American Hauntings Podcast

Looking back now, the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre seems like business as usual in Prohibition era Chicago but in 1929, a lot of people were really pissed that such a thing could happen. Sure, there had been a lot of murders in the city during the last decade, but not seven guys all at once, machine-gunned in cold blood in a garage. The police believed they’d figured out how the massacre had occur...

On February 14, 1929, the most infamous gangland massacre in American history occurred in a dingy garage on the North Side of Chicago when five mobsters, plus a mechanic and a wanna-be gangster optometrist, were ripped apart in a hail of bullets. The events of that morning left a lasting effect on Windy City history and still reverberate today as several unsolved mysteries, strange legends, baffli...

In the summer of 1928, Al Capone was back in Chicago and was still building his empire. Things like gambling, prostitution, and, of course, liquor, were still making up the bulk of his profits – but he knew that wasn’t going to last forever. He knew that he needed to diversify, a lesson he learned from John Torrio, who knew that Prohibition would only last for so long. Capone’s most profitable alt...

In 1984, William Bruce Rose, the biological father of Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose, vanished in Southern Illinois. Nearly three years later, a teenager came forward with a disturbing story of murder, a body hidden in an abandoned mining area, and a knife thrown into a reservoir. A man was eventually convicted of William’s murder, but his remains were never recovered. Check out our new American...

The Devil’s Music comes in a lot of forms – from rock-n-roll to the blues, to the music that spawned them both – country music, the kind that was played at the Grand Ole Opry. You see, not all musical curses are linked to performers or the songs they sing. Some of them are connected to the places where music is played – like the Ryman Auditorium, located in downtown Nashville, which was the center...

Chicago mayor “Big Bill” Thompson’s first year back in office had been a disaster as far as political observers – and anyone with any integrity at all -- were concerned. Unhappiness about his incompetence and the corruption in City Hall was spreading, especially since the city of Chicago was now almost $300 million in debt. Primary elections for state and county offices were set for April, but ele...

In 1977, seventeen-year-old Louise Betts disappeared from Loves Park, Illinois. Months later, her remains were found in a rural Boone County field, and Curtis Brownell was eventually convicted of her brutal murder. But more than forty years after Louise was buried, her family learned something almost unimaginable: the Boone County coroner who handled her remains had kept her skull. This is the dis...

This is an episode of the podcast that could have gone in a lot of directions – it’s an episode about the Devil, cults, true crime, satanic films, witchcraft, music, mind control, murder, and more – and really, maybe all these things and not even half of them. Who knows? It’s gotten so convoluted over the last 50 years that no one can say for sure. There are so many theories, excuses, and strange...

In the fall of 1926, the best friend of Chicago gangsters returned to politics and got his name added to the Republican mayoral primary ballot. William “Big Bill” Thompson was back from political exile – he just couldn’t stay away.  In early July, he sailed his yacht down the Chicago River and into Lake Michigan, carrying an motley crew of politicians, businessmen, beer-swilling clowns, assorted c...

If there was any one thing that motivated Hymie Weiss it was revenge.  Since the murder of his friend Dean O’Banion, he’d been the de facto boss of the North Side gang that Dean had founded, mostly because none of the rest of the guys had wanted to be in charge. They were content to have Hymie make the decisions and if they weren’t sure what to do, they voted on it. And their lack of initiative pr...

In 1997, 13-year-old John Ushman was found dead inside Room Five of the Southern View Motel in Springfield, Illinois. Authorities ruled that he died while playing Russian roulette with a stolen revolver. But newly obtained police records reveal changing statements, hidden guns, a motel room reportedly wiped for fingerprints, and days of silence before John was finally found. In this episode, Ameri...

On August 5, 1994, Decatur Realtor Sherry Lewis left to show a home. She never came home. More than three decades later, her murder remains unsolved. In this special anniversary episode, American Dread revisits one of Central Illinois' most haunting cold cases and the ongoing search for justice.  Check out our new American Hauntings Podcast Network for even more spooky shows. Have a question o...

On the same day that the corpses of the last of the men who tried to revive the “Terrible Genna’s” operation was found, the Vice President of the United States, Charles Dawes, demanded that the U.S. Congress begin a federal investigation into the lawlessness that was occurring in the streets of Chicago... Check out our new  American Hauntings Podcast Network  for even more spooky shows. Have a que...

When it comes to music curses – and the Devil’s Music itself – there is no musician more closely linked to the supernatural than Robert Johnson, the legendary bluesman who allegedly sold his soul to the Devil at a crossroads in the Mississippi Delta for magical playing skills and a handful of tunes. Robert would go on to become the founding member of the sinister “27 Club” but that’s not the only...

On April 27, 1968, five children from the Cox family were murdered near their rural home outside Mattoon, Illinois. The killer was someone they knew and trusted: 18-year-old Thomas Charles Fuller II, who was dating their older sister. This is Five Little Birds: The Cox Family Murders .  Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In May 1925, Angelo and Lucille found a home they liked in suburban Oak Park and began planning to move. On the morning of May 25, Angelo set out in his Roadster coupe to pay for the new house in cash. He drove south from Belmont Harbor on Sheridan Road and then turned southwest onto Ogden Avenue, which at that time extended to Lincoln Park.  As he approached Hudson Avenue, a large black touring c...

In July of 1977, G. Ray Timmons left his Bloomington, Illinois home for a walk and never returned. Hours later, he was found murdered in a downtown alley off East Market Street, a cinder block had been placed on his neck and head. Nearly fifty years later, the most important hours of that night remain missing. Check out our new American Hauntings Podcast Network for even more spooky shows. Have a...

The murder of Dean O’Banion – followed by the near-miss on John Torrio – became the opening battles in what would become the longest and bloodiest gang war in Chicago history. This wasn’t just gangland maneuvering, Hymie Weiss’ thirst for revenge – it went beyond all that. The control of the entire Chicago underworld was at stake.  Check out our new  American Hauntings Podcast Network  for even mo...

Two days before Halloween in 1987, 13-year-old Billie Lee Boyce was found behind a garage in Springfield, Illinois. She had left home two nights earlier and said she would be back in about an hour. She never returned. Her body was discovered near East Melrose Avenue, and her clothing was later recovered under a bridge along Fox Road. Police investigated. A suspect was arrested and charged. DNA tes...

Ghost stories recorded from friends and vendors at the 2026 Haunted America Conference. Check out our new  American Hauntings Podcast Network  for even more spooky shows. Have a question or comment? Text us on the Haunt Line @ 217-791-7859 New Facebook page -  https://www.facebook.com/troytayloroddities Check out our updated website and sign up for our newsletter at  AmericanHauntingsPodcast.com W...

An update from Troy Taylor about the status of AMERICAN NIGHTMARES and an explanation about why it hasn’t been in your feed lately. In mid-June suffered a series of strokes and has been on the mend ever since. But new episodes will be coming in July, so thanks for all your support and good wishes. If you’re feeling generous and would be willing to donate to the GO FUND ME for Troy’s medical recove...

Just as the door closed behind Capone, a long black car cruised slowly by. Inside the black car were North Siders Hymie Weiss, Vincent Drucci, and George Moran, all clutching shotguns and automatics. As they rolled up next to Capone’s car, the windows came down and they opened fire on Capone’s car. Bullets slammed into metal and windows shattered in the assault.  A policeman was later quoted as sa...

In 1976, a quiet farm home outside Lincoln, Illinois became the scene of one of Logan County’s most horrifying crimes. Lloyd, Phyllis, and Terri Schneider were murdered inside their own home, while two young survivors escaped into the darkness to get help. What followed was a disturbing case built around wealth, obsession, warning signs, courtroom testimony, and decades of fear every time Michael...

The Day the Music Died happened February 3, 1959, when a plane crash in Iowa claimed the lives of rock-n-roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. “Big Bopper” Richardson. But the plane crash didn’t affect just those who died on that terrible morning. In the wake of their deaths, a story began about a curse that was connected to Buddy Holly and his music. Legend has it that one of those mus...

On a cold December morning in 1969, a motorist pulled into an all-night Shell station near Glenarm, Illinois, along old Route 66. Inside, the counter was empty. In the storeroom, 18-year-old David Burch Jr. was found dead. What began as a late-night robbery became one of Sangamon County’s most haunting murder cases: a young attendant killed on the graveyard shift, a father and son accused of the c...