Hunter Spears

Hunter Spears is a graduate from Hofstra University where he earned a degree in political science and radio production. Because of this, he typically tells stories through sound, though his love for public media and peculiar stories made WETA and Boundary Stones a great fit. He was born and raised in Boulder, Colorado, where his three cats, and therefore his heart, reside. When not writing or listening to podcasts, he loves playing board games, reading science fiction, and exploring his new stomping grounds of the nation's capital. His Twitter is @HunterJWSpears.

Posts by this Author

DC

How an Electrician Saved the U.S. Capitol After the Devastating Gas Explosion of 1898

04/14/2023 in DC by Hunter Spears

Although the Capitol has withstood plenty of attacks from foreign and domestic adversaries over the years, sometimes the most destructive forces can come from something as common as a gas leak... How did a series of accidents and events lead to one of the most devastating incidents in the Capitol's history? What priceless artifacts were lost forever, and who were the people risking their lives to prevent further destruction of the nation's history?

DC

"DC" Really Stands for Demon Cat... Which Haunts the U.S. Capitol

03/17/2023 in DC by Hunter Spears

A guard patrolling the basement of the Capitol during the Civil War is attacked -- not by enemy soldiers, but by a giant, demonic cat! Over a hundred years later, the "Demon Cat" is still one of Washington's greatest ghost stories, which is saying something in a city with as many phantom residents as the capital. What is the real story of this mystical mouser?

DC

The "Capitalsaurus": How a Dinosaur That Never Existed Became an Official Mascot of D.C.

03/03/2023 in DC by Hunter Spears

While digging a sewer near the Capitol in 1898, a construction crew makes an incredible discovery- a fossil! Only, when it's brought to the Smithsonian, no one is able to say for certain what kind of dinosaur it might belong to. Could this be a clue to a dinosaur found only in the District? See how generations of paleontologists dispute the identity D.C.'s oldest resident, and how a group of school kids played a factor in solidifying its legacy.