True Crime Historian

The Trial Of The Rev. Ephriam Kingsbury Avery Episode 24 takes place 60 years before Lizzie Borden put the town of Fall River, Massachusetts, on the murder map. The body of Sarah Maria Cornell, a 30-year-old mill worker, was found hanging from a haystack pole in the nearby town of Tiverton, just across the Rhode Island border. The first coroner's jury ruled the death a suicide, but a note later fo...

Murder And Arson At Brandywine Springs Park Episode 448 is a sad and sordid tale of a passionate frenzy, when a young woman’s divided attention puts one man in a rage and leaves another to grieve. Ad-Free Edition 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 Safe House is still just a bu...

The Lawrence/Foster/Disbrow Affair Episode 423 delves into a love triangle gone awry. When two sides of the triangle, including an expert swimmer and sailor, are found drowned dead in a Long Island bay, suspicion immediately falls upon the third, even though the coroner declares the whole thing an accident. Culled from the historic pages of The New York World, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, The New Yor...

Amos Lunsford Meets His Match Episode 175 comes by the way of a request from a listener in North Carolina who wanted to know more about this incident, a fight about a horse at a church revival camp that gets out of hand. There might have been whiskey involved. Go figure. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--2909311/support . You...

The Scoundrel Gershon Marx Episode 447 retains a lot of the discrepancies in the reporting of the story, so don’t be alarmed at conflicting versions of the same incidents. I can’t say for certain that they ever got some of the names right, but nothing could be more wrong in so many ways than the theatrical adaptation of the case that takes place at the denouement. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporte...

The Bloody Record Of Henry Plummer And His Gang Episode 422 hearkens back to the wild wild West, in the days following the great gold rush. Much of the story takes place in Bannack, Montana, which is now a state park and ghost town, and follows the career of one of the most notorious gangs of the day and the rise of the citizen's committee that puts an end to it. Adapted from the books "The Story...

The Murder Of The Duchess Of Praslin Episode 213 is dedicated to listener Clair Stephenson, who reached out after watching the 1940 move "All This And Heaven Too", the story of a scandalous murder in the courts of France that helped precipitate the French Revolution. Based on dispatches to London, the real story is not quite the Hollywood version, but I can definitely see Bette Davis as Henriette...

Mrs. Peete’s Private Burials Episode 420 recalls one of America’s lesser-known serial killers, Louise Peete. There’s never been a book or a movie about her, yet during her murderous career, her Southern charm and polite matronly manner made her a nation-wide front page sensation, with some newspapers printing literally every word of her trial as well as fawning feature stories. Culled from the his...

Clue Of The Antique Dimes Episode 445 is the tale of a pair of simple-minded lumberjack cousins who go to extreme and cruel measures to exact revenge against a mountain recluse. But what price will they pay? Culled from the historic pages of the Denver Post and other newspapers of the era. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--29...

The Doctor's Wife And The Dumpy Little Chicken Man Episode 186 explores another eternal triangle resulting in murder. This time, it's the young-ish wife of an elderly doctor who plots with a neighboring poultry salesman to put a deadly end to her marriage. Obviously, it doesn't end well for them, or they wouldn't be on this show. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spre...

The Suitor V. The Shotgun Episode 419 tells the story of a family’s downfall, precipitated by a general disdain for the 25-year-old suitor of a 17-year-old daughter. Things go particularly awry when the suitor makes a valiant last-ditch effort to win the love of the family he hoped to be his in-laws, but a shotgun blast proves more potent than true love. Culled from the historic pages of the Phila...

The Ordeal Of C. Frederick Kohl Episode 444 is the strange story of a double tragedy. On one side we have a woman apparently driven insane with the desire to avenge crimes that exist only in her own mind. Her obsession has serious consequences for an innocent man. Culled from the historic pages of the San Francisco Examiner, the San Francisco Chronicle, and other newspapers of the era. Ad-Free Edi...

The Ordeal Of June Robles Episode 224 explores the sensational kidnapping for ransom of a young Tucscon girl, the favorite granddaughter of one of the city's pioneers. It's a story as frustrating as it is heartbreaking as a legion of pursuers doggedly but fruitlessly seek the kidnapper. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--29093...

Teen Mother In A Murder Trial Episode 418 concerns a robbery gone awry and features a colorful woman in the case, a teenage bigamist and mother, whose salty ways and love for her baby make her a little bit endearing, in spite of her crimes. The Tesmer case, referred to in the prologue, is the subject of Episode 234, Mrs. Carrick’s Rouge And Whiskers, available only to residents of the Safe House....

Murder In The Ozarks Episode 442 shows how a small town in Arkansas splits down the middle when the son of the local justice of the peace is accused of the brutal murder of a popular young lady. Culled from the historic pages of the Daily Arkansas Gazette, the Arkansas Democrat, and other newspapers of the era. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/tr...

The Case Against Professor Kane Episode 249 digs into the case of a college professor accused of drowning his wife for the love of another woman, but the prosecution first has trouble identifying her, then tracking her down, then getting the court to allow her testimony and love letters as evidence. I love a good fall from grace story, but what I really like about this case is the devotion shown b...

Killed By The Dapper Bootlegger Episode 226 is dedicated to True Crime Historian listener Kaylie Jansen who recommended this sad story of two sisters, gunned down and left by the roadside after a Christmas holiday with their elderly parents. It takes some clever police work and legal maneuvering to find justice in this case. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker....

The Cincinnati Kitchen Sink Tragedy Episode 417 takes place at the turn of the last century Cincinnati, when a man allegedly finds his wife’s brutally murdered body in the kitchen sink and his four-year-old son sound asleep in his bed. Burglars did it, the man says, but his son will tell a different story. Culled from the historic pages of the Cincinnati Enquirer and other newspapers of the era. A...

An End To The Graham-Tewksbury Feud Episode 439 looks into one of the great family and land feuds of the Old West, the classic squabble between the sheep herders and cattle ranchers. Oddly, the best descriptions of the central event comes from a preliminary hearing for one of the accused. By the time the incident got to an actual trial, the newspapers seemed to have lost interest. Good story thoug...

Murders Of Honor Episode 197 gives us not one but TWO murders arising from the defense of a young lady's reputation. The Pennsylvania trials garnered national attention, and the great orator Indiana Senator Daniel Vorhees served as counsel for the defense in the second trial, deliver a remarkable 90-minute closing speech. The highlights are excerpted near the end of this tale, adapted from a trial...

The Ghastly Kidnapping And Murder Of Marion Parker Episode 415 relates one of the most difficult crimes we’ve yet to tell, a terrible kidnapping and brutal murder of 12-year-old girl by a smiling, charming monster. No other word for William Edward Hickman. The details of the crime were so disturbing that the newspapers could not report on them, but even the broad outline as presented will give you...

Homer Bird’s Gold Fever Episode 438 takes place during the great Alaskan gold rush when a group of adventurous businessmen from New Orleans leave their families and risk all in a quest to gain riches beyond imagination. Yeah, that’s not gonna end well, but the most interesting part of this drama is the influence of two women in the defendant’s life. One, a literal gold-digger, the other, the faith...

The Scourge Of Sugar Creek Episode 164 asks the rhetorical question: Will the real Will Harris please stay in jail? It seems "Will Harris" was the go-to nom-de-plume for a number of Southern scoundrels around the turn of the 20th century. Sometimes the press is confused and sometimes the police are confused, shedding doubt on whether or not they have the real desperado, an imposter, or just anothe...

The Shooting Showgirls Lillian Graham And Ethel Conrad Episode 414 tells the story of a pair of young vaudeville actresses who come up with a scheme to dupe an older former lover of a great sum of money. But when he calls their bluff, they choke and shoot the old fellow in the leg. Three times. It’s hard to find a hero in this tale. They’re all kinda skeezy. Ad-Free Edition Become a supporter of t...

The Scoundrel Frank Badgley Episode 437 is dedicated to the True Crime Historian patron Kim Parkhurst, who discovered several scoundrels, including the subject of this story, on the Indiana branch of her family tree. Her people seem to be as shady as my own. Ad-Free Edition Supporters Club https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--2909311/support You can pay more if you want to, but r...