Kyle and Eric dive into some of the most intriguing—and often overlooked—moments of early American history. They explore the State of Franklin, a rogue attempt at statehood that lasted four tumultuous years, the Yazoo land scandal that redefined political corruption, and the Jay Treaty, a deeply unpopular but pivotal step in repairing U.S.-British relations after the Revolutionary War.

Along the way, they unravel the complexities of economic recovery, the cultural dynamics of post-Revolution diplomacy, and the messy politics of a fledgling nation finding its footing. From shady land deals to tense trade negotiations, this episode is packed with scandal, strategy, and the seeds of modern governance.

• Learn why the State of Franklin almost—but didn’t—make it onto your map.

• Dive into the Yazoo land scandal and its spicy corruption drama.

• Get the scoop on the Jay Treaty: hated, but critical for America’s trade and diplomacy.

• Discover how early politics shaped the tangled web of economics and governance.

• Realize that cronyism isn’t just a 21st-century problem—it’s been around since day one.

Grab your powdered wig and get ready to geek out. It’s history, but with more sass and way fewer boring textbooks.

Credits: "Fife and Drum" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License ⁠http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/⁠

State of Franklin picture

Bennett1203, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Jay’s Treaty:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PreliminaryTreatyOfParisPainting.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Jay%27s-treaty.jpg See page for author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-jcc-ushistory1os/chapter/competing-visions-federalists-and-democratic-republicans/

Chris Light, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

https://boudewijnhuijgens.getarchive.net/amp/media/united-states-senate-to-john-jay-june-1795-instructions-to-john-jay-from-the