This year marks the 30th anniversary of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia. The mood in the US at the time was very similar to the World Cup fever we're experiencing right now. But halfway through those games, that festive vibe shifted when a bomb went off in Centennial Olympic Park. 111 people were injured, 1 person was killed and overnight the Olympics became part of a criminal terrorism investigation.

This week we're looking back at those events. But this episode isn't about Richard Jewell, the hero security guard who was wrongly accused of planting the bomb. Nor is it about Eric Rudolph, the domestic terrorist and survivalist who fled the scene and was later the subject of one of the longest manhunts in American history.

This episode is about the life of the small town cop from North Carolina who ended it all. And how being a footnote to history is sometimes just the beginning of a life well-lived.

"The Rookie" originally published in 2019 and was produced for Away Message, a podcast from Our State Magazine. It features host and reporter Jeremy Markovich who is an occasional guest on The Broadside. Markovich now runs the North Carolina Rabbit Hole newsletter, where he explores the strange and quirky corners of his home state.

Links:

• Our State Magazine: https://www.ourstate.com/
• North Carolina Rabbit Hole: https://www.ncrabbithole.com/

Credits:

• Jeremy Markovich: producer, mixer, host
• James Mieczkowski: producer
• Elizabeth Hudson: editor-in-chief
• Music: "Bright Direction (You're A Dark Star Now)" by Hiss Golden Messenger

Special Thanks to Matthew Yates, Katie Killen, Bill Evans and the Boston College Police Department, and Charles Winokoor of the Taunton Daily Gazette.

Some archival audio courtesy of WLOS-TV.

Cover Image: Shrapnel imprinted into a sculpture from the bomb set off by Eric Rudolph on the morning of July 27, 1996, at the Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia. Credit: Darth-Wiki-Man / Wikipedia

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Marriage is a deep and powerful bond. But for politicians, those relationships are often far more complicated. In addition to being a husband or wife, many spouses of elected officials take on strange and demanding roles. And on the campaign trail and at home their lives increasingly mirror our deepening political divide, which means dealing with intense criticism and even the threat of political violence.

Featuring:

• Billy Warden, freelance journalist and former political spouse
• Susan Tillis, wife of US Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina

Links:

• The Assembly: The ‘Surreal’ World of Political Spouses

Cover Image: US Senator Thom Tillis (R, NC) and his wife Susan Tillis during a campaign victory speech in 2020. Credit: WFMY / YouTube

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For centuries, the Great Dismal Swamp on the border of North Carolina and Virginia served as a sanctuary for escaped slaves known as maroons. Today, the same harsh conditions that shielded those self-emancipated people from slavery make it difficult for historians and archeologists to understand the extent of their settlements. But that secret world is slowly being uncovered.

Featuring:

• Dan Sayers, archaeologist, anthropologist and professor at American University
• Marcus Nevius, author of City of Refuge and history professor at the University of Missouri
• Eric Sheppard, tour guide in the Great Dismal Swamp

Cover image: Lake Drummond at Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia. Credit: Rebecca Wynn/USFWS

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