Strange Country Ep. 291: David Starr Jordan
Jan 23, 2025
Since we heard America was “being made great again” or something, we decided it was time for Strange Country to return. This time, cohosts Beth and Kelly tackle the story of David Starr Jordan, noted ichthyologist and first president of Stanford University, who definitely was a eugenicst but not certain a murderer. He did cover up Jane Stanford’s murder by poison so there’s that. That’s not good, right? We don’t know because it seems laws are meaningless now. Yay, America!?!
Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands.
Cite your sources, or not, who cares nothing has meaning
Flores,
Gilbert. “Did Philanthropy Kill Jane Stanford?” Lilly Family School
of Philanthropy, 31 October 2022,
https://blog.philanthropy.indianapolis.iu.edu/2022/10/31/did-philanthropy-kill-jane-stanford/.
Accessed 18 January 2025.
“A History of
Stanford – Stanford University.” Stanford University,
https://www.stanford.edu/about/history/. Accessed 2 January
2025.
Miller, Lulu.
Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order
of Life. Simon & Schuster, 2020.
Peacock, Chris.
“Stanford will rename campus spaces named for David Starr Jordan
and relocate statue depicting Louis Agassiz.” Stanford Report, 7
October 2020,
https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2020/10/jordan-agassiz.
White, Richard.
Who Killed Jane Stanford? A Gilded-Age Tale of Murder, Deceit,
Spirits and the Birth of a University. WW Norton, 2022.
Wolfe, Susan.
“Who Killed Jane Stanford?” STANFORD magazine, September/October
2003, https://stanfordmag.org/contents/who-killed-jane-stanford.
Accessed 2 January 2025.