Southern Gothic

Enter our April T-shirt Giveaway by signing up for our newsletter at SouthernGothicMedia.com Hilton Head Island’s Leamington Lighthouse was erected in 1880 to help guide ships away from the island and safely into Port Royal Sound; but according to local lore, the now decommissioned structure is home to the apparition of a young women in a blue dress. Legends say that the woman is the daughter of a lighthouse keeper who tragically met his fate during a massive hurricane. As a result, she purportedly returns to warn of pending storms. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When the Civil War drew to a close, the United States’ railway networks, particularly those in the Southern states, were in shambles. During the Reconstruction era, the rehabilitation of the southern rails and expansion of transcontinental railroads became a major undertaking, and as the importance of the railroad rose. In the three decades after the Civil War over 170,000 miles of track were added to America’s railway system; it opened the western states for further settlement and reestablished the accessibility of the southern states. The accomplishment required a considerable workforce, and railway companies became a significant employers of thousands of men finally freed from enslavement. The work was dangerous, physically intensive, and time consuming. It’s unknown exactly how many men lost their lives to injury or illness while expanding the nation’s railroad system during Reconstruction, but the legacy of these men lives on in one of the most enduring folk heroes in American history…the ballad of John Henry, the steel-driving man. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Along the coastal plain region of Southeastern Virginia and Northeastern North Carolina lies the ominously named Great Dismal Swamp. While this unique habitat has served as home to a wide array of biological diversity for over ten thousand years, modern archaeologists are uncovering more and more evidence of a unique community of runaways slaves and their families who thrived there for over two centuries– the Great Dismal Swamp Maroons. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Check out our special bonus video content for this episode by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! On May 14, 1804 Meriwether Lewis and William Clark set out on what would become a two year expedition across the western half of the United States. Yet for all the successes of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, there lies a shadow over the legacy of the famed Meriwether Lewis– for as this daring explorer was able to survive the treacherous journey into the vast wilderness of North America, his life came to an end not long after his return– a tragedy with mysterious circumstances that over two centuries later remains unsolved. This episode also includes a special guest voiceover by Jeremy Collins of Podcasts We Listen To Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just north of Lafayette, Louisiana– in the small town of Sunset– is Chretien Point, a beautiful Creole style two-story mansion that once served as the centerpiece to a vast cotton plantation known as Chretien Point. Today, the enduring legacy of Chretien Point is not in its bricks or furnishings, but in the story of its mistress, Félicité Neda Chretien. Commonly referred to as a ‘real-life’ Scarlett O’Hara – Madame Félicité Chretien was confident, strong-willed, intelligent, and beautiful. Félicité learned how to successfully run a plantation from her father, and it was she who saw Chretien Point Plantation through its most prosperous days, and it was Madame Chretien who saved it from its darkest. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For almost two centuries the legend of the disappearance of Peter Dromgoole has been told by the students of the University of North Carolina. In 1833 Peter Dromgoole arrived to study at the University, and although he initially failed the entrance exam Peter remained to prepare to retake the test. Yet before he could do so, Peter Dromgoole vanished without a trace. The oft-told legend of Peter Dromgoole is one of a love story that ends in a tragedy. There is another version of the tale, one that looks at Dromgoole family letters, in an attempt to discover Peter’s path from North Carolina. Today, centuries later, the mystery remains unsolved. What actually happened to Peter Dromgoole? Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On July 26, 1910 the Waverly Hills Sanatorium opened outside Louisville, Kentucky; the hospital on the hill was dedicated solely to the treatment of those infected with the highly contagious and often fatal disease, tuberculosis. During its forty years in operation, thousands would pass through the hospital doors, though most would survive, hundreds would not. Although modern medicine has largely made tuberculosis an illness of the past, the stigma of it lingered. In the decades since the sanatorium closed and the site deteriorated, it gained a new reputation, as one of the most haunted buildings on Earth. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Eliza Battle was once one of the most luxurious steamboats on Alabama’s waters, but her untimely demise by fire has left many to believe that she can still be seen on the Tombigbee River’s water– an omen of death. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On September 30, 1915 a vicious hurricane made its way through Southeastern Louisiana leaving almost 375 people dead and entire communities destroyed. One such town was the small farming community of Frenier, where a legend has since entered local lore with the claim that this particular’y gruesome storm was brought on by the curse of a local Voodoo priestes named Julia Brown. This episode of Southern Gothic revisits a topic previously released on the podcast. To hear the original episode "The Lost City of Frenier" join us on Patreon for access to our archives! Additional resources from this episode: The Day Time Stood Still: The Hurricane of 1915 by Wayne Norwood Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On August 23, 1882 Italian harpist Antonio “Tony” Caseletta drowned in a sailing accident on the Cape Fear river, leaving behind a wife and child. His body was then buried in the Old Smithville Cemetery; however, many claim that his spirit continues to play his beloved instrument in the beautiful seaside mansion that once served as the Hotel Brunswick in historic Southport, North Carolina. Additional resources from this episode: Haunted Wilmington and the Cape Fear Coast by Brooks Newton Preik, Ghosts of the Carolina Coasts by Terrance Zepke. This episode of Southern Gothic features music written and performed by the Americana duo Harp & Plow. Be sure to check out their new single, “Pastures of Plenty.” Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After Corinne Elliott Lawton died in 1877, her parents commissioned a famous Italian sculptor to design the statue at her grave. The result still stands today in the historic Bonaventure Cemetery of Savannah, Georgia where the melancholy depiction of this beloved daughter has inspired a local legend about her death. SHelp Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It is said that on warm summer and autumn nights, those standing on the banks of the Pascagoula river may hear the sound of a melodic humming emanating from beneath the river’s dark waters. The origin of the sound is unknown, but numerous legends have been told to explain the mystery of this Mississippi waterway. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode we revisit and update our very first– “The Ghosts of the Myrtles Plantation.” Built in 1796 by General David Bradford, over two centuries of tragedies and heartbreak have occurred under the roof of this beautiful Creole Cottage that has become so infamous for its purported hauntings that some consider it “America’s Most Haunted Home.” Guest voiceovers for this episode include: Simone Taylor, creator of 90’s True Crime … Zach Auld, host of CastJunkie. Additional Reading and Resources: “The Myrtles Plantation: The True Story of America’s Most Haunted House” by Frances Kermeen “The Haunting of Louisiana” by Barbara Sillery “Tales From the Haunted South: Dark Tourism and Memories of Slavery from the Civil War Era” by Tiya Miles Take a trip to the Myrtles Plantation Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1816 a mysterious couple arrived in Alexandria, Virginia and isolated themselves in a room at Gadsby’s Tavern. Unfortunately, the young woman was deathly ill and in spite of receiving assistance from a local doctor, she passed away. After burying his supposed wife, the man then disappeared. Speculation on their identities continues to this day, fueled by the eerie incsription in her tombstone: “To the memory of the Female Stranger…” Guest voiceovers for this episode include: Mary Payne Gilbert, host of Payne in the Pod (be sure to check out her episode with Brandon) … Dwayne Farver, creator of the audio drama Manifestations: An Ostium Network Podcast … Brady Hendricks, voiceover artist on the dystopian audio drama The City Within the Walls Additional Reading and Resources: “Ghosts of Alexandria” by Michael Lee Pope “Haunted Virginia: Ghosts & Strange Phenomena of the Old Dominion” by L.B. Taylor Jr. Images of the infamous tombstone are available at FindAGrave.com Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Legend says that on Old Bumcombe Road in South Carolina, a man was hanged in the mid 19th century for a crime he did not commit. As a result, the spirit of his loyal canine companion is believed to continue to seek vengeance for his death– a spirit now known as the Ghost Hound of Goshen. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The town of Thurmond, West Virginia was strategically built on the C&O Railroad line to serve the numerous coal mines surrounding the New River Gorge. What began as a small community quickly grew into a prosperous boomtown; however, as the coal industry gradually gave way to oil, the town of Thurmond faded away and its historic buildings and business district left abandoned. This week’s episode is made possible through the support of the Hero Soap Company. Use the code: GOTHIC to receive 10% off a “sud-scription” today and get all-natural, handmade soap delivered to your door every month. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cajun folklore claims that in the swamps and bayous of Louisiana are supernatural entities that appear to travelers in the form of glowing balls. Much like the well known will-o’-the-wisp, those unlucky enough to be lured into the trap of these fiery spirits are often doomed to an early death. They are known simply as le Feu follet. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Kennesaw House of Marietta, Georgia was built beside the Western & Atlantic Railroad line in the 1840’s; but over the course of this beautiful brick building’s long life, it has seen numerous tragedies that has left many to believe that the building is haunted by spirits from the past. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On May 25, 1904, a fire broke out in the business district of Yazoo City, Mississippi. By day’s end, the fire had consumed much of the community, leaving nothing but ashes. Historians believe the fire started accidentally at the home of Herman Wise, but according to legend the cause was much more sinister– revenge from the infamous Witch of Yazoo. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Christmas Day in 1929, North Carolina farmer Charlie Lawson murdered his entire family before turning his gun onto himself. Almost a century has passed since this gruesome crime, but the question of motive has remained unanswered to this day. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1843 Nathan Bryan Whitfield began construction on a grand mansion in Demopolis, Alabama. The beautiful home, which he named Gaineswood, still stands as part of Whitfield’s legacy; but some claim that echoes of a tragedy that occurred here remain as well. Echoes that purportedly come in the form of a mysterious, disembodied piano. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1925, cave explorer Floyd Collins discovered Sand Cave, not far from what would one day become Mammoth Cave National Park. Floyd, like many others in Kentucky cave country, had hoped to discover a cave of his own that he could profit from as a tourist attraction. Unfortunately, while attempting to uncover the secrets of his new found cave, Floyd Collins became trapped. The resulting rescue attempts fueled a media frenzy that stretched across the nation. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1885, publisher James B. Ward released a small pamphlet that contained three encrypted messages that purportedly told the whereabouts of an immense treasure. Unfortunately, after a century of attempts to decipher these mysterious codes known as the Beale Ciphers, no trace of this hidden stash of gold, silver, and jewels has been found. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From 1847-1870, along the Black River in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana, two neighboring plantation owners engaged in a violent family feud. The cause of the dispute is still unknown, but whatever it may be, the result was the loss of numerous lives, including Confederate Brigadier General St. John Richardson Liddell. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The apparition of a grieving woman purportedly haunts the Chapel of the Cross cemetery in Mannsdale, Mississippi. Legend says this ghost is Helen Johnstone.-- the victim of one of Mississippi's most tragic tales of heartbreak and loss. Days before her wedding in 1859, Helen's beloved Henry Vick was struck down in a duel. The Johnstone family promised to one day bury the grief-stricken young woman in the plot next to her lost love, but unfortunately she was not, thus resulting in the many claims that her spirit will not leave. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the most significant issues that the early settlers of New Orleans encountered was where to bury their dead. The city’s swampy location has an exceptionally high water table, so when graves were dug, water quickly filled the holes. Caskets would float from their graves after heavy rains. The solution was not to bury the dead below ground, but rather inter their lost love ones in aboveground vaults. The result was beautiful cemeteries that have since come to be known as Cities of the Dead. Guest Appearances by: All Crime No Cattle California True Crime Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War took place in the small town of Franklin, Tennessee. However, the rich history of this southern community is far deeper than what occurred on November 30, 1865, and no structure in this historic town exemplifies that past more than the Historic Franklin Masonic Hall-- a three story brick building that has stood for almost two centuries. Stay tuned after this episode for a brief interview with Rachel Finch, the Executive Director of the Historic Franklin Masonic Hall Foundation. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On a precipice near the top of Stone Mountain in Johnson County, Tennessee is a flat outcropping of sandstone called Fiddler's Rock. The mysterious landmark is covered in carvings of images, names and dates; however, what makes Fiddler's Rock so infamous are the purported sounds of a ghostly fiddle playing in the distance. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just fifty miles south of Greensboro, North Carolina, amidst lush pine forests and rolling hills is a large patch of barren nothingness known as the Devil’s Tramping Ground. This empty spot is circular in shape, roughly 40 feet across, and for as long as anyone can remember it has been completely devoid of all plant life. As a result, some legends claim this eerie location is where the devil himself comes to Earth each night to plan his wicked deeds, others that is of a unique Native American origin. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the end of the Civil War became imminent, Confederate President Jefferson Davis fled his capital city of Richmond, Virginia. After leading the South for four years, he had high hopes to escape the country and rebuild a new Confederacy. So Davis took with him the entirety of the Confederate Treasury, a massive fortune of gold, silver and bullion. Yet when the Confederate President was finally captured by Union forces, this gold was nowhere to be found. To this day, speculation runs rampant over the whereabouts and fate of that lost Confederate gold, a mystery that has grown for over a century and a half, spurring the imaginations of historians and treasure hunters alike. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1860, Dr. Haller Nutt began construction on a palatial estate in Natchez, Mississippi. Unfortunately the outbreak of the Civil War put a halt to progress, leaving Dr. Nutt's vision incomplete for over a century and half. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Legend says that the Bellamy Bridge in Marianna, Florida is haunted by a woman, who's life was supposedly lost to a vicious fire on her wedding night in 1837.; however, legend and history tell two different tales as to the origin of the Lady of Bellamy Bridge. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On December 3, 1864 William Henry Sketoe was hanged near his home in Newton, Alabama. Some legends claim he was a Confederate deserter, others a Union sympathizer; but for whatever the reason may be, his story has been one of Alabama's most infamous ghost stories for over a century. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Rosewell Plantation of Gloucester County, Virginia was once the most grandiose plantation home of the British Colonies in North America; but after a fire destroyed this exquisite home in 1916, all that is left of this once great mansion is ruins. My name is Brandon Schexnayder and you are listening to Southern Gothic. Read the complete transcript of "The Ruins of Rosewell" Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Each year, June 1st marks the first day of the Atlantic Hurricane season; and while modern technology has helped reduced the catastrophic destruction of these storms, on the small barrier island of Pawley's Island, South Carolina, locals believe it is the appearance of an apparition known as "The Gray Man" who truly warns them of impending disaster. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On January 23, 1897, Elva Zona Heaster was found dead in her home in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. At the time, the cause was presumed natural; however, after her ghost purportedly appeared to her mother, it was soon found that the circumstances surrounding Zona's untimely death were much more sinister. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Founded in 1565 by the Spanish, St. Augustine, Florida is one of America's oldest surviving cities; and while the history of this three-century old port, once instrumental in early colonization by the Spanish, is rich with tales of hauntings and folklore, one of its most infamous haunted structures is a lighthouse built by the United States Federal Government between 1871-1874. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The creation of Georgia's Lake Lanier came at a high cost for the people who had once settled there; and as a result, many believe that today this manmade body of water is cursed by its destructive past. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many legends claim that Lavinia Fisher was the first female serial killer in the United States. She and her husband John operated an inn just outside of Charleston, South Carolina. They named it Six Mile Wayfarer House, but their intentions behind the business were sinister. It is said the Fishers targeted wealthy travelers, poisoning them at dinner and stealing their valuables. For these crimes, the Fishers were executed on February 18, 1820. It is said that Lavinia wore her wedding dress to the gallows and when it came time for her to speak her last words she unrepentantly bellowed, “if you have a message you want to send to hell, give it to me, I’ll carry it.” But the historical accuracy of this legend is entirely false. In fact Lavinia may not have actually murdered anyone. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The town of Cahaba was once the thriving state capital of Alabama. Yet today, nothing remains of this city but ruins. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The city of Atlanta, Georgia was a strategic stronghold for the Confederacy during the Civil War, serving as an integral railroad hub that supplied the South with men, munitions and supplies. But by the spring of 1864, as President Abraham Lincoln became desperate for a military victory, the city would become the direct target of the infamously aggressive Union General William T. Sherman. A campaign that would leave this once thriving railroad city in ashes. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1817 the family of Tennessee farmer John Bell came under the attack of a brutal entity; a haunting which became so infamous, it purportedly caught the attention of a future president, gripping a small community for years, and terrorizing the Bell family for generations. An entity that has since become known as the Bell Witch. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The legendary pirate Blackbeard is one of the most infamous men of the Golden Age of Piracy. A pirate who's spirit many believe still haunts the shores of Ocracoke Island, North Carolina. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On January 15, 1916 Dr. John C. King opened the St. Alban’s Sanatorium in Radford, Virginia; converting a former school into a modern mental health facility that he had hoped to transform by focusing on the moral management and care of those admitted. Unfortunately, his goal of assisting his patients fell short, leaving many to live lives of torment within the walls of this sanatorium. A sanatorium built on land that had been the sight of numerous tragedies for centuries. Tragedies that pitted natives against colonists, and northerners against southerners. For special access to members’ only content, including “Southern Gothic: The Monsters,” as well as updates and links to our social media, visit SouthernGothicMedia.com today. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On August 6, 1887 one of Georgia’s darkest and most infamous murders occurred at a farmhouse in Bibb County. Nine members of Richard Woolfolk’s family were brutally slain with an axe. Suspicion immediately fell on his son Thomas and a national media circus erupted in the aftermath. This episode of Southern Gothic contains descriptions of a violent and horrific murder, listener discretion is advised. Additional narration by Katelyn Murray and Kenneth Strader of The Haunted Heart podcast. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. John R. Drish began construction of one of Tuscaloosa's first plantation homes in 1835. Unfortunately, after he and his wife Sara's deaths, the home fell to ruin; giving life to claims that the tower that looms over this once stately plantation home is often the sight of eerie apparitions. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode of Southern Gothic is the third in the three-part series "Birth of a City: New Orleans," a story that chronicles the inception of a great American city and the legends that evolved with it. Part III: Madame Delphine LaLaurie On April 10, 1863 a fire broke out in the home of Creole socialite Madam Delphine LaLaurie; but as men rushed to save the lavish mansion, they had no idea of the horrors they would uncover inside. Theme music for "Birth of a City: New Orleans" was written and performed by Grammy nominated singer-songwriter Adam Wright. Additional narration by Justin Drown of Obscura: A True Crime Podcast. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode of Southern Gothic is the second in the three-part series "Birth of a City: New Orleans," a story that chronicles the inception of a great American city and the legends that evolved with it. Part II: Spirits of the Cathedral In 1764 the French ceded control of New Orleans to the Spanish, who would control the city for the next forty years; but during that time, tragedy and violence would occur. As a result, New Orleanians turned to their spiritual leaders for guidance. Catholic priests and bishops who many believe still continue to watch over their parishoners. Theme music for "Birth of a City: New Orleans" was written and performed by Grammy nominated singer-songwriter Adam Wright. Additional narration by Javier Leiva of Pretend Radio. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode of Southern Gothic is the first in the three-part series "Birth of a City: New Orleans," a story that chronicles the inception of a great American city and the legends that evolved with it. Part I: The Casket Girls In 1721 the French founded the city of New Orleans as the mouth of the Mississippi River, but development was slow, so the city's leaders requested young women of marriageable age to be sent to the young colony. Unfortunately, little is known about the origins of these women, who some believe may have been the first vampires to immigrate to the New World. Women, who have become known as "The Casket Girls." Theme music for "Birth of a City: New Orleans" was written and performed by Grammy nominated singer-songwriter Adam Wright. Additional narration by Donna Elwin of the podcast A Paranormal Chicks. Visit SouthernGothicMedia.com for news, notes and access to special members-only episodes. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Private Nicodemus Kidd enlisted in the Confederate Army on July 10, 1861; however, the young private quickly fell victim to an horrendous disease while camped outside of the Confederate capital. A disease that would plague Confederate camps for the entire war, giving soldiers an horrific 1 in 5 chance of dying from illness and infection during the conflict. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon Supporter today! Connect with Southern Gothic Media: Website: SouthernGothicMedia.com Merch Store: https://www.southerngothicmedia.com/merch Pinterest: @SouthernGothicMedia Facebook: @SouthernGothicMedia Instagram: @SouthernGothicMedia Twitter: @SoGoPodcast Join our Facebook Group! If you are a sponsor looking to advertise on the show visit Airwave Media or email [email protected] for information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices