#59 Introduction to Samuel de Champlain and Some Other Stuff
The History of the Americans
Jack Henneman
4.9 • 632 Ratings
🗓️ 10 February 2022
⏱️ 38 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode we introduce Samuel de Champlain, without whom there might never have been a meaningful French presence in northern North America, largely through the work of the great historian David Hackett Fischer. We also consider Fischer’s views on whether history should be useable. Finally, but first, we address listener concerns over my pronunciation of “Powhatan,” a fraught topic indeed.
Twitter: @TheHistoryOfTh2
Facebook: The History of the Americans Podcast
Selected references for this episode
David Hackett Fischer, Champlain’s Dream
Expulsion of the Acadians (Wikipedia)
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the History of the Americans podcast episode 59. I'm recording this episode on February 8th, |
| 0:14.5 | 2020, and Austin, Texas. Before we get to the history fund, there are a couple of brief topics worth a moment. |
| 0:24.1 | First, I want to welcome a bunch of new listeners. A couple of days ago, Walter Kern, the renowned |
| 0:30.8 | author, critic and all around happy go lucky curmudgeon, said the nicest thing I can imagine |
| 0:37.3 | about this podcast and a tweet |
| 0:39.3 | to his 94,000 followers. This is a superb podcast with learning and idealism and decency behind it. |
| 0:48.6 | I recommend it to all students of American history, young and old. Well, thank you ever so much. |
| 0:56.5 | I can't imagine a warmer and more important endorsement. |
| 1:00.6 | And welcome Kern fans to our happy band of listeners, |
| 1:05.1 | although I imagine any of you who have stuck with it |
| 1:08.6 | are listening to the Admiral of the Ocean Sea episodes right now |
| 1:12.9 | or maybe involved with Cabezza de Vaca and won't hear this until the winter wanes and the |
| 1:19.3 | flowers bloom. Friendly reminder that if you use Twitter, you can follow me. I put the handle in |
| 1:26.7 | the show notes or you can search for the |
| 1:29.3 | history of the Americans on Twitter. Trust me when I say that you should not, however, take up |
| 1:33.8 | scrolling Twitter just to follow me. I want to reduce the anxiety in the world, not add to it. |
| 1:42.3 | Okay, another thing. I've gotten some emails and Twitter comments on my |
| 1:47.1 | pronunciation of Powhatan, suggesting that the emphasis on the second syllable is both wrong and |
| 1:54.4 | grading, that the correct pronunciation is Powhatan. So far, all these complainants self-identify as Virginians. |
| 2:03.3 | They have a point, and I must say I've been around long enough to know that it is never |
| 2:07.9 | a good policy to irritate Virginians. |
| 2:12.0 | I've long known, this is a treacherous subject. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Jack Henneman, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Jack Henneman and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.