Voyager National Park

Legends of America

Legends of America

Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota
Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota

We have thousands of stories in the HearHere library and a question we often get is, “Where do those stories come from?” We have a team of travel enthusiasts who diligently research and write about the most interesting stories to entertain road trippers as they move through the towns, parks, lakes, and mountains of America. 

But we also sometimes receive stories from friends. People like Kathy and Dave Alexander, two native Texans now based out of Missouri. They have a website called Legends of America, and they are also prolific writers telling the stories of this country. They call their website “A Travel Site for the Nostalgic & Historic Minded since 2003,” and it certainly is! The stories are very well-written and lucky for us, they’ve made them available to HearHere. So far, we have dozens of their stories narrated and available for you to listen to here.   https://www.legendsofamerica.com/

The Bullock Hotel, built in 1886 by Seth Bullock, the Wild West town's first sheriff.

Like the tale of Guffey, Colorado, written by Dave. Guffey, typical of many mining towns in the old west, went through the boom and then bust cycle and now has only about 50 residents. But Dave is able to pick out little details and find the character of the place. In this story, he tells of the quirkiness of its local elections; how they have a habit of electing animals to public office. One of their recent mayors, for example, is a cat named “Monster.” It’s a good story and you can listen to it here.

Kathy compiled and edited a story on Voyageur National Park in Minnesota that is another one of our favorites from Legends of America. It’s the story of America before it was America and how French fur trappers plied the waters of what is now northern Minnesota in search of furs and pelts, trading with the Ojibwa people, and surviving in the wilderness.  It’s also a lesson on the personality of these voyageurs and how being cheerful made their 16-hour workday tolerable. Of course, there’s much more to her tale and we’ve got it for you right here.

With a name like “Legends of America” you’d expect that there’d be some ghost stories, right? Well, you won’t be disappointed. They have a whole section on ghost towns and plenty of stories of haunted places such as the one about Seth Bullock’s luxurious hotel. Mr. Bullock arrived in the notorious Wild West town of Deadwood, South Dakota, and promptly opened a hardware store. Being an ex-lawman, he was also appointed the Deadwood sheriff. The hardware store was successful and he then built a lavish hotel. People today say that the hotel is haunted, but you’re going to have to listen to the rest of the story for yourself.

Working with folks like Kathy and Dave makes our job of covering the country easier and enjoyable. Hopefully, you appreciate their Legends of America as much as we do. If you haven’t done so yet, listen for yourself how you can turn your next road trip into more than just a boring drive. With HearHere your next road trip will be an educational and entertaining journey through time.

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