True Crime Historian

The End Of The Skinny And Stumpy Affair Episode 429 is our very special holiday episode, in which a disenchanted housewife pulls the trigger on her lover and claims self-defense. Let’s see how that works out for her. Culled from the historic pages of the Louisville Courier-Journal and other newspapers of the era. Ad-Free version Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/...

The Michigan School House Massacre Episode 48 looks at the most tragic school massacre in American history, this one perpetrated by the school district’s treasurer, upset over a recent rise in his property taxes to build a new school. So he decides to blow up his own house and take the school down, too, claiming 45 lives, including his own. If not for a faulty wiring plan, it could have been worse...

The Boston Broker Bomber's Attack on Wall Street Episode 238 takes an inside look at the mad business of stock trading during the boom of the late 1800s as we hear the news of a bombing attack on the offices of one of the titans of Wall Street, the second-richest man in the world. The dust is barely settled as the lawsuits begin. I think you'll get a kick out of the reason why. Ad-Free Version Bec...

The Saga Of Ruth Freed’s Itchy Trigger Finger Episode 222 tells of the unsolved murder of a professional party girl in post-Prohibition Chicago. Well, technically it’s unsolved because no one was ever tried and convicted, but I think it’s pretty clear who the culprit is. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--2909311/support . You can pay more if...

Sabella Nitti Gets Almost Pretty Episode 230 is a story that turned out to be the exception to the rule in the 1920s, because a woman not only gets convicted of murder, but also faces execution for her alleged crime. Public indignation and sympathy for the homely defendant was so inflamed that it became part of the story. Culled from the historic pages of the Chicago Tribune, this story features r...

A Broadway Moth, Her Overweight Date, And The Half-Pint Gangster Episode 412 is an action-packed adventure that begins with the body of a pretty girl on a dark lonely road and includes a policeman killed in the line of duty, more than a thousand shots fired in a showdown with the villains, a couple of attempted jailbreaks, and a double-dose of lethal justice. Add in a broken-hearted mother and a m...

The Reverend Executioner Episode 239 not only gives you two executions for the price of one, but also an executioner who has to choose between his moral convictions and his duty under the law. What I like most about this story, though, is the fierce teenage daughter who shows no fear when it comes to facing down these half-witted bandits. If the final scene doesn't raise the hair on your neck, I d...

The Trial Of Rattlesnake James, The Red-Headed Bluebeard Episode 192 gets a bit epic, but it’s the story that keeps on giving, with two botched murders and moral charges to boot, and things go from crazy to crazier when they bring a pair of rattlers named Lethal and Lightning into the courtroom. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--2909311/supp...

The Horror in the Slaughter Garage Episode 243 is the sordid tale of a man who pursued women he presumed were wealthy with long distance love letters in order to swindle them of their money. Yeah, that’s a story we’ve heard before, but this one goes an extra step darker with a gruesome murder of women and children. Consider that your trigger warning. The West Virginia community was so outraged by...

The Rosewood Massacr Episode 284 is dedicated to True Crime Historian patron Mary Virginia Avery who lives near what used to be Rosewood, Florida, where the probably unfounded accusation of a black man for assaulting a white woman led to the destruction of the town and the banishment from Levy County of all of its citizens. Because incidents like this were numerous and under-reported, I’ve include...

The Case of the Deadly Bonbons Just about every sensational murder case is hailed as "too strage for fiction" or "the most remarkable in history", but Episode 235 really is unique: A murder inflicted on two persons unknown to the assailant from a distance of nearly 3,000 miles. Figure that out!. Add to the mix the usual sleazy scandals of inappropriate behavior and this one is ripe for your horror...

Two Twists on a Classic Tale Episode 242 explores two versions of the same case by two true crime pioneers, the first by distinguished journalist Alfred Henry Lewis and the second by True Crime Historian favorite Edmund Pearson. It's interesting how they approach the case from entirely different perspectives with completely different details. The episode ends with an obituary of the interesting li...

A Litany of Horror Episode 12 is a reading of the chilling confession of Herman Webster Mudgett, better known as H.H. Holmes, one of the most remarkable serial killers in American History. The whole nation was shocked and outraged in the waning years of the nineteenth century by the gruesome deeds of one Herman Mudgett, the arch fiend who took on the pseudonym H.H. Holmes as he prepared his famous...

The Tragedy of Joyce Joan Shouse Episode 236 is a down and dirty story of a negligent mother, a sexually frustrated hunchback, and one terrible night in a hotel cafe. There's a lot of blame to go around on this one. Ad Free Edition with Patreon subscription Purchase single ad-free edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--2909311/support . Y...

Teller And His Teenage Moll Episode 215 is dedicated to True Crime Historian listener Virgil Kay, who sent me the case file on this story of a pair of bandits on the run, a 27-year-old exhibitionist and his 17-year-old moll, a tough girl who was said to be the brains behind the operation, such as it was. Listen to this and other episodes from the True Crime Historian Vault at the Safe House. Becom...

Madame Bessarabo's Explanation Episode 111. When the body of a missing international businessman is found in an unclaimed trunk in the train station at Nancy, France, his wife (the French dramatist and poet known as Hera Mirtel) and his stepdaughter were immediately suspected, but it took two years to end their legal ordeal. Mysteries still remain (such as how two petit women managed to truss up t...

The Money Was the Motive Episode 241 is a variation on one of our favorite tropes: The Trunk Murder. Culled from the historic pages of True Detective Magazine and the Oregon Daily Journal, this story takes place in the Pacific Northwest, when a couple of shady transients try to pull a long con on a wealthy, recently widowed rancher. Getting rid of the body is always the tricky part. Become a suppo...

The Boy Preacher and His Teenage Wife Episode 245 tells the scandalous tale of a young preacher with a David complex. who in order to save his wife's soul, takes her life--and the life of her mother, just so he could get away. Ad-Free Version Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--2909311/support . You can pay more if you want to, but rent at the...

The El Dorado Oberst Massacre Episode 174 begins with a family of seven found incinerated in their farm house. The only suriviving member of the family was the 17-year-old son, who was at the movies with a friend when the fire began. But his story changes so dramatically and so frequently that justice has a hard time keeping up. Ad free version Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.sprea...

For Episode 135 we’ve put together a double-header expanding on the theme of the past two episodes. Both of these cases were mentioned in “ The Good Friday Beekman Place Bathtub Murder ” and " Tears of the Weeping Willow .” The Glickstein Tragedies: The Examination Room Murder First is the story of how an unfortunate relationship brought tragedy upon tragedy to a physician’s family, and then we’ll...

A Terrible Reign of Murder About the murders that inspired Martin Scorsese's "Killers of the Flower Moon" Episode 214 digs deep into the files of the FBI and one of its early successful investigations during the tenure of J.Edgar Hoover, when the Bureau of Investigations looked into the murder of as many as 60 to 70 Osage Indians. The file includes a report by Agent Frank Smith as well as statemen...

YESTERDAY’S NEWS -- Tales of classic scandals, scoundrels and scourges told through vintage newspaper accounts from the golden age of yellow journalism... The Gillooly/Lannon Affray Episode 443 tells the story of the first officer to be killed in the line of duty in Kokomo, Indiana. But was the violent action against him provoked, or spurred on by a notorious local gang? The question divided the g...

The Mysteries Of Belle Gunness Episode 308 examines the strange story of Belle Gunness, which came to light only after her house burned down with her body presumably inside and a dozen or so bodies buried in the yard. There’s a lot of conjecture and debate about this case still going on today. Culled from the historic pages of the Chicago Tribune, the St. Louis Post Dispatch, and other newspapers...

YESTERDAY’S NEWS -- Tales of classic scandals, scoundrels and scourges told from historic newspapers in the golden age of yellow journalism... The First Mrs. Kinkead Episode 258 tells the sad story of a nurse who fell in love with her patient. If you can believe her story, she may have been led on a bit, maybe outright deceived by his promises of marriage. But then, he marries another and the nurs...

The Avondale Horror Episode 231 is a dark, dark tale of what happens when the population doesn’t die fast enough to keep the medical schools supplied with cadavers for dissecting: The resurrectionists start hitting people over the head to hasten the process and get their points. The reporting also includes some interesting stories about the craft of the grave robber. Culled from the historic pages...