Ep. 45 : The Girls Who Glowed in the Dark
Corporations don’t have your best interests at heart. Shocker. Never was the case more true than in the 1920s when radium took the world by storm. Discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie, this radioactive element was incorporated into every facet of American life. Radium infused butter? You betcha. Radium-lined glasses? Yep! You could even get your hands on radium face wash. So it raised zero red flags when young girls lined up to work for the United States Radium Corporation, painting watch faces and instrument panels with glow-in-the-dark radium powder. The radium girls became known as the Ghost Girls because they literally glowed in the dark. But the dangers of radiation were lost on the girls, who were kept in the dark about its vicious side-effects. Today, we have brave women to thank for our modern work-place safety measures, women who took a stand against vile corporations with only one interest in mind. With a half-life of 1600 years, it’s likely the effects of radiation are still on display from within the grave. This week is not your classic scary story, but it’s a tale as old as time with a horrifying ending. Halee lightens things up with some sweet chocolate chip cookies. Happy Haunting!
A Glowing Discovery
US Radium Corporation
The Girls
The Tragic End
