The Haunting Truth

Join us as we take our first stroll into the Poison Garden. This episode will focus on one specific plant, as well as a true crime case that helped shaped forensic science as we know it today.

This series will cover a plethora of plants that find their home in the Poison Garden, as well as a case (or cases) related to that plant and how it influenced us to this day.

Sources & Reference Material: 

Old Bailey Proceedings (1881–1882). Trial of George Henry Lamson. 

Stevenson, T. (1882). Forensic testimony and toxicological notes on aconite detection. 

The Lancet (1882). “The Lamson Case: Aconitine Poisoning and Forensic Challenges.” 

Lee, M. R. (2006). “Aconitum: A Poisonous Plant with a Long History.” Journal of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. 

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. “Aconitum Species: Toxicity and Historical Use.”British Newspaper Archive (1881–1882). Coverage of the Lamson murder investigation.

Contact Info:

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

There are places on this earth where people disappear… And places where history refuses to stay buried.Tonight, on The Haunting Truth, we journey into the Great Dismal Swamp — a place of true crime, survival, violence, and supernatural terror — where the line between history and haunting dissolves into fog.

Listener discretion advised. This episode contains discussions of historical violence, murder, enslavement, death, and supernatural folklore that may be disturbing to some listeners.

Sources:

National Park Service (NPS) — Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service — Great Dismal Swamp Refuge Archives

Daniel O. Sayers, A Desolate Place for a Defiant People: The Archaeology of Maroons, Indigenous Americans, and Enslaved Laborers in the Great Dismal Swamp

WPA Slave Narratives (1930s) — North Carolina & Virginia Collections

Library of Congress — Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives

North Carolina State Archives: Missing persons reports (19th–early 20th centuries), Canal laborer death records, Coroner inquests involving swamp recoveries

·Virginia State Archives: Lumber camp accident reports, Prohibition-era criminal activity and moonshining records, Unsolved deaths tied to swamp regions

Norfolk Virginian-Pilot (1800s–1900s)

The Daily Advance (Elizabeth City, NC)

Local Oral Histories: Camden County, NC, Gates County, NC, Suffolk & Chesapeake, VA

Algonquian Tribal Oral Traditions

John V. Dennis, Legends of the Great Dismal Swamp

The Mysteries of the Great Dismal Swamp – North Carolina Ghosts

Loren Coleman, Mysterious America

Local Hunter & Ranger Anecdotal accounts

Edmund S. Morgan, American Slavery, American Freedom

Alan Taylor, American Colonies

Environmental Trauma Theory

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: [email protected]

Join us tonight as we discuss a case from Camden NJ that sits at the crossroads of true crime, literary myth, and the uncomfortable truth about how real girls disappear behind fictional ones. 

This is the story of Sally Horner, the child whose kidnapping and captivity would echo through American culture long after her death… and whose name was nearly erased by the fame of the novel she never lived to read.  

Sources & Reference Material: 

Films:  

1. Lolita (1962) — Directed by Stanley Kubrick 

2. Lolita (1997) — Directed by Adrian Lyne 

3. Poison Ivy (1992)- starring Drew Barrymore 

4. The Crush (1994) - starring Alicia Silverstone 

5. American Beauty (1999)- starring Kevin Spacey and Mena Suvari 

Books:  

1. Lolita (1955)  — written by Vladimir Nabokov 

2.  The Real Lolita (2018)- written by Sarah Weinman 

3. My Dark Vanessa (2020)- written by Kate Elizabeth Russell 

Contact Info:

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: [email protected]

Join us as we discuss something we thought only happened in the past. But no- it is still happening today, as we can see in a recent case in Philadelphia.

This episode discusses grave desecration, human remains, and disturbing historical practices involving the dead. This is for entertainment purposes only and since this is an ongoing investigation, the charges are alleged until conviction.

Sources & Reference Material:

• The Philadelphia Inquirer — early 2000s reporting on the Jonathan Gerlach investigation 

• Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas records 

• Pennsylvania criminal statutes on cemetery desecration 

• Homepage | Friends of Mount Moriah Cemetery 

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7FSKw5S-qg&msockid=f3e745deff9611f0a6281ba931a5dfb0 

• Jonathan Gerlach case: Court docs reveal accused grave robber's months-long plot to steal human remains in Pa. - 6abc Philadelphia 

• Bing Videos- Everyday New Chapter Podcast 

• Bing Videos-Lauren the Mortician Podcast 

• Michael Sappol, A Traffic of Dead Bodies: Anatomy and Embodied Social Identity in Nineteenth-Century America 

• Thomas W. Laqueur, The Work of the Dead: A Cultural History of Mortal Remains 

• University of Pennsylvania Archives — history of medical anatomy programs 

• Smithsonian National Museum of American History — “Resurrectionists and Medical Education” 

• Pennsylvania Anatomy Act of 1883 

• Philadelphia Cemetery History Project 

• Forensic psychology research on necrophilic fixation and post-mortem objectification 

• Academic studies on cultural memory and death practices 

Contact Info: Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: [email protected]

February is a month of rituals- roses, chocolate and Hallmark cards. But this month we have another key date- Friday the 13th. And what happens when these dates collide? You find out love isn't safe, just like Tiana Notice did in 2009.

Join us as we cover the origins of these key dates and Tiana's story. One that didn't have to happen like it did- if only the system had worked like it was supposed to.

Sources & Reference Material:

History.com – What Is the Origin of Valentine’s Day? Britannica.com– Valentines Day History & Traditions

Live Science.com – Why Friday the 13th Is Considered Unlucky Hartford Courant – Tiana Notice Murder Coverage (2009–2012) (courant.com )

Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence (CCADV)Podcasts:

Kymberleigha, "Killer Caught On Video! Grad Student's Last Moments RECORDED Tiana Notice -True Crime Stories"

Crime Talk

Contact Us:

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: [email protected]

Today we trace Bacon’s Rebellion from its roots in Surry County to the fire that consumed Jamestown — and the ghosts it left behind.

This episode graphic descriptions of historical violence, colonial warfare, executions, death, and themes of oppression and injustice. Some material may be disturbing or emotionally difficult for listeners.

Sources:

· Surry County Court Records (1650s–1670s), Library of Virginia

· Thomas Wertenbaker, Torchbearer of the Revolution: Bacon’s Rebellion

· Wilcomb E. Washburn, The Governor and the Rebel

· Contemporary accounts from Governor William Berkeley

· Virginia Colonial Records Project

Nathaniel Bacon |Biography, Rebellion, & Facts | Britannica

FirstLanding State Park – Haunted Coastal Park in Virginia Beach, VirginiaFacebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: [email protected]

Journey with us as we step inside the building that never sleeps (and is rarely seen!) but is home to notable residents, both alive and dead, as well as legends that continue to resonate today.

Sources & Reference Material: 

The Address — Fiona Davis 

The Dakota - US Ghost Adventures 

The Cursed Dakota Building In NYC Has A Tragic And Macabre History 

The Dakota - The Little House of Horrors 

Was Rosemary's Baby Really Cursed? - Dark Frights 

Facebook: Jenn Woo ThehauntingtruthInstagram: the_haunting_seekerEmail: [email protected]

Today we explore the legend that refuses to stay in the dark, especially at girls' sleepovers. All you had to do was take the dare and say the name three times- Bloody Mary.

This episode contains discussion of violent crime, murder, psychological disturbance, and disturbing themes involving reflections and crime scenes. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

Sources:

· Dundes, Alan. Bloody Mary in the Mirror: Essays in Psychoanalytic Folkloristics University Press of Mississippi → One of the most cited academic analyses of the Bloody Mary legend

· Brunvand, Jan Harold. The Vanishing Hitchhiker: American Urban Legends and Their Meanings W. W. Norton & Company → Foundational urban legend scholarship; includes Bloody Mary variants and ritual folklore.

· Brunvand, Jan Harold. The Choking Doberman and Other “New” Urban Legends → Discusses how legends mutate and persist across generations.

· Wikipedia – Bloody Mary (Folklore) → traces variant names (Mary Worth, Mary Whales) and geographic differences.

· Snopes.com – “The Bloody Mary Legend” → Fact-checking folklore origins and separating myth from historical claims.

· Loades, David. Mary Tudor: A Life

Blackwell Publishing → Authoritative biography of Queen Mary I of England.

· MacCulloch, Diarmaid. The Boy King: Edward VI and the Protestant Reformation → Context for the religious violence of the Tudor era.

· British National Archives – Tudor Religious Persecutions → Primary documentation of executions during Mary I’s reign.

· Encyclopaedia Britannica – Mary I → Verified historical overview

· Wikipedia – Mary Ann Partington → Overview of the 1966 Nebraska shooting involving Mary Partington, later nicknamed “Bloody Mary” in local folklore.

· Lincoln Journal Star (1966 archives) → Contemporary reporting on the shooting incident and legal findings.

· Folklore Studies on Name Association & Moral Panic → How violent acts become exaggerated into legend when paired with symbolic names.

· Caputo, Giovanni B. “Strange-Face-in-the-Mirror Illusion” Perception Journal → Peer-reviewed study documenting facial distortion and hallucination during mirror gazing.

· Freud, Sigmund. The Uncanny → Foundational psychological text on fear, familiarity, and distortion of the self.

· Zimbardo, Philip. The Lucifer Effect → Contextual understanding of fear, suggestion, and behavioral escalation.

· American Psychological Association – Dissociation Studies → Background on altered perception under stress and low sensory input.

· Curl, James Stevens. The Victorian Celebration of Death → Covers mirror covering practices and mourning rituals.

· Litten, Julian. The English Way of Death → Historical death customs influencing mirror folklore.

· Appalachian Folklore Collections – Berea College → Oral histories involving mirrors, death, and spirits.

· Chinese & European Mirror Lore (Comparative Folklore Studies) → Mirrors as soul traps, portals, and protective objects.

· Turner, Victor. The Ritual Process → Explains liminality, rites of passage, and fear rituals.

· Eliade, Mircea. The Sacred and the Profane → Mirrors and thresholds as sacred/forbidden spaces.

· Urban Legend Research Center → Behavioral and sociological analysis of fear transmission.

Foxe, John. Actes and Monuments (1563, 1570 editions)

· Foxe’s Book of Martyrs provides the most detailed contemporary account of Rogers’ execution and is a key source for understanding Protestant martyrdom under Mary I.

· Reference: Foxe, John. Acts and Monuments, 1570 edition, Book 2, “John Rogers, Martyr.”

grokipedia.com/page/Catoptromancy

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: [email protected]

Today’s episode is from a small town and not one largely noticed in paranormal circles.

However, this discussion may change that.

Join us as we discuss the shadows of Woodstown, NJ

Sources & Reference Material: 

• Haunted History Jaunts – “Haunted: Woodstown Tavern and Hotel – Woodstown, NJ” This source documents the tavern’s 1836 origins, its long history as a hotel and bar, and firsthand paranormal experiences inside the building. Haunted: Woodstown Tavern and Hotel - Woodstown, NJ - Haunted History Jaunts 

• Woodstown Tavern & Hotel | Woodstown NJ | Facebook 

• NJ.com – “Paranormal Corner: Woodstown Tavern and Hotel” Confirms the tavern’s haunted reputation and its long history of guests who “never actually left.” Paranormal Corner: Woodstown Tavern and Hotel - nj.com 

• Preservation New Jersey – “First National Bank of Woodstown” Provides architectural details, the 70‑foot tower, the 1892 construction date, and its significance in Woodstown’s downtown. First National Bank of Woodstown - Preservation NJ 

• Farmers & Bankers Brewing – “History” Confirms the building’s restoration, its original design, and its transformation into a brewery. HISTORY 

• HMDB.org – “Center of Town Historical Marker” Verifies the bank’s 1892 Salem County Historical Society – “Salem Ghost Train” Confirms the 19‑mile route, the 1863 railroad line, and the ghost‑story experience. Center of Town Historical Marker 

• Visit South Jersey – “Woodstown Central’s Salem Ghost Train” Confirms the event’s location, route, and partnership with the Historical Society. Woodstown Central’s Salem Ghost Train | Visit South Jersey 

• Historical society | Salem County Historical Society | United States 

Today we uncover the deep history of Christmas elves. These beings existed long before Christmas, as watchers in the winter darkness, beings who judged human behavior and protected the delicate balance between the living and the spirit world. 

And do they still??

SOURCES 

• Ármann Jakobsson, University of Iceland — “Elves in Medieval Scandinavian Lore” 

• John Lindow — Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs 

• Claude Lecouteux — Encyclopedia of Norse and Germanic Folklore 

• Terry Gunnell — “The Huldufólk and the Icelandic Landscape” 

• Scandinavian Folklore Archives (Public Domain Collections)