Beneath the Evergreens

Weighing in at a massive 15.5 tons, the Willamette Meteorite is the largest meteorite ever discovered in the United States. Long before it crossed paths with modern history, it was revered as a sacred cultural symbol called Tomanowos, or 'spirit power’, by the Indigenous Clackamas Chinook people. After changing hands through various commercial disputes in the early 20th century, this celestial gia...

This gripping episode of Beneath the Evergreens dives into the shocking Pacific Northwest true crime case of Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau. We unpack Letourneau's rigid upbringing under her conservative political father, the deep personal trauma that haunted her early life, and how a respected elementary school teacher's life unraveled into a predatory affair with her 12-year-old student. T...

Tune in for another banter-filled episode as we dive into the wild wartime history of Seattle's Boeing Plant 2! In this episode, we unpack how the Pacific Northwest became home to one of World War II's most bizarre and brilliant deceptions: a massive, 26-acre fake suburban neighborhood complete with plywood houses, chicken-wire trees, and fake streets built right on top of an active aircraft facto...

On January 3, 1923, an evening commute turned into Washington state's deadliest bridge collapse when the creaking, overloaded Allen Street Bridge plunged into the raging Cowlitz River. Battered by torrential winter floods and a massive upstream logjam, the rotting wooden span snapped under the weight of bumper to bumper traffic, sending cars, horse teams, and over a hundred workers straight into n...

Saddle up the horse and buggy because Ana and Jess have a special guest joining them on the pod! Today, we’re stepping into the world of the Amish to learn more about their traditions, beliefs, and way of life before diving into a truly horrifying murder committed by an Amish man. It’s a story that proves even the quietest communities can have dark secrets. ⚠️ Content Warning: This episode include...

Eight days after sensational obituaries publicized his family’s billion-dollar timber empire, nine-year-old George Weyerhaeuser was abducted from the streets of Depression-era Tacoma, Washington, and kept chained in subterranean forest trenches. To secure the boy's release, his desperate father navigated a nocturnal scavenger hunt of coded classified ads and roadside markers to deliver a staggerin...

For more than 120 years, the Puyallup Fair has brought rides, food, entertainment, and unforgettable memories to the Pacific Northwest, growing from a small 1900 agricultural fair into one of the largest fairs in the country. But behind the Fisher Scones, carnival rides, horse races, and million-plus visitors is a much darker history, including the fairgrounds’ transformation into Camp Harmony dur...

What do 60 cats and seven missing college students have in common? Both stories begin with sailboats in the waters of Tacoma, Washington, decades apart. In 2026, an abandoned sailboat near Owen Beach was discovered carrying 60 cats, leading to a massive rescue and an investigation into how the animals ended up there. But that strange discovery led us to an even older mystery: in 1971, seven colleg...

Home to Washington State’s oldest continuously operating bar, Roslyn holds a piece of living history. This iconic spot survived Prohibition, boasts a 23-foot spittoon, and once traveled further across the state than most people did in a lifetime. Come discover the rich history and unforgettable stories behind The Brick! ⚠️ Content Warning: This episode includes references to abuse, trauma, and dea...

McNeil Island Correctional Center was a prison unlike almost any other, sitting on a remote island where prisoners, prison workers, and their families all lived side by side. Opened in 1875 before Washington even became a state, it eventually housed infamous prisoners like Charles Manson and Robert “Birdman of Alcatraz” Stroud. After 136 years, the prison closed in 2011, leaving behind an eerie ab...

In April 2017, 22 year old Jacob Gray disappeared after his bicycle and camping trailer were found abandoned along Sol Duc Hot Springs Road in Olympic National Park, with his identity initially unknown and four unexplained arrows found nearby. After Jacob was identified, an extensive search was launched, but his family, particularly his father Randy, continued looking for him for more than a year....

In the late 1800s, anarchism was gaining momentum across Washington State, inspiring groups of idealists to create communities built around shared land, labor, and radical ideas. One such colony took root near Anderson Island and managed to survive for nearly 20 years, but eventually, the community began to unravel. What brought down this utopian experiment? Internal conflict, changing ideals, and...

Nestled deep in the forests of southwest Washington, Yacolt is a tiny town with a haunting reputation that stretches back centuries. In this episode, we explore why Native tribes called it the "haunted place," uncover eerie legends of the mysterious Whistlers and towering Bigfoot-like creatures said to roam the surrounding wilderness, and revisit the terrifying Yacolt Burn of 1902, a wildfire so m...

In 1859, the Pig War brought the United States and Great Britain to the brink of war on Washington's San Juan Islands after an American farmer shot a British-owned pig that had wandered into his potato patch. What began as a simple dispute quickly escalated into an international standoff, with hundreds of American soldiers and British warships facing each other across the island, yet remarkably, n...

For more than a century, Spokane’s Davenport Hotel has stood as a symbol of elegance, luxury, What if your favorite Irish pub was once Seattle's busiest mortuary, where thousands of the city's dead began their final journey? This week, we uncover the dark history of Kells Irish Pub, exploring deadly scandals, forgotten tragedies, and the chilling legends of Charlie, the silent man who still appear...

For more than a century, Spokane’s Davenport Hotel has stood as a symbol of elegance, luxury, and Pacific Northwest history. But beneath its grand architecture and celebrity-filled past lurk tales of unexplained phenomena, from the mysterious Lady in White wandering the mezzanine to ghostly activity in Room 1105 and the hotel’s vintage elevators. In this episode of Beneath the Evergreens , we expl...

In 1885, the city of Tacoma carried out one of the most organized expulsions in Pacific Northwest history when hundreds of Chinese residents were forced from their homes by city leaders, businessmen, and armed mobs in what became known as “The Tacoma Method.” This week on Beneath the Evergreens , we uncover how racism, labor tensions, and the Chinese Exclusion Act fueled a campaign of intimidation...

On today’s episode of Beneath the Evergreens , Ana and Jessy explore a chilling mystery from Washington State’s past. Over the course of one summer in the late 1800s, three devastating fires erupted across the state, leaving destruction and unanswered questions in their wake. Was it the work of a serial arsonist, a tragic coincidence, or something even more sinister lurking beneath the surface? Tu...

In this episode, we dive into the haunting and tragic story of the Whitman Mission near Walla Walla, where Protestant missionaries Marcus and Narcissa Whitman sought to convert the Cayuse people while navigating growing cultural tensions on the Oregon frontier. As disease spread along the Oregon Trail in 1847, mistrust deepened after measles devastated Native communities, leading many Cayuse to bl...

In this episode, we explore the mysterious disappearance of Leah Roberts, a free-spirited young woman who set off on a solo journey to Washington State in 2000 after enduring immense personal loss and becoming inspired by The Dharma Bums. Days later, her abandoned Jeep was discovered at the bottom of an embankment in Whatcom County, but Leah had vanished, leaving behind eerie clues that led invest...

In this episode, we uncover the disturbing true story of Michelle “Shelly” Knotek, a woman once viewed as a caring and selfless pillar of the small town of Raymond, Washington, who was later accused of hiding unimaginable abuse behind closed doors. What began as a home that appeared to offer refuge to struggling friends, relatives, and vulnerable people slowly transformed into a place of fear, man...

In this episode, we uncover one of the Tri Cities’ most terrifying legends, the mysterious Finley Ghost said to wander the dark roads and riverbanks outside of Kennewick. But this story becomes even more chilling as we investigate the real life disappearance of Toni Rae Atchley, a 54 year old woman who vanished without a trace in July 2022. Her abandoned 2017 Toyota Corolla was discovered near the...

In November 1987, young couple Jay Cook and Tanya Van Cuylenborg set out from British Columbia on a short trip to Washington, but after boarding a ferry to Seattle, they vanished without a trace. Days later, Tanya was found murdered in Skagit County and Jay was discovered in Snohomish County, revealing a brutal, calculated crime scene that spanned multiple locations. Despite decades of investigati...

A chance meeting at a Costco food court sparks a romance but quickly spirals into something far darker. What begins with a Mariners date ends in a chilling chain of deception, disappearance, and violence. Strange texts, a missing mother, and a terrifying attack on her son leave a family desperate for answers. As investigators close in, the suspect’s shocking behavior only deepens the mystery. This...

Deanne Hastings grew up in isolation in rural Nevada before moving to Spokane, where her life shifted after her parents’ divorce and the emergence of bipolar disorder. Despite the challenges, she fought to rebuild, becoming a devoted mother and starting over with new relationships and goals. In November 2015, after a day filled with promise and a fresh start at cosmetology school, she disappeared...