From the Bowery Boys website:

"It's our fourth annual 'haunted' podcast, and we've got four bloodcurdling stories for the season. The first three are spooky ghost tales -- a haunted boardinghouse on 14th street with violent, vain spirits; a short history of New York's seance craze and a man tormented with the spirit of a dead painter; and a glamorous pair of lovers whose angry spats in their midtown Manhattan penthouse during the Jazz Age kepts up the neighbors, even beyond the grave.

And finally, a tale with no ghosts at all, but a story with truly spine-tingling facts, featuring the eeriest island in New York, the final resting place for over 850,000 souls. Welcome to Hart Island."

From the Bowery Boys website:

"We're playing Good Cop / Bad Cop this week, as we take a close look at four events from the early history of the New York Police Department. You'll meet shining stars of the force like Jacob Hays, who kept the peace in the early 19th century armed with a mean billyclub -- and the only man to ever hold the title of High Constable of New York. And then you'll encounter Joseph Petrosino, the Italian immigrant turned secret weapon in the early battles against organized crime.

Not all the early men in blue were so recommendable. During the Police Riot of 1857, cop turned against cop while the city burned and "Five Points criminals danced in the streets." And finally there's the lamentable tale of officer Charley Becker, the only member of the New York Police Department to be executed for criminal misdeed. But did he really commit the crime—commissioning the murder of a nervous gambler who was prepared to rat him out?"

From the Bowery Boys website:

"Madison Square Garden is certainly the recognizable name in arena entertaining, hosting sports, concerts, even political conventions. But it adopted that reputation from three other buildings which also called themselves 'Madison Square Garden'.

The first, inspired by P.T Barnum and a popular bandleader, staked its claim in the hottest area of New York in the 1870s. The second, a classic designed by the city's most famous architect, featured both trendy new sports and high society events. The third Garden, moving up town, stripped off the glamour and helped make the Garden's sporting reputation.

We'll also tell you about the most famous event to ever happen in any Madison Square Garden -- a shocking and brutal murder which led to the 'trial of the century'."

From the Bowery Boys website:

"Avast ye mateys, there were indeed pirates in New York! Not only did they operate throughout the New York region in the 19th century, most of their grave misdeeds were focused around the East River waterfront, and in particular, Corlear's Hook.

Once a sandy beach, Corlear's Hook, at the bend in the river in lower Manhattan, has a history that include mass slaughter, innovations of the shipping trade, the heart of New York prostitution and the birth of the tenement. And in the last half of the 19th century harbored pirate gangs with names like the Daybreak Boys, the Hook Gang and the Tub of Blood Bunch."

This walking tour covers the July 21, 1861 Battle of First Manassas, the first notable battle of the war. It focuses on "the intense fighting on Henry Hill where the tide of the battle turned from Union success to a decisive Confederate victory. The fighting on the hill was marked by charges and counter charges, often ending in hand-to-hand fighting. One of the Confederate leaders on Henry Hill was Gen. Thomas J. Jackson, who would become 'Stonewall' that day."

Scroll down on the "Podcasts" page to "Henry Hill: First Manassas (Bull Run)" to find the tour.

This 5-stop audio tour looks at the role of the Virginia Military Institute, founded in 1839, in the Civil War—many of the cadets trained here would go on to fight in the war. The tour can be listened to for useful information, even without visiting the Institute.

Scroll down on the "Podcasts" page to "Virginia Military Institute" to find the tour.

This 5-stop audio tour describes the July 9, 1864 Battle of Monocacy, fought near Frederick, MD. Often called "The Battle That Saved Washington," the battle was fought between a small Union force and a much larger Confederate force led by Jubal Early. The tour remains an informative presentation, even without visiting the battlefield.

Scroll down the "Podcasts" page to "Monocacy" to find the audio tour.

This animated presentation from The Map as History traces the routes of westwards trails in the 19th century, including the Oregon Trail, Santa Fe Trail, Old Spanish Trail, and Mormon Trail.

From PBS:

A highlight of the nationwide Lincoln Bicentennial celebration is this unprecedented two-hour documentary on the life and legacy of the man widely considered one of our best—and most enigmatic—presidents. It addresses many of the controversies surrounding Lincoln about race, equality, religion, politics, and depression by carefully interpreting evidence from those who knew him and those who study him today.