735 - Amasa Stone - Live

Summary

The Dollop with Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds

Episode 735: Amasa Stone – Live

Date: May 26, 2026

---

Overview

In this live episode of The Dollop, comedians Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds tackle the tumultuous story of Amasa Stone—a 19th-century American railroad magnate, bridge builder, and eventual Cleveland pariah. Through trademark banter and sharp historical critique, the hosts explore Stone’s rise to influence, tragic family history, catastrophic engineering failures, infamous rivalry with John D. Rockefeller, and ultimate downfall.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Amasa Stone's Humble Beginnings (04:07 – 06:54)

• Born 1818 in Charlton, Massachusetts, ninth of ten children; grew up working on the family farm.
• Apprenticed as a carpenter, quickly excelled and established himself as a builder.
• Early business mishaps—received a promissory note instead of payment, and company went bust.

2. Rise in the Railroad & Bridge World (06:54 – 09:50)

• Worked on the first railroad bridge over the Connecticut River using a unique truss design.
• Bought patent rights for $40,000 (around $1.3 million today).
• Became superintendent of New England railroads, led rapid bridge reconstruction after a hurricane, earning massive bonuses and establishing himself as a regional leader.

3. Expansion and Cleveland Empire (10:00 – 16:42)

• Built major Ohio railroads; moved to Cleveland, constructed a lavish mansion on “Millionaires Row.”
• Became a key figure in the city’s industry, from founding the Union Club to banking leadership.
• Dave: “[Amasa] was a magnate—hugely influential in the area.” (16:42)

4. Personal Tragedies and War Profiteering (16:42 – 20:05)

• Deeply involved in the Union cause during the Civil War, both supporting and profiting from it.
• Suffered the loss of his only son, Adelbert, in a tragic drowning at Yale—never fully recovered.

5. Notorious Bridge Disaster & Scandal (21:59 – 58:06)

• Transition from wood to iron bridges—Amasa overrules his engineers, insists on an “experimental” truss.
• Fires and resignations among engineering staff, ignores warnings about structural unsoundness.
• Catastrophic collapse of the Ashtabula Bridge (40:05 – 58:06):
  • Train disaster during a blizzard
  • “The collapse of the bridge was, quote, slow and piecemeal, just like you want it.” — Dave (47:33)
  • Locals attempt rescues amid freezing water, fire, and chaos; over 90 killed, many more wounded; bodies unidentifiable.
• Post-disaster: shoddy construction exposed (shims for short parts, swapped thick/thin pieces).
• Jury of local men rules it was “poorly designed and built.”
  • “We the jury, find the bridge…shit.” – Gareth (56:06)

6. The Rockefeller Feud & Business Decline (29:43 – 38:06)

• Early investor in Standard Oil, but clashes with young Rockefeller over control and growth strategy.
• Famous arbitration scene—Amasa outmaneuvered and outvoted, grows resentful, sells all shares (to no effect).
  • “The richest man in Cleveland, and he’ll have the smallest funeral.”—Dave quoting a contemporary (31:35)
• Continued business troubles, financial panics, strikes—Amasa increasingly isolated and bitter.

7. Attempts at Redemption & Final Decline (71:14 – 77:07)

• Tries to salvage reputation with philanthropy: conditional donations to move/rename Western Reserve College.
• Suffers financial, social, and physical collapse:
  • Severe depression, insomnia, ulcers.
  • Ultimately takes his own life:
    • “He took his revolver into the bathroom and killed himself by shooting himself through the heart.” – Dave (77:07)

8. Legacy and Aftermath (78:02 – end)

• Family attempts to restore reputation via monuments and donations.
• Posthumous revelations, including autopsy findings suggesting murder of the whistleblower engineer only surfaced in 2001.
• Stone’s legacy: emblematic tale of Gilded Age excess, hubris, labor strife, and engineering disaster.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Opening Comic Banter (03:18 – 04:43)

• Gareth as a “Springsteen type,” absurdist persona bits (“I’m a frog inside of an aquarium…I drink milk and have a thumb.”)
  • “You’re a tedious little man stuck in a wall. You’re like the anti-Houdini just sitting in your little fucking wall space.” – Dave (18:36)

Bridge Debacle (47:33, 55:02 – 57:00)

• “The collapse of the bridge was, quote, slow and piecemeal, just like you want it.” – Dave (47:33)
• “We the jury, find the bridge…shit.” – Gareth (56:06)
• “We are held together by styrofoam and prayers, ladies and gentlemen. We are a highway bridge.” – Gareth (57:21)

Rockefeller Feud

• “Gentlemen, remember who appointed you as arbitrators.” – Dave as Amasa (34:25)
• “I’m richer than you.” – Dave as Amasa (35:43)
• “Can I have that stock back?” – Gareth as Amasa (38:00)

Catastrophe & Accountability

• “Amasa was named as responsible for the bridge design.” (58:30)
• “He designed this structure…assuming the sole and entire responsibility himself.” – Dave quoting contemporary journalism (65:12)

Closing Reflection

• “No rich people. Nope…No more magnates, no more barons.” – Gareth (81:44)
• “That’s always the story, right? That’s what the podcast could be called. Tales of rich people.” – Gareth (82:04)

Suggested Timestamps for Important Segments

• [04:07] – Amasa Stone's background and early career
• [10:00] – Move to Cleveland, rise to industrial magnate
• [16:42] – Civil War, family tragedy
• [21:59] – Transition to iron bridges, rivalry with engineers
• [40:05] – The Ashtabula Bridge disaster
• [55:02] – Jury findings on the disaster
• [29:43] – Rockefeller feud and downfall
• [71:14] – Final years, failed philanthropy bid
• [77:07] – Suicide and legacy

---

Summary: Why This Episode Stands Out

This episode is a classic Dollop spectacle—horrifying Gilded Age greed paired with outrageous comic improvisation. The tale of Amasa Stone unearths America’s industrial growing pains: unregulated capitalism, ego-driven engineering, and the societal scars that follow preventable disasters. Dave and Gareth, through biting satire, remind listeners that these cycles are far from gone.

---

Final Reflection

The saga of Amasa Stone is a darkly comedic cautionary tale: build bridges with care and humility, respect the power of collective safety over personal ambition, and never, ever let the richest man in town decide for himself how safe the rest of us should be.

---

Transcript

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm Kiana. And I leveled up my business with Shopify. Once I figured out that Shopify was a thing, I never turned back. I can create a site with my eyes closed. Shopify thinks ahead of us, you know, and it thinks about the customer more than anything. Every day I'm thinking about some other new business, but Shopify is doing it to me because it's so easy to use. It's like I can't stop. I'm addicted.

[Dave Anthony]

Start your free [e-mail].

[Gareth Reynolds]

okay. Ready if you're ready, buddy.

[Dave Anthony]

You're listening to the Dollop. I realize I should have looked up this guy's name.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Dave Anthony. We're in the intro.

[Dave Anthony]

This is an American history podcast where each week I, Dave Anthony, read a story from America. American history. To that

[Gareth Reynolds]

a man, a real. A Bruce Springsteen type, Gareth Reynolds, who has no idea what the topic is going to be about. Whoo. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Real Springsteen type. How many bandanas you got on you?

[Dave Anthony]

None. I don't know. 500 from the west Coast. We don't fucking care. You guys can have your.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What do you do with a. What do you do with your hands after an oil change?

[Dave Anthony]

About a train or some shit?

[Gareth Reynolds]

When you do your oil change, what do you wipe your hands down with? I use rags. Same rag I wipe my mouth with after I finish whatever the missus put in the lunch pail.

[Dave Anthony]

You're like a billionaire.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I live in a one bedroom shanty on a waterbed that doesn't have water anymore. On a waterbed with no more water. It's pretty flat. Just ask my granddaughter why we're falling apart.

[Dave Anthony]

Ask your granddaughter?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

You want me to ask your granddaughter about your waterbed? The fuck is going on?

[Gareth Reynolds]

I've used this rag about a thousand times. Now I'm riding lots of little rhymes in my diary.

[Dave Anthony]

What?

[Gareth Reynolds]

It's got kittens on the front. I'm in eighth grade. My name's Matilda.

[Dave Anthony]

Eighth grade?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

Your name's Matilda?

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's right.

[Dave Anthony]

Jesus Christ. Bruce has really fallen off. It's really falling off.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm a frog inside of an aquarium.

[Dave Anthony]

What?

[Gareth Reynolds]

I drink milk and have a thumb. I'm a freak of life.

[Dave Anthony]

Wait, you're a frog that drinks milk in an aquarium and you have a thumb?

[Gareth Reynolds]

We just won the fricking Super Bowl. Now we're having roast beef on a casarol. It's lunchtime in Prague.

[Dave Anthony]

Prague. I feel like you're just rhyming for the sake of rhyming and a lot of what you're saying doesn't make sense.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Hey, I'm working at the best bar. This is the place to get the Best buys. Blue shirt.

[Dave Anthony]

What?

[Gareth Reynolds]

No name tag.

[Dave Anthony]

April 17, 1818. Now, I should have looked up how to say this guy's name. Amasa. A M A S a. Amasa.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Hey, whites.

[Dave Anthony]

I got a yes. I knew someone would know because he's from around here.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Ish.

[Dave Anthony]

Amasa Stone Jr. Was born in Charlton, Massachusetts, home of the canal, that stuff. He was the ninth of 10 children. His parents were Amasa and Esther, and they lived on a farm. And Amasser worked there and went to school. Usually they just do one or the other.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Sure, right.

[Dave Anthony]

At 17, he moved to Worcester, which is a town that says its name wrong, to apprentice as a carpenter and builder with his older brother Daniel. That's exciting.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That is.

[Dave Anthony]

He was good at it. And he was strong. He bought out his apprenticeship within two years. By 21, he was a foreman. He went into business on his own, building houses. And the first one he was paid with a note from a manufacturing company. It's pretty sweet.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Dear master, that was so cool of you. We don't have the money, but ego. Yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

Congratulations. P.S.

[Gareth Reynolds]

i don't know. We don't. No one's ever written P.S. before.

[Dave Anthony]

First P.S. hey, you're welcome.

[Gareth Reynolds]

The first P.S. must have been weird.

[Dave Anthony]

Oh yeah. Who did that?

[Gareth Reynolds]

P.S. the fuck is this? What? P.S. post Script, my friend.

[Dave Anthony]

And then the company failed right after, so he didn't get any money. And then he's in, you know, dire straits. But he keeps on. He doesn't stop. He's overseeing the building of homes and churches on his own. And in 1840, he starts working for his brother in law, William Howe. Howe had invented a unique bridge truss that supported heavy loads over short spans. Fuck yeah. Fuck yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm not that excited about it. All right. Heavy loads over short spans. Okay.

[Dave Anthony]

And they used it to build the first railroad bridge over the Connecticut River.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Okay, so that's big.

[Dave Anthony]

It's huge.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, it's awesome. Good for them.

[Dave Anthony]

And then I'm also got a local businessman, Azariah Booty.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's nice.

[Dave Anthony]

That's not a good name.

[Gareth Reynolds]

No, it is a booty

[Dave Anthony]

to back him.

[Gareth Reynolds]

And he bought the horse, Booty backed him,

[Dave Anthony]

and he bought the patent rights to house trusts for all of New England for $40.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Seems low.

[Dave Anthony]

It sounds like he licensed it for New England.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Okay, so he's just getting paid a royalty basically for his bridge trust.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, but that sounds low. But in Today's money that's 1.3 million.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Still sounds low. I'll be honest, for a fucking game. Changing Bridge Trust.

[Dave Anthony]

Did I say $40?

[Gareth Reynolds]

You said 40.

[Dave Anthony]

Oh, 40,000.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That makes way more sense. 40 seems terrible.

[Dave Anthony]

Imagine if $40 is now $40.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, I'm in. Wait. What are you doing? Trust me. I got this. That's two haircuts. This fly. Have you seen this fly on cocaine up here?

[Dave Anthony]

I love it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That fly is fucking ready to go.

[Dave Anthony]

There's no no way Luke didn't bring that in.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I was gonna. Maybe Luke turned into a fly. Oh, don't look around. You're not gonna be happy. Yeah, it's not so easy now, is it?

[Dave Anthony]

Luke? Do your magic. Okay. So, okay. Amasa gets married.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, good.

[Dave Anthony]

1842. To Julia Ann Gleason. In 1845, Amasa became the construction superintendent of the New Haven, Hartford and Springfield Railroad. The N A N H H S N S. The NH Rolls off the.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, clearly.

[Dave Anthony]

But it was too much, and he resigned. The next year. That year, hurricane washed out a railroad bridge over the Connecticut river. And a ton of traffic went over the bridge, and they needed it rebuilt quick. So they hired a massa. And he did it in 40 days, which no one thought was possible. And the railroad gave him a $35,000 bonus.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Whoa.

[Dave Anthony]

That's like a million.

[Gareth Reynolds]

$1 million in today's money.

[Dave Anthony]

He dissolved the company with booty soon after and went into business with a new partner.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Been there.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, girl. Amaso is now New England's top railroad contractor.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Huh. All right, so he's top. Okay. Oh, wow. Finally, we get picture. A man from the 1850s. Bald, facial hair, looks like Bram Stoker was around. He has maybe some extra fingers. It's hard to tell.

[Dave Anthony]

But he wanted to go bigger and made a partnership with Frederick Harbachen, Stillman Witt.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Abraham Lincoln, if he shaved and didn't wear the hat.

[Dave Anthony]

To build the northern half of the Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati Railroad, which was begun in 1836, but had been very problematic. And then in 1837, a panic hit. Financial panic. And at one point, the owners, to keep their charter from being revoked, hired just a single worker with a shovel and a wheelbarrow to work on it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wait. What is it you want me to do?

[Dave Anthony]

You are going to build a railroad.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Where's all the other fellas?

[Dave Anthony]

We're counting on you.

[Gareth Reynolds]

But you ain't got nothing. It's nowhere near completed.

[Dave Anthony]

That's why we gave you a shovel. Harbach, Stone and Witt took the project over and just. Just to be paid in stock. And since they didn't take money, they got a higher than normal fee. And the CCNC opened in February 1851. Instant hit. People loved it. Yeah, money rolling in. Okay, so Amasa now moves his family to Cleveland

[Gareth Reynolds]

and adjacent areas.

[Dave Anthony]

His wife Julia's son Adelbert.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Who is Kent named? Just some guy. Hi, I'm Kent. Jesus Christ, Kent. Are you sure? Yep, that's it.

[Dave Anthony]

So his wife Julia, his son Adelbert and daughter.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Fuck. These names are absolutely fucking lud. I mean, I'm trying to hang in there, but. Adelbert, Adelbert, Adelbert, Adelbert, Adelbert. I'll tell you what, Adelbert, Adelbert. Neither one's making me go.

[Dave Anthony]

I want to say Adelbert Mayhey. Adelbert is fucking still dumb.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah,

[Dave Anthony]

Adelbert. And daughters Clara and Flora or Clara and Flora or Flora Stone became the superintendent of the CCNC making $4,000 a year. Then they built the Cleveland, Painesville and Ashtabala railroad in.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You guys have gotten too comfortable.

[Dave Anthony]

Ashtabula. You can't give me shit for that one because that's ashtabula railroad in 1852. MASA is the director of the boards on both and he's president of the cpna. Amasa built a huge mansion on Euclid Avenue in an area that will be called Millionaires Row. Oh, he oversaw construction.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, Jesus Christ. Wow.

[Dave Anthony]

It's a fucking big house that.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Really? Yeah, that is.

[Dave Anthony]

What are you gonna do with that?

[Gareth Reynolds]

I mean that. But by the way, by today's standards, that's nothing.

[Dave Anthony]

It's nothing. I know, but.

[Gareth Reynolds]

But back then they're like, whoa, two bedrooms, two bath. Whoa.

[Dave Anthony]

The outer walls were two feet wide with.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Whoa. Well, that is a brag.

[Dave Anthony]

With an 8 in 8 inch hollow space in the middle.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What?

[Dave Anthony]

I guess that's to keep it warmer, right? I would think.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, you got to put something in there.

[Dave Anthony]

No, you just hollow it out.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Just hollow. Just 8 inches. Perfect size for a man.

[Dave Anthony]

You could get a thin guy in there.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, if you need. That's what we're not doing any sort of insulation. We're putting a bunch of thin guys in there. Hello. Quiet please. That was not part of the job.

[Dave Anthony]

Hello.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Stop it now. It's actually very cold in here.

[Dave Anthony]

I understand. It's not great right now.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm very cold. Are you going to insulate the house?

[Dave Anthony]

In about 10 days you won't hear anything anymore.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Hello? Oh my God. Are you having coffee? I would murder for some coffee. What are you guys talking about in there? Hello? Hello? Don't answer. I can hear you, though. Your walls are very thin. You built two thin walls with a room for a man in between.

[Dave Anthony]

We're trying to have dinner.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, what are you having?

[Dave Anthony]

Just not really.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Let's play a game. Last meal. You gotta pick. And only one type. You can't say Mexican with pizza.

[Dave Anthony]

I have a different idea. Let's play. Let's play hide and seek. And you hide.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, I can't go very far. These walls are thin. I'll go first. I think just pizza and Pepsi. I'd do pizza and Pepsi, but I'd want an extra large pizza, half veggie.

[Dave Anthony]

I don't think there's Pepsi yet.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, all right. I'll just have the pizza. What would you have? What would you have? What would be your last meal? What would you have for your last meal? What would your last meal be? Hello? If you're not careful, I'll tell you Another one that I'd have. I'd have another one. Chicken tacos. No, egg rolls. You know, I know. I'm the guy who said you can't combine. I would have chicken tacos with egg rolls and I'd put the egg rolls inside the tacos. How about that? I know you're in there. And even if you're not, I won't.

[Dave Anthony]

Eventually you will.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'd like. I'd like to meet a woman in here for a drink.

[Dave Anthony]

The whole plan is just to have you die in there.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So I ate a huge meal before I came in here, which would make you think I wouldn't want to talk about last meals so much.

[Dave Anthony]

Where are you going to go do your business.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm doing my business. I'm doing all of it right here. I've even treated myself to a little special time. That's right. Those weren't knocks.

[Dave Anthony]

Okay.

[Gareth Reynolds]

It'll be easier to wallpaper now. Jesus.

[Dave Anthony]

It was modern, with running water, gas fixtures and central heating. It was an Italian villa style he found. He founded the Union Club in Cleveland, which was for Cleveland's elite. It still is, apparently. Ex members include two presidents. He built the Michigan Southern Road. Linked it with the CPA Railroad. He and others built the short but vital Cleveland and Newburgh line. For industry. He invited in a mill and the Western Union Telegraph Company. Became director of several banks and president of the Second National Bank. Hugely influential in the area. Yes, right.

[Gareth Reynolds]

A magnate.

[Dave Anthony]

Yes. And after this, by the Civil War, Amaso was the big Cleveland mover. And Shaker. And he was on the board or president of several railroads, banks. He was an abolitionist.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Okay, he's still a rich prick, but.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, yeah, he's still his son. I mean, he was walling humans and like. He's not.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Excuse me. I don't care for the way you said that.

[Dave Anthony]

You were walled off to die.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I can leave when I choose to.

[Dave Anthony]

Okay.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I like it in here.

[Dave Anthony]

He supported the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860. And then Lincoln turned to Amasa for help with military supply and transportation. Most of his railroads were used to support the Union, and it made Amasa a millionaire. Ah, war profiteering.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Nice.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Imagine,

[Dave Anthony]

Amasa did help with relief funds for the families of local volunteers, and he raised money to recruit more soldiers during the war. He was only upset with the Union when his son went to fight.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Hmm. What'd you say? I'm behind this painting. Okay.

[Dave Anthony]

All right. Thank you. You should have been dead a long fucking time ago.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, I've got news for you. I found some bread. I want a pet. I want a bird. I want to have a bird in here with me.

[Dave Anthony]

You are the pet.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I deserve a bird.

[Dave Anthony]

No, you don't.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I deserve a tiny bird. Alfie told him. I'll name it.

[Dave Anthony]

No.

[Gareth Reynolds]

No matter if it's a boy or a girl.

[Dave Anthony]

Shut up.

[Gareth Reynolds]

But I'll have a fun time figuring out.

[Dave Anthony]

Nobody will. Nobody's having a fun time. You're a tedious little man stuck in a wall. You're like the anti Houdini just sitting in your little fucking wall space. Everybody is annoyed by you.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, your home seems pretty warm.

[Dave Anthony]

Amasa wanted Adelbert to help run his empire and wanted him to go to Yale and study engineering. But weeks after the war ended, Amasa got word that his son had died. Not in the war. Oh, at Yale.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Jesus. That's a fucking roller coaster. Fortunately, his son passed away. Those God damn troops. I can't believe it. They killed him. They killed him. They killed my only boy.

[Dave Anthony]

It was at Yale.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Ah. What? What was he over there for? Wasn't he in the war?

[Dave Anthony]

He was enjoying books and whatnot.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wait, what? Those God damn yay leaves?

[Dave Anthony]

Yes.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm gonna tell him that he was killed by the enemy.

[Dave Anthony]

That's fine.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Thank you.

[Dave Anthony]

The enemy is Harvard.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, God. My boy was killed by Harvard during the Civil War.

[Dave Anthony]

He actually drowned in the Connecticut river while on a field trip. And he had decided to go swimming and got cramps.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Got cramps?

[Dave Anthony]

That's it. If you got cramps.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That was the first time someone Swam too close to eating. That's right. Ah. From now on, we will wait 45 minutes every time a child swims. That we will remind them. No. 45 minutes is how long you'll wait. That's when it goes down. If only there had been a bridge with a special truss underneath it.

[Dave Anthony]

Excuse me.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, hello?

[Dave Anthony]

What in the fuck are you talking about?

[Gareth Reynolds]

I don't know. Most of my days are spent with a wall, pal. Not really good out anymore.

[Dave Anthony]

So. A lot of people believe Amasa never recovered from the death of his son. A couple Years later, in October 1867, Amasa was riding through Cleveland's public square and he was in a carriage with a banker. And then the carriage hit a gutter and the seat they were sitting on slid backwards.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, my God.

[Dave Anthony]

And they were both thrown to the ground and Amasa was severely injured.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What kind of str. What?

[Dave Anthony]

It's a special feature.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, did you want me to put that down with like a screw or a nail or something? I didn't know. Jesus Christ. We hit a bump up, we both almost died. Sorry about that.

[Dave Anthony]

A massive hit the back of his head.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Jesus.

[Dave Anthony]

And for the rest of his life, he would be in pain and walk with a serious limp.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, fuck.

[Dave Anthony]

Now he is. He is large with a big old mustache and a medium sized beard. Balding.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He's large.

[Dave Anthony]

Combed back. Yeah, he's large. He's actually a big boy.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He's tall.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, he was tall. He's a big guy. Amasa was known as one of the top wooden bridge builders in the United States.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's a Tinder profile.

[Dave Anthony]

Ladies love a man who works with wood. But railroads were replacing wooden bridges with iron and stone ones. And for a lakeshore railroad iron bridge, he insisted on using a specific truss. And an engineer told him the beams were inadequate for the length of the span.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Right. We're all following.

[Dave Anthony]

He fired the engineer.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Smart. Yep. Get him out of here.

[Dave Anthony]

You do?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yep. And then you do it.

[Dave Anthony]

And then the chief engineer then resigned. Instead of building it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. That's the Monday morning massacre.

[Dave Anthony]

So Amasa got an engineer who would do it his way.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's perfect.

[Dave Anthony]

The right way.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Robert Bork. Okay.

[Dave Anthony]

He, Amasa later called the design quote experimental.

[Gareth Reynolds]

It was an experimental train. I didn't realize people were going to be on it. Experimenting upon was a goof. We were having a larf.

[Dave Anthony]

Well, he got it built.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yep.

[Dave Anthony]

He also went on to help build the Union Depot. He incorporated the Northern Ohio Fair Association. He founded the Union Steel Screw Company, established the home for the agency. Protestant gentlewomen.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That is one title.

[Dave Anthony]

The Aged Protestant Home for the Aged Protestant Gentlewomen. Get the fuck out of here, you Catholic. This home ain't for you. Go get in the mud.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You check every box. But you're not gentle. Fuck you.

[Dave Anthony]

You're at sea.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, just because you told me some bad news.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, but I'm sorry, it was a test.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, I'd like to come back in now.

[Dave Anthony]

You're out, you Catholic whore.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What type of Protestant.

[Dave Anthony]

Go get in the mud where you belong, Catholic woman. This is for Protestant gentlewomen.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So have you been sending all the Catholics to the mud?

[Dave Anthony]

Yes.

[Gareth Reynolds]

It's starting to change the vibe of the outside of this area.

[Dave Anthony]

Well, we'll get more mud.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, why don't you just tell them no? Then they can go figure out what their next step is. No. Well, we've really got a lot of Catholic women out there in the mud and they're starting to wrestle.

[Dave Anthony]

That's wonderful news.

[Gareth Reynolds]

No, it's not. It's. They're wrestling out there and I don't know, a crowd of men have gathered around. It's really not the vibe we're going for. This is for Protestant gentlewomen who are old, charge a cover profit. Look, we're really trying to do something different. And I don't know if we should have Catholic women wrestling out there.

[Dave Anthony]

Catholic women make the best mud freaks.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You know what? This is why my wife said to not get into business with you, and I really didn't even. Let me guess. Go outside. Get in the mud. I. Get in the mud, you son of a bitch. All right. Okay.

[Dave Anthony]

His daughter Clara married in 1874. And he got a son in law to fill in for the part of his now dead son.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, that's cool. I bet that was cool.

[Dave Anthony]

That's.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, yeah, very casual. I love the wedding photographer. Now pretend your hips out of socket and you're gonna bash it back in. There we are. Good, good, good, good, good. Pretend if you were a mermaid, but you're not on the beach. On your side, you're standing and you've just gotten your fresh legs, lady. There you are, Clara. Perfect. All right. Tomorrow we'll do some with your husband. But until then, hurt your ribs. There we are.

[Dave Anthony]

Now get in the mud.

[Gareth Reynolds]

No, no, no. Sorry, sorry, sorry. Now. Sorry. My beautiful, beautiful.

[Dave Anthony]

You're wonderful.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Good.

[Dave Anthony]

Like to see you in the mud. So she marries John Hay. So Hay was a writer, diplomat and secretary to Abraham Lincoln.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Whoa. You'll stay late tonight. Lose the Coat. This war is just not as civil as I hoped it would be. Thirsty?

[Dave Anthony]

Yes.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Take some notes for me.

[Dave Anthony]

Go ahead.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What's my wife's name again?

[Dave Anthony]

Let's go with Helen.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I don't believe it is. I almost said Martha. Hold on, we'll get there. Betty. Mary Todd.

[Dave Anthony]

Sad one. Oh, my kids are dead. Shut up. Get in the mud.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Come on. Come on. Stop. Stop. Larry the Cable guying this. You are 100% gonna get a show called get in the Mud. All right, Dave. Cameron Diaz. She came out of the spotlight for a little while, but she's back. What do you think? Do we let her back into Hollywood or is she gonna get in that mud?

[Dave Anthony]

Oh, well, I think we oughta get her in the mud.

[Gareth Reynolds]

There we go. We're brought to you by Zins. Zins is a pure rush of nicotine.

[Dave Anthony]

So Amasa built the young couple a mansion next door.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Sad telling. Hey, you need someone to get inside of that wall. I have a baby in here with me now. I've had a boy. Ow. How? What? How did you have a baby with my wife, fool.

[Dave Anthony]

Okay. What?

[Gareth Reynolds]

She passed away, though. 15 years ago.

[Dave Anthony]

How do you have a baby then?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, that's a fair question. When she passed away, my son ended up meeting someone too, and they had a baby. It's a grandchild. It's my grandkid. It's my grandkid in here. There's a bunch of us, so if you need someone to go in their walls to insulate it, that'd be fine. We are a whole flock in here now. I'm an old man.

[Dave Anthony]

Amasa told the neighbors he was, quote, building a barn for his hay.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Have a good life.

[Dave Anthony]

His name's John A. Get it? It's funny.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, it's very funny.

[Dave Anthony]

I'm sure he was walking around telling everyone that. Line a building in front of building a barn for hay.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Uh huh. Amasa.

[Dave Anthony]

Hey, Frank.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah?

[Dave Anthony]

Building a barn for hay?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. That's normal. Don't you dare say it to me. If you fucking tell me that, I'm not going to get my hay. No. What? It's terrible. His sequel's awful

[Dave Anthony]

on Disney too. Get in the hay.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Jesus, this is bad.

[Dave Anthony]

Hae increased Amas's government connections. His daughter Flora then married rising industrialist Samuel Mather. Outside of his small circle of family, Amasa was known as a real son of a bitch.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Okay.

[Dave Anthony]

Business associates and friends found him cold, stern, and unapproachable.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He was rich.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, well, other rich guys don't like him.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He was really rich.

[Dave Anthony]

A historian. Quote, almost everybody feared Stone's arbitrary ways, his harsh temper and his biting tongue. Amasa was an early investor in Rockefeller's Standard Oil company, buying 500 shares.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, that'll be good.

[Dave Anthony]

Then, as director of the Lakeshore Railroad, he gave Rockefeller a series of rebates, which led to Standard Oil dominating the oil industry. If you can imagine a company giving money to another. Oh, my God. That's what's happening with AI.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, except oil's real.

[Dave Anthony]

We're gonna get killed now,

[Gareth Reynolds]

Dave. We're gonna get killed. Anyway,

[Dave Anthony]

he was on the Standard Oiled board, but he was very irritated that Rockefeller, a guy 20 years younger, was calling the shots. So Amasa was the rich guy in Cleveland, worth 6 million. And Rockefeller was younger than. Than most of the other robber barons. And smarter. It seems he was also new to this, and not many actually knew his name. Papers would call him Rockefeller or Rock, a feller. And again, he seemed. It seemed like no one really liked Amasa. One writer called Amasa dictatorial. A big novelist wrote a portrait of him using the name Aaron Grimstone.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What? Wait, the writer did?

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Okay, he's calling him Aaron Grimstone. He's like, you motherfucker.

[Dave Anthony]

Another person said, quote, the richest man in Cleveland, and he'll have the smallest funeral.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Dude. Major Musk. Vibes. Major.

[Dave Anthony]

But Amasa always acted as if he was above Rockefeller. And all the other guys on the board treated Rockefeller with respect. Respect and like he was smart. And then in 1872, Rockefeller approached the Second national bank for a big loan. He wanted rapid expansion. But Amasa was the director of the bank, and he was thinking we should go slow. And because Rockefeller was younger, Amasa expected him to be humble and just kind of beg a little bit.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Just kind of beg a little bit. Come on, kiss the glove. Come on, come on, come on. You know you want it.

[Dave Anthony]

Come on. Come to Amasa.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Say please. Please. Please.

[Dave Anthony]

And Rockefeller did not. And so Amasa got really pissed, and he opposed the loan. And then they argued, and Rockefeller went straight to the board to make his case. Quote. Rockefeller spoke with an authority born of his mastery of every detail of the oil business, answering Stone with relentless facts and arguments. Amasa began to raise his voice. And then finally, he pounded on the table.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Get in the mud. Get in the mud. If you get in the mud, you get the loan. The loan is somewhere deep in the mud. Dig around like it's double dare.

[Dave Anthony]

And then Amasa had a stroke of genius. Quote. Gentlemen, I am willing to arbitrate this dispute. Let Mr. Rockefeller and my safe lay our views in detail before two stockholders, Henry Payne and Stillman Witt.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So he wants to Shark Tank it?

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, kind of.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He.

[Dave Anthony]

He. I think he. Well, he thinks those. These guys ohm. A little bit. So he's like, I'll pick two guys.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, that'll fancy him. Yeah, but Rockefeller is far more compelling. And.

[Dave Anthony]

Well. Yeah, yeah. And he's like, I'll abide by the judgment. And these.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Rockefeller is.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, no, both. They both do. But it's like, I'll abide by it. But these two guys kind of. They idolize Amasa.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Like, right?

[Dave Anthony]

He's the big man in town, right? And Rockefeller's like, yeah, sure, because he knows he's right. And he was. The four guys meet, and Rockefeller and Amasa each give their presentations. And then the two guys start asking questions. And as they're asking questions, it becomes pretty clear that they're favoring Rockefeller. And Amasa says, quote. Gentlemen, remember who appointed you as arbitrators.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Might I remind you, you owe me everything.

[Dave Anthony]

Oh, gentlemen, who owns the mud?

[Gareth Reynolds]

We're just listening to both sides. We told you that's what we'd do. Rockefeller seems a little more prepared. If I may. Okay, sit and settle. Settle down.

[Dave Anthony]

Bite your face off.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What do you mean? Stop it.

[Dave Anthony]

I'm gonna bite your fucking face off.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Amasa.

[Dave Anthony]

You fucking shit.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Bear, you stop it.

[Dave Anthony]

You little fucking shit.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Look, you're not helping your case at

[Dave Anthony]

all, you fucking fuck. You arbitrating little fuck bag.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You stop it now. That's it. We are gonna pick Rockefeller if you keep going. No. Nobody's getting in the goddamn. First of all, there's not even mud near here.

[Dave Anthony]

Go in the wall of my house. What?

[Gareth Reynolds]

What?

[Dave Anthony]

In the wall.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What do you mean?

[Dave Anthony]

In my castle, where you will die.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What? Get in the wall of your house. What are you even talking? Is there anyone in the house Walls?

[Dave Anthony]

I rest my case.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What the fuck? You didn't even say anything.

[Dave Anthony]

I did. Let's just do what I want.

[Gareth Reynolds]

God damn it. Okay, all right. Look, look. Stop making that noise and let Rockefeller pitch. Stop it. Amasa. Amasa, Amasa, Amasa.

[Dave Anthony]

I'm richer than you.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Okay, well, I think we'll take a minute and we will render our decision shortly.

[Dave Anthony]

Thank you.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You're very welcome. This was a lot of fun. And then they're in the waiting room. We both lost our cool back there a little bit.

[Dave Anthony]

So both the arbitrators agree with Rockefeller. And Amasa is furious. And he storms out. And after this. Their relationship rapidly deteriorated. But a few weeks later, Amassa asks for an extension because he missed an option to buy more stock in Standard Oil.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So funny. I know. Who does he have to ask? Rockefeller.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Hey, could you. I goofed. I Forgot we had 30 days in this month, not 31. So, mind if I grab another few? How you been, by the way? How crazy was that back there at that pitch? That was wild. Congratulations again. That was awesome how you closed that deal.

[Dave Anthony]

You stabbed. Stabbed the arbitrators.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, no, no, no. Well, no. Well, I impaled one of them and then I did stab the other one, but. Gosh, it's so good to see you. Have you gained weight? You look fatter.

[Dave Anthony]

No. What?

[Gareth Reynolds]

I would love to buy some more of those shares.

[Dave Anthony]

No.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Come here.

[Dave Anthony]

Nope.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Come on. I love you.

[Dave Anthony]

I don't love you.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I think we should restart. Let's be best friends. No. Here's. Here we are together forever. Two best friends doing it together. Well, it doesn't matter. I have a lot of money, too. Can I buy some more shares? No. They're called shares because you're not supposed to hoard them. Let some of the other fellas have some, would you?

[Dave Anthony]

Other people?

[Gareth Reynolds]

There's enough mud in this trough for all the piggies, dickwad. Come on now.

[Dave Anthony]

So Rockefeller says no, and Amasa completely loses his shit. And he gets so pissed off that he sells all his stock. He thinks it's.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's so. Fuck.

[Dave Anthony]

He thinks it's gonna hurt the company if he sells all the stock.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Fine. Well, I sold all the stock. I just wanted more of. Ha, ha, ha.

[Dave Anthony]

Fuck you.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Bingo.

[Dave Anthony]

But it doesn't hurt, Rockefeller, because other guys just immediately wanted to buy it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Can I have that stock back? No. Please?

[Dave Anthony]

No.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Give me the 500 shares from before.

[Dave Anthony]

No.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Let me marry into your family.

[Dave Anthony]

Well, there's a guy in the wall.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wait.

[Dave Anthony]

And then there's a bunch of mud

[Gareth Reynolds]

ladies in your wall.

[Dave Anthony]

Who am I?

[Gareth Reynolds]

You're not the guy with a mud family in the wall. That's me. Unless you and I have a lot more weird shit in common than I could have ever known about.

[Dave Anthony]

I'm doing role play. Sorry.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, okay. Well, you freaked me out there for a minute. Cause I have three generations of one guy living in my walls. And let me tell you, I never put the fire on.

[Dave Anthony]

So December 29, 1876. There is a blizzard and it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm quite warm in my home. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. It's freezing in the walls.

[Dave Anthony]

Okay.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, yeah, I Don't think we're all gonna make it.

[Dave Anthony]

You were supposed to have died 30 fucking years ago.

[Gareth Reynolds]

We're gonna have to start eating some of the other family. Unless you let us out.

[Dave Anthony]

Good.

[Gareth Reynolds]

We could. We're freezing in here, man.

[Dave Anthony]

Eat each other. Just shut the fuck up.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'll tell you what. All right, all right. Let's just do this to pass the time. Last meal. And which relative would you make it out of? I do Uncle Pasta. Okay. What about you?

[Dave Anthony]

I'm not doing this.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Come on, it'll pass the time. No. Come on, it'll be fun.

[Dave Anthony]

It's not fun.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Ah,

[Dave Anthony]

I should have put you in the mud.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Enchiladad.

[Dave Anthony]

So there's a blizzard. A train leaves Erie, Pennsylvania, headed for Cleveland.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Hilarious. I mean, please, We've been.

[Dave Anthony]

We've been there.

[Gareth Reynolds]

A train left Erie, Pennsylvania. Look. Yeah, yeah, Erie.

[Dave Anthony]

Woo.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Best place to leave on a train. Get the fuck out of there. Our town should be called Creepy.

[Dave Anthony]

So because of all the snow from the blizzard, they have two locomotives going. So it's crossing over the bridge and. Oh, this is the exact same bridge that Amasa fired the engineer to build it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Now wait a minute, they're gonna bridge over the river Quaya or whatever. Oh no. And then it does look a little toothpicky.

[Dave Anthony]

Then the train engineer hears a crack. And he feels the train drop a bit and he realizes the bridge is collapsing. So he opens the throttle up.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Smart.

[Dave Anthony]

And that locomotive makes it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

See, he's like the Sully.

[Dave Anthony]

But the connection between the rest of the train snapped.

[Gareth Reynolds]

But he makes it.

[Dave Anthony]

He's fine.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's awesome. That's all that matters. Well, that was close. Holy shit. I'm fucking lucky as hell. That's a lot of dead folk down yonder.

[Dave Anthony]

Gareth the Dollop is brought to you by him. Sexual health. Look, ED is a lot more common than guys think. Millions, millions of guys are dealing with it. That's exactly why hims offers. Straightforward way to deal with it. It's super easy.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah, yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

Just not having to go in and talk to someone and talk to someone.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Back in the day, they used to put you on a horse and send you out of town. Right now you can just figure it out. Yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

You're not banished anymore.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yes.

[Dave Anthony]

And you can come back to your lady or your fella or whatever your. Whatever you got there.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Whatever it is.

[Dave Anthony]

Look at this. Look at this.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Cares. Yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

And stare at him and be like, look.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I think that the point is that

[Dave Anthony]

they offer a lot of maybe point at it. Maybe run around a Little bit enough and go, I'm back.

[Gareth Reynolds]

This is a discreet way to get the solve and you know, I mean, take care of this stuff. This is a confidence building thing and you shouldn't feel bad. It's, you know, but get some help. HIMS is there for.

[Dave Anthony]

Look, it connects you licensed healthcare providers online. It gives you simple access to legitimate.

[Gareth Reynolds]

And we sit in on those. Dave and I sit in on those. Not a lot of people know that Dave and I are in on those. We're on those zooms the whole time.

[Dave Anthony]

That's all I do is wink. So while there are no, no awkward appointments or pharmacy lines. But seriously, it's straightforward, transparent, designed to make getting care feel easy. You can get prescriptions generic through HIMS at up to 95% less than a name brand version. So to get simple online access to personalized affordable care, ED, weight loss and more, visit hims.comdolop that's hims.comdop for your free online visit hims.comdOLOP Prescription required. See website for details and important safety information. Sildenafil is the generic version of Viagra. Viagrapher is a registered trademark of Viatris Specialty llc. HIMS Incorporated is not affiliated or endorsed by Vatris Specialty llc. Gareth, we are also brought to you by Mint Mobile. Look, a lot of people for some reason don't just like throwing their money at companies, just like tons of piles of cash, especially when you're throwing money at a, at a company. And there is another company right there that say, I don't know, provides a phone service that does the exact same job or better for way less money.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

And of course I'm talking about Mint Mobile.

[Gareth Reynolds]

We love them.

[Dave Anthony]

We've switched to Mint Mobile. We're saving tons of money and we're both like, why didn't we do this before?

[Gareth Reynolds]

It's the same, same, same towers. You get your phone number, you get your phone. You know, I mean, really, there's, there's no downside.

[Dave Anthony]

It's just way less.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. And there's just been one rumor that we've dispelled on this show, but outside of that, it's been perfect. Literally not even worth getting into mobile. There have been people who, that I know who I've worked with who have suggested that the phone will start its flavor profile, which is, that's actually the cord. What do you mean?

[Dave Anthony]

When you plug in the cord to your Mint Mobile phone, the cord tastes like mint. Give it a shot, plug it in right now and just give it A lick.

[Gareth Reynolds]

And I'll tell you, the cord was the thing that was supposed to taste good.

[Dave Anthony]

Mint Mobile is here to rescue you with premium wireless plants for $15 a month.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm gonna plug it in.

[Dave Anthony]

You know, like GAR said, bring your phone and your number. Activate with EIM in minutes. Start saving immediately. No long term contracts, no hassle if you like your money. Mint Mobile.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yes. Same. No Mint, no Mint. Nope. Wrong.

[Dave Anthony]

That's weird.

[Gareth Reynolds]

It's not weird. That is it.

[Dave Anthony]

Shop [e-mail] dollop that's mintmobile.com upfront payment of 45. Upfront payment of $45 for 3 month 5 gigabyte plan required equivalent to $15 a month new customer offer for the first 3 months only. Then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra. C. Mint Mobile for details.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I think I'm not tasting anything to do with the phone ever again. Period. We're intimate mobile. I'm not licking any more stuff.

[Dave Anthony]

This podcast is also brought to you by Squarespace. Squarespace is the all in one website platform designed to help you stand out and succeed online. If you're just starting out your business, if you're just scaling it up, trying to get more people involved, it gives. Squarespace gives you everything you need, everything you claim, your domain. Showcase your offer.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Ask me, ask me. Name a thing.

[Dave Anthony]

SEO tools, yes.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Search engine optimization. I'm a big fan of that. But other things, it helps you with your merch, it helps you with your building, helps you pick a name. Squarespace is there for you. You remember that movie Rocky? Remember the guy in the corner? Mickey?

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Squarespace is your Mickey.

[Dave Anthony]

Interesting.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Come on, Dave. You can build your website. You can do your website, right?

[Dave Anthony]

Squarespace makes it easy to showcase your expertise and engage with clients.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Put your toenail on there, Dave, and

[Dave Anthony]

engage clients with video content on your website. Upload and organize your video.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You want video content or your SEO tools? You got it.

[Dave Anthony]

Upload and organize your videos. Create stunning video libraries, and even monetize your content by adding a paywall. Perfect for online courses, exclusive tutorials, premium workshops, whatever. And you can get paid on time with professional on brand invoices and online payments. So we're, we're, we're recommending Squarespace. We have all our websites with Squarespace.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Are we, Dave, or are we just every. Are we just using it for every website we're associated with?

[Dave Anthony]

Every single website we're associated with with is Squarespace for a reason. It's easy and it looks good. It's so easy to Use, though. So head to squarespace.com $for a free trial, and when you're ready to launch, use offer code dollop to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain. That's squarespace.com dollop for a free trial, and when you're ready to launch, use offer code dollop to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain. The collapse of the bridge was, quote, slow and piecemeal, just like you want it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. What? It's like a Mission Impossible.

[Dave Anthony]

The cars fell on top of each other.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, no.

[Dave Anthony]

And then the top of the bridge fell on top of the cars. And then more train cars fell on top of that.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What? Another train came, and then cars were

[Dave Anthony]

smashing into each other. Like a sleeper car landed right side,

[Gareth Reynolds]

not the sleeper car.

[Dave Anthony]

Then another.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You know, I'm having a weird moment.

[Dave Anthony]

Then another sleeper car landed on top of that and crushed it, killing most people inside. Now the water is six feet deep and covered in eight inches of ice. And the last car hits and sticks, and then water and ice and snow rushed in, and everyone in that car died. Wow. So,

[Gareth Reynolds]

boy, that fucking. The head engineer was like, oh, shit. That was lucky.

[Dave Anthony]

Now they could hear the crash at the nearest station, which was just 100 yards away and in a town. And alarms go off and rescuers rush to the crash. People bring axes with them to free passengers. And those who didn't die from the crash now had another problem. The cars had coal and kerosene, heating stoves and oil lamps.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, my God.

[Dave Anthony]

So fires break out, and by the time the rescuers get there, the fires are burning pretty good.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Pretty good.

[Dave Anthony]

The Ashtabula fire chief was an alcoholic.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. Of course you're celebrating. I can't go down there. I'll combust. Trust me. I'm pretty much kerosene right now myself. So I don't know how we'll put those fires out. Everybody piss. If we do it enough, if we dig deep enough and we all piss at the same time, there's a good chance that we could put out all our train fires.

[Dave Anthony]

Hey, let's sing.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Let's sing.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Looking down over the long bad ridge. You gotta wonder who built this bridge. Not Rockefeller. His bridges are stellar. Don't you test me with.

[Dave Anthony]

So the. The fire chief.

[Gareth Reynolds]

It'd be great to cut the setup song at the beginning of the set. People be like, the happening.

[Dave Anthony]

So the fire chief, besides being an alcoholic, he's really not great at the job when he's sober.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So that's Why I drink.

[Dave Anthony]

His fire engines arrived first, but he gave no orders to fight the fire.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Hold. All right, everybody gossip. We'll figure this out.

[Dave Anthony]

And he turned and told a local that it was no use.

[Gareth Reynolds]

At this point, it's pointless. At this point it's just for the Graham. This is all just for the Graham. Everything's for the gram.

[Dave Anthony]

But it was clear people were alive and in there.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So he's what he's like, don't worry.

[Dave Anthony]

A person begged him to put water on the fire, but he said, nah, no. So townspeople tried to put out the fire with buckets of water.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh my God.

[Dave Anthony]

And the train cars are made of wood.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh my God. Oh my God.

[Dave Anthony]

The fire is now melting the ice and more cars are going into the icy water. People died from the crash, then they died from the freezing water. And they died from the fires or they died from both or all or

[Gareth Reynolds]

more trains falling on. Oh my God. So it is a full on blizzard, trained fire, drown. Fucking.

[Dave Anthony]

That's exactly what the New York Times headline was

[Gareth Reynolds]

of a holly jolly Christmas. It's the don't turn that way. Best time of the year. No only face this way. Holy jolly of a happy. Don't look that way. As a Christmas. Don't look that way. That man's on fire. That man's a skeleton. End of this year. Deck the halls with. Oh my God. No turn around.

[Dave Anthony]

Some passengers who managed to get out of the wreck drown in the river. Now the town has no hospital.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What the fuck? By the way, get used to that. Yeah, Just like you will get. There's a. There's a 2026 catchphrase. Now, the town had no hospital, but they didn't need one because telehealth was no longer allowed.

[Dave Anthony]

So they put the injured wherever they could. A train station, hotel and people's homes.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Train station. Excuse me, could you try harder? I understand some people are going to hotels. I'd really rather not be at the train station. I mean, I just went through a lot of trauma from the train. This is kind of a fucked up place to put. Someone who's trained. Just fell in a fire. Ice.

[Dave Anthony]

We're gonna put you in the bridge guard station.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I don't want to be near a bridge or a train station. I've just been through a lot. I just watched a lot of fellow passengers perish in front of me. Please just. Could you put me in one of the hotels or a tavern or somewhere?

[Dave Anthony]

What about a train car?

[Gareth Reynolds]

No, I don't want to be in a goddamn train Car just been through hell. Please try harder. I need you, man.

[Dave Anthony]

Oh, mud.

[Gareth Reynolds]

No, no, no, no. Oh, shit. It's you.

[Dave Anthony]

The town had 10 doctors. By midnight, everyone who lived was out of the wreck. And then thieves came. Stealing from the dead and wounded.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, yeah. Yes.

[Dave Anthony]

You're not gonna use that watch.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yes, but we shouldn't have possessions. There should be nothing. Nothing should have value. Only oranges.

[Dave Anthony]

That was bug. Fuck crazy.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Of course thieves are gonna come. If you have rich and poor, thieves are gonna take dead people's watches.

[Dave Anthony]

In the morning, some came, by the way.

[Gareth Reynolds]

No way those watches are working.

[Dave Anthony]

They might work.

[Gareth Reynolds]

No, these are not swatches.

[Dave Anthony]

In the morning, people came and looted the train. And the mayor finally put guards around the area. 159 passengers. Only eight were not injured. About 92 died. The exact amount is not known because passengers from all over the country and they didn't know who was there and like, who was on it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wow.

[Dave Anthony]

They thought about 22 people couldn't be ID'd, but a lot of that was. There were just parts so they couldn't know.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's terrible.

[Dave Anthony]

It's hard. It's a puzzle situation at that point, and puzzles are hard. Have you ever done a puzzle? And. Ah, it's all red. Where did I put the. It's hard.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I definitely think we're missing a piece. Hold up the box again. Oh, no. That's not how she looked at all.

[Dave Anthony]

She did not have four legs. What is this?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yes, she did. Of course she did. Yeah, you're right.

[Dave Anthony]

Three bodies were never claimed.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Holy fuck.

[Dave Anthony]

An Ashtabula county coroner's inquest was held. Now, they didn't have a coroner, so the local judge picked six guys to be on the jury.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wait, what?

[Dave Anthony]

They did a jury?

[Gareth Reynolds]

They didn't have a quarter, so they made a jury.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, they picked to do what? To, like, figure out what happened.

[Gareth Reynolds]

To piece it together.

[Dave Anthony]

They're like, yo, janitor, you, guy who trims edges. What are you, a banker, Frank?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yep.

[Dave Anthony]

A Franker fire chief. Ah, fuck I that one up.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yep. I'll have a lot of insights, but I am an alcoholic.

[Dave Anthony]

Oh, we know.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh.

[Dave Anthony]

The jury concluded the bridge was poorly designed.

[Gareth Reynolds]

All right. Good shit, idiots. Get out. Your honor, we've decided that this bridge sucked. Legally, we the jury, find the bridge. Shit.

[Dave Anthony]

I mean, the jury was absolute shit. The braces were not strong enough. The truss was not right for the length of the. It was under designed. And on top of that, it was poorly built.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Your honor, trains are super heavy. Medically speaking, the train is an extremely heavy item. Now the bridge on the other hand, was not big. The train was bigger than the bridge.

[Dave Anthony]

Some parts had been put in the wrong places.

[Gareth Reynolds]

The parts had been sort of put in the wrong places.

[Dave Anthony]

Shims were used to make up for parts being too short.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So some of the shims were. By the way, don't drive through America if that freaks you out. I. If that bothers you, I. I'd like to sell you a bridge to anywhere because there's nothing driving. We are held together by styrofoam and prayers, ladies and gentlemen. We are a highway bridge.

[Dave Anthony]

You go, well, that's styrofoam.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. The amount of times we like, oh God, some guy's standing on a bridge with an American flag while you're like. That bridge is held together by packaging.

[Dave Anthony]

Thick parts were used where thin parts were needed and vice versa.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I love hearing a juror say this. Thick parts where thin parts should be, thin parts where thick parts should be. The whole bridge was an upside downy nightmare factory, sir.

[Dave Anthony]

And then on top of that, bridge inspectors did not do their job. They did not note the problems with the bridge or how much it was coming apart over time. Also, the self extinguishing stoves were required by law and the train did not have them.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Self extinguishing stoves were not on there.

[Dave Anthony]

Automatically go out when the train crashed

[Gareth Reynolds]

or when there was a crazy flipp.

[Dave Anthony]

It's called the flip. When a train.

[Gareth Reynolds]

This is a flippity doo stove.

[Dave Anthony]

We had a big flip out there.

[Gareth Reynolds]

These are all air fryers.

[Dave Anthony]

And then of course the fire chief was.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

Now Amasa was named as responsible for the bridge design. And then the state legislature appointed a committee to investigate. Theirs is a lot more thorough than the six random guys in the town. The chief engineer told them, quote, this is no bridge of mine. That's the president's bridge.

[Gareth Reynolds]

The president's bridge. Okay. Right, right.

[Dave Anthony]

A company lawyer said that the bridge had been as made as strong as possible and quote, if God saw fit to lower the temperature, the company could not control his actions and hence were clearly not liable for the results.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Sue God. God make God someone. For the love of him, sue him.

[Dave Anthony]

God made it cold and you want to blame me?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Amasa versus God. The defense calls to the witness stand. God.

[Dave Anthony]

Well, fuck.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you? You?

[Dave Anthony]

I always love that when I'm on monophone on a witness stand.

[Gareth Reynolds]

How many times you want to witness stand?

[Dave Anthony]

It's A lot. You guys are really annoying.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Jesus. Good Lord. Sorry. God damn earth. A lot of our curses are about.

[Dave Anthony]

It's not great what's happening.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Jesus Christ.

[Dave Anthony]

What about just a good old fashioned?

[Gareth Reynolds]

All right. We'll take a quick recess.

[Dave Anthony]

All right. No.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, sorry. We're in another one of our classic wordplay. Pickles. God. And the attorney will be right back.

[Dave Anthony]

Lightning bolt inspectors found misplaced struts, braces not tied together in imperfect bearings. Now, Amasa strongly denies there were any design or construction flaws.

[Gareth Reynolds]

The best. The rich are the best.

[Dave Anthony]

First, he said the crash happened because one of the locomotives derailed due to a loose rail.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Bingo.

[Dave Anthony]

The railroad company tossed out the possibility that a tornado would hit the bridge.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Cause does anyone stop to think about that? A low tornado, an under the bridge tornado. It's funny to say that it is the locomotives that the train car derailed because the entire bridge collapsed. So it's like, wouldn't that just take the train off? He's like. And then the train swung into the bridge after it derailed. Woof. And

[Dave Anthony]

could you. Could you say what you mean by woof?

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, just that when I did this in the mirror, nobody was looking at me. So the caboose hit it so hard at a velocity of that of a wrecking ball right into the bridge, which was perfectly designed. Everything was perfect up to code. Trust me. Trust me. I recognize a lot of people have passed. This is quite a serious thing.

[Dave Anthony]

But you keep smiling and.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh. Beautiful. For space.

[Dave Anthony]

It turns out Amasa had used his Cleveland rolling mill for most of the materials to build it. And his brother ran the mill. And the casings were not to spec that his brother had made. The Ohio General assembly then questioned Amasa in his home, which they had to do because he was sick.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He did it. He did it. If you can hear me in there, he did it all. He's a bad, bad man. He's a terrible man.

[Dave Anthony]

I'm sorry. I have wall elves.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm not an elf. I was put in here for insulation.

[Dave Anthony]

No.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I'm 91 years old.

[Dave Anthony]

Why would I.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He made me eat my grandkids.

[Dave Anthony]

Why would I do that?

[Gareth Reynolds]

He was obsessed with what my last meal would be. He never left me alone about it.

[Dave Anthony]

It's just so ridiculous.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So I've had a big family in here, and we were forced to eat some of them.

[Dave Anthony]

Okay.

[Gareth Reynolds]

When it got cold, no one.

[Dave Anthony]

No one's really enjoying.

[Gareth Reynolds]

And he didn't. He did. He laughed at us. He did. But while we're in here, I guess Maybe we open it up. Everyone's last meal. What would it be? And you can only take one nationality's cuisine and not mix it. Like you couldn't do fries in pizza and make it a sandwich.

[Dave Anthony]

Well, that's weird. I would like fries and pizza as a sandwich.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, I suppose just for you, we can do it. That sounds pretty good, too. Oh, it's good to laugh. It's very good to laugh. So, birthing for food. Oh, go ahead.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah. Could you just. I'm gonna do this thing.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Let me know if you need anything.

[Dave Anthony]

Okay. Thanks. How fucking long are you gonna live?

[Gareth Reynolds]

More than a feeling. I'm just gonna do some cleaning up in here. I got a feeling.

[Dave Anthony]

Amassa said the bridge was built stronger than needed and that he left before it had been finished. And that contractors gave him, quote, considerable trouble. They hired a guy who, quote, thinks. He thinks never put together an iron bridge before.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, I think we've got our murderer.

[Dave Anthony]

He installed the brace horizontal instead of vertical. And that the first engineer was fired because he was bad at his job. The engineer Amasa hired, who agreed to build it that way, had inspected it 10 days before the accident, but he'd just not gone down low enough to

[Gareth Reynolds]

look up and see, fuck that, it was coming apart. Oh, my God.

[Dave Anthony]

So days after that engineer turned in his resignation, but the railroad refused it. So he killed himself? Well, many people said it was the right thing to do, but the wrong guy had done it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wait, many.

[Dave Anthony]

That's an argument.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wait a minute. Many people said that was the right thing to do, but the wrong guy did it.

[Dave Anthony]

Yep.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Okay, sure. This is like. He's like a Boeing whistleblower.

[Dave Anthony]

Others said the guy had been murdered.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So he is a Boeing whistleblower.

[Dave Anthony]

Two separate autopsies a year later would also say he had been murdered, but the reports were not released.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's classic. Classic.

[Dave Anthony]

It's. It was all on Amasa, though. One reporter said, quote, he designed this structure and dictated the drawing of the plans and erection of the bridge without the approval from any competent engineer, against the protest of a man who made the drawings under Mr. Stone's direction, assuming the sole and entire responsibility himself.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So he had no fucking clue what he was doing. Really? Not really. Yeah. And he was just, like, talking to a guy. Just like. And then, I don't know, piece it together with branches. We should get lunch.

[Dave Anthony]

So Amasa is now a pariah and he runs off to Europe.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So nothing happens. He just goes to Europe.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah. Basically, this.

[Gareth Reynolds]

These. Oh, sweet baby Dave. Listen, you Know how news is. We're basically a news show and it's overwhelming. Okay, but this is different. News is non stop. It's. It's coming at you all the time. You know, it's like living in this day and age. I do.

[Dave Anthony]

I live here.

[Gareth Reynolds]

One hour you're talking about one thing. The next hour you've completely forgotten about that thing because your brain cannot catch up.

[Dave Anthony]

You know, we need Gareth.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Say it.

[Dave Anthony]

A podcast.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yes.

[Dave Anthony]

That is not panic inducing. It slows things down.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yes.

[Dave Anthony]

I'm talking about Stateside with Kai and Carter.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That's exactly what I was going to say.

[Dave Anthony]

It's a Guardian podcast.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Stateside with Kai and Carter airs three times per week because there's always something to discuss. Kai and Carter get access to the Guardians resources in the US and reporters around the world. And David, they deliver the most relevant information right to you.

[Dave Anthony]

We should say it's journalists Kai Wright and Carter Sherman, but we're talking global

[Gareth Reynolds]

content across news, international coverage, climate, culture, sports, lifestyle, fashion, wellness. And they're not billionaire owned over there at the Guardian, Dave, which is something you and I can get behind.

[Dave Anthony]

I like that. So Kai and Carter wrestle with all the questions we have. What's going on in the world? So listen, wherever you get your podcasts or watch on YouTube. Stateside with Kai and Carter.

[Sponsor/Announcer]

Get a jump on next summer with vrbo's early booking deals. Don't wait to claim your dream summer spot, whether that includes a good porch swing or a poolside lounger. When you book early, you get the best places at the best prices. But back to poolside loungers. With vrbo, you don't have to reserve any loungers. They're all yours. In fact, the whole private home is yours. Book with early booking deals and you can lounge around all summer long, however you please. Book with vrbo. When it's time to scale your business. It's time for Shopify. Get everything you need to grow the way you want. Like all the way. Stack more sales with the best converting checkout on the planet. Track your cha chings from every channel right in one spot. And turn real time reporting into big time opportunities. Take your business to a whole new level. Switch to Shopify. Start your free trial today.

[Gareth Reynolds]

And Doug, there's nowhere I wouldn't go to help someone customize and save on car insurance with Liberty Mutual. Even if it means sitting front row at a comedy show. Hey everyone, check out this guy and his bird. What is this, your first date? Oh, no.

[Dave Anthony]

We help people customize and save on car Insurance with of Liberty Mutual.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Together we're married. Me to a human, him to a bird. Yeah, the bird looks out of your league. Anyways, get a [e-mail] or with your local agent. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty.

[Dave Anthony]

So people, for years people would say that he should kill himself. Like they would tell him to kill himself.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, it doesn't look like that's what he's up to. Looks like he's living himself.

[Dave Anthony]

The Ohio assembly committee writes a bill for the state's first bridge design code and frequent regular inspections by civil engineers. But the legislature didn't pass the bill.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Sure. It's so cool how it's so vastly different. Yeah, always. And then time passed and nothing changed.

[Dave Anthony]

Amasa never recovered from the bridge disaster.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, really? The vapors. Pour more money on me. Hurry, hurry, my skin burns. No guilt. Sometimes I hear the screams that I wasn't there to be around. It's hell. Tom, come to bed.

[Dave Anthony]

Now. That was on top of never recovering from the death of his son. And while he was in Europe, strikes break out on the railroads, including his Lakeshore railroad. And his son in law, John Hayden

[Gareth Reynolds]

writes, quote, for those of you listening, will forte, age 88,

[Dave Anthony]

With an animal on his face.

[Gareth Reynolds]

For those of you listening, remember the guy who Macaulay Culkin thought was the murderer next door in Home Alone? Him.

[Dave Anthony]

So John Hay wrote, quote, since last week, the country has been at the mercy of the mob. The town is full of thieves and tramps waiting and hoping for a riot, but not daring to begin it themselves. So guys on strike.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. So we have workers being. Yeah. Furious.

[Dave Anthony]

They want food. Amasa returned with the plan to be a benefactor and buy back the public's love.

[Gareth Reynolds]

So good. Wouldn't it be nice if they tried? If ours tried to do that? Like there was that era where they were just like, well, we're really into philanthropy. And everyone's like, you're great. Instead, ours are just like, we should probably move to Venus. Could you fucking like build some houses for people? No. No.

[Dave Anthony]

In 1880, he offered half a million dollars to Western Reserve College in Hudson, Ohio. His one condition was that the college moved to Cleveland.

[Gareth Reynolds]

It's gonna be, what the fuck? Can you imagine being on the freeway behind that one? Jesus Christ. What the fuck? Wide load isn't just saying, what are they doing?

[Dave Anthony]

Hey, college has gotta pull over.

[Gareth Reynolds]

If there's more than five cars, we're moving to college. Some of the students are still in there. I don't know. I don't know.

[Dave Anthony]

And other.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Honey, I'M a little late, I guess. They're moving a university to Cleveland, so I am right behind this thing. Makes me miss a funeral. This is nuts.

[Dave Anthony]

And other Clevelanders needed to provide grounds for the campus. So he's saying that. So he's gonna give money to the college, but the college has to move, and then someone's got to give him the land.

[Gareth Reynolds]

They better work that out first. All right, so where are we putting it? Not sure. I don't know. I don't know. But we should find somewhere soon. You know, there's a city right next to here named after my friend Kent.

[Dave Anthony]

And he wanted to change the name of the college to Adelbert College of Western Reserve University.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Catchy.

[Dave Anthony]

Oh, and he wanted to name a majority of the trustees on the board. Oh, and he wanted to oversee construction of the university.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, yeah, that's good. It'll collapse.

[Dave Anthony]

And he got the land.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wow.

[Dave Anthony]

As did Leonard Case Jr. Who was to build an adjacent college. So Case wanted the western half of the land, so he told Amasa he wanted the eastern part because you knew Amasa was such a dick, he would demand it. And Amasa did. And Case got the eastern part like he wanted.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wow. I can't believe he pulled that. Nice try. That's my area. All right.

[Dave Anthony]

This was the foundation for what ultimately became known as University Circle.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wow.

[Dave Anthony]

Amasa resigned from the Lakeshore Railroad Board after it was absorbed by Vanderbilt's railroad empire. He could not, quote, withstand the transfer of major command decisions from Cleveland to the Vanderbilt offices in New York City. Strikes had broken out at the Cleveland rolling mill in 1882, and several Midwestern steel companies that he was involved in had failed. Three of Amassa's businesses just in the first three months of 1883 failed. This was in the middle of a financial panic, contraction, and high unemployment. So naturally, Amasa blamed, quote, the unreasonableness of men who are disposed to control capital and demand 30% more for their work than that. Paid by Eastern mills. Yes. Fucking labor.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wow.

[Dave Anthony]

You fucks pigs. You fucking animal.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Look at how rich he is.

[Dave Anthony]

You ruined the rich people.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Look at how rich that guy for sure is.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, so he blames labor and just ignored the fact that there was a depression happening. And then his health completely broke down. He had stomach ulcers that kept him awake at night. Fuck, yeah. Suffer, baby.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What have you been? What have you been eating? What have you eaten?

[Dave Anthony]

Just. Just little tacks and dirt and a little bit of people.

[Gareth Reynolds]

You should probably drink some more milk. I would miss milk the most.

[Dave Anthony]

I Don't.

[Gareth Reynolds]

We don't have a cow in here.

[Dave Anthony]

I still don't care. I mean, the crazy thing is it'd

[Gareth Reynolds]

be great to get a cow.

[Dave Anthony]

It's been it's skinny cow now a hundred years and I don't give two.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Can you believe I can't die? Yes.

[Dave Anthony]

It's the worst thing that's ever happened. I gotta be honest.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Amazing Grace, have you passed?

[Dave Anthony]

Oh, Amasa was just getting two hours of sleep a night.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What's the matter, Amasa? Come to wall. You're tired, baby. Put a little hole in the wall, that puts you right to bed, baby girl. Glory girl, Do you hate me? Yes. It's hard to tell. He said, such a will they. It's such a will they wal they won't they.

[Dave Anthony]

He wrote to his son in law, John Hay, quote, I have not been to my office in some time. Nervous frustration seemed to be my first misfortune and sleeplessness has followed. Biographer Patricia o' Toole said he was severely depressed. His daughter Clara and Hay were in Europe and he wrote to Hae constantly, quote his ambivalent letters full of muffled cries for help. And he asked Hay to cut short his trip and come home. But Haigh said nope. After another night of no sleep, he took his revolver into the bathroom and killed himself by shooting himself through the heart.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, shit.

[Dave Anthony]

So he left no suicide note.

[Gareth Reynolds]

He might have cte.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah, his upper body fell into the tub. Mark Twain wrote of that quote, apparently nothing pleases the Almighty like the picturesque.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wow. Jesus Christ. I didn't know he was on Twitter.

[Dave Anthony]

Good people don't make fun of people who died. Mark Twain's like, really, bitch.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Well, that is true. Unless they're really rich.

[Dave Anthony]

Yeah.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Then you mock them physically. Like, yeah, that's like. People are like, look, I know Elon Musk has a funny body, but leave him alone. No, no, I won't.

[Dave Anthony]

No, absolutely not. To his dying day, Amas was adamant that there were no flaws in the bridges design and construction. His widow and daughter spent a lot of money trying to redeem his reputation. Two years after the death, they donated a huge stained glass window to the restored sanctuary of Old Stone Church, which had been destroyed after the fire of 1884. The window is named after Amasa. In 1910, they paid for the Amassa Stone Chapel on the campus of Western Reserve College, June 23.

[Gareth Reynolds]

They didn't really try that hard.

[Dave Anthony]

No.

[Gareth Reynolds]

They just got a window and a fucking bell tower and they're like, all right, everybody like him again now. Later

[Dave Anthony]

on July 23, 1901. His 24 year old grandson, his grandson was Aldebert Dellstone. And he fell to his death from an open window. He went to the window on a hot night to get some air, sat down and fell asleep. And then fell.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What the fuck? What the fuck?

[Dave Anthony]

Air conditioning used to be so much more dangerous.

[Gareth Reynolds]

What? He just sat down?

[Dave Anthony]

He was at Yale for homecoming and died a quarter mile from where his uncle had died in 2001. The two autopsy reports saying the engineer had been murdered were discovered.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Oh, my God. What? Why 2001?

[Dave Anthony]

I don't know. When I don't know. Someone going through.

[Gareth Reynolds]

They were just trying to get us off the 911 problem. Like steel doesn't melt at this heat. We made a big discovery. The engineer was murdered in what? Remember that train? The bridge? No. Well, we'll figure out 911 and maybe 2312 or something. How's that sound, everybody?

[Dave Anthony]

That's it.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Nuts? No,

[Dave Anthony]

That's basically the podcast.

[Gareth Reynolds]

That is the first hundred episodes. Oh my God. That is the podcast. Dave gareth, history.

[Dave Anthony]

Sources. Alan F. Dudka Misfortune on Cleveland Millionaires Row. The observer case. Edu Untimely Deaths in the stone family. Old stonechurch.com.

[Gareth Reynolds]

that's a great website, by the way. That's where that picture came from.

[Dave Anthony]

The Evening Post, the Pittsburgh Commercial Paper. The Tennesseean, John D. Rockefeller. The Heroic Age of the American Enterprise by Alan Nevins.

[Gareth Reynolds]

And. And the Wall. The Wall.

[Dave Anthony]

And old Wally.

[Gareth Reynolds]

I mean, Can't have rich people. Can't have them.

[Dave Anthony]

Can't have rich people.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Gotta stop.

[Dave Anthony]

No rich people.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Nope. Can have, you know, you can be rich. That's okay. You can't be. Can't. Can't be that. No more magnates, no more barons.

[Dave Anthony]

10 million.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Yeah. 10 million capital. You're good. 10 million. You get parks, you get trains, clean water. You get to walk around without people wanting to stab you.

[Dave Anthony]

I don't know about that. I can't make that guarantee.

[Gareth Reynolds]

Wait a minute. Yeah, but that is really. That's always the story, right? That's what the dick could be called. Tales of rich people.

[Dave Anthony]

Who knew he had such a big dick,

[Gareth Reynolds]

John. Thank you guys. Appreciate it. Enjoy your night.

[Sponsor/Announcer]

If the world were like a sleep number mattress, everything would adapt for your comfort. Because as your life changes and your body changes, sleep number mattresses adapt and shift to give you personalized comfort night after night. And now it's the final days of our Everything's on Sale event. Save up to $1200 on mattresses our Memorial Day event ends Monday. To experience a whole new world of comfort, visit a Sleep Number store or go to sleepnumber.com sleep number to a good life, Sleep Summer smells like salt in the air and warm sand. Restore your sense of place with Pura's new summer fragrance collection. Discover transportive clean [e-mail].