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The Insider's Connection

NYC

The Telephone: Invented by Italian Immigrant, Antonio Meucci

Do you like stories? Especially hidden history stories? We’re happy you’re here! Here at Inside Out Tours we inform, explore, and activate through storytelling.  We especially love what we call “hidden histories” – the stories that our history books either left out or got totally wrong.  Each blog, we’ll share with you a true story and we hope you’ll join us on a tour where we dive deeper, you can ask questions, and you can see, feel, hear, smell, touch, and explore the real-life places where these stories lived, breathed, and unfolded! Our first story is about the incredible Antonio Meucci.  Did you know that the telephone was invented by an Italian immigrant in Staten Island? You read that right, folks. About 150 years ago, in the house at 420 Tompkins Avenue, Antonio Meucci developed the telephone. He created it so…

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January 31, 2022

125 million people visit Rockefeller’s Center Christmas Tree every year

Tis the season for history (always) and usually our posts are about hidden histories. Things you can’t see, or have to look for, or that have been left out of your textbooks. But this one’s the opposite of hidden–you can see it, crystal clear, Swarovski crystal clear, every December in NYC. Let’s rewind… 90 years…

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December 22, 2021

Native American Heritage Month: Quashawam’s Montaukett Tribe Leadership

Wyandanch was the well-known and widely respected sachem of the Montaukett Tribe in New York. You’ve probably heard his name…he was a strategic leader, he formed alliances like nobody’s business, and he got a sweet little Long Island town named after him. But do you know the story of Quashawam, his daughter?! She’s the one who took over him as leader, ensured the tribe’s survival, and protected their land. You won’t find a trace of her name or story on a map or in a history book, so let’s talk about her, shall we! Quashawam was born around 1640 in Montauk, the same year that colonists arrived with the lovely gifts of liquor, weapons, and contagious diseases. For centuries, the Americans had lived peacefully on Long Island, san colonists. They were surrounded by water – the women were the farmers…

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November 21, 2021

How The Word Is Passed by Clint Smith features the NYC Slavery and Underground Railroad Walking Tour

Hi, this is Inside Out Tours! We’re so glad you’re here. Inside Out Tours is a New York sightseeing company with a mission to inform, explore, and activate through storytelling. We especially love hidden histories–stories that our history books left out, or got all wrong. Each month, we’ll post a story here on this forum. We’re…

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October 27, 2021