True Crime Historian

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...

A Foul Deed In Ft. Thomas In celebration of our 200th episode, I’m going to share one of my favorite local stories. The murder itself took place a state over, but one of the convicted murderers lived for a time in my hometown, and the sad story of Pearl Bryan is well-known in the three states involved, with many dubious legends and rumors abounding, and it’s said that her spirit haunts a Northern...

UNSOLVED A special edition of Yesterday’s News exploring one of history’s most baffling murder mysteries. The Murder Of Elizabeth Short By listener request, Episode 196 follows the first month of the investigation of one of Hollywood’s most celebrated murder mysteries that begins when of a 22-year-old party girl turns up tortured, murdered, and mutilated by the side of a busy boulevard. She was su...

The Lizzie Edition, Part I Episode 166 True Crime Historian brings you “The Lizzie Edition,” and in-depth look at the murder of Andrew J. Borden and his wife in Fall River, Massachusetts, on August 4, 1892, and the trial of his daughter Lizzie Borden the following June.... Theme music “My Ain Countrie” by Mary Lee Demarest, 1861, performed by Davide Severi with Plava Kuca on Violin.... Media Manag...

Crane Neck Nugent, Prohibition TriggerThe Gangster Chronicles Book Two, Chapter Six __Crane Neck gets arrested in a Florida speakeasy, then is quickly in the wind again. Meanwhile, the hunt for his former partner and archenemy Bob Zwick continues. When Zwick’s reign of terror finally ends, details of their worst exploits are revealed in court. __ Music by Dave Sams www.truecrimehistorian.com/1925n...

Crane Neck Nugent, Prohibition AssassinThe Gangster Chronicles 2.5 Crane Neck returns to Cincinnati to do a favor for his old boss, Fat Wrassman: Even the score for the hit on George Murphy. But it means going after his partner, Bob “The Fox” Zwick. You don’t want to miss the showdown in the streets of Cincinnati between Fat Wrassman and Detective Dutch Schafer. - Music by Dave Sams - www.truecrim...

Crane Neck Nugent, Prohibition TriggerThe Gangster Chronicles 2.4 - Crane Neck Nugent’s career included work with the gang of Fred “Killer” Burke of St. Louis, whom he got to know when they served together as machine gunners in World War I. While no one was ever charged with the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, it is generally agreed that Al Capone hired the Burke gang, whom he called his “American B...

Crane Neck Nugent: Prohibition Trigger -The Gangster Chronicles 2.3 - With the heat turned up high in Ohio, Crane Neck retreats to Kansas City to join the gang of his Army mentor Fred “Killer” Burke, the leader of his own gang there. A Toledo job goes south on the Burke gang, and a patrolman ends up dead from machine gun fire. Meanwhile Jack Parker, Todd Messner, Breck Lutes, Rodney Ford, and Bob...

The Gangster Chronicles 2.2.2- George "Fat" Wrassman figures heavily (so to speak) in the saga of Crane Neck Nugent. While this case doesn't bear directly on Nugent's story, it tells you the kind of man that Fat was, and will help inform some of the action in a later episode, so I offer this as a bonus to The Gangster Chronicles Book Two at no extra charge. Become a supporter of this podcast: http...

Crane Neck Nugent: Prohibition Trigger- The Gangster Chronicles 2.2.1 - YESTERDAY'S NEWS - The murders of Gus Fitch, Bob Sollick, Glenn Hiatt, Martin Dailey and Buddy Ryan. Crane Neck Nugent was involved in four of these, and will soon avenge a fifth. 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 re...