This 2016 episode covers a haunting story from the early 1800s. Many narratives have blossomed from the Bell Witch story, but when you really try to look at the facts, they're few and far between.

This 2016 episode covers a haunting story from the early 1800s. Many narratives have blossomed from the Bell Witch story, but when you really try to look at the facts, they're few and far between.

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

Listen to this collection of top episodes from iHeartRadio and iHeartPodcasts. 

Listen to this collection of top episodes from iHeartRadio and iHeartPodcasts.&nbsp;

Podcasts from iHeartRadio

SYMHC Classics: Bell Witch

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/8b18bd37-026a-482b-9fed-b36c002837ba/transcript

The Carrington Event was a massive geomagnetic storm that happened in 1859. It led to expanded understanding of solar phenomena.

Research:
“Great Aurora of 1859. Art. XLII – The Great Auroral Exhibition of August 28th to September 4th, 1859.” American Journal of Science. Ser. 2. Vol. 28. July-November 1859.
Cardenas, Freddy Moreno et al. “The Grand Aurorae Borealis Seen in Colombia in 1859.” Preprint submitted to Advances in Space Research. August 21, 2015.
Cliver, E.W. “The 1859 space weather event: Then and now.” Advances in Space Research. 38 (2006) 119-129.
Cliver, E.W. and L. Svalgaard. “The 1859 Solar-Terrestrial Disturbance and the Current Limits of Extreme Space Weather Activity.” Solar Physics. (2004) 224: 407–422.
Cliver, Edward W. and William F. Dietrich. “The 1859 space weather event revisited: limits of extreme activity.” J. Space Weather Space Clim. 3 (2013) A31 DOI:10.1051/swsc/2013053
Dobrijevic, Daisy and Andrew May. “The Carrington Event: History's greatest solar storm.” Space.com. 5/20/2022. https://www.space.com/the-carrington-event
Giegengack, Robert. “The Carrington Coronal Mass Ejection of 1859.” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society , DECEMBER 2015, Vol. 159, No. 4. Via JSTOR.https://www.jstor.org/stable/26159195
Green, James L, and Scott Boardsen. “Duration and extent of the great auroral storm of 1859.” Advances in space research : the official journal of the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) vol. 38,2 (2006): 130-135. doi:10.1016/j.asr.2005.08.054
Green, James L. et al. “Eyewitness Reports of the Great Auroral Storm of 1859.” Submitted to Advances in Space Research. NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) 20050210157. 8/5/2005.
Haeberle, Tom. “The Carrington Affair!” Amateur Astronomers Association Eyepiece. 9/1/2018. https://aaa.org/2018/09/01/the-carrington-affair/
Hayakawa, Hisashi et al. “Temporal and Spatial Evolutions of a Large Sunspot Group and Great Auroral Storms Around the Carrington Event in 1859.” Space Weather. 8/29/2019. https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2019SW002269
Hodgson, R. “On a Curious Appearance Seen in the Sun.” Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society vol. 19-20 (1858-1860). https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/20/1/15/983497
Hodžić, Jasna. “The Carrington Event of 1859 Disrupted Telegraph Lines. A ‘Miyake Event’ Would Be Far Worse.” JSTOR Daily. 9/7/2023. https://daily.jstor.org/the-carrington-event-of-1859-disrupted-telegraph-lines/
Howard, R.A. (2006). A Historical Perspective on Coronal Mass Ejections. In Solar Eruptions and Energetic Particles (eds N. Gopalswamy, R. Mewaldt and J. Torsti). https://doi.org/10.1029/165GM03
Josefowicz, Diane. “The British Magnetic Scheme (1839-1851): People and Institutions.” Victorian Web. https://victorianweb.org/science/geomagnetism/magneticcrusade.html
Kaminski, Isabella. “'The fate of nations and the fall of kingdoms': History's epic theories of what causes aurora.” BBC. 11/16/2025. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20251114-historys-epic-theories-of-what-causes-aurora
Kimball, D.S. “A Study of the Aurora of 1859.” Scientific Report No. 6. NSF Grant No. Y/22.6/327. April 1960.
Klein, Christopher. “A Perfect Solar Superstorm: The 1859 Carrington Event.” History. 1/29/2025. https://www.history.com/articles/a-perfect-solar-superstorm-the-1859-carrington-event
Marinus Anthony van der Sluijs, Hisashi Hayakawa. “A candidate auroral report in the Bamboo Annals, indicating a possible extreme space weather event in the early 10th century BCE.” Advances in Space Research. Volume 72, Issue 12. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asr.2022.01.01
Mills, Virginia. “A message from Alexander von Humboldt.” The Royal Society. 9/23/2019. https://royalsociety.org/blog/2019/09/a-message-from-alexander-von-humboldt/
Muller, C. “The Carrington solar flares of 1859: consequences on life.” Origins of life and evolution of the biosphere : the journal of the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life vol. 44,3 (2014): 185-95. doi:10.1007/s11084-014-9368-3
Phillips, Tony. “A Warning from History: The Carrington Event Was Not Unique.” Space Weather Archive. 9/1/2020. https://spaceweatherarchive.com/2020/08/30/a-warning-from-history-the-carrington-event-was-not-unique/
Phillips, Tony. “Near Miss: The Solar Superstorm of July 2012.” NASA. 12/22/2014. https://science.nasa.gov/science-research/planetary-science/23jul_superstorm/
C. Carrington, Description of a Singular Appearance seen in the Sun on September 1, 1859, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Volume 20, Issue 1, November 1859, Pages 13–15, https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/20.1.13
Starmans, Barbara J. “Carrington Solar Flare of 1859.” The Social Historian. 11/27/2016. https://www.thesocialhistorian.com/carrington-solar-flare-of-1859/
Thompson, D. (2009) The Carrington Event and the Electric Telegraph in Victoria in Museums Victoria Collections https://collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/articles/2880

 

 

The Carrington Event was a massive geomagnetic storm that happened in 1859. It led to expanded understanding of solar phenomena.
Research:
<ul>
<li>&ldquo;Great Aurora of 1859. Art. XLII &ndash; The Great Auroral Exhibition of August 28th to September 4th, 1859.&rdquo; American Journal of Science. Ser. 2. Vol. 28. July-November 1859.</li>
<li>Cardenas, Freddy Moreno et al. &ldquo;The Grand Aurorae Borealis Seen in Colombia in 1859.&rdquo; Preprint submitted to Advances in Space Research. August 21, 2015.</li>
<li>Cliver, E.W. &ldquo;The 1859 space weather event: Then and now.&rdquo; Advances in Space Research. 38 (2006) 119-129.</li>
<li>Cliver, E.W. and L. Svalgaard. &ldquo;The 1859 Solar-Terrestrial Disturbance and the Current Limits of Extreme Space Weather Activity.&rdquo; Solar Physics. (2004) 224: 407&ndash;422.</li>
<li>Cliver, Edward W. and William F. Dietrich. &ldquo;The 1859 space weather event revisited: limits of extreme activity.&rdquo; J. Space Weather Space Clim. 3 (2013) A31 DOI:10.1051/swsc/2013053</li>
<li>Dobrijevic, Daisy and Andrew May. &ldquo;The Carrington Event: History's greatest solar storm.&rdquo; Space.com. 5/20/2022. https://www.space.com/the-carrington-event</li>
<li>Giegengack, Robert. &ldquo;The Carrington Coronal Mass Ejection of 1859.&rdquo; Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society , DECEMBER 2015, Vol. 159, No. 4. Via JSTOR.https://www.jstor.org/stable/26159195</li>
<li>Green, James L, and Scott Boardsen. &ldquo;Duration and extent of the great auroral storm of 1859.&rdquo; Advances in space research : the official journal of the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) vol. 38,2 (2006): 130-135. doi:10.1016/j.asr.2005.08.054</li>
<li>Green, James L. et al. &ldquo;Eyewitness Reports of the Great Auroral Storm of 1859.&rdquo; Submitted to Advances in Space Research. NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) 20050210157. 8/5/2005.</li>
<li>Haeberle, Tom. &ldquo;The Carrington Affair!&rdquo; Amateur Astronomers Association Eyepiece. 9/1/2018. https://aaa.org/2018/09/01/the-carrington-affair/</li>
<li>Hayakawa, Hisashi et al. &ldquo;Temporal and Spatial Evolutions of a Large Sunspot Group and Great Auroral Storms Around the Carrington Event in 1859.&rdquo; Space Weather. 8/29/2019. https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2019SW002269</li>
<li>Hodgson, R. &ldquo;On a Curious Appearance Seen in the Sun.&rdquo; Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society vol. 19-20 (1858-1860). https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/20/1/15/983497</li>
<li>Hodžić, Jasna. &ldquo;The Carrington Event of 1859 Disrupted Telegraph Lines. A &lsquo;Miyake Event&rsquo; Would Be Far Worse.&rdquo; JSTOR Daily. 9/7/2023. https://daily.jstor.org/the-carrington-event-of-1859-disrupted-telegraph-lines/</li>
<li>Howard, R.A. (2006). A Historical Perspective on Coronal Mass Ejections. In Solar Eruptions and Energetic Particles (eds N. Gopalswamy, R. Mewaldt and J. Torsti). https://doi.org/10.1029/165GM03</li>
<li>Josefowicz, Diane. &ldquo;The British Magnetic Scheme (1839-1851): People and Institutions.&rdquo; Victorian Web. https://victorianweb.org/science/geomagnetism/magneticcrusade.html</li>
<li>Kaminski, Isabella. &ldquo;'The fate of nations and the fall of kingdoms': History's epic theories of what causes aurora.&rdquo; BBC. 11/16/2025. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20251114-historys-epic-theories-of-what-causes-aurora</li>
<li>Kimball, D.S. &ldquo;A Study of the Aurora of 1859.&rdquo; Scientific Report No. 6. NSF Grant No. Y/22.6/327. April 1960.</li>
<li>Klein, Christopher. &ldquo;A Perfect Solar Superstorm: The 1859 Carrington Event.&rdquo; History. 1/29/2025. https://www.history.com/articles/a-perfect-solar-superstorm-the-1859-carrington-event</li>
<li>Marinus Anthony van der Sluijs, Hisashi Hayakawa. &ldquo;A candidate auroral report in the Bamboo Annals, indicating a possible extreme space weather event in the early 10th century BCE.&rdquo; Advances in Space Research. Volume 72, Issue 12. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asr.2022.01.01</li>
<li>Mills, Virginia. &ldquo;A message from Alexander von Humboldt.&rdquo; The Royal Society. 9/23/2019. https://royalsociety.org/blog/2019/09/a-message-from-alexander-von-humboldt/</li>
<li>Muller, C. &ldquo;The Carrington solar flares of 1859: consequences on life.&rdquo; Origins of life and evolution of the biosphere : the journal of the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life vol. 44,3 (2014): 185-95. doi:10.1007/s11084-014-9368-3</li>
<li>Phillips, Tony. &ldquo;A Warning from History: The Carrington Event Was Not Unique.&rdquo; Space Weather Archive. 9/1/2020. https://spaceweatherarchive.com/2020/08/30/a-warning-from-history-the-carrington-event-was-not-unique/</li>
<li>Phillips, Tony. &ldquo;Near Miss: The Solar Superstorm of July 2012.&rdquo; NASA. 12/22/2014. https://science.nasa.gov/science-research/planetary-science/23jul_superstorm/</li>
<li>C. Carrington, Description of a Singular Appearance seen in the Sun on September 1, 1859, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Volume 20, Issue 1, November 1859, Pages 13&ndash;15, https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/20.1.13</li>
<li>Starmans, Barbara J. &ldquo;Carrington Solar Flare of 1859.&rdquo; The Social Historian. 11/27/2016. https://www.thesocialhistorian.com/carrington-solar-flare-of-1859/</li>
<li>Thompson, D. (2009) The Carrington Event and the Electric Telegraph in Victoria in Museums Victoria Collections https://collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/articles/2880</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

The Carrington Event was a massive geomagnetic storm that happened in 1859. It led to expanded understanding of solar phenomena.

Carrington Event

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/f3c23f49-3f74-4d0a-9739-b449002ae791/transcript

United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind was a 1923 case that hinged on what it meant to be white.

Research:
“Ozawa v. United States, 260 U.S. 178 (1922).” https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/260/178/
“United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind, 261 U.S. 204 (1923).” https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/261/204/
de la Garza, Amanda. “Doctorji: The Life. Teachings, and Legacy of Dr. Bhagat Singh Thind.” David Bhagat Thind. 2010.
Deslippe, Philip. “Bhagat Singh Thind in Jail.” SAADA. https://www.saada.org/tides/article/bhagat-singh-thind-in-jail
Deslippe, Philip. “Doctorji the Divorcé: Understanding Bhagat Singh Thind Through His Marriage to Inez Buelen.” Ethnic Studies Review 1 July 2023; 46 (1-2): 52–68. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/esr.2023.46.1-2.52
Kanwar, Joy. “Stories from the Negative Spaces: United States v. Thind and the Narrative of (Non)Whiteness.” Mercer Law Review. Vol. 74, No. 3. 2023. https://digitalcommons.law.mercer.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3111&context=jour_mlr
Munshi, Sherally. “Remembering Thind.” Ethnic Studies Review, Vol. 46, Issue 1-2, pp. 98–116. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/esr.2023.46.1-2.98
Ogden, Johanna. “The Telling Case of Doctor Bhagat Singh Thind.” Oregon Historical Quarterly. Vol. 124, No. 1. 2023. https://www.ohs.org/oregon-historical-quarterly/back-issues/upload/Ogden_Baghat-Singh-Thind_OHQ-124_1_Spring-2023_web.pdf
“Bhagat Singh Thind.” Roots in the Sand. 2000. https://www.pbs.org/rootsinthesand/i_bhagat1.html
Pillai, Daksha. “United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind: Dual Legacies of a Forgotten Supreme Court Case.” Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. https://www.gilderlehrman.org/sites/default/files/file_media/38_Pillai.pdf
Qin, Amy. “In the Birthright Citizenship Hearing, a Story of Asians Fighting for Rights.” New York Times. 4/2/2026. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/02/us/politics/birthright-citizenship-asian-immigrants.html
Shankar, Arjun. “On Brown Blood Race, Caste, and the Bhagat Singh Thind Case.” Ethnic Studies Review, Vol. 46, Issue 1-2, pp. 135–155. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/esr.2023.46.1-2.135
Smith, Marian L. “Race, Nationality, and Reality: INS Administration of Racial Provisions in U.S. Immigration and Nationality Law Since 1898.” Prologue. Vol. 34, No. 2. Summer 2002. https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2002/summer/immigration-law-1
South Asian American Digital Archive. “The Problem.” https://www.saada.org/explore/exhibits/theproblem
Supreme Court of the United States. “Donald J. Trump, president of the United States et al., petitioners, v. Barbara et al, Respondents.” No. 25-365. Oral arguments. Heritage Reporting Corporation. April 1, 2026. https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/2025/25-365_l6gn.pdf
The Pluralism Project. “The Ghadar Party: Freedom for India.” Harvard University. https://pluralism.org/the-ghadar-party-freedom-for-india

United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind was a 1923 case that hinged on what it meant to be white.
Research:
<ul>
<li>&ldquo;Ozawa v. United States, 260 U.S. 178 (1922).&rdquo; https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/260/178/</li>
<li>&ldquo;United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind, 261 U.S. 204 (1923).&rdquo; https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/261/204/</li>
<li>de la Garza, Amanda. &ldquo;Doctorji: The Life. Teachings, and Legacy of Dr. Bhagat Singh Thind.&rdquo; David Bhagat Thind. 2010.</li>
<li>Deslippe, Philip. &ldquo;Bhagat Singh Thind in Jail.&rdquo; SAADA. https://www.saada.org/tides/article/bhagat-singh-thind-in-jail</li>
<li>Deslippe, Philip. &ldquo;Doctorji the Divorc&eacute;: Understanding Bhagat Singh Thind Through His Marriage to Inez Buelen.&rdquo; Ethnic Studies Review 1 July 2023; 46 (1-2): 52&ndash;68. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/esr.2023.46.1-2.52</li>
<li>Kanwar, Joy. &ldquo;Stories from the Negative Spaces: United States v. Thind and the Narrative of (Non)Whiteness.&rdquo; Mercer Law Review. Vol. 74, No. 3. 2023. https://digitalcommons.law.mercer.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3111&amp;context=jour_mlr</li>
<li>Munshi, Sherally. &ldquo;Remembering Thind.&rdquo; Ethnic Studies Review, Vol. 46, Issue 1-2, pp. 98&ndash;116. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/esr.2023.46.1-2.98</li>
<li>Ogden, Johanna. &ldquo;The Telling Case of Doctor Bhagat Singh Thind.&rdquo; Oregon Historical Quarterly. Vol. 124, No. 1. 2023. https://www.ohs.org/oregon-historical-quarterly/back-issues/upload/Ogden_Baghat-Singh-Thind_OHQ-124_1_Spring-2023_web.pdf</li>
<li>&ldquo;Bhagat Singh Thind.&rdquo; Roots in the Sand. 2000. https://www.pbs.org/rootsinthesand/i_bhagat1.html</li>
<li>Pillai, Daksha. &ldquo;United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind: Dual Legacies of a Forgotten Supreme Court Case.&rdquo; Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. https://www.gilderlehrman.org/sites/default/files/file_media/38_Pillai.pdf</li>
<li>Qin, Amy. &ldquo;In the Birthright Citizenship Hearing, a Story of Asians Fighting for Rights.&rdquo; New York Times. 4/2/2026. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/02/us/politics/birthright-citizenship-asian-immigrants.html</li>
<li>Shankar, Arjun. &ldquo;On Brown Blood Race, Caste, and the Bhagat Singh Thind Case.&rdquo; Ethnic Studies Review, Vol. 46, Issue 1-2, pp. 135&ndash;155. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/esr.2023.46.1-2.135</li>
<li>Smith, Marian L. &ldquo;Race, Nationality, and Reality: INS Administration of Racial Provisions in U.S. Immigration and Nationality Law Since 1898.&rdquo; Prologue. Vol. 34, No. 2. Summer 2002. https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2002/summer/immigration-law-1</li>
<li>South Asian American Digital Archive. &ldquo;The Problem.&rdquo; https://www.saada.org/explore/exhibits/theproblem</li>
<li>Supreme Court of the United States. &ldquo;Donald J. Trump, president of the United States et al., petitioners, v. Barbara et al, Respondents.&rdquo; No. 25-365. Oral arguments. Heritage Reporting Corporation. April 1, 2026. https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/2025/25-365_l6gn.pdf</li>
<li>The Pluralism Project. &ldquo;The Ghadar Party: Freedom for India.&rdquo; Harvard University. https://pluralism.org/the-ghadar-party-freedom-for-india</li>
</ul>

United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind was a 1923 case that hinged on what it meant to be white.

United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/9ef6cbd7-8332-414c-aa79-b4460061b857/transcript

This 2023 episode covers the Insular Cases, which are SCOTUS cases regarding rights of people in U.S. territories. 

This 2023 episode covers the Insular Cases, which are SCOTUS cases regarding rights of people in U.S. territories.&nbsp;

SYMHC Classics: Insular Cases

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/8843424b-9724-4b83-84c4-b44500588b82/transcript

SYMHC Classics: Bell Witch

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