Backyard History
Backyard History unearths the often hilarious, mostly mysterious, always surprising untold tales of Canada’s East Coast, as only a Maritimer can spin them. Buy the books at backyardhistory.ca
The Ghost of Paddy Hollow
Nova Scotia's Exploding Ghost Ship
Still to this day, hundreds of witnesses claim to see a mysterious light in the waters off Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia. They say it is a ghost ship that explodes over and over, forever.
This particular ship was an American privateer, painted all black, that was spectacularly blown up by her own officer…
How Magnetic Hill was Discovered
It all began on a dark and stormy night. Three reporters went off chasing a strange lead about cars rolling uphill, leading to the discovery of what eventually became Magnetic Hill, the famous landmark in Moncton, New Brunswick.
This story and many others appers in the fourth Backyard History book 'Mysterious Stories From Atlantic Canada's Past,' get a signed. copy at backyardhistory.ca/books
Dobbin the Diver and the Murderous Mystery of the Shipwreck Monasco
The 1857 wreck of the Monasco off Burin, Newfoundland, killed nearly every passenger aboard — except for a mysterious woman claiming to be the captain's wife, the captain, and the crew. The survivors' account, however, didn't quite add up...
CONTENT WARNING: Dobbin The Diver's description of what he saw when he dove down to the shipwreck is very ... vivid. Parents might be risking nightmares by playing this episode for young kids!
This story appears in the book 'Backyard History: Forgotten Stories From Atlantic Canada's Past Volume Two.' Get it at backyardhistory.ca
Howl in the Maritimes: The Easter Allen Ginsberg Shook a City
The controversial American poet Allen Ginsberg arrives in New Brunswick for the only Canadian date on his legendary sold out 1967 tour reading his historic epic poem: Howl. The reaction to his Easter reading of that poem in a Saint John church was, shall we say ... mixed!
backyardhistory.ca
The Murder of Timothy McCarthy
The true story of a Moncton innkeeper's mysterious disappearance, unsolved murder, and miscarriage of justice. This special episode, featuring 13 voice actresses and actors voicing historical quotes to bring the story alive, digs deep into the archives to piece together what really happened to Timothy McCarthy and who almost certainly murdered him.
This story appears in the book 'Backyard History: Rebellious Women in The Maritimes,' which can be found at backyardhistory.ca/books
Bogged Down in Cape Breton - Beryl Markham's Historic Flight Part 2
A quiet Cape Breton day is broken by a plane crash, which soon attracts the attention of the entire world. The second part of a two-part series on famous, pioneering aviator Beryl Markham's historic transatlantic flight that ended up in a Cape Breton bog.
This is the cover story of the third Backyard History book, 'Rebellious Women In The Maritimes.' Find it at backyardhistory.ca/books
Bogged Down in Cape Breton - Beryl Markham's Historic Flight - Part 1
The incredible story of Beryl Markham's legendary Atlantic crossing, an implausible story involving everything from royal affairs to Kenyan lions, which unceremoniously ended up in a Cape Breton bog.
Part one of two!
This is the cover story of the book 'Backyard History: Rebellious Women in the Maritimes,' available at backyardhistory.ca/books
Captain William Milne's Gold Watch
A gold watch was given to Captain Milne as a reward for his clever ruse that turned the tables on the men who captured his ship...
Home for Christmas: The Pilot Who Returned from the Dead
Declared dead in the Second World War, Atlantic Canadian pilot Allan Spear escaped captivity, survived behind enemy lines, and returned home for an unexpected Christmas reunion.
Buy the books at backyardhistory.ca/books
The Residence Ghost
The story of Fredericton's very friendly ghost!
Blue Water: The Movie Hollywood Wanted to Sink
A Maritimes movie is suppressed by Hollywood as it tries to kill off the Canadian film industry ... featuring a surprising appearance by a young Joey Smallwood!
This story appears in the new book 'Backyard History: Mysterious Stories From Atlantic Canada's Past' which is available at backyardhistory.ca
When Canada and America Went to War, Two Towns Chose Peace
Canada and the U.S. went to war — but St. Stephen and Calais wouldn’t play along.
Comedy on the Rocks: When Comedians Stuck at Sea Turned Disaster into Drama
Little Pictou Island, Nova Scotia, gets its first ever play in the most unusual of circumstances ... after a winter ferry from PEI gets stuck in the ice and drifts over to the island!
Get the Backyard History books at backyardhistory.ca
"Only Men May Vote!" (LIVE!) A Tale of Fredericton Women's Lost and Found Voting Rights
A special LIVE podcast of "Only Men May Vote!" starring special guests Fredericton Mayor Kate Rogers, Green Party Leader and MLA David Coon, Poet Laureate Fawn Parker, Minister of Opportunities New Brunswick Luke Randall and City Councillor Cassandra LeBlanc!
Recorded in front of a crowd of a hundred people at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre in Fredericton on March 7th, 2025.
The Lost Diary: Journey of a Writer Who Vanished into the Heart of the Forest
A mysterious Englishman sailed to New Brunswick in the 1850s. His name and his fate are unknown. All that remains of him is his diary, which recounts an incredible adventure.
Buy the Backyard History books at backyardhistory.ca
Breakfast with the Dungarvon Whooper
A long-lost interview in the forest sheds light on the man behind the Maritimes most famous so-called ghost...
Buy the three Backyard History books at backyardhistory.ca/books
The Quarantine Journal of Nellie McGowan
A young girl keeps a secret diary to solve a mystery as she is growing up on an island where new immigrants to Canada are quarantined.
backyardhistory.ca
A Halifax Christmas Murder
A dark murder mystery on Christmas in the old garrison city of Halifax changed the Maritimes.
The Story Behind the Crosses on Sugarloaf Mountain
100 years ago, a tragedy led to two crosses being painted on Sugarloaf in Campbellton. This is the story of what happened.
The Ghost of Binstead Manor
A Victorian aristocrat moves to PEI and encounters a ghost in her new house: the biggest mansion on the Island called Binstead Manor. She decided to investigate the haunting herself...
This story appears in the new book 'Backyard History: Rebellious Women In The Maritimes'! Order your copy at backyardhistory.ca
The Man Who Was Hanged From the Gallows he Built
The Hate Preacher
Causing riots wherever he went, this Maritimer became a leader in the KKK, making a fortune spreading hate and division all over the United States! (He wasn't as popular in the Maritimes, where locals tried to throw him off a cliff!)
Buy the book 'Backyard History: Forgotten Stories From Atlantic Canada's Past' at backyardhistory.ca
Nova Scotia's Queen of the Bootleggers
When alcohol was banned in Nova Scotia during Prohibition, reluctant liquor control inspector Clifford Rose encountered a charismatic woman leading a gang selling illegal booze. Her name was Amy Mason but everyone knew her as "The Queen of the Bootleggers."
Painless Parker: Renegade Dentist
A small-town boy from the Maritimes becomes obscenely wealthy and ridiculously famous in America for dentist circuses...
This story appears in the brand new SECOND Backyard History book! Order a signed copy at backyardhistory.ca/book
The Rise and Fall of George Black and the Golden Seven
A trip to the Yukon Gold Rush leads to a series of completely unexpected twists, with a young Maritimer becoming the Speaker of Parliament ... and ending up sent to a lunatic asylum!
The Detective and the Trapper
Detective William Carr (who appeared in the Joe Walnut episodes) goes for a relaxing trip into the forest to learn to hunt and fish, but ends up being hunted by rogue trappers...
Order the Backyard History book at backyardhistory.ca/books
Denied a Seat: Wolastoqiyik Man Races Stagecoach 100 kilometers
When a Wolastoqiyik man wasn’t allowed on a stagecoach, he vowed to race it to its destination, and won!
Buy the book: backyardhistory.ca/book
Liberty on the Rocks (Part 3): Captured in Charlottetown
The dramatic grand finale of the rum running boat The Liberty in part three of the Liberty On The Rocks trilogy.
Order a signed copy of the Backyard History book at backyardhistory.ca/book
Liberty on the Rocks (Part 2): Initiation of a Lunenburg Rum Runner
At age 15, Hugh Corkum becomes a rum runner to provide for his family after his father, a Lunenburg Nova Scotia sea captain, loses his job after crashing into an American sumbarine.
Part Two of the 'Liberty On The Rocks' trilogy about the Liberty, the fastest rum running ship of Atlantic Canada!
Buy the Backyard History book at backyardhistory.ca/book
Liberty on the Rocks (Part 1): Shootout at Bouctouche
The Mounties lay a trap for The Liberty, the most famous rum running ship in the Maritimes during Prohibition!
Part one of a three part series called "Liberty On The Rocks."
Book: backyardhistory.ca/book
The Candy Killer: The Serial Killer Who Stalked Saint John
A killer sent boxes of poisoned candies to religious leaders of Saint John, in this, the Backyard History's magnum opus episode!
Message in a Molasses Barrel
Isolated islanders find a unique way to let Canadians know a storm cut them off from the mainland.
Did Babe Ruth Detox in the Woods in New Brunswick?
As Babe Ruth's life fell apart, he headed into the woods of the Maritimes in a secret and mysterious effort to get better...
Princess Louise: A Warhorse’s Tale
The story of a little horse named Princess Louise who was rescued by Canadian soldiers during the Second World War and brought home to New Brunswick (against all the rules!)
This story appears in the book 'Backyard History: Forgotten Stories From Atlantic Canada's Past Volume Two'
The Aristocrat & The Canoemaker
Juliana Horatia Ewing, a Victorian British author in Fredericton, formed an unlikely friendship with Welastekokewiyik master canoe builder Peter Polches, challenging societal norms; her transformative experiences led to a notable confrontation defending Indigenous people at a prestigious New Year's Party in 1869.
A Festive Flashback: Unwrapping Christmas 1868
Backyard History's Christmas Special for 2023!
Dr. Leslie E. Keeley Gold Cure for Drunkenness: and the Rise, Fall, and Redemption of Fredericton’s Addiction Treatment Legacy
The dramatic rise and fall of Fredericton's curious detox centre, which involved patients taking a gold-based medicine to cure alcoholism!
https://backyardhistory.ca/the-long-reads/f/the-dr-leslie-e-keeley-gold-cure-institute-for-drunkards
The Second Halifax Explosion
As explosions rang out in Halifax in 1945, ordinary Haligonians raced toward the central ammunition storage depot to stop the flames before the city blew up … again!
backyardhistory.ca/f/the-second-halifax-explosion
Siberian Expedition: Winslow and Ollie’s Odyssey
Two young men volunteer to for a mysterious secret mission in Russia. One of them will not make it home alive.
https://backyardhistory.ca/f/canadas-forgotten-siberian-expedition-ollie-winslows-odyssey
