Happy Halloween! Here's a spooky little treat of an episode about seances, Ouija boards, and famous people in history who have believed in them (and were institutionalized because of it).

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Today I’d like to tell you the tale of a woman minding her own business in the woods. She became the town scapegoat, and eventually, the hysteria and ignorance of her neighbors took her life. 

Meade County, Kentucky is a small hamlet that packs a massive supernatural punch. In terms of dark tourism, this county boasts everything from sightings of Bigfoot, giants, a headless horseman, mysterious runes, and of course, a witch whose ghost still haunts the woods. 

SOURCES
Women as witches: past, present and future; By Dr Charlotte-Rose Millar
https://weirdmeadecounty6.wordpress.com/
The Battletown Witch; By Gerald Fischer

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The mother of modern sci-fi, Mary Shelley, had a life as interesting as the timeless fiction she created. A woman ahead of her time, her greatest work was an allegory for the struggles and tragedies of her own life, as well as a commentary on the politics of the time. 

Trigger warning: miscarriage, infant death

SOURCES
The Lady and Her Monsters: A Tale of Dissections, Real-Life Dr. Frankensteins, and the Creation of Mary Shelley's Masterpiece; by Roseanne Montillo

SLAVERY AND RACE IN FRANKENSTEIN; A VERSION OF THIS ESSAY WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED AS JASON M. KELLY, “SLAVERY AND RACE IN FRANKENSTEIN,” INDIANA HUMANITIES ONE STATE / ONE STORY: COMMUNITY READ PROGRAM GUIDE, VERSION 5 (20 MARCH 2018

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mary-Wollstonecraft-Shelley

The Afterlife of Frankenstein: A Century of Mad Science, Automata, and Monsters Inspired by Mary Shelley, 1818-1918 (Clockwork Editions); by David Sandner (Editor)

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Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, is known as the location of one of the largest, most expensive, and deadliest battles of the American Civil War. There were an estimated 50,000 casualties during the bloody days at Gettysburg, and the nightmare of that battle never ended for some of the poor souls killed there. Some believe that the souls of those who suffered there may still roam across the hallowed grounds of the battlefield and throughout the town.

SOURCES
Ghosts of Gettysburg: Spirits, Apparitions and Haunted Places of the Battlefield – January 1, 1991; by Mark Nesbitt
https://www.gettysburgbattlefieldtours.com/the-ghosts-of-gettysburg/
https://destinationgettysburg.com/trip-ideas/a-day-in-haunted-gettysburg/
https://gettysburgmuseumofhauntedobjects.com/
https://www.travelchannel.com/interests/history/articles/ghosts-of-gettysburg
https://usghostadventures.com/category/haunted-cities/gettysburgs-most-haunted/


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Can a whole town be cursed? The small village of Dudleytown in Connecticut, part of the Cornwall township, has experienced a series of unfortunate events since its inception in 1747. Bouts of insanity, suicides, and murder have plagued the city throughout its short history. Perhaps the Dark Entry Forest surrounding the village drove its people to madness.

Or so the legend goes…

SOURCES
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dudleytown,_Connecticut#:~:text=Rumors%20and%20vandalism,-Dudleytown%20is%20said&text=From%20that%20moment%20on%2C%20the,violent%20deaths%20in%20the%20village.
https://web.archive.org/web/20131225230849/http://www.legendofdudleytown.com/maryob.gif
https://www.nytimes.com/1980/10/26/archives/connecticut-weekly-a-lost-town-populated-by-legends.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130515214659/http://www.legendofdudleytown.com/morex2.html
https://www.americanhauntingsink.com/dudleytown
https://usghostadventures.com/haunted-stories/americas-most-haunted-east/the-curse-of-dudleytown/
https://wokq.com/have-you-heard-of-this-haunted-new-england-town-thats-closed-to-the-public/


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You might be mistaken if you think you know the whole story of the Son of Sam. David Berkowitz, also known as Son of Sam and the .44 Caliber Killer, terrorized the New York City area from July 1976 to July 1977. Berkowitz killed six people and wounded seven, most using a .44 caliber Bulldog revolver. Since his conviction, Berkowitz has made a lot of outlandish claims, but his claim that he didn’t act alone in his murder spree might just be true.

SOURCES
The New York Times Archives; November 2, 1981, Section D, Page 14
The Ultimate Evil: An Investigation into a Dangerous Satanic Cult – January 21, 1988; by Maury Terry 
https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-the-sismanplatzman-murders/40656676/?locale=en-US
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/son-of-sam-denied-parole-serial-killer-david-berkowitz/

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Death ceremonies and traditions around the world often have a similar central purpose, regardless of the religion, sect, or geography of the people. That central purpose is community. From Victorian Era romanticizing of death to sky burials, there's an option for us all. 



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In the late 1970s, professor Dr. Charles Scudder and his companion Joey Odom left their lives in Chicago behind for simpler lives in the mountains of Georgia. There, they built their home by hand and furnished it with occult books and symbology. They frequently welcomed guests into their Pink Room for "parties." Eventually, the wrong person was let in, and tragic consequences followed.

SOURCES
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/114723296/joseph_d-odomThe Corpsewood Manor Murders in North Georgia - Amy Petulla (2016)
Atlanta Constitution articles 

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The 1830 murder of one of Salem's wealthiest octogenarians both stunned and captivated the public. At the trials of the accused, which featured the legendary orator Daniel Webster, a convoluted murder-for-hire plot unfolded. The details of the trial inspired such works of fiction as "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Scarlett Letter", with the ghost of Captain White still making himself known to visitors.

SOURCES
https://salempl.org/captain-joseph-white/
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-murder-in-salem-64885035/
The Murder of Captain Joseph White: Salem, Massachusetts, 1830Walker Lewis; American Bar Association Journal; Vol. 54, No. 5 (MAY 1968), pp. 460-466 (7 pages); Published By: American Bar Association

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During a massive storm on November 29, 1980, Granger Taylor left a note for his parents to find. It said that he had gone to board an alien spaceship after recurring dreams had told him he was going to embark on a 42-month interstellar journey. That night, Granger Taylor vanished. Both his family and the police spent months searching for him, but no one could uncover any leads on where he could be.

SOURCES
Spaceman; CBC Documentary
https://www.cbc.ca/cbcdocspov/episodes/spaceman
https://www.cbc.ca/cbcdocspov/features/bcs-granger-taylor-left-a-note-saying-he-was-boarding-an-alien-spaceship
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Granger_Taylor
https://www.vice.com/en/article/yvwjkv/the-man-who-went-to-space-and-disappeared-the-story-of-granger-taylor


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