History Was Human Tue, 13 Oct 2026 02:00:03 -0400 https://historywashuman.buzzsprout.com en-us © 2026 © 2026 History Was Human yes Support this Podcast 32fd6daa-cb17-5f05-99d0-2b8e326ae01c bsmith522@centurylink.net Brian R. Smith episodic false History is usually remembered through wars, revolutions, movements, dates, and famous events. But history did not experience any of those things.


People did.


History Was Human tells the true stories of remarkable people who lived inside the history we now read about—some famous, some forgotten, some misunderstood, and some whose extraordinary lives never received the attention they deserved.


Author Brian R. Smith explores one life at a time, following the historical record beyond the familiar version of events to discover the person behind the name: what they wanted, what they endured, the choices they made, and how the world around them shaped what happened next.


The stories cross cultures, continents, and centuries. Warriors and spies. Rebels and survivors. Leaders, outsiders, and ordinary people caught in extraordinary moments.


Some of these lives have inspired Brian’s historical novels. Others are simply stories too compelling to leave buried in the past.


Because before history became history, it was human.

]]> Buzzsprout (https://www.buzzsprout.com) history, historical biography, historical figures, true stories, world history, forgotten history, untold stories, remarkable people, historical storytelling, biography, hidden history, people in history Brian R. Smith bsmith522@centurylink.net https://storage.buzzsprout.com/9r6i2n51cvdwzvhxyf59xo316ah7?.jpg History Was Human https://historywashuman.buzzsprout.com Brian R. Smith Jeff Ake: The Man Who Remembered the Old West Jeff Ake: The Man Who Remembered the Old West Send us Fan Mail.

Jeff Ake lived long enough to remember an American West that was already disappearing into legend.

Born in the nineteenth century, he moved through Arkansas, California mining country, southern Arizona, Confederate Texas, ranching country, and some of the most violent corners of the frontier. His life intersected with Apache conflict, the deadly Ake Party ambush in Cooke’s Canyon, and even a Texas jail where John Wesley Hardin and John Ringo were part of the same world.

In Episode 4 of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith follows Jeff Ake’s remarkable life and the memories he carried into old age. In 1934, writer James B. O’Neil sat down to record Ake’s recollections after novelist Eugene Manlove Rhodes urged him to "get him talking."

The result is part history, part memory, and part legend—and a rare chance to hear how one man remembered the Old West after most of the people who had lived it were gone.

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]]> Send us Fan Mail.

Jeff Ake lived long enough to remember an American West that was already disappearing into legend.

Born in the nineteenth century, he moved through Arkansas, California mining country, southern Arizona, Confederate Texas, ranching country, and some of the most violent corners of the frontier. His life intersected with Apache conflict, the deadly Ake Party ambush in Cooke’s Canyon, and even a Texas jail where John Wesley Hardin and John Ringo were part of the same world.

In Episode 4 of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith follows Jeff Ake’s remarkable life and the memories he carried into old age. In 1934, writer James B. O’Neil sat down to record Ake’s recollections after novelist Eugene Manlove Rhodes urged him to "get him talking."

The result is part history, part memory, and part legend—and a rare chance to hear how one man remembered the Old West after most of the people who had lived it were gone.

Support the show



]]> Brian R. Smith Buzzsprout-19786740 Tue, 13 Oct 2026 02:00:00 -0400 1692 Jeff Ake, Old West, American West, frontier history, Wild West, John Wesley Hardin, John Ringo, Apache history, Cooke's Canyon, Arizona history, historical biography, history podcast 1 4 full false Rain-in-the-Face: The Warrior Behind the Custer Legend Rain-in-the-Face: The Warrior Behind the Custer Legend Send us Fan Mail.

Rain-in-the-Face became one of the most famous Lakota warriors associated with the Battle of the Little Bighorn—but much of what Americans thought they knew about him came from a story that may never have happened.

Years before the battle, Rain-in-the-Face was arrested by Tom Custer and imprisoned at Fort Abraham Lincoln. After his escape, stories spread that he had sworn revenge. When Tom Custer was later killed at the Little Bighorn, legend transformed Rain-in-the-Face into the warrior who hunted him down and cut out his heart.

In Episode 3 of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith follows the man behind that legend: his early life as a Hunkpapa Lakota warrior, his arrest and escape, his experience at the Little Bighorn, and the conflicting accounts he gave later in life about what actually happened.

Brian later wrote the historical novel Rain-in-the-Face because the distance between the legendary avenger and the complicated human being behind the story proved far more fascinating than the legend itself.

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]]> Send us Fan Mail.

Rain-in-the-Face became one of the most famous Lakota warriors associated with the Battle of the Little Bighorn—but much of what Americans thought they knew about him came from a story that may never have happened.

Years before the battle, Rain-in-the-Face was arrested by Tom Custer and imprisoned at Fort Abraham Lincoln. After his escape, stories spread that he had sworn revenge. When Tom Custer was later killed at the Little Bighorn, legend transformed Rain-in-the-Face into the warrior who hunted him down and cut out his heart.

In Episode 3 of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith follows the man behind that legend: his early life as a Hunkpapa Lakota warrior, his arrest and escape, his experience at the Little Bighorn, and the conflicting accounts he gave later in life about what actually happened.

Brian later wrote the historical novel Rain-in-the-Face because the distance between the legendary avenger and the complicated human being behind the story proved far more fascinating than the legend itself.

Support the show



]]> Brian R. Smith Buzzsprout-19763206 Tue, 06 Oct 2026 02:00:00 -0400 1710 Rain-in-the-Face, Lakota, Hunkpapa Lakota, Little Bighorn, Battle of the Little Bighorn, Custer, George Custer, Tom Custer, Native American history, American West, historical biography, history podcast 1 3 full false Bloody Knife: Custer's Scout, Gall's Enemy Bloody Knife: Custer's Scout, Gall's Enemy Send us Fan Mail.

Bloody Knife is often remembered simply as "Custer's favorite scout." His real life was far more complicated.

Born to a Hunkpapa Lakota father and an Arikara mother, Bloody Knife grew up between two peoples with a long history of conflict. He became an accomplished Army scout, developed a close working relationship with George Armstrong Custer, and ultimately rode into the Battle of the Little Bighorn—where an old enemy from his past, Gall, was fighting on the opposite side.

In Episode 2 of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith follows Bloody Knife's life beyond the famous photograph and the Custer legend: his divided childhood, his reasons for becoming a scout, his experiences on the northern plains, and the complicated personal history that led him to the Little Bighorn.

Bloody Knife's story fascinated Brian enough that he later wrote the historical novel Bloody Knife, because the man himself proved far more interesting than the supporting role history usually gave him.

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]]> Send us Fan Mail.

Bloody Knife is often remembered simply as "Custer's favorite scout." His real life was far more complicated.

Born to a Hunkpapa Lakota father and an Arikara mother, Bloody Knife grew up between two peoples with a long history of conflict. He became an accomplished Army scout, developed a close working relationship with George Armstrong Custer, and ultimately rode into the Battle of the Little Bighorn—where an old enemy from his past, Gall, was fighting on the opposite side.

In Episode 2 of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith follows Bloody Knife's life beyond the famous photograph and the Custer legend: his divided childhood, his reasons for becoming a scout, his experiences on the northern plains, and the complicated personal history that led him to the Little Bighorn.

Bloody Knife's story fascinated Brian enough that he later wrote the historical novel Bloody Knife, because the man himself proved far more interesting than the supporting role history usually gave him.

Support the show



]]> Brian R. Smith Buzzsprout-19755423 Tue, 29 Sep 2026 02:00:00 -0400 1628 Bloody Knife, Lakota, Hunkpapa, Little Bighorn, Battle of the Little Bighorn, Custers Scout, Custer George, Geoge Custer, Native American history, American West historical, biography, history podcast, 1 2 full false Belle Boyd: The Spy Who Would Not Stay Quiet Belle Boyd: The Spy Who Would Not Stay Quiet Send us Fan Mail.

At seventeen, Belle Boyd shot a Union soldier in her family home. Soon afterward, she began listening to the soldiers assigned to watch her—and passing what she learned to the Confederacy.

In the first episode of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith explores the life of one of the Civil War’s most famous female spies: her wartime intelligence work, arrests, celebrity, contradictions, and the cause she chose to serve.

This is not a story about turning Belle Boyd into a hero or a villain. It is about looking past the legend and finding the complicated human being behind it.

Support the show



]]> Send us Fan Mail.

At seventeen, Belle Boyd shot a Union soldier in her family home. Soon afterward, she began listening to the soldiers assigned to watch her—and passing what she learned to the Confederacy.

In the first episode of History Was Human, Brian R. Smith explores the life of one of the Civil War’s most famous female spies: her wartime intelligence work, arrests, celebrity, contradictions, and the cause she chose to serve.

This is not a story about turning Belle Boyd into a hero or a villain. It is about looking past the legend and finding the complicated human being behind it.

Support the show



]]> Brian R. Smith Buzzsprout-19750667 Sat, 26 Sep 2026 19:00:00 -0400 1625 1 1 full false