1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Menke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,480 --> 00:00:09,360 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. 3 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:16,880 Speaker 2: Our world is full of the unexplainable, and if history 4 00:00:17,079 --> 00:00:20,560 Speaker 2: is an open book, all of these amazing tales right 5 00:00:20,560 --> 00:00:25,680 Speaker 2: there on display, just waiting for us to explore. Welcome 6 00:00:26,840 --> 00:00:37,519 Speaker 2: to the Cabinet of Curiosities. From the time that he 7 00:00:37,600 --> 00:00:40,840 Speaker 2: was a young boy, Ramone Artevetia knew that the ocean 8 00:00:40,880 --> 00:00:43,640 Speaker 2: would play a role in his future. After all, he 9 00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:46,400 Speaker 2: was born in a coastal city in Uruguay in eighteen 10 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:50,440 Speaker 2: forty and came from a long line of seafares. According 11 00:00:50,520 --> 00:00:54,560 Speaker 2: to family lore, on his deathbed, Ramone's grandfather gifted his 12 00:00:54,600 --> 00:00:57,880 Speaker 2: father an old wooden ore. Ramone would often read the 13 00:00:57,880 --> 00:01:01,600 Speaker 2: inscription his grandfather had etched on it side, knowing how 14 00:01:01,640 --> 00:01:04,240 Speaker 2: to use it. It said, you will never be hungry. 15 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:07,800 Speaker 2: Your ancestors have always survived thanks to the sea. This 16 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:08,839 Speaker 2: is your destiny. 17 00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:13,839 Speaker 1: Follow it. Then follow it he did. Ramone became a businessman, 18 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:17,520 Speaker 1: often traveling by boat to Buenos Aires and other cities 19 00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:19,959 Speaker 1: for work. When he was thirty one years old, he 20 00:01:20,080 --> 00:01:23,200 Speaker 1: was heading home for Christmas on board the SS America, 21 00:01:23,480 --> 00:01:26,920 Speaker 1: a large paddle steamer. In the early hours of Christmas Eve, 22 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:31,399 Speaker 1: the ship was rocked by a deafening explosion. Ramon rushed 23 00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:34,240 Speaker 1: to the deck to find black smoke billowing from the hull. 24 00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:38,039 Speaker 1: The America had been racing another ship, and the crew 25 00:01:38,080 --> 00:01:41,160 Speaker 1: had pushed her too hard, causing a steam pipe to burst. 26 00:01:41,760 --> 00:01:46,280 Speaker 1: As flames spread, the ship descended into pandemonium. Passengers fought 27 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:49,279 Speaker 1: for space on the lifeboats, not yet touched by fire. 28 00:01:49,760 --> 00:01:53,400 Speaker 1: Ramone watched the chaos in terror, and the America groaned 29 00:01:53,480 --> 00:01:56,240 Speaker 1: as it sank. They were only a few miles from 30 00:01:56,240 --> 00:01:58,840 Speaker 1: the coast, and he could see the lights of his hometown, 31 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:02,600 Speaker 1: beckoning it was just too far to swim. Caught between 32 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:06,400 Speaker 1: flames and the sea, Ramone remembered his grandfather's words, and 33 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:09,720 Speaker 1: he made a choice. He leapt overboard into the frigid water. 34 00:02:10,120 --> 00:02:13,480 Speaker 1: He was fished out soon afterwards, soaked and freezing, but 35 00:02:13,639 --> 00:02:17,760 Speaker 1: still alive. Of the America's one hundred and sixty four passengers, 36 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:21,000 Speaker 1: he was one of only sixty five survivors. Many of 37 00:02:21,040 --> 00:02:25,560 Speaker 1: the others sustained horrific burns. But while Ramone escaped these 38 00:02:25,560 --> 00:02:29,280 Speaker 1: physical scars, the experience marked him in a less visible way. 39 00:02:29,720 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: He was traumatized, forced to relive the experience over and 40 00:02:33,480 --> 00:02:36,880 Speaker 1: over in vivid nightmares. He described them in a letter 41 00:02:36,919 --> 00:02:39,320 Speaker 1: that he wrote to a cousin. I wake up in 42 00:02:39,360 --> 00:02:42,720 Speaker 1: the middle of the night, he said, with terrible nightmares, 43 00:02:42,919 --> 00:02:47,880 Speaker 1: and always hearing the same fateful word fire, fire, fire, 44 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:51,919 Speaker 1: And so for years after the sinking of the SS America, 45 00:02:52,240 --> 00:02:56,280 Speaker 1: Ramone avoided setting foot on a ship. He moved to Argentina, 46 00:02:56,440 --> 00:03:00,000 Speaker 1: trading the shores for a landlocked farm. While his peace 47 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 1: atsd never completely faded, he maintained a peaceful life, safe 48 00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:08,279 Speaker 1: from the waves that tormented his dreams. Still, the seafarer 49 00:03:08,360 --> 00:03:11,680 Speaker 1: in his blood would not go quietly. As time passed, 50 00:03:11,760 --> 00:03:15,120 Speaker 1: Ramon felt a growing desire to travel to see Europe 51 00:03:15,160 --> 00:03:18,239 Speaker 1: and North America, and when he was seventy one years old, 52 00:03:18,520 --> 00:03:20,560 Speaker 1: he decided that fear had gotten the better of him 53 00:03:20,760 --> 00:03:24,160 Speaker 1: for far too long. In nineteen twelve, he booked a 54 00:03:24,160 --> 00:03:27,359 Speaker 1: transatlantic passage to Europe, a trip that would force him 55 00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:30,400 Speaker 1: to face his trauma head on. It was not an 56 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:33,040 Speaker 1: easy voyage, and he spent most of it on deck, 57 00:03:33,280 --> 00:03:36,600 Speaker 1: flotation belt already fastened in case there was any trouble. 58 00:03:37,040 --> 00:03:39,880 Speaker 1: His sleep was haunted by nightmares. But after a week 59 00:03:39,920 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: at sea, he arrived safe and sound in Europe. After 60 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:46,640 Speaker 1: visiting a nephew in Berlin, he prepared for a second 61 00:03:46,680 --> 00:03:51,160 Speaker 1: transatlantic crossing, this time to America. As he boarded the massive, 62 00:03:51,200 --> 00:03:54,640 Speaker 1: modern vessel, he couldn't help but feel buoyed by his success. 63 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:57,640 Speaker 1: Forty one years had passed since the sinking of the 64 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:01,040 Speaker 1: SS America. It had taken most of life to overcome 65 00:04:01,080 --> 00:04:03,800 Speaker 1: the trauma from that experience, but he had done it. 66 00:04:04,080 --> 00:04:10,040 Speaker 1: He'd followed his grandfather's advice and embraced his destiny at sea. Unfortunately, 67 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:13,240 Speaker 1: the words etched on his family or were more prescient 68 00:04:13,320 --> 00:04:16,039 Speaker 1: than Ramone could have guessed. He would never set foot 69 00:04:16,200 --> 00:04:19,799 Speaker 1: on dry land again. Four days after embarking, his ship 70 00:04:19,839 --> 00:04:23,760 Speaker 1: struck an iceberg and capsized. This time, Ramone was not 71 00:04:23,880 --> 00:04:26,640 Speaker 1: among the lucky few who were rescued. He went to 72 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:30,120 Speaker 1: meet his destiny beneath the waves of the North Atlantic Ocean. 73 00:04:30,760 --> 00:04:34,560 Speaker 1: He drowned on April fifteenth of nineteen twelve, along with 74 00:04:34,680 --> 00:04:54,400 Speaker 1: fifteen hundred other tragic passengers of the RMS Titanic. It's 75 00:04:54,440 --> 00:04:56,839 Speaker 1: a familiar feeling that most of us have gone through. 76 00:04:57,200 --> 00:05:00,240 Speaker 1: We order something online and then for days where checking 77 00:05:00,320 --> 00:05:02,920 Speaker 1: and rechecking to see if it's on its way. Whether 78 00:05:02,960 --> 00:05:06,279 Speaker 1: it's a diamond ring or just deodorant, the urgency is 79 00:05:06,320 --> 00:05:09,120 Speaker 1: the same, and the second that purchase goes through, you 80 00:05:09,200 --> 00:05:12,760 Speaker 1: better believe that I'm tracking that package. And some things 81 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:16,760 Speaker 1: never change. Back in seventeen seventy three, Phyllis was also 82 00:05:16,800 --> 00:05:20,520 Speaker 1: worried about her packages getting safely across the Atlantic. You see, 83 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:23,600 Speaker 1: these were part of a historic delivery, the very first 84 00:05:23,640 --> 00:05:27,720 Speaker 1: book of poetry by an enslaved black woman published in America. 85 00:05:27,880 --> 00:05:31,239 Speaker 1: But Phyllis had heard rumors swirling that another historic event 86 00:05:31,720 --> 00:05:34,760 Speaker 1: just might deliver her pristine poetry to the bottom of 87 00:05:34,800 --> 00:05:37,960 Speaker 1: the sea. Phyllis had a hard journey to get to 88 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:40,800 Speaker 1: this moment. She was just seven or eight years old 89 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:43,200 Speaker 1: when she was kidnapped from the West coast of Africa 90 00:05:43,279 --> 00:05:47,200 Speaker 1: in seventeen sixty one. Forced aboard a ship by human traffickers, 91 00:05:47,320 --> 00:05:50,680 Speaker 1: she and ninety four other captured Africans endured months of 92 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:54,960 Speaker 1: sailing across the stormy Atlantic in cramped, squalid conditions. By 93 00:05:55,000 --> 00:05:57,440 Speaker 1: the time the boat arrived in Boston, nearly twenty five 94 00:05:57,480 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 1: of her shipmates had died. In Boston, Phillis was unceremoniously 95 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:06,080 Speaker 1: thrust into a new life of enslavement. A merchant took 96 00:06:06,120 --> 00:06:08,320 Speaker 1: a liking to her and bought the little girl as 97 00:06:08,360 --> 00:06:11,599 Speaker 1: a gift for his wife, Susannah. Phyllis began working in 98 00:06:11,680 --> 00:06:14,080 Speaker 1: the household, but it soon became clear that she was 99 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:18,000 Speaker 1: destined for different things. Not only had she learned English quickly, 100 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:21,080 Speaker 1: but she soon also mastered reading and writing the language 101 00:06:21,120 --> 00:06:25,080 Speaker 1: as well. Recognizing Phyllis's talent, the family encouraged her to 102 00:06:25,120 --> 00:06:28,680 Speaker 1: pursue an education. At the time, very few young women 103 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:32,160 Speaker 1: went to school, let alone in slave women. Many enslaved 104 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 1: people were purposely denied education for fear that if they 105 00:06:35,320 --> 00:06:37,880 Speaker 1: were able to read and write, they may discover a 106 00:06:37,920 --> 00:06:41,360 Speaker 1: way to escape their enslavers. And this family were in 107 00:06:41,400 --> 00:06:44,480 Speaker 1: some ways progressive for the time, encouraging her to study 108 00:06:44,560 --> 00:06:49,240 Speaker 1: Latin Greek history, theology, and poetry, but they did not 109 00:06:49,360 --> 00:06:53,120 Speaker 1: believe in abolishing slavery, and in fact kept Phyllis separate 110 00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:56,160 Speaker 1: from the other enslaved people who worked as laborers and 111 00:06:56,200 --> 00:06:59,880 Speaker 1: servants in their house. Phillis quickly fell in love with Homer, 112 00:07:00,160 --> 00:07:03,760 Speaker 1: Virgil and John Milton, and began writing her own stanzas. 113 00:07:04,120 --> 00:07:07,479 Speaker 1: By age fourteen, she published her first poem, called to 114 00:07:07,600 --> 00:07:11,400 Speaker 1: the University of Cambridge in New England. Phyllis was a 115 00:07:11,400 --> 00:07:14,720 Speaker 1: prolific poet and often wrote about the topical issues of 116 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:17,680 Speaker 1: the day. Living in Boston, she saw and heard the 117 00:07:17,720 --> 00:07:22,200 Speaker 1: angry rumblings of revolution echoing among the colonists. In seventeen 118 00:07:22,320 --> 00:07:25,200 Speaker 1: seventy she wrote a poem in honor of the Boston Massacre, 119 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:29,240 Speaker 1: one of the first salvos in the war against the British. 120 00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:32,680 Speaker 1: In her letters and other poems from the time, it's 121 00:07:32,760 --> 00:07:35,840 Speaker 1: clear that the irony was not lost on her. Here 122 00:07:35,880 --> 00:07:39,200 Speaker 1: in Boston, colonists were calling for freedom from an oppressive 123 00:07:39,240 --> 00:07:42,760 Speaker 1: master in England while condoning the slavery of Phyllis and 124 00:07:42,800 --> 00:07:46,200 Speaker 1: her countrymen. The prejudice against her even kept her from 125 00:07:46,200 --> 00:07:49,320 Speaker 1: publishing her book of poetry. While she had been praised 126 00:07:49,360 --> 00:07:53,720 Speaker 1: and celebrated by many notable New Englanders, America's printers refused 127 00:07:53,720 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 1: to publish a black woman's writings. English publishers, however, felt differently, 128 00:07:59,240 --> 00:08:02,880 Speaker 1: so in seventy three, Phillis traveled to London accompanied by 129 00:08:02,880 --> 00:08:05,600 Speaker 1: her son. She was met with acclaim and was even 130 00:08:05,680 --> 00:08:08,520 Speaker 1: invited to meet King George the Third, although she was 131 00:08:08,560 --> 00:08:11,880 Speaker 1: forced to return before that could happen. While in England, 132 00:08:11,960 --> 00:08:14,920 Speaker 1: a countess who had been impressed by her work agreed 133 00:08:14,960 --> 00:08:18,840 Speaker 1: to fund the publication of Phyllis's poems. And all of 134 00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:22,120 Speaker 1: this led up to November twenty eighth of seventeen seventy three, 135 00:08:22,560 --> 00:08:26,200 Speaker 1: the day that Phyllis's freshly printed books were scheduled to 136 00:08:26,320 --> 00:08:29,640 Speaker 1: arrive in Boston Harbor. But with the rumors that Phyllis 137 00:08:29,680 --> 00:08:32,120 Speaker 1: had been hearing lately, she was worried that they would 138 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:35,800 Speaker 1: never get to shore. A group of prominent Bostonians had 139 00:08:35,840 --> 00:08:40,040 Speaker 1: gathered in Phyllis's church, the Old South Meeting House, Frustrated 140 00:08:40,040 --> 00:08:43,199 Speaker 1: by the harsh taxes that England was levying on the colonies. 141 00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:46,959 Speaker 1: They were supposedly plotting something so big King George wouldn't 142 00:08:46,960 --> 00:08:50,200 Speaker 1: be able to ignore their demands, and rumor had it 143 00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:52,600 Speaker 1: that they had their eye on the Dartmouth, a ship 144 00:08:52,720 --> 00:08:58,480 Speaker 1: arriving that night from England the same ship carrying Phyllis's books. Thankfully, 145 00:08:58,600 --> 00:09:02,440 Speaker 1: Phyllis Wheatley was able to retrieve her manuscripts, saving three 146 00:09:02,559 --> 00:09:05,440 Speaker 1: years of work, because just a few days later, the 147 00:09:05,520 --> 00:09:08,679 Speaker 1: Sons of Liberty descended on the Dartmouth and tossed all 148 00:09:08,720 --> 00:09:11,640 Speaker 1: of the tea and other goods still on board into 149 00:09:11,679 --> 00:09:15,120 Speaker 1: Boston Harbor, throwing King George and the rest of the 150 00:09:15,120 --> 00:09:19,480 Speaker 1: world a party they would never forget. Luckily, for Phyllis 151 00:09:19,559 --> 00:09:22,680 Speaker 1: and for the rest of us, her poetry was not 152 00:09:22,840 --> 00:09:29,920 Speaker 1: their cup of tea. I hope you've enjoyed today's guided 153 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:33,360 Speaker 1: tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on 154 00:09:33,400 --> 00:09:36,400 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the show by visiting 155 00:09:36,559 --> 00:09:41,120 Speaker 1: Curiosities podcast dot com. The show was created by me 156 00:09:41,360 --> 00:09:44,960 Speaker 1: Aaron Mankey in partnership with how Stuff Works. I make 157 00:09:45,040 --> 00:09:48,559 Speaker 1: another award winning show called Lore, which is a podcast, 158 00:09:48,640 --> 00:09:51,600 Speaker 1: book series, and television show, and you can learn all 159 00:09:51,640 --> 00:09:55,720 Speaker 1: about it over at the Worldolore dot com. And until 160 00:09:55,720 --> 00:09:59,360 Speaker 1: next time, stay curious.