Show Notes
Sliced bread is a simple yet ingenious invention with a surprisingly short history. Almost as soon as it came onto the market, it took over American bakeries and became a staple in every household. Except, for a brief few months in 1943 when the United States government banned this incredible product. This is the story of sliced bread and the time it was banned.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sliced_bread
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/america-banned-sliced-bread
Image: By Fran Hogan - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fresh_made_bread_05.jpg
Sponsor
Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free daily greens per box. New subscribers only. While supplies last until 09/27/2026. (See website for more details).
History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com
Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
More from History Dispatches
On January 30, 1945, the German transport ship Wilhelm Gustloff - loaded with more than 10,000 passengers - sailed west from Gotenhafen on the Baltic Sea - to escape the advancing Red Army. That night a Soviet submarine spotted the ship - and what followed is the deadliest maritime incident in history.
In 2010, a Nicaraguan dredging crew accidentally trespassed on a small island controlled by Costa Rica. Why? Because they were using Google Maps to navigate. Unfortunately, Costa Rica sent in the police, then Nicaragua sent in their military, and the whole thing turned into an international incident. This is the story of the Google Maps War.
William Hoy - known as Dummy - was a celebrated major league baseball player in the early days of the game. He led the league in stolen bases, hit over .300, and was one of baseball’s finest centerfielders. The amazing thing about Dummy Hoy is that he was deaf.
Once called the Jewel of Central Asia, the Aral Sea was the third largest lake in the world, and supported a unique ecosystem, and millions of people. But after irrigation projects in the 1960s began diverting water, the Aral Sea started to shrink. Today it is almost completely gone, replaced by desert, in one of the greatest ecological catastrophes of modern times.
In 1991, two German tourists spotted something in the Alps at an elevation of more than 10,000. It was the remains of a human being. But not just any human - this was a man who had died a violent death more than 5,000 years ago. This is the story of Ötzi the Iceman.