In this offbeat episode, we take a break from heavy historical biographies and dive into something a little lighter. What started as a routine property history search for a Louisville listing led me down a rabbit hole of vintage newspaper clippings, culminating in an unexpected and fascinating journey through the early nudist (or naturist) movement in Kentucky and Indiana. You’ll hear the bizarre headline that sparked it all— “Bee Intrudes as 2 Louisvillians Enter Ranks of Nudist Royalty” —and m...
Jul 31, 2025•37 min•Season 1Ep. 152
In this episode, we explore the extraordinary life of Brigadier General Charles Young — a man born into slavery in Mays Lick, Kentucky, during the Civil War who went on to break barriers across the U.S. military and beyond. Despite facing relentless racism, repeated demotions, and exclusion due to his race, Young became a pioneer and trailblazer, achieving numerous historic firsts as a Black officer in the U.S. Army. You'll learn about Young's journey from his family’s escape to freedom in Riple...
Jul 15, 2025•31 min•Season 1Ep. 151
Episode 150 (hooray) explores the historical significance of the Passenger Pigeon, the life of Junius Booth, and the cultural impact of extinction. It delves into the tragic story of the Passenger Pigeon, once abundant in North America, and the role of hunting and habitat loss in its extinction. The discussion also highlights the life of Junius Booth, father of John Wilkes Booth, and his connection to the passenger pigeon, revealing the intertwining of history, theater, and wildlife conservation...
May 05, 2025•33 min•Season 1Ep. 150
Mary Byron was waiting for her car to warm up in the parking lot of the mall where she worked on the night of her 21st birthday. She was about to head home to decorate the Christmas tree with her family. Instead she was shot to death by Donavan Harris, her former boyfriend. Just a few weeks earlier, Harris was arrested for holding Mary hostage at gunpoint and assaulting her in the basement of her own home. He was released on bond, and less than a week later, Mary was dead. This left the Mary's f...
Mar 31, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 149
Dr. Britton was the first black woman in Kentucky to practice medicine... but there is so much more to her story! Born in Lexington in 1855, she grew up a free black citizen and went to private schools in Lexington, then Berea college. She studied medicine in Battle Creek, Michigan under Dr. Kellogg. Dr. Britton helped open the Colored Orphans home in Lexington. She caused a stir at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. She protested the Separate Coach bill in the 1890s- her speech later published in t...
Feb 26, 2025•35 min•Season 1Ep. 148
In the late 1830s, the owner of Mammoth Cave hoped to attract more tourists to the area. One of the key figures in making that happen was a slave named Stephen Bishop. Stephen became one of the most popular guides in the caves history, as well as a brave and savvy explorer, responsible for the expansion of the cave system with his discovery of several 'new' areas like the Bottomless Pit and Ruins of Karnak. It was stipulated in his owners will that Stephen was to be emancipated seven years after...
Jan 18, 2025•27 min•Season 1Ep. 147
Welcome to another installment of 'A Century Ago in Kentucky', where I share some of my favorite newspaper clippings from Kentucky newspapers in 1924. This episode includes stories of prisoners celebrating behind bars, while others are set free in time for the holidays, hundreds of gallons of wine are poured into the sewer by the Feds, plus fires and other accidents, burglars, crossword puzzles, and a special appearance by my great-grandfather! This episode includes clippings from the Louisville...
Dec 24, 2024•24 min•Season 1Ep. 146
In the 1840s, a doctor from Louisville purchased Mammoth Cave. One of his motives for purchasing the land was to conduct an experiment by inviting tuberculosis patients to live underground during the winter months to cure them. It did not go well. For more on this topic, check out THE PURSUIT OF HEALTH IN THE MAMMOTH CAVE, published in the Bulletin of the History of Medicine, 1971, by Stanley Sides & Harold Malloy. Follow the show on Instagram @kyhistoryhaunts and find it on Facebook by sear...
Nov 26, 2024•26 min•Season 1Ep. 145
On a cold January evening in 1925, after a long day of widening an entrance to a newly discovered cave, Floyd Collins lost his footing, knocked over his light, caused a shift in the tunnel and was pinned under a rock. Floyd was hopelessly stuck. Over the next two weeks, miners, geologists, engineers, family members and the Kentucky National Guard worked tirelessly to rescue Floyd. Floyd had passed by the time they reached him, but that wasn't the end of his story. For more information on Floyd C...
Oct 15, 2024•47 min•Season 1Ep. 144
Albert Bacon Fall, a Kentuckian, was the first US Cabinet member in history to be convicted of a felony. Albert, the grandson of Reverend Phillip Fall, moved out west, practiced law, got into politics and got mixed up with some less than virtuous characters, eventually leading to his involvement in the infamous Teapot Dome Scandal.
Mar 06, 2024•33 min•Season 1Ep. 143
This is part one of a two part series about the Fall family. Part one discusses the life of Phillip Fall, preacher, teacher, Southern sympathizer. Phillip Fall made connections with major religious figures in Kentucky during the Reformation movement. One of Phillip's sons, William, would later have a son named Albert Fall, who holds the infamous title of being the first U.S. Cabinet member convicted of a felony. Part two will focus on the life of Albert Fall, Phillip's grandson, and let me tell ...
Feb 19, 2024•31 min•Season 1Ep. 142
In the early 1990s, the Meade County police, Louisville police and Kentucky State police thought they had gotten it right when they arrested Garr Keith Hardin and Jeffrey Clark for the murder of Louisville native Rhonda Sue Warford. It took decades and assistance from the Kentucky Innocence Project to right the wrongs made during the investigation and trial. Let me know what you think. You can send mail to my work address- 9115 Leesgate Rd Suite A, Louisville, KY, 40222. Send me your address to ...
Feb 01, 2024•40 min•Season 1Ep. 141
From winning baking contests and cooking for wealthy families, to a federal indictment- welcome to episode 140, the fascinating life of Lucy Anderson Hicks. Lucy was born Tobias Lawson in Waddy, Kentucky in the 1880s. Lucy, a black, trans woman from rural Kentucky, baked award-winning desserts, cooked for the most prominent families in Oxnard, California, hosted benefits and parties of all kinds, and became a loved and respected figure in her community. She also operated a brothel and was involv...
Jan 15, 2024•37 min•Season 1Ep. 140
Cozy up with your bayberry candles, your Hoppin' John, your whiskey and your black buns. It's time to discuss New Year's traditions. I'm making sure you know how to prepare your meals, who to invite into your home, and how to clean your furniture as we enter the new year. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!
Dec 31, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 139
Boy is this episode all over the place, but in a good way. Enjoy a variety of stories related to the Ohio River, including tales of a Welsh prince, escaped slaves, alligators, and my parents! Some true, some questionable. Happy New Year to all! If you have topic suggestions, or I need to make a correction, or you just want to say hey, send an email to kyhistoryhaunts@gmail.com. Connect with the show on Facebook by searching the show name. Follow on Instagram @kyhistoryhaunts. And please be sure ...
Dec 26, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 138
Welcome to another installment of the A Century Ago in Kentucky series. This month we have fistfighting judges, yuletide bribes, a destructive cow, a Christmas tree accident, and much more! Please leave a review wherever you listen and be sure to follow the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/kyhistoryhaunts. Follow the show's Instagram @kyhistoryhaunts and if you have topic suggestions, feedback, or just want to say hello you can email kyhistoryhaunts@gmail.com. To send me, Jessie, a holi...
Dec 18, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 137
In October of 1923, a group of armed young men attempted to escape from Eddyville prison in western Kentucky. After shooting multiple prison guards, they realized their original plan wasn't going to work. They barricaded themselves in the dining hall in the center of the prison yard and the following days resulted in a standoff between the surrounded inmates and the prison guards, plus several Hopkinsville National Guardsmen summoned by Governor Morrow. As the incident came to an unfortunate end...
Dec 03, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 136
Tarantula bites, jailhouse weddings, drunken traffic cops, voter fraud, post office heroes, safety pin mishaps, baptism confusion, and so much more! Time travel with me, to November 1923 in Kentucky. Connect with the show on Instagram @kyhistoryhaunts, find the show on Facebook under Kentucky History & Haunts, and be sure to join the Facebook group Kentucky History & Haunts & More! Please leave a rating or review wherever you listen, and share with a friend. Happy Thanksgiving!...
Nov 23, 2023•40 min•Season 1Ep. 135
Knox County native Walter Campbell graduated from the University of Kentucky in 1902 and the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law in 1906. He was retained by the Kentucky Experiment Station at UK and worked prosecuting food law violations in Louisville, before being scouted by the federal government to help form and run what would later become the Food and Drug Administration. Walter was a key figure in pivotal events like the sulfanilamide disaster. For more on the early years of the...
Nov 14, 2023•43 min•Season 1Ep. 134
Belle Gunness was born in Norway in the 1850s. Three decades later she moved to Chicago and started a family and business with her first husband. Tragically, their house and business mysteriously burned. The family collected the insurance money and moved to Texas. While living outside of Austin, Belle's family members began dying off one by one, in the strangest of circumstances. Then another house burned down. It seemed bad luck, in the form of death and fires, followed Belle wherever she went....
Oct 31, 2023•38 min•Season 1Ep. 133
Belle Gunness was born in Norway in the 1850s. Three decades later she moved to Chicago and started a family and business with her first husband. Tragically, their house and business mysteriously burned. The family collected the insurance money and moved to Texas. While living outside of Austin, Belle's family members began dying off one by one, in the strangest of circumstances. Then another house burned down. It seemed bad luck, in the form of death and fires, followed Belle wherever she went....
Oct 31, 2023•36 min•Season 1Ep. 132
It’s the time of the season, yall. Enjoy these stories about a 500 year old water moccasin, haunted houses, prohibition, evil creeks, spooky caves, and… Nazis. I have a little bit of everything to get you in the spooky mood this October!
Oct 15, 2023•35 min•Season 1Ep. 131
Mary Langley was born Mary Hinderer in Ohio in the 1880s. In her early years, she and her family moved to Indiana near Camp Chesterfield, a popular community for spiritualists and mediums. By the 1920s, Mary was a successful medium, traveling regionally to offer her services. By the mid-1920s she was working in Covington, where she was arrested and put on trial for disorderly conduct. The local authorities believed Mary Langley was a fraud after exposing her by raiding a séance at her home. Her ...
Oct 10, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 130
This episode features two spooky tales of murders that took place a century ago in Kentucky. The first takes place at a mental institution in Louisville, and if you’d like more on the topic of Lakeland Asylum, revisit episode 106. The second story today takes place in Lawrenceburg, also the location of the haunted Anderson Hotel, which I visited in episode 63. Thank you for listening. For feedback, topic suggestions or just to say hi, please email kyhistoryhaunts@gmail.com
Oct 01, 2023•26 min•Season 1Ep. 129
Back for another round of ‘A Century Ago in Kentucky!’ Listen to stories about the Kentucky state fair, terrifying automobile mishaps, hidden bootlegging operations in chimneys, a duel in northern Kentucky, a drunk mayor, gypsies, dynamite and more!
Sep 26, 2023•55 min•Season 1Ep. 128
In the early 1920s, Valparaiso University was in major financial trouble and looking for a bailout. A man named Milton Elrod, editor of a Klan newspaper, started floating stories that the Valpo board of trustees was negotiation with the Indiana Klan. There were rumors they’d put down an earnest money deposit, they wouldn’t alter the curriculum, they were going to invest millions into the school and the entire Northwestern Indiana community. But it never happened. Did it really come close to happ...
Sep 18, 2023•49 min•Season 1Ep. 127
Isaac Shelby did such a good job being Governor of Kentucky the first time around, the people begged him to come back for a second term at the onset of the War of 1812. He even led a group of men in the Battle of the Thames, WHILE he was serving his second term, when he was in his sixties. This episode covers Shelby’s early life, his travel and military service, and his political life. If you have suggestions for a future episode or want to discuss a previous episode, please send an email to kyh...
Sep 06, 2023•37 min•Season 1Ep. 126
One early morning in April 1923, Alfred Warren left his home on Clay St to go to work in downtown Paducah. A short time later, he heard an explosion in the distance. Unfortunately, the explosion came from his home. The research for this episode came from archives from The Paducah Sun and The Lexington Leader. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Connect with Kentucky History & Haunts on Instagram & Facebook. Or send me an email: kyhistoryhaunts@gmail.com
Aug 29, 2023•20 min•Season 1Ep. 125
One early morning in April 1923, Alfred Warren left his home on Clay St to go to work in downtown Paducah. A short time later, he heard an explosion in the distance. Unfortunately, the explosion came from his home. The research for this episode came from archives from The Paducah Sun and The Lexington Leader. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Connect with Kentucky History & Haunts on Instagram & Facebook. Or send me an email: kyhistoryhaunts@gmail.com
Aug 29, 2023•31 min•Season 1Ep. 124
Lots of family drama in Kentucky, 1923. A wife claims her stepdaughter attempted to murder her. The stepdaughter claims self defense. A drifting alcoholic harasses his younger brother and his family until the younger brother puts a stop to it. How will the court system handle these situations? Well it’s 1923, you just never know! Research from this episode comes from the Louisville Courier Journal Archives. Let me know what you think by leaving a comment on Spotify, or writing me at kyhistoryhau...
Aug 21, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 123
