My Victorian Nightmare

In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the facts of the Lizzie Borden axe murder case — what we know to be true, what the Netflix series Monster got wrong, what it got right, and exactly why this particular axe murder case, versus so many others, caught fire when it did.

Thank you to today’s sponsors!

AquaOmega: One of the highest-dose omega-3 supplements per serving, no fish burps, and for every bottle sold, removes 1 lb. of plastic and debris from the ocean and coastlines. Use code VICTORIAN for 20% off at myaquaomega.com/VICTORIAN.

Alloy is the only menopause platform with a scalp-to-lash hair care solution. Visit ⁠myalloy.com⁠ and use code VICTORIAN for 20% off your first order!

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References:

https://crimearchives.net/1893_borden/html/1892-08-11_borden_news_new-york-times.htm

https://lizzieandrewborden.com/hatchetonline/ones-idea-of-cordiality-lizzie-borden-on-the-stand

https://crimearchives.net/1893_borden/html/1893-06-07_borden_trial_testimony_sullivan.html

https://www.scribd.com/document/682040038/Testimony-of-Bridget-Sullivan-in-the-Trial-of-Lizzie-Borden

https://people.com/andrew-abby-borden-murder-suspects-12145774

https://www.biography.com/crime/a69168135/was-aileen-wuornos-the-first-female-serial-killer

https://time.com/7329607/aileen-wuornos-netflix-documentary

https://www.biography.com/crime/a71038230/lizzie-borden-isolated-life-after-murder-trial

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizzie_Borden

https://newengland.com/yankee/history/long-silence-lizzie-borden

In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the sudden deaths, shattered dreams, haunting tales, gothic obsessions, mysteries and answers – the true stories behind 3 of the most intriguing graves in Greenwood, Evergreen and Père Lachaise cemeteries. The Graves of Charlotte Canda, George Rodenbach and “Midnight Mary,” Mary E. Hart.

Thank you to today’s sponsor!

Alloy is the only menopause platform with a scalp-to-lash hair care solution. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for 20% off your first order!

The Death of Edgar Allan Poe on Spotify and Apple Podcasts

The Death of Edgar Allan Poe Collection

Subscribe to the Newsletter!

Subscribe to the Patreon for ad-free listening!

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Genevieve’s book, Where to Begin – Eclectic Witchcraft for Beginners

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References:

https://boroughsofthedead.com/charlotte/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Canda

https://differentvisions.org/the-grave-of-the-rose/

https://www.rem.routledge.com/articles/rodenbach-georges-1855-1898

https://www.larousse.fr/encyclopedie/litterature/Georges_Rodenbach/176547

https://www.popmatters.com/109498-loren-connors-the-curse-of-midnight-mary-2496066706.html

https://campuspress.yale.edu/yaleinscriptions/2024/11/10/midnight-mary

https://newenglandfolklore.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-ghost-of-midnight-mary.html

In this episode, Genevieve will do a deep dive into Bram Stoker’s notes, interviews and musings about the inspiration behind his vampiric creation, Dracula, and then she will discuss the inspiration behind some of the most iconic costume designs in film history: Eiko Ishioka’s richly inspired, deeply symbolic costumes for Francis Ford Coppola’s film, Bram Stoker’s Dracula. 

Thank you to today’s sponsor!

Try the original M4 skincare from Alloy. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for 20% off your first order!

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Genevieve’s book, Where to Begin – Eclectic Witchcraft for Beginners

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References:

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/whitby-abbey/history-and-stories/dracula/?source=science20.com

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/feb/08/dracula-was-not-from-exeter-insists-bram-stoker-descendant

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jun/06/bram-stokers-dracula-inspired-by-writings-of-maverick-scotswoman

https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/21l-310-bestsellers-out-for-the-count-fall-2018/pages/readings/dracula-notes/

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/last-voyage-of-the-demeter-dracula-dmitry

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36394788/

https://www.supernaturalstudies.com/previous-journal-issues/vol-7-issue-1/cade

⁠https://archive.org/details/bramstokersnotes0000stok⁠

https://www.mot-art-museum.jp/en/exhibitions/eiko-ishioka/

https://www.gothickeatspress.com/dracula-essays/eiko-ishiokas-costume-design

https://www.oscars.org/news/how-apocalypse-now-poster-led-oscar-winning-costumes-bram-stokers-dracula

In this episode, Genevieve will bring us back to the murder scenes, the time-slips, the haunted lunatic asylums and hotels of past episodes, and share the back stories to their creations.

Thank you to today’s sponsors!

Spoiler: you can feel amazing in menopause. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for 20% off your first order!

AquaOmega: One of the highest-dose omega-3 supplements per serving, no fish burps, and for every bottle sold, removes 1 lb. of plastic and debris from the ocean and coastlines. Use code VICTORIAN for 20% off at myaquaomega.com/VICTORIAN.

The Death of Edgar Allan Poe Collection

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Genevieve’s book, Where to Begin – Eclectic Witchcraft for Beginners

In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the tragic history of the Kreischer family, the many deaths, mob murders and truly creepy hauntings of the Kreischer family mansion that still stands to this very day. She will also discuss the recent discovery of a body that received a vampire burial in the 16th century and what other “deviant” and “anti-revenant” burial practices entailed.

Thank you to today’s sponsors!

AquaOmega: One of the highest-dose omega-3 supplements per serving, no fish burps, and for every bottle sold, removes 1 lb. of plastic and debris from the ocean and coastlines. Use code VICTORIAN for 20% off at myaquaomega.com/VICTORIAN.

Alloy is the only menopause platform with a scalp-to-lash hair care solution. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for 20% off your first order!

Subscribe to the Newsletter!

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Genevieve’s book, Where to Begin – Eclectic Witchcraft for Beginners

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References:

https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/21/science/vampire-burial-young-woman-poland

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7458347

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_burial

https://nyghosts.com/the-kreischer-house/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kreischer_House

https://medium.com/@cosmicseasstar/staten-islands-cursed-kreischer-mansion-saga-that-ended-in-fire-death-and-murder-24048f4c80be

https://www.storiesofthesupernatural.info/kreischermansion.html

https://historygoesbump.blogspot.com/2025/11/hgb-ep-613-kreischer-mansion.html

https://www.justice.gov/archive/usao/nye/pr/2008/2008oct27.html

https://abc7ny.com/archive/6445552/

In this episode, Genevieve will dive back into the Illustrated Police News, The 19th century’s worst newspaper. She will discuss horrifying murder attempts with hot pokers, deadly champagne suppers, the science of decapitation, men falling dead at funerals, ghosts with guns, cannibal cats and much, much more. 

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References:

“The Science of Decapitation” – The Illustrated Police News, May 7th, 1872.

“What Befel a New York Swell Who Persisted in Laughing at a “Dolly Varden” – The Illustrated Police News, May 7th, 1872.

“A Woman in New York Thrusts a Red Hot Iron down Her Husband’s Throat” – The Illustrated Police News, May 7th, 1872.

“Sewed in a Sheet—An Injured Wife’s Revenge on an Indolent Husband at Louisville, Ky.” – The Illustrated Police News, May 7th, 1872.

“A CORPSE AT THE FOOT OF THE STAIRS” – The Illustrated Police News, May 7th, 1872.

“How They Drink in England” – The Illustrated Police News, May 7th, 1872.

“CURIOUS CASUALTIES” – The Illustrated Police News, Jan. 4th, 1879.

“Cremated Alive—The Fatal Sequel of a Champagne Supper—Terrible Revenge of a Harlot” – The Illustrated Police News, Jan. 4th, 1879.

“A Live Turkey Loose in a Drug Store” – The Illustrated Police News, Jan. 4th, 1879.

“Crazed by the Blow of an Icicle—Remarkable Accident to an English Tourist Behind the Cataract of Niagara” – The Illustrated Police News, Jan. 4th, 1879.

“A STRANGE SUICIDE”– The Illustrated Police News, Jan. 4th, 1879.

“Cannibal Cats—How They Feasted Off the Corpse of a Dead Man” – The Illustrated Police News, Jan. 4th, 1879.

“A Ghost With a Revolver” – The Illustrated Police News, Oct. 10th, 1885.

In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the funeral industry of the 19th century and a few of her favorite death-centered professions that are no longer in high demand today, but were positively fascinating: funeral cookie bakers, corpse-watchers, mutes and professional mourners. 

Thank you to today’s sponsor, Alloy!

Try the original estrogen-powered M4 skincare from Alloy. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for $20 off your first order!

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My Problematic Award-Winning Video 

Welcome to Heaven

References:

https://funeral.com/blogs/the-journal/funeral-biscuits-in-the-1800s-what-they-were-why-they-were-served-and-how-to-make-them-today?srsltid=AfmBOorry4RZkCYT3pQ2iGryb0LGfYJ-xZYnlhN6e4pYP5dl7Jb_SHwo

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sin-eater

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleventh_edition_of_the_Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica

https://web.prm.ox.ac.uk/england/englishness-funeral-food.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funeral_biscuit

https://www.victorianlondon.org/death/characteroffunerals.htm

https://austins.co.uk/blog/the-history-of-the-victorian-mute/

https://thevictorianbookofthedead.wordpress.com/tag/professional-mourners

https://collections.britishart.yale.edu/catalog/alma%3A99127049613408651

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/15792/pg15792-images.html

https://thevictorianbookofthedead.wordpress.com/category/buried-alive/

“Prematurely Buried” - Kilmore Free Press, Jan. 18th 1883.

“Narrowly Escaped Burial Alive” - The Clinton Independent, Thursday Feb. 18th, 1892.

In this episode, Genevieve will discuss verifiable accounts of tragedies that many believe explain the hauntings of 2 London Underground stations: Bank and Farringdon. She will also discuss a few unusual omens that Victorians believed predicted certain doom.

Thank you to today’s sponsor!

Try the original estrogen-powered M4 skincare from Alloy. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for $20 off your first order!

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References:

https://www.davidcastleton.net/london-underground-haunted-stations-ghosts-tube/

https://freetoursbyfoot.com/ghosts-london-underground-stations/

https://www.paranormaldatabase.com/reports/underground.php

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Underground

https://www.ghosthuntertours.co.uk/post/whispers-of-the-past-the-gruesome-tale-of-anne-naylor-s-poltergeist-at-farringdon-station

https://medium.com/lessons-from-history/the-crime-and-execution-of-the-metyards-70c6824bae

https://www.executedtoday.com/2015/07/19/1762-sarah-metyard-and-sally-metyard-mother-and-daughter/

https://georgianera.wordpress.com/2023/04/03/sarah-whitehead-the-bank-nun-ghost/

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10118/pg10118.html

https://www.wisdomportal.com/Poems2010/AppleSymbolism.html

In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the Paris Charity Bazaar fire of 1897: how an event devoted to gaiety, high society socializing and generosity became one of the deadliest fire tragedies in French history.

Thank you to today’s sponsors!

Try the original estrogen-powered M4 skincare from Alloy. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for $20 off your first order!

AquaOmega: One of the highest-dose omega-3 supplements per serving, no fish burps, and for every bottle sold, removes 1 lb. of plastic and debris from the ocean and coastlines. Use code VICTORIAN for 20% off at myaquaomega.com/VICTORIAN.

Subscribe to the Newsletter!

Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening!

The Burglar Bitten by a Skeleton Tote

Today’s Instagram Post

References:

https://www.geriwalton.com/the-tragic-1897-charity-bazaar-fire-or-the-bazar-de-la-charite-in-paris/

https://www.broadhistory.com/the-fire-that-started-a-victorian-gender-war/

https://education.persee.fr/doc/magen_1257-5593_1897_num_64_33_31454

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bazar_de_la_Charit%C3%A9

https://doctorfire.com/pages/Paris_fire.pdf

https://parishistoryofourstreets.com/2021/04/29/the-bazaar-de-la-charite-disaster-part-one/

In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and the shocking, little-known disasters and tragedies that began to unfold even before the smoke had cleared: the psychological unraveling of Mary Todd Lincoln, The Ford Theater collapse of 1893, the unthinkable murder/attempted suicide of the Rathbones and the numerous hauntings of the Ford Theater that still linger to this very day.

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References:

https://ghostcitytours.com/washington-dc/haunted-washington-dc/fords-theatre/

https://dcghosts.com/fords-theatre/

https://www.nps.gov/foth/learn/historyculture/the-collapse-of-ford-s-theatre.htm

https://www.thevintagenews.com/2018/06/07/henry-reed-rathbone/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Abraham_Lincoln

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wilkes_Booth

https://www.whitehousehistory.org/abraham-lincoln-funeral

https://fords.org/an-african-american-hero-emerges-from-the-tragic-fords-theatre-collapse-of-1893/

https://msmagazine.com/2012/12/05/mary-todd-lincoln-a-lunatic-or-just-grieving/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Todd_Lincoln

The_assassination_of_Abraham_Lincoln_%28IA_assassxxxxxx00linc%29.pdf

https://www.americanheritage.com/haunted-major