FORGOTTEN NEWS PODCAST

On February 9, 1844, Esther Foster and William Graham were jointly executed by hanging, in Columbus, Ohio, on the same scaffold. It was the last public execution held in the state. Foster was an African-American woman and Graham was a white man.   HISTORICAL REFERENCES: Ohio State Journal, February 9, 1844. Historical Lights and Shadows of the Ohio State Penitentiary (1893), by Daniel J. Morgan. H...

The life and true story of “Mother” Elizabeth Barnes, the so-called “witch” of Plum Hollow, Ontario.   HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   The Wise Woman of Plum Hollow, Ottawa Free Press, March 16, 1891. My Grandmother Was Mother Barnes - The Witch of Plum Hollow, by Roy Barnes. The Plum Hollow Witch, Ontario Rewind (October 27, 2016).   GUEST HOST: Sarah Norton of The Salty Canadian Podcast.   GUEST VOICES...

It was a very popular custom, during the 19th century, for people to make a short visit to their friends and neighbors on New Year’s day or eve. In this episode, we will discuss that tradition, and our own effort to revive it, here in the internet age.   HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   New year's Calls, Cleveland Plain Dealer, December 29, 1855.   New Year's Day, Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 02, 1858....

A spontaneous practical joke, on Christmas Eve 1882, at the New York Stock Exchange, ignited a wild chain reaction of very silly shenanigans. And that wasn’t the only place of business where that happened.   HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   Fun at the Stock Exchange; Rollicking Brokers Anticipating the Joys of Merry Christmas, New York Times, December 24, 1882. Fun at the Exchanges, New York Times, Decemb...

On July 26, 1873, a man calling himself Jefferson Davis was beaten, shot, and dragged through the streets of Ragersville, Ohio, before finally being hung from a tree, by an angry mob. This is the true story of the lynching -- and its extremely strange aftermath.    HISTORICAL REFERENCES: Cleveland Plain Dealer, 07/28/1873; 08/01/1873; 08/05/1873. Hangtown: The True Story of the Lynching of Jeffers...

On a cold dark night in December of 1896, many of the richest men in New York City were enjoying themselves at a bachelor party, when it was suddenly and unexpectedly raided by the police, on the basis of a tip that “indecent entertainment” was taking place at the party, including the famous exotic dancer Little Egypt and other similar performers. This episode tells the story of the party and its...

The story of Madame Editha Diss DeBar, a fake psychic and professional con artist, who fooled Luther Marsh, a nice old man (a retired judge!) into believing she had amazing and miraculous powers to communicate with the dead, including his late wife. In 1888, she nearly fleeced him of his entire life savings, until she and her cronies were arrested for conspiracy to commit fraud, and were put on tr...

This is a “true crime” episode which also opens up a unique “slice of life” from two totally different stories and two completely different locations in 1920: the nation of China and Cleveland, Ohio (sort of).   HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   30 Men Arrested by Crew of S.S. Roosevelt, After Crooks Rob Excursionists, Cleveland Plain Dealer, September 7, 1920.   American Saves Girls from Chinese Pirates,...

In October 1856, an angry mob in Manchester, Ohio, lynched a man named Bill Terry. He was accused of a brutal assault on a young woman, Margaret Morris. This was the first lynching to take place in Ohio.         HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   Adams County Democrat, October 31, 1856.   Cleveland Plain Dealer, December 9 and 24, 1856.   GUEST VOICES:   Bill Terry: Cole Johnson from the Cole Sportz podcast...

According to an article published in a respected New York newspaper in 1876, a local inventor successfully built and flew an aircraft over the city. But - did it really happen?   HISTORICAL REFERENCE:   Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, December 30,1876.   GUEST HOST:   Anabelle D-C of Anabelle Audios     EPISODE MUSIC:   Kevin MacLeod of Incompetech.com – Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribu...

In 1897, numerous individuals across Ohio reported that they had seen an airship in the sky, hovering over their city or town. This was years before the first successful flight of a motorized aircraft was supposed to have occurred – according to the history books. What is the explanation for this?   HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   Newspaper Articles:    Akron Beacon and Republican, April 16, 20, 22; May...

In New York City, in February 1891, a young woman named Ella Nelson shot and killed her married boyfriend. Yet, in a wild trial, a jury declared her “Not Guilty”. This shocking case made nationwide headlines at the time, but is hardly known today. This episode tells the story of what happened -- and why.     HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   Transcript of Trial of Ella Nelson, Trial #14, John Jay College,...

The year 1897 was a hotbed of news reports of encounters with bizarre and unexpected animals and other wild creatures, in random places in Ohio.     HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   Akron Beacon and Republican, April 28, 1897.   Akron Times-Democrat, May 26, 1897.   Bluffton News, May 6, 1897.   Cadiz Sentinel, May 9, 1897.   Cincinnati Enquirer, April 27 & May 9, 1897.   Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 2...

The infamous lynching in Findlay, Ohio was front-page headline news across the U.S., at the time. In this short “bonus” episode, you will hear excerpts of editorials from a diverse collection of major newspapers, speaking out about the incident, within days after it occurred in 1892.     HISTORICAL REFERENCES:   Cleveland Plain Dealer, April 2, 1892 (article quoting numerous editorials from newspa...

The tragic impact of the lynching of Joseph Lytle on his sister-in-law, Martha Lytle.     HISTORICAL REFERENCE:   Driven Crazy By The Action Of The Findlay Mob, Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 17, 1892.     GUEST VOICES:   Newspaper Reporter: Steven Cardinal of Aural Traditions podcast.   Listener Warning: Ali McLennan of In Sight podcast.   Host Intro & Extro Aphorism: Annabelle D-C of AnabelleAudios...

This first episode will feature a quick summary of what this podcast is about, and what listeners can expect to hear in the future. This is immediately followed by our first featured story: The saga of Joseph Lytle, a middle-aged bully, who was lynched by an angry mob in 1892, in Findlay, Ohio, after he attacked his ex-wife and daughters with a hatchet, and left them for dead, in a pool of blood....