The Teapot Dome Scandal: When Oil Money Bought Washington

Washington, DC. Welcome back to Hometown History. It's no surprise to anyone that sometimes government officials are corrupt, but this scandal will still manage to shock you. This story involves national security, oil companies, and, of course, corruption at the highest levels of the U.S. government. This is the Teapot Dome Scandal. The Teapot Dome Scandal was a major event in American history, unfolding during the 1920s.

TIMELINE
1909: The thing here was that the Navy had been converting coal-powered ships to oil-powered ones since 1909.
1920: In 1920, Senator Warren G. Harding won a long-shot bid for the White House with the financial support of some powerful friends, who were promised oil-friendly cabinet picks for their oil money.
1922: By April 1922, rumors began surfacing that a shady deal relating to these oil sites had gone down.
1923: In January of 1923, Albert Fall resigned as interior secretary, apparently to spend time on his recently purchased ranch in New Mexico.
1929: Albert Fall was eventually convicted of accepting a bribe from Doheny in the fall of 1929.

WHY THIS MATTERS
The story of Washington is a reminder that the events that shaped America didn't always happen in the biggest cities. What unfolded here left marks on the community that are still visible today. The full story is more complicated, and more human, than the version most people know.

Episode 127 | Hometown History | Hosted by Shane Waters

Hometown History explores forgotten stories from small-town America. The overlooked events, hidden triumphs, and buried tragedies that shaped the country we live in. New episodes every Tuesday. Find every episode at mythsandmalice.com/hometown-history

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