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/wealthy-activist-who-helped-turn-bleeding-kansas-free-180964494/
Delblanco, Andrew. “America’s Struggle for Moral Coherence.” The Atlantic. 12/12/2018. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/11/the-nation-has-been-this-dividedin-the-civil-war/575587/
Finkelman, Paul & Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Anthony Burns (1834–1862). (2020, December 07). In Encyclopedia Virginia. https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/burns-anthony-1834-1862.
“Anthony Burns Captured.” Africans in America. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2915.html
Boston African American National Historic Site. “"God made me a man- not a slave": The Arrest of Anthony Burns.” National Park Service. https://www.nps.gov/articles/-god-made-me-a-man-not-a-slave-the-arrest-of-anthony-burns.htm#_ftnref14
Linder, Douglas O. “The (Fugitive Slave)Trials of Anthony Burns: An Account.” UMKC School of Law: Famous Trials. 2019. https://www.famous-trials.com/anthonyburns/2425-the-fugitive-slave-trials-of-anthony-burns-an-account
Encyclopedia Virginia. “The Trial of Anthony Burns (1854).” https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/burns-anthony-the-trial-of-1854/
Stevens, Charles Emery. “Anthony Burns: A History.” Boston : John P. Jewett and Co. 1856.
Shapiro, Samuel. “The Rendition of Anthony Burns.” The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 44, No. 1 (Jan., 1959). https://www.jstor.org/stable/2716312
Maginnes, David R. “The Case of the Court House Rioters in the Rendition of the Fugitive Slave Anthony Burns, 1854.” The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 56, No. 1 (Jan., 1971). https://www.jstor.org/stable/2716024
Landon, Fred. “Anthony Burns in Canada.” Reprinted from the Ontario Historical Society’s “Papers and Records” volume XXII. 1925. https://archive.org/details/anthonyburnsinca00land/
Potter, Joseph S. “The Boston Slave Riot, and Trial of Anthony Burns.” Boston: Fetridge and Company. 1854. https://archive.org/details/DKC0103/mode/1up
Perlstein, Henry, “From the Ashes of the Common Law”: Personal Replevin in the 21st Century (February 05, 2024). Intercultural Human Rights Law Review, Volume 19, pp. 257-309, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=5407082 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5407082

Our second episode on the life of Anthony Burns begins with his detention in Boston, which outraged Massachusetts abolitionists. Even after Burns was returned to Virginia to be enslaved once again, his supporters in Boston continued to work for his freedom.
Research:
<ul>
<li>Buehrens, John A. &ldquo;Spiritual friendship and social justice.&rdquo; UU World. Fall 2019. https://www.uuworld.org/articles/spiritual-friendship</li>
<li>Sutton, Robert K. &ldquo;&rsquo;We waked up stark mad Abolitionists.&rsquo;&rdquo; From "Stark Mad Abolitionists.&rdquo; Salon. 8/5/2017. https://www.salon.com/2017/08/05/we-waked-up-stark-mad-abolitionists/</li>
<li>Sutton, Robert K. &ldquo;The Wealthy Activist Who Helped Turn &lsquo;Bleeding Kansas&rsquo; Free.&rdquo; Smithsonian. 8/16/2017. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/wealthy-activist-who-helped-turn-bleeding-kansas-free-180964494/</li>
<li>Delblanco, Andrew. &ldquo;America&rsquo;s Struggle for Moral Coherence.&rdquo; The Atlantic. 12/12/2018. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/11/the-nation-has-been-this-dividedin-the-civil-war/575587/</li>
<li>Finkelman, Paul &amp; Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Anthony Burns (1834&ndash;1862). (2020, December 07). In Encyclopedia Virginia. https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/burns-anthony-1834-1862.</li>
<li>&ldquo;Anthony Burns Captured.&rdquo; Africans in America. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2915.html</li>
<li>Boston African American National Historic Site. &ldquo;"God made me a man- not a slave": The Arrest of Anthony Burns.&rdquo; National Park Service. https://www.nps.gov/articles/-god-made-me-a-man-not-a-slave-the-arrest-of-anthony-burns.htm#_ftnref14</li>
<li>Linder, Douglas O. &ldquo;The (Fugitive Slave)Trials of Anthony Burns: An Account.&rdquo; UMKC School of Law: Famous Trials. 2019. https://www.famous-trials.com/anthonyburns/2425-the-fugitive-slave-trials-of-anthony-burns-an-account</li>
<li>Encyclopedia Virginia. &ldquo;The Trial of Anthony Burns (1854).&rdquo; https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/burns-anthony-the-trial-of-1854/</li>
<li>Stevens, Charles Emery. &ldquo;Anthony Burns: A History.&rdquo; Boston : John P. Jewett and Co. 1856.</li>
<li>Shapiro, Samuel. &ldquo;The Rendition of Anthony Burns.&rdquo; The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 44, No. 1 (Jan., 1959). https://www.jstor.org/stable/2716312</li>
<li>Maginnes, David R. &ldquo;The Case of the Court House Rioters in the Rendition of the Fugitive Slave Anthony Burns, 1854.&rdquo; The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 56, No. 1 (Jan., 1971). https://www.jstor.org/stable/2716024</li>
<li>Landon, Fred. &ldquo;Anthony Burns in Canada.&rdquo; Reprinted from the Ontario Historical Society&rsquo;s &ldquo;Papers and Records&rdquo; volume XXII. 1925. https://archive.org/details/anthonyburnsinca00land/</li>
<li>Potter, Joseph S. &ldquo;The Boston Slave Riot, and Trial of Anthony Burns.&rdquo; Boston: Fetridge and Company. 1854. https://archive.org/details/DKC0103/mode/1up</li>
<li>Perlstein, Henry, &ldquo;From the Ashes of the Common Law&rdquo;: Personal Replevin in the 21st Century (February 05, 2024). Intercultural Human Rights Law Review, Volume 19, pp. 257-309, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=5407082 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5407082</li>
</ul>

Our second episode on the life of Anthony Burns begins with his detention in Boston, which outraged Massachusetts abolitionists. Even after Burns was returned to Virginia to be enslaved once again, his supporters in Boston continued to work for his freedom.

The Rendition of Anthony Burns, Part 2

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/773492b7-cec5-4a10-83be-b3ee003bb945/transcript

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