OUTLANDER IN THE CAPE FEAR

For its recurring "Outlander In The Cape Fear" series, the “Burgwin-Wright Presents…” podcast uses the beloved book and television series “Outlander” as a guide to share the Colonial history of North Carolina, specifically in the Cape Fear region. Diana Gabaldon’s book series and the Starz TV series explore Wilmington and North Carolina’s role in the lead up to the American Revolution, and the podcast plucks characters and events out of the story to tell the real history behind them.

Listen to the all the "Outlander In The Cape Fear" episodes in the player below, or explore individual episodes by season!

The newer episodes are listed first below, followed by a complete guide to episodes from previous seasons.

NEW EPISODES

Episode 1: Medicine in the Time of War (Released Nov. 22, 2024)

Return to the world of “Outlander” with a deep dive into the realities and risks of battlefield medicine. As the series moves through the Revolutionary War, historical medicine interpreter Charles Brett discusses how physicians, nurses and healers were the saving grace of those wounded in battle or ravaged by the diseases that plagued regiments from battle to battle.

Episode 2: Age of the Jacobites (Released Nov. 29, 2024)

One of the most formative events in the "Outlander" story happens far from the Cape Fear region back in Scotland when thousands took up arms against the British throne in the Jacobite Rising of 1745. But what brought Scotland to war with its monarch? What did it mean for the average Scot, and how did it impact the American Revolution decades later?

This episode, we are joined by Professor Murray Pittock, a historian and author with the University of Glasgow in Scotland to talk about the age of the Jacobites and how that uprising left scars that would be brought to the American Colonies on the eve of its own war.

Episode 3: Two Teeth and A Musket (Released December 13, 2024)

As the "Outlander" story moves around the American Colonies during the Revolutionary War, we take a moment to return to the homefront to talk about what Wilmington would have looked like during the war. The town's port made it an invaluable commodity during the conflict, but how did its citizens fare as fighting raged on? What impact did the revolution have on Wilmington's ascension as a jewel in North Carolina's crown?

Joining the episode is Jack E. Fryar, a historian and author of the new book, "When the British Came: Revolution in the Cape Fear, 1765-1782." Fryar is the publisher behind Dram Tree Books, the extensive local history catalogue for which can be found at DramTreeBooks.com.

SEASON THREE EPISODES

Episode 1: Uncharted Waters

The new season of "Outlander in the Cape Fear" begins with a single question: What would it have been like to travel on the Cape Fear River 250 years ago like Claire and Jamie Fraser?

Joining the episode is Doug Springer, the co-founder and captain of Wilmington Water Tours, who talks about how the river has changed as development took hold in North Carolina and just how different an experience it would have been when the river was the only way in and out. Plus, he talks about the little pockets that offer a glimpse into the past lives of the river.

Episode 2: The Attack on Fort Johnston

In the Season 7 premiere of "Outlander," Claire Fraser finds herself in the crosshairs of Royal Governor Josiah Martin, who is battling for control of Fort Johnston on the Cape Fear River in the opening months of the American Revolution.

Joining this week's podcast is local historian and author Chris E. Fonvielle Jr., who guides us through the intertwined history of Martin, the final royal-appointed governor of North Carolina, and Fort Johnston, the fiery fate of which will mark the beginning of the end of British control in the colony.

Episode 3: A Visit to the Apothecary

Healing is a core tenet of who Claire Fraser is in "Outlander," but what was medicine and healthcare really like in the Colonial era? From surgery to medicine to home remedies, surviving in a time before modern practices took work and the right knowledge.

Joining this episode is Charles Brett, a volunteer medical interpreter at Tryon Palace in New Bern, who shares the challenges of medical care 200 years ago –– and what methods and instruments they pioneered that we still use today.

Episode 4: The Great Dismal Swamp

During the Colonial era, traveling between North Carolina and Virginia almost certainly required engagement with the Great Dismal Swamp, a million-acre natural wildlife habitat that remains a central part of the East Coast’s ecology today. A character in “Outlander” finds out firsthand the dangers of the thick wilderness during the American Revolution. But what is the history of this natural wonder and what is it like working with in it today?

Joining the episode is Chris Lowie, who has served as the manager of the Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge in Suffolk, Virginia for 17 years.

Episode 5: Forging an American Identity

The "Outlander" story travels up north in the thick of the American Revolution and witnesses fighting in places like New York. But would the war, the fighting and the experience of living through a revolution look differently in New York versus North Carolina?

And how did 13 separate colonies come together to fight for the same cause when they did not yet have a shared identity? Hint: it wasn't easy.

Joining the episode is Dr. David Houpt, an assistant professor of history at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Episode 6: What Outlander Missed

For the mid-season finale episode, we are retracing our steps to Brunswick Town and the Battle of Moores Creek Bridge to talk about what audiences are missing when they don’t see these landmark Cape Fear Colonial sites depicted in the “Outlander” TV series.

Joining the episode are two returning guests –– Jim McKee, site manager for Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site, and Jason Howell with Moores Creek National Battlefield.

SEASON ONE EPISODES

Episode 1: Coming to America

How did the Scottish Highlander immigration through ports like Wilmington and Brunswick Town impact the growing North Carolina colony on the eve of the America Revolution? On this episode, we talk about the arrivals of the Scots, how "Outlander" characters Claire and Jamie made their way to America in 1767, and how it would bolster both sides of the war ahead.

Joining the episode is special guest Jim McKee, site manager for Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site in Winnabow. 

Episode 2: Crime and Punishment

How did the Colonial justice system differ from what we know today? Quite a bit actually, with more rigid laws (no gossiping, no laziness, no foul language) being sentenced to a wide array of cruel punishments carried out in the dungeon, or on the stocks, pillories and whipping post. On this episode, we will take a cue from Claire and Jamie Fraser's arrival in the Americas in 1767 with a look at early Wilmington and the harsh realities of the the Colonial justice system, which would have been on full display on the site of what is now the Burgwin-Wright House.

Joining the episode is special guest Christine Lamberton, museum director for the Burgwin-Wright House and Gardens.

Episode 3: A Conversation with Matthew Roberts

This week, we go to straight to the source on all things recreating North Carolina on the Scotland set of Starz's TV series "Outlander" during an interview with showrunner, writer and executive producer Matthew B. Roberts. He speaks to the challenges of shooting a North Carolina story in Scotland, deciding what historic moments make the jump from page to screen, and what fans can expect to see in the coming weeks and seasons.

Episode 4: The Reign of Tryon

When the Frasers arrive in America in 1767, they found an important acquaintance in Royal Governor William Tryon, a controversial leader who brought North Carolina to the brink of war with his political alliances and the decision to build himself a palace in New Bern, funded by a tax on his constituents. In this week's episode, we look at the life of Tryon, how he became the leader of North Carolina at such a crucial moment and what happened after he exits the "Outlander" story.

Joining the episode is special guest Susan Griffin, historical interpreter for Tryon Palace in New Bern and the co-creator of the historic site's "Outlander" themed tours.

Episode 5: The Spark of Rebellion

The Frasers will get an early taste of war in the Colonies in 1771 when the Regulator movement bubbles up into an all-out battle between Royal Governor William Tryon and the residents of the backcountry dissatisfied with his leadership in North Carolina. Who were the Regulators? Why did Tryon push their rebellion to bloodshed in his final days as governor? And how factual was the battle "Outlander" fans saw play out on screen?

Joining the episode is special guest Jeremiah DeGennaro, site manager for the Alamance Battleground State Historic Site in Burlington.

Episode 6: The Ballad of Flora MacDonald

In honor of a recent season six episode of “Outlander,” this episode delves into the life and legacy of Flora MacDonald, a Scottish heroine after the Battle of Culloden whose notoriety carries her into the storm of the American Revolution. Who was Flora, what is the legend around her, what brings her to North Carolina and how does she become emblematic of the impossibly difficult decision of where to place one’s allegiance?

Joining the episode is special guest Kimberly Sherman, a lecturer in history at Cape Fear Community College and the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Episode 7: A Pirate's Life for Stede

This episode mines the many pop culture lives of Stede Bonnet, known as the Gentleman Pirate. How did someone with such a non-threatening nickname go on to inspire the vicious Stephen Bonnet on "Outlander" and HBO Max's new comedy series "Our Flag Means Death." Who was Stede, why did he leave his entire life behind to be a pirate and what happened in his eventful two years on the sea?

Joining the episode is Jeremy Moss, the author of "The Life and Tryals of the Gentleman Pirate, Major Stede Bonnet." For more information and to buy Jeremy's book, visit his website at www.authorjeremymoss.com.

Episode 8: Scottish Forever

This episode jumps into the future for a look at the current culture of Scottish heritage in North Carolina. The story of the Scots in America begins in the early 1700s, before Claire and Jamie Fraser arrive in 1767 in the "Outlander" story. The immigration of those Highlanders put down the roots that have flourished into a thriving present-day community that celebrates its ancestors through Scottish Societies and events like the Port City Highland Games on May 14.

Joining the episode is Bob McLeod, a board member and former co-president of the Scottish Society of Wilmington. For more information about the Scottish Society of Wilmington, including how to join, visit WilmingtonScots.org.

Episode 9: The American Indian and the Revolution

On this week's episode, we look at the involvement of American Indian tribes in the Revolutionary War. In the "Outlander" story, characters have long interacted with tribes like the Cherokee and Mohawk, but what is the true history of Indigenous Americans in North Carolina before the war and how involved were they in the war that would determine their future?

Joining the episode is David La Vere, a professor of history at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and author of such books as "The Tuscarora War: Indians, Settlers and the Fight for the Carolina Colonies."

Episode 10: King George and Broadswords

On the season finale, we look to the future of the "Outlander" story with a visit to Moores Creek National Battlefield, the site of an early American Revolution battle defined by the involvement and sacrifice of Scottish Highlanders on the Loyalist side. How did the Scottish brand of war translate to the American fight for freedom? And how did the Battle of Moores Creek Bridge forever change North Carolina history?

Joining the episode is Jason Howell, park historian and historic weapons supervisor for Moores Creek National Battlefield in Currie, NC.

Episode 11: A Highlander Haunting

For this special Halloween episode, host Hunter Ingram reads a compelling and chilling ghost story written in 1898 by noted Cape Fear historian James Sprunt entitled "A Colonial Apparition." Pulling from the true history of Scottish Highlanders who immigrated to North Carolina in the Colonial period, the story tells of the Steamer Wilmington's snowy encounter with the supposed ghosts of two Highlanders killed along the Cape Fear River during the Revolutionary War.

Initially read before The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in the State of North Carolina (NSCDA-NC) in 1898, this unique story has been republished by the NSCDA-NC for the first time since 1909 and copies are available in the Burgwin-Wright House gift shop for purchase.