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Russell Colvin vanished in 1812 after an argument with his brothers-in-law. Nobody seemed to care that Russell was gone. Most of the townsfolk put it down to his quirky behavior. But seven years went by and still, Russell had not returned to his wife and family. Finally, townsfolk started asking questions. And then one night, the ghost of Russell Colvin made a visit to his wife's uncle in the middle of the night to inform him that he had, indeed, been murdered. Believe it or not, the fact that a ghostly visit got the investigation rolling, isn't even the most outrageous part of this story! Join me as I take you back to early 1800s in rural Vermont for one of the most fascinating stories in American criminal history.
Sources:
Books:
The Devil's Dominion - Richard Godbeer, Cambridge University Press 1992
Food for the Dead - Michael Bell, Wesley Ann University Press, 2001
The Return of Martin Guerre - Natalie Zemon Davis, Harvard University Press, 1983
The Counterfeit Man by Gerald W. McFarland, University of Massachusetts Press, 1990.
Internet:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiCKJBHdNgo&ab_channel=QuinnipiacUniversity
https://libguides.ctstatelibrary.org/hg/colonialresearch/witchcraft
https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetailpre1989.aspx?caseid=25
https://www.law.northwestern.edu/legalclinic/wrongfulconvictions/exonerations/vt/boorn-brothers.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemuel_Haynes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Sargeant
https://www.vtfolklife.org/fieldnotes/the-manchester-vampire-legends-and-lore
https://www.vermonter.com/vampire-manchester-vermont/
https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/community.28480259.pd
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-great-new-england-vampire-panic-36482878/
Newspapers:
(Alexandria Gazette, December 23rd, 1819 page 2)
(Holmes County Republican 16 Aug 1860)
(Cleveland Daily Plain Dealer Aug 11 1860)
(Cleveland Daily Plain Dealer July 27, 1860 - arrest of counterfeiters)
(Weekly National Democrat Aug 10 1860 sentencing of Boorn and others for counterfeiting)
(Weekly National Democrat Aug 3 1860 Boorn's life of crime)
(The Somerset Press June 18 1875)
(The Winnipeg Tribune March 23rd 1929) !! "Blind Justice" article
(Richmond Weekly Palladium, Richmond, Indiana, 30 Mar 1839)
(Philadelphia Inquirer, June 1, 1896)
(York Gazette, Jany 11, 1820)
(Alexandria Gazette, Dec 23, 1819)
(Daily Intelligencer and Washington Express Dec 20, 1819)
(The North Star Dec 30, 1819)
(The North Star, Dec 10, 1819)
(Rutland Weekly Herald, Dec 28, 1819)
Music for all 4 episodes was provided by Pixabay. Thank you to SigmaMusicArt for "Emotional Piano Music," PrimalHouseMusic for "Up With the Sun," Clavier for "Relaxing Piano Music," and, of course, Debussy for "Clair de Lune." Sound effects were supplied by Pro Sound Ef
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