Episode 29: The Radium Girls

During the 1910s and the 1920s the newly discovered element of radium made gleaming headlines across North America as the fresh face of beauty, and a wonder drug within the medical community. From body lotion, food products, makeup applications, tonic water, and glow in the dark watch dials; the popular new element shined bright in the otherwise dark years of the First World War.

Meanwhile, hundreds of girls toiled amidst the glowing dust of the radium-dial factories. The glittering chemical covered their bodies from head to toe; they lit up the night like industrious fireflies. With such a coveted job, these "shining girls" were the luckiest alive - until they begin to fall mysteriously ill.

Listen now for the infamous trial of the Radium Girls and the legal and historical outcomes that followed their heroic trails for justice.