In this episode of Kentucky History & Haunts, we head back to August 1925—a month of sensational scandals and small-town crime sprees that made big headlines.

First, you’ll hear the wild tale of Lucy Wagner McMills, a young woman accused of kidnapping her husband and tricking him into marriage after a whirlwind romance. Newspapers from Kentucky to New York branded her a “Modern Cavewoman,” while her groom swore he’d been too drunk to know he was saying “I do.”

Then, we dive into the chaotic, decades-long saga of the Alford family of Winchester, known as “the Bootleg Syndicate” during Prohibition. From barn raids to shootouts, jailbreaks to safe-cracking, the Alfords’ rap sheets stretched across generations. George Alford was dubbed the Bootleg King of the Bluegrass, while his children—including Virgil, Tommy, and Woodrow—made headlines for everything from moonshining to armed robbery.

This episode has it all: star-crossed lovers, outlaw families, jailbreaks, scandals, and tragedy.

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9115 Leesgate Rd Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222

In this offbeat episode, we take a break from heavy historical biographies and dive into something a little lighter. What started as a routine property history search for a Louisville listing led me down a rabbit hole of vintage newspaper clippings, culminating in an unexpected and fascinating journey through the early nudist (or naturist) movement in Kentucky and Indiana.

You’ll hear the bizarre headline that sparked it all—“Bee Intrudes as 2 Louisvillians Enter Ranks of Nudist Royalty”—and meet the surprisingly compelling couple at the heart of it. We cover the founding of Zoro Nature Camp in Indiana in the 1930s, its battles against public scandal and legal scrutiny, and how it became a hub for naturist conventions and moral high ground.

We follow the story of Bernard and Dorothy Harding, a deaf couple from Louisville who lived fascinating lives full of hardship, resilience, and—briefly—nudist royalty. Plus, we explore how lawmakers in Kentucky reacted to the idea of nudist colonies with 20-foot wall requirements, licensing fees, and statewide panic.

This episode has it all:

🔍 Historical deep dives📜 Archival weirdness👑 A nude coronation⚖️ Oddball legal history🧡 And a love story that’s almost too strange to be true.

Quotes to Remember:

🗞️ “We are unashamed of our bodies. It will take more than court orders and cold weather to stop us from leading our lives as we wish.”
👑 “A bee intruded itself upon the coronation scene… the ceremony was quickly finished.”
📜 “If a man wants to get off in the woods and gambol about in the nude, he ought to have that right.” – Rep. Henry Ward

Further Reading / Links:

In this episode, we explore the extraordinary life of Brigadier General Charles Young — a man born into slavery in Mays Lick, Kentucky, during the Civil War who went on to break barriers across the U.S. military and beyond. Despite facing relentless racism, repeated demotions, and exclusion due to his race, Young became a pioneer and trailblazer, achieving numerous historic firsts as a Black officer in the U.S. Army.

You'll learn about Young's journey from his family’s escape to freedom in Ripley, Ohio, through his tough years at West Point, his service with the Buffalo Soldiers, and his role as the first Black superintendent of a National Park (Sequoia & General Grant). We also learn about his friendships with figures like W.E.B. Du Bois, and his diplomatic posts in Haiti and Liberia.

This episode touches on Young’s incredible resilience, the legacy he left through public service, education, and advocacy, and his long-overdue posthumous promotion to Brigadier General in 2021.

*The transcript for this show is auto generated using AI. Robots make mistakes too y'all!

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Jessie Bartholomew

9115 Leesgate Rd Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222

This episode is written, recorded, edited and marketed by Jessie. To buy her a coffee for her work on the show, Venmo @kyhistoryhaunts

https://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=219094BE-2C76-4E63-85B3-8D8B46EFFFB5

https://brigadiergeneralcharlesyoungfoundation.org/timeline/

Episode 150 (hooray) explores the historical significance of the Passenger Pigeon, the life of Junius Booth, and the cultural impact of extinction. It delves into the tragic story of the Passenger Pigeon, once abundant in North America, and the role of hunting and habitat loss in its extinction. The discussion also highlights the life of Junius Booth, father of John Wilkes Booth, and his connection to the passenger pigeon, revealing the intertwining of history, theater, and wildlife conservation.

Get a copy of My Thoughts Be Bloody:

https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/My-Thoughts-Be-Bloody/Nora-Titone/9781416586067

To leave Jessie a tip for her work on this episode, Venmo: @kyhistoryhaunts

Send a postcard or chotchke to Jessie:

Jessie Bartholomew

9115 Leesgate Rd Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222

Send comments or conerns to [email protected]

Follow the show on Instagram @kyhistoryhaunts or find the page on Facebook or the group Facebook History & Haunts & More for additional episode information and photos!

Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or rating on Spotify. Also be sure to leave a comment with feedback if you're listening on Spotify. I love to hear from you all!

*KYHH episode transcripts are auto-generated using AI and may contain errors

Mary Byron was waiting for her car to warm up in the parking lot of the mall where she worked on the night of her 21st birthday. She was about to head home to decorate the Christmas tree with her family. Instead she was shot to death by Donavan Harris, her former boyfriend.

Just a few weeks earlier, Harris was arrested for holding Mary hostage at gunpoint and assaulting her in the basement of her own home. He was released on bond, and less than a week later, Mary was dead.

This left the Mary's family, and the community, wondering if things could have been different if they had been notified of his release from jail. This case ultimately led to the creation of the victim notification service known today as VINE.

*Listener discretion advised*

Thanks to Christopher B. for recommending this case.

Thanks to Ms. Lillie for becoming a Patreon member!

Thanks to Neal for your donation and for hyping the show up while visiting local landmarks!

The 24-Hour Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached at 1-844-BESAFE1 (237-2331)

Follow the show on Instagram @kyhistory haunts or look it up on Facebook by typing the show name in the search bar. Send emails to [email protected]

Send mail to:

Kentucky History & Haunts

9115 Leesgate Rd, Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222

Dr. Britton was the first black woman in Kentucky to practice medicine... but there is so much more to her story! Born in Lexington in 1855, she grew up a free black citizen and went to private schools in Lexington, then Berea college. She studied medicine in Battle Creek, Michigan under Dr. Kellogg.

Dr. Britton helped open the Colored Orphans home in Lexington. She caused a stir at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. She protested the Separate Coach bill in the 1890s- her speech later published in the Lexington Herald-Leader.

She was a teacher, writer, doctor and activist.

*This episode briefly mentions suicide. Listener discretion is advised.

Let me know what you think of the episode by leaving a comment on Spotify or sending an email to [email protected].

My mailing address is:

Jessie Bartholomew

9115 Leesgate Rd, Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222

I research, write, record and edit every episode. If you'd like to leave me a tip you can Venmo me, @kyhistoryhaunts

Links:

https://bereaky.gov/for-visitors/community-profile/history/

https://networks.h-net.org/node/2289/blog/ky-woman-suffrage/2574422/1887-speech-mary-e-britton-danville-woman-suffrage

https://www.jstor.org/stable/23384055?read-now=1&seq=11#page_scan_tab_contents

In the late 1830s, the owner of Mammoth Cave hoped to attract more tourists to the area. One of the key figures in making that happen was a slave named Stephen Bishop. Stephen became one of the most popular guides in the caves history, as well as a brave and savvy explorer, responsible for the expansion of the cave system with his discovery of several 'new' areas like the Bottomless Pit and Ruins of Karnak.

It was stipulated in his owners will that Stephen was to be emancipated seven years after the owners death, and he was finally free in 1856, but unfortunately his story does not have a happy ending.

There is so much more to be said about the role of slaves related to the early exploration and management of Mammoth Cave than what's covered in this episode. For further research, I recommend starting with the following-

*Legendary tour Guides who were Enslaved Americans

A National Council for the Social Studies Publication Number58 • January/February 2017

*Mammoth Cave, Slavery, and Kentucky: Overcoming the Chains that Bind

Susan Farmer Western Kentucky University,

*https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/02/travel/in-kentucky-a-family-at-the-center-of-the-earth.html

*https://www.nps.gov/maca/learn/historyculture/african-american-history.htm

If you'd like to be pen pals, you'd like to send me holiday cards or some homemade jam, my mailing address is:

Jessie Bartholomew

9115 Leesgate Rd, Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222

Email [email protected] topic suggestions, feedback or corrections. Connect with the show on Instagram @kyhistoryhaunts and search Kentucky History & Haunts on Facebook. Leave a comment on this episode if you're listening on Spotify and let me know what you think!

Please leave a review or rating on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen!

Welcome to another installment of 'A Century Ago in Kentucky', where I share some of my favorite newspaper clippings from Kentucky newspapers in 1924. This episode includes stories of prisoners celebrating behind bars, while others are set free in time for the holidays, hundreds of gallons of wine are poured into the sewer by the Feds, plus fires and other accidents, burglars, crossword puzzles, and a special appearance by my great-grandfather!

This episode includes clippings from the Louisville Courier-Journal and The Lexington Herald-Leader.

This podcast is researched, written, recorded and produced by me, Jessie Bartholomew. To leave me a tip for a cup of coffee, use the following link:

https://account.venmo.com/u/kyhistoryhaunts

For more on crossword puzzles:

https://www.alieward.com/ologies/enigmatology

https://time.com/5811396/crossword-history/

In the 1840s, a doctor from Louisville purchased Mammoth Cave. One of his motives for purchasing the land was to conduct an experiment by inviting tuberculosis patients to live underground during the winter months to cure them.

It did not go well.

For more on this topic, check out THE PURSUIT OF HEALTH IN THE MAMMOTH CAVE, published in the Bulletin of the History of Medicine, 1971, by Stanley Sides & Harold Malloy.

Follow the show on Instagram @kyhistoryhaunts and find it on Facebook by searching Kentucky History & Haunts. For feedback, corrections and topic suggestions, email [email protected]

To buy Jessie a coffee for her work on this episode, you can Venmo @kyhistoryhaunts.

Thanks for listening!

On a cold January evening in 1925, after a long day of widening an entrance to a newly discovered cave, Floyd Collins lost his footing, knocked over his light, caused a shift in the tunnel and was pinned under a rock. Floyd was hopelessly stuck. Over the next two weeks, miners, geologists, engineers, family members and the Kentucky National Guard worked tirelessly to rescue Floyd. Floyd had passed by the time they reached him, but that wasn't the end of his story.

For more information on Floyd Collins, start here: https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/tragedy-at-sand-cave.htm

And for photos of his second funeral service, go here:

https://westernkentuckyuniversity.pastperfectonline.com/byperson?keyword=Collins%2C%20Floyd%2C%201887-1925