In 1896, Norwegian immigrant Helga Estby faced the foreclosure of her family's Washington farm. To pay the debt she accepted a wager to walk across the United States within seven months. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll follow her daring bid to win the prize, and its surprising consequence.
We'll also toast Edgar Allan Poe and puzzle over a perplexing train.
Intro:
The Dutch and French words for kidney are reversals of one another.
In Japan, Douglas Adams encountered a new conception of persistence.
Sources for our feature on Helga Estby:
Linda Lawrence Hunt, Bold Spirit: Helga Estby's Forgotten Walk Across Victorian America, 2007.
Margaret Riddle, "Estby, Helga (1860-1942)," HistoryLink, Sept. 23, 2011.
Stefanie Pettit, "Helga Estby a Walking Tale," Spokesman Review, July 9, 2015, S.8.
Pia Hallenberg Christensen, "Cross-Country Walk Inspires Women," [Spokane, Wash.] Spokesman Review, May 3, 2008, B.1.
Chris Rodkey, "Women Get No Mileage From Cross-Country Trek," Los Angeles Times, July 13, 2003, A.27.
Linda Duval, "The Forgotten Walk: Helga Estby's Hike Across America," [Colorado Springs, Colo.] Gazette, June 8, 2003, LIFE1.
Dan Webster, "A Feat Nearly Forgotten," [Spokane, Wash.] Spokesman Review, April 27, 2003, F1.
"Mrs. Helga Estby," Spokane Daily Chronicle, April 21, 1942.
"A $10,000 Walk," Saint Paul Globe, June 2, 1897, 3.
"From Spokane to New York," San Francisco Call 79:157 (May 5, 1896), 4.
Listener mail:
Ian Duncan, "New Poe Toaster Takes Up a Baltimore Tradition," Baltimore Sun, Jan. 17, 2016.
Keith Perry, "New Spate of Attacks by Sleeping Gas Gang, Caravanners Warned," Telegraph, Sept. 1, 2014.
Joel Gunter, "Jenson Button Robbery: Are French Burglars Really Using Has?", BBC News, Aug. 7, 2015.
Sarah Hilley, "Holiday Couple Gassed and Robbed," Swindon Advertiser, Aug. 15, 2007.
"Gassed When Wild Camping," Motor Home Fun, March 31, 2009.
"Travelling In France - Warning," Caravan Talk, Aug. 16, 2007.
This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Colin Sommers, who sent this corroborating link (warning -- this spoils the puzzle).
You can listen using the player above, download this episode directly, or subscribe on Google Podcasts, on Apple Podcasts, or via the RSS feed at https://futilitycloset.libsyn.com/rss.
Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- you can choose the amount you want to pledge, and we've set up some rewards to help thank you for your support. You can also make a one-time donation on the Support Us page of the Futility Closet website.
Many thanks to Doug Ross for the music in this episode.
If you have any questions or comments you can reach us at podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!
225-The Great Stork Derby
224-Lady Death
223-The Prince of Forgers
222-The Year Without a Summer
221-The Mystery Man of Essex County
220-The Old Hero of Gettysburg
219-The Greenbrier Ghost
218-Lost in the Amazon
217-The Bone Wars
216-The Tromelin Island Castaways
215-The Lieutenant Nun
214-The Poison Squad
213-Grover Cleveland's Secret Surgery
212-The Lost Treasure of Cocos Island
211-Cast Away on an Ice Floe
210-Lateral Thinking Puzzles
209-Lost Off Newfoundland
208-Giving Birth to Rabbits
207-The Bluebelle's Last Voyage
206-The Sky and the Sea
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