Stored at the Furnace Creak Visitor Center in Death Valley National Park is an antique weathered trunk discovered in the unforgiving desert landscape. Some believe it is evidence of a legendary cross-country journey. On display at the Chicago History Museum are group of bricks that were the key to one of the largest prison breaks of the Civil War. And the Omaha Public Library is home to a gruesome relic from Nebraska's rough and tumble frontier past: a preserved human scalp. For even more Myster...
Mar 23, 2023•43 min
At the Clark County Heritage Museum in Las Vegas is a simple poker chip, salvaged from one of Las Vegas's most opulent hotels. This piece of plastic played a huge conflagration that bore witness to one of the city's greatest atrocities. Stationed at the Marshall County History Museum in Warren, Minnesota is a damaged 1970s police cruiser with a past, that some claim, is out of this world. Encased at the Confederate Relic Room in Columbia, South Carolina is a battered sword that was carried by a ...
Mar 16, 2023•43 min
Housed in a glass case at The Boone County Historical Center in Boone, Iowa is a seemingly ordinary metal and glass lantern. But this beacon of light helped guide a brave teenager through a stormy night, on a life saving mission. At the Daredevil Museum in Niagara Falls, New York is a huge, elaborately constructed, 12-foot barrel, built specifically for a death-defying act use in several crazed stunts. Among the Civil War regalia and crude surgical instruments at South Carolina's, Florence Museu...
Mar 09, 2023•43 min
Hanging in storage at the Kansas Museum of History in Topeka is what appears to be a well-worn naval uniform. It actually belonged to a physician who practiced a bizarre and infamous surgery using the testicles of goats. What common malady was this operation said to cure? And did it really work? The U.S. Army Quartermaster Museum in Fort Lee, Virginia displays a brass bell that was linked to legendary beast known as the Red Ghost. What was this terrifying creature? And how did it come to stalk t...
Mar 02, 2023•43 min
On display at the MIT Museum in Cambridge, Massachusetts is a small clear plastic box, filled with electrical components and used in a legendary scheme to deceive Las Vegas Casinos. How was it used...and does it actually work? At the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History is an unusual accessory to a regulation US military weapon. The concept behind this strange contraption is that pigeons - acting as pilots - will sit inside a nosecone that fits into the head of a missile- but how wi...
Feb 23, 2023•43 min
Among the salvaged items that make up the surreal playground of St. Louis, Missouri's, City Museum, is a 3-foot tall copper cross. Where did it once rest? And what notorious paranormal event took place beneath its shadows? Louisiana's Abita Mystery House, holds some of the state's most peculiar artifacts...including the molding of a bizarre footprint, one man claims is the mark of a strange bayou beast. So, what creature is reported to have made this impression? Of the all the fascinating spy ga...
Feb 16, 2023•43 min
At Bright's Pioneer Exhibit in Le Grand, California is an ordinary yellow schoolbus that became ensnared in a crime so heinous that it would devastate an entire community. So what notorious felony was committed on board this vehicle? The Texas City Museum in Texas City, Texas houses a ball of sisal twine that bore witness to one of the worst industrial accidents in American history. What was this disaster? And what part did this simple object play in the catastrophic events of that day? Prominen...
Feb 09, 2023•43 min
Inside a small museum dedicated to the history and legacy of law enforcement in Los Angeles, California, is a small, innocuous cardboardbox. It's filled with cards bearing names, locations, and other evidence related to a still-unsolved murder that gripped the nation in the middle of the last century. Does this box still contain any clues that could solve this sensational case? Among the grotesque anatomical oddities and strange medical tools at the International Museum of Surgical Science in Ch...
Feb 02, 2023•43 min
Stored in a glass jar at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, CA is a strange cluster of preserved sea creatures that may unlock a mystery linked to the master of suspense himself, Alfred Hitchcok. But how exactly did these tiny organisms help spawn one of the scariest horror films of all time? The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. houses one of the most viewed objects in the world - the Hope Diamond. But this spectacular jewel is b...
Jan 26, 2023•43 min
Carefully preserved at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Maryland is a lock of hair belonging to one of America's most celebrated authors - Edgar Allan Poe. What insight do these brown strands provide into his bizarre and tragic death? At the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center in Hutchinson, Kansas is a capsule that flew into space before sinking to the bottom of the ocean, almost taking an astronaut with it. How did it happen? The Harbor History Museum in Washington State possesses a ...
Jan 19, 2023•43 min
Inside a small museum of turn-of-the-century electrical oddities in West Palm Beach, Florida is a small shattered glass photographic negative. It's the only surviving evidence of a strange machine that harnessed an unknown power source to potentially replace steam and electricity. What's the real story behind this motor? Among the classic cars and historic automobiles at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan is a specially modified Lincoln Continental limousine. What role did this armored ...
Jan 12, 2023•43 min
Conspicuous among the quintessentially American items on display at the Pennyroyal Area Museum in Kentucky is a collection of sketches that depict frightening creatures, decidedly out of this world. What are they? Encased at the Ford's Theatre Museum in Washington, D.C. is a seemingly primitive weapon - brass knuckles. Which celebrated president was this piece of metal carried to protect? At Old Fort Niagara in Youngstown, New York is a powder magazine that was used as a makeshift prison by a se...
Jan 05, 2023•43 min
Parked inside the Boston Fire Museum in Boston, Massachusetts is an antique steam engine. It was once called upon to battle a devastating event that no firefighter had ever trained for. So what was this bizarre and deadly disaster? The Northwest Museum of Legends and Lore in Seattle, Washington is home to an oddly life-like wax sculpture -- modeled after the man who committed what may be the most notorious airplane hijacking in U.S. history. Who was this criminal? And how did he get away with hi...
Dec 29, 2022•43 min
Preserved on a glass microscope slide at Michigan State University's Forensic Science department is a small sample of skin, the key piece of evidence, from an infamous 20th century homicide. Whose tissue is it...and who was responsible for their murder? In the archives of California's San Diego Natural History Museum is a collection of 52 birds, all victims of a mysterious epidemic. What killed these creatures? The Sharpsteen Museum in Calistoga, California houses a simple black cooking pot carr...
Dec 22, 2022•43 min
Locked in a glass case at the FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. is a shabby brown chauffeur's cap. It was left at the scene of one of the most notorious heists in U.S. history. Who wore this hat, and was he ever caught? Among the weapons and military gear at the 4th Infantry Division Museum in Fort Carson, Colorado sits a block of polystyrene foam. What role did this humble relic play in one of the biggest manhunts in American military history? The Madison Valley History Museum in Ennis, Mont...
Dec 15, 2022•43 min
Host Don Wildman examines an automobile designed to take to the skies. He inspects a circular saw that was transformed into a deadly weapon and wielded in a terrifying prison riot. And he investigates a fire that decimated Coney Island's most extravagant amusement park. For even more Mysteries at the Museum, head to discovery+. Go to discoveryplus.com/mystery to start your 7-day free trial today. Terms apply. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Dec 08, 2022•43 min
The Pennsylvania State Police Museum is home to a lottery ticket inscribed with the sinister digits 6-6-6. What role did this ticket play in a state lotto-fixing scam? Among the weapons of war at the National Navy UDT SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida is one item that's designed to save lives. It's a giant orange lifeboat, and stenciled on it is the name, "Maersk Alabama." What role did this vessel play in one of the most harrowing hijackings in recent memory? In the archives of Florida's Hist...
Dec 01, 2022•43 min
On display at the Centers for Disease Control Museum in Atlanta is a seemingly simple cardboard box. Once, its contents were tied to a deadly outbreak that left the nation paralyzed with fear. So what exactly did this box carry? Among the glitzy treasures at the Hollywood Museum in California is one item that looks decidedly ordinary. It's a small plastic pill bottle, and on its faded label is the name, Marilyn Monroe. What does this bottle have to do with the icon's untimely death? The Warren L...
Nov 24, 2022•43 min
At the Carbon County Museum in Wyoming is a pair of men's Oxford shoes. What role did they play in one of the most gruesome tales of the Wild West? The National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio is home to one object that cannot fly: a miniature spacesuit. What happened to the unconventional space pioneer who wore it? In the archives of The Museum of the Confederacy in Virginia is a coded wartime message, found inside a glass bottle. What does this message in a bottle say, and who wrote...
Nov 17, 2022•43 min
On display at the Oakland Museum of California is the marble statue of a girl who was once named the most beautiful woman in the state. What happened to her, and how did her crowning achievement also lead to her downfall? The Oregon Historical Society is home to an ordinary-looking tire cover that boasts a very unusual printed message. What warning does it provide against a power-hungry religious cult? A massive steel robot sits in the State Museum of Pennsylvania. What role did it play in the w...
Nov 10, 2022•43 min
Host Don Wildman examines what appears to be a miniature human head, brought back from the jungles of South America. In the pages of a handwritten journal, he discovers the harrowing details of an Arctic expedition that ended in disaster. He surveys the dented casing of the hydrogen bomb that sat at the center of a horrifying nuclear accident. For even more Mysteries at the Museum, head to discovery+. Go to discoveryplus.com/mystery to start your 7-day free trial today. Terms apply. Hosted on Ac...
Nov 03, 2022•43 min
In the collection of the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC, is a standard-issue US Postal Service mailbox. It's tied to one of the biggest spy cases of the Cold War. But how did something so ordinary become a tool of deception? The LaPorte County Historical Society Museum in Indiana is home to an antique wheelbarrow. This battered piece of farm equipment wasn't used to work the land - but to carry out a gruesome crime spree. What grisly secret does it hold? The monstrous head preserved ...
Oct 27, 2022•43 min
In the collection of the Chicago Maritime Museum is a life jacket from the SS Eastland. In 1915, the steamship suddenly capsizes in the Chicago River, killing hundreds. But during the catastrophe, the Eastland is still tied to the dock. What causes this deadly disaster? Four stone slabs carved with cryptic symbols are on display at the Superstition Mountain Museum in Apache Junction, AZ. Some believe the markings are actually a map that leads to a legendary gold mine in the rugged mountains of A...
Oct 20, 2022•43 min
In the collection of the Drug Enforcement Agency Museum in Arlington, Virginia, is a dossier of black and white photographs. It comes from the files of the police officers who brought down a powerful drug syndicate known as the French Connection. How did they do it? A gold ingot is on display at the Museum of American Finance in New York. How did it end up on the bottom of the ocean, and how was it recovered? A dusty metal plate lies in the vaults of the Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas. It's ...
Oct 13, 2022•43 min
On display at the University of Akron's Center for the History of Psychology is a simple khaki uniform. It played a pivotal role in one of the most controversial science experiments ever conducted. But did a costume really bring out the worst in a group of volunteers? The story of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid - and how they died in a South American shootout -- is one of the most enduring tales of the Wild West. But is it true? The answer may lie in a 200-page manuscript at the American Her...
Oct 06, 2022•43 min
Locked inside a glass case at the Warren's Occult Museum in Connecticut is what may be its most sinister artifact: a rag doll named Annabelle. The museum's curators say it's linked to a visitor's sudden death. But what is the real story behind this devilish doll? A long-forgotten blueprint is stored in the archives of the Minnesota History Center. Does this 40-year-old plan hold the key to the apocalyptic collapse of the I-35W Bridge? And a leather-bound journal on display at the Nantucket Whali...
Sep 29, 2022•43 min
The Mutter Museum in Philadelphia PA is home to the Death Cast of Change and Eng, the original Siamese twins. These celebrated brothers desperately wanted to live apart. But would a surgery to separate them cut their lives short? A simple black umbrella is on display at the International Spy Museum in Washington DC. What role did this object play in the bizarre assassination of a BBC journalist? During his sentence at Eastern State Penitentiary, mobster Al Capone suffered unstoppable bouts of an...
Sep 22, 2022•43 min
This episode was narrated by Jay Thomas. The chance discovery of an old letter buried in Yale University's archives for nearly a century threatens to expose a heinous crime allegedly committed by members of Skull and Bones, America's most powerful secret society. In Seattle's Museum of History and Industry one surprising artifact, a 120 year-old pot, utterly transformed Seattle forever. At New York City's The Intrepid Sea, Air, & Space Museum these are 4 mysterious objects. At first glance, ...
Sep 15, 2022•43 min
This episode was narrated by Jay Thomas. No news story has been bigger than the attacks of September 11, 2001. But 9/11 wasn't the first time that an airplane flew into a New York City skyscraper. Within the Museum of the City of New York one artifact tells the incredible story of a US B-25 crashing into the Empire State Building on July 28,1945. The Thomas Flyer automobile and George Shuster win the world’s first round the world automobile race. The 1908 NY to Paris race proved to be more than ...
Sep 08, 2022•42 min
This episode was narrated by Jay Thomas. Secured in the archives of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia is one of the first electronic instruments ever made. But this piece of outdated technology is more than just a footnote in musical history. How did this bizarre instrument play a part in triggering one of the biggest spy scandals of the century? At the Detroit Science Center, 36 bodies arranged in a chilling display are mysteriously preserved - and they aren't the carefully prepared bodies...
Sep 01, 2022•43 min
