Crime Capsule

People may associate Texas with cattle drives and oil derricks, but the sea has shaped the state's history as dramatically as it has delineated its coastline. Some of that history has vanished into the Gulf, whether it is an abandoned port town or a gale-tossed treasure fleet. Revisit the shipwreck that put Texas on the map. Add La Salle's lost colony, the Texas Navy's forgotten steamship and Galv...

People may associate Texas with cattle drives and oil derricks, but the sea has shaped the state's history as dramatically as it has delineated its coastline. Some of that history has vanished into the Gulf, whether it is an abandoned port town or a gale-tossed treasure fleet. Revisit the shipwreck that put Texas on the map. Add La Salle's lost colony, the Texas Navy's forgotten steamship and Galv...

Settlers came to Central Alabama in the early 1800s with big dreams. Miners panned the streams and combed the hillsides of the state's Gold Belt, hoping to strike it rich. Arbacooche and Goldville were forged by the rush on land and gold, along with Cahaba, the first state capital. Demand for the abundant cotton led to the establishment of factories like Pepperell Mills, Russell Manufacturing Comp...

Settlers came to Central Alabama in the early 1800s with big dreams. Miners panned the streams and combed the hillsides of the state's Gold Belt, hoping to strike it rich. Arbacooche and Goldville were forged by the rush on land and gold, along with Cahaba, the first state capital. Demand for the abundant cotton led to the establishment of factories like Pepperell Mills, Russell Manufacturing Comp...

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Blanketed by forests, dotted by lakes, crisscrossed by rivers and surrounded by Great Lakes, Michigan is a good place to hide secrets, bury bodies and stash evidence. Dig deep enough, and you will unearth something sinister. Is the suicide note of a prominent Detroit physician also a confession to murder? Were inmates unlawfully released from Jackson State Penitentiary to carry out a contract kill...

Blanketed by forests, dotted by lakes, crisscrossed by rivers and surrounded by Great Lakes, Michigan is a good place to hide secrets, bury bodies and stash evidence. Dig deep enough, and you will unearth something sinister. Is the suicide note of a prominent Detroit physician also a confession to murder? Were inmates unlawfully released from Jackson State Penitentiary to carry out a contract kill...

Nearly two decades after the fact, tragedy meets justice. One day in 1987, Fred Wilkerson up and vanished in Troup County, Georgia. It was a mystery beset with suspicious circumstances, but the evidence never led anywhere, and the case went cold, Wilkerson's whereabouts unknown. That is, until a remarkable set of circumstances allowed author and investigator Clay Bryant to breathe life back into t...

Nearly two decades after the fact, tragedy meets justice. One day in 1987, Fred Wilkerson up and vanished in Troup County, Georgia. It was a mystery beset with suspicious circumstances, but the evidence never led anywhere, and the case went cold, Wilkerson's whereabouts unknown. That is, until a remarkable set of circumstances allowed author and investigator Clay Bryant to breathe life back into t...

Muncie epitomizes the small-town America of squeaky-clean 1950s sitcoms, but its wholesome veneer conceals a violent past. Public scandals and personal tragedy dogged the long, notorious life of Dr. Jules LaDuron. Baseball ace Obie McCracken met a tragic and violent end after joining the police force. A mother's love could not stop James Hedges from committing murder. The paranoid delusions of Leo...

Muncie epitomizes the small-town America of squeaky-clean 1950s sitcoms, but its wholesome veneer conceals a violent past. Public scandals and personal tragedy dogged the long, notorious life of Dr. Jules LaDuron. Baseball ace Obie McCracken met a tragic and violent end after joining the police force. A mother's love could not stop James Hedges from committing murder. The paranoid delusions of Leo...

Northern Ohio is best known for its stunning lake views and bustling cities, but even a region as gorgeous and prosperous as this has seen its measure of tragedy. Judy Martins was a beautiful Kent State University coed who disappeared after a dorm party. Frank Noch was a mathematical genius and valuable employee at the General Motors plant in Cleveland. Someone broke into his home and killed him....

Four decades after Jeannette DePalma's tragic death, authors Jesse P. Pollack and Mark Moran present the definitive account of the shocking Springfield township cold case. As Springfield residents decorated for Halloween in September 1972, the crime rate in the quiet, affluent township was at its lowest in years. That mood was shattered when the body of sixteen-year-old Jeannette DePalma was disco...

Four decades after Jeannette DePalma's tragic death, authors Jesse P. Pollack and Mark Moran present the definitive account of the shocking Springfield township cold case. As Springfield residents decorated for Halloween in September 1972, the crime rate in the quiet, affluent township was at its lowest in years. That mood was shattered when the body of sixteen-year-old Jeannette DePalma was disco...

Evergreen Podcasts, the network that brings you Burn the Boats, is pleased to introduce Countdown to Dallas. On the sixtieth anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, former White House correspondent Paul Brandus takes an in-depth look at the seemingly unconnected events that led to that infamous afternoon in Dallas, Texas. He explores the troubled and broken life of Kennedy’s...

U.S. Route 44 stretches across New England from Massachusetts to Connecticut before completing its circuit in New York State, 237 miles later. Along the way, travelers may encounter the infamous Bridgewater Triangle, take a haunted tour of Plymouth, or see the ghosts of Chepachet. Follow in the footsteps of famous science fiction horror writer Howard Phillips Lovecraft from Providence to Glocester...

U.S. Route 44 stretches across New England from Massachusetts to Connecticut before completing its circuit in New York State, 237 miles later. Along the way, travelers may encounter the infamous Bridgewater Triangle, take a haunted tour of Plymouth, or see the ghosts of Chepachet. Follow in the footsteps of famous science fiction horror writer Howard Phillips Lovecraft from Providence to Glocester...

Evergreen Podcasts, the network that brought you From First Lady to Jackie O, is pleased to introduce Countdown to Dallas, another podcast from Host Paul Brandus.  On the sixtieth anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, former White House correspondent Paul Brandus takes an in-depth look at the seemingly unconnected events that led to that infamous afternoon in Dallas, Texas...

One of the most popular poems in the English language, Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" has thrilled generations of readers. In 1882, the Anglo-American artist James Carling decided to produce the definitive series of illustrations for the poem. Carling's bizarre images explore the darkest recesses of Poe's masterpiece, its hidden symbolism and its strange beauty. Although the series remained unpubli...

One of the most popular poems in the English language, Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" has thrilled generations of readers. In 1882, the Anglo-American artist James Carling decided to produce the definitive series of illustrations for the poem. Carling's bizarre images explore the darkest recesses of Poe's masterpiece, its hidden symbolism and its strange beauty. Although the series remained unpubli...

The intimate task of caring for the dead had long fallen under women's sphere of responsibilities. But after the Civil War, the sudden popularity of embalming offered new financial opportunities to men who set up as undertakers, pushing women out of their traditional role. In Texas, from the 1880s to the 1930s, women slowly regained their place by the bier. Many worked while pregnant or raising ch...

The intimate task of caring for the dead had long fallen under women's sphere of responsibilities. But after the Civil War, the sudden popularity of embalming offered new financial opportunities to men who set up as undertakers, pushing women out of their traditional role. In Texas, from the 1880s to the 1930s, women slowly regained their place by the bier. Many worked while pregnant or raising ch...

Join us next week for a new episode of Crime Capsule as we kick off Spooky Season. We will continue bringing you captivating stories as we enter season 3. Check us out wherever you get your podcasts or on Evergreenpodcasts.com; all the books we cover are available from the History Press. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1717, the Council of Trade and Plantations received "agreeable news" from New England. "Bellamy with his ship and Company" had perished on the shoals of Cape Cod. Who was this Bellamy and why did his demise please the government? Born Samuel Bellamy circa 1689, he was a pirate who operated off the coast of New England and throughout the Caribbean. Later known as "Black Sam," or the "Prince of P...

In 1717, the Council of Trade and Plantations received "agreeable news" from New England. "Bellamy with his ship and Company" had perished on the shoals of Cape Cod. Who was this Bellamy and why did his demise please the government? Born Samuel Bellamy circa 1689, he was a pirate who operated off the coast of New England and throughout the Caribbean. Later known as "Black Sam," or the "Prince of P...