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Tracing The Path: The Connected 20th Century

Tracing The Path: The Connected 20th Century

Written by: Dan R. Morris - 20th Century Historian
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About this listen

Tracing The Path is a 20th Century history podcast dedicated to exploring the connections between the defining stories of the twentieth century. Each episode follows surprising connections across time—linking world wars, political movements, cultural revolutions, iconic companies, unforgettable products and groundbreaking inventions.

We uncover the forgotten figures behind history’s turning points, reveal how technology and popular culture reshaped society, and highlight the stories that textbooks overlook. Whether you’re passionate about modern history, fascinated by world events, or looking for a history podcast that brings the 20th century alive through storytelling, Tracing The Path is your guide to understanding the past that shaped our present.

I'm Dan R Morris. I grew up with the greatest storytellers of the 20th century like Paul Harvey, Charles Kuralt, Charles Osgood and Garrison Keillor. And I absolutely loved the amazing stories they told about the people, places, companies, products and events of the 20th Century.

Tracing the Path uncovers the hidden connections you would never know about the most iconic pop culture happenings of the 1900s. What you thought you knew, prepare to be amazed.

And check out TracingThePath.com for the associated transcript, trivia/discussion questions, and glossary of key terms for every episode. We're proud to be the most listened to "Audio Hour" at assisted living and nursing homes around the world.


Copyright 2026 Dan R. Morris - 20th Century Historian
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Episodes
  • Episode 72: The Invention of Hello
    Dec 28 2025

    The word Hello showed up just as the world was changing . . . in the absolute biggest ways ever. Nothing was the same after "Hello". In this episode we cross paths with Michigan J Frog, Tin Pan Alley, the Phonograph, Western Union, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Alexander Graham Bell, Scott Joplin, the telephone operator, Thomas Edison and J. N. Pattison.

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    28 mins
  • Episode 71: The Amana Utopia and Patriot Missile
    Nov 24 2025

    Can you imagine a group running on perfect communism, flourishing in the capitalist market and then eventually spawning the Patriot Missile - to fight actual Communists. And it happened twice. In this episode we cross paths with Quaker Oatmeal, microwave popcorn, Vennevar Bush, the Amana Colonies, Oneida Silverware, Bob Hope and Raytheon.

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    27 mins
  • Episode 70: Who Knows The Truth? Does A.I.?
    Oct 24 2025

    Somewhere along the way, we lost the truth. The questions we ask about the truth haven't been the same since Orson Welles' War of the World's Broadcast in 1938, but that doesn't mean we haven't stopped trying. In this episode we cross paths with William Moulton Marston, Alice Guy-Blache, Frye Vs The United States, John Houseman, Alan Turing, The Shadow, Wonder Woman, Artificial Intelligence, FDR, IBM and Orson Welles.

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    31 mins
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