Atop Fort Mountain, in the northwestern corner of Georgia, is an 885-foot-long rock wall that zigzags its way through the curves of the mountain. Though the ruins were constructed with stone from the surrounding region, the story behind it, when it was built, and by whom, remains a mystery. Theories arose to explain the structure’s origin, today most agree it was likely completed by Native people who lived in the area. But who were they? Legend says that a unique, ancient race of people once inh...
Apr 15, 2022•29 min•Ep. 77
On the west side of Kingsport, Tennessee is Rotherwood, an old antebellum mansion overlooking the spot where the two forks of the Holston river come together. Today this red brick structure is privately owned, but according to local lore, it is home to more than just the living. For the last half a century, stories have placed at least two spirits on the ground of Rotherwood Mansion. First is the beautiful “Lady in White,” Rowena Ross who is forever searching for her lost love who died before th...
Apr 01, 2022•41 min•Ep. 76
In 1878, a dredge crew working near the mouth of Bayou St. John in New Orleans uncovered a twenty-foot-long iron submarine. For years people thought the sub was the CSS Pioneer, the first of three submarines built by Horace Hunley, but in reality, the ship’s origin is still a mystery to this day. This week’s minisode, The Bayou St. John Submarine, is a companion to The Mystery of the Confederate Submarine H.L. Hunley released on February 7, 2022. Help Southern Gothic grow by becoming a Patreon S...
Feb 14, 2022•12 min•Ep. 75
“Sinkings of modern submarines always resulted in the discovery of the dead clustered near the exits in their desperate efforts to escape their cold metal coffins, because to sit silently and await one’s own demise simply defies human nature. The crew of the Hunley, however, looked quite different. Each man was still seated peacefully at his station.” - Rachel Lance, In the Waves On the night of February 17, 1864, an immense explosion took down the USS Housatonic, a massive warship that was part...
Feb 07, 2022•48 min•Ep. 74
On the last episode of Southern Gothic we explored Huntingdon College’s most iconic haunting, The Red Lady of Huntingdon College; but this week, we head back down to Montgomery, Alabama to explore one of the campus’s lesser-known “spooks”– Frank the Library Ghost. 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: @Sou...
Jan 24, 2022•7 min•Ep. 73
“Nearly all colleges have ghosts, legends that have grown up around some supernatural occurrences generations of students tell to each other [...] but the finest of those ghost stories, those college ghost stories, is told here at Huntingdon College in Montgomery.” - Kathryn Tucker Windham, 1918 - 2011 Huntingdon College of Montgomery, Alabama regularly makes the lists of ‘most haunted’ universities in America as generations of students have claimed the ghost of a young woman haunts the fourth f...
Jan 17, 2022•32 min•Ep. 72
In this Southern Gothic: Minisode we return to Williamsburg, Virginia to explore the most haunted residence in the four-century-old colonial town-- the Peyton Randolph House. 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 G...
Nov 22, 2021•12 min•Ep. 71
When construction began on the Williamsburg Gaol it was never intended to house those who were deemed as significantly dangerous, like murderers or pirates. Instead it was meant for largely non violent offenders, such as debtors, thieves, the mentally ill and enslaved people who were caught after fleeing their captors... but good intentions pale in comparison to reality, leaving many to believe that today the Williamsburg Public Gaol is one of the most haunted places in one of America's oldest c...
Oct 18, 2021•27 min•Ep. 70
In 1837 Godfrey Barnsley purchased 3,645 acres of land that had recently been acquired from the Cherokee people in the coercive Treaty of New Echota and opened up for settlement by force. But Barnsley was not concerned and planned to build an extravagant mansion for his wife and family on what legend claims was the sacred ground for generations of Cherokee– a tragic mistake that led to a series of unfortunate events for the Barnsley family. Be sure to check out our all-new podcast Ghost To...
Aug 23, 2021•27 min•Ep. 69
“Blood Seeped Under the Door, Down the Steps, and into the Street…” On the corner of Orleans Avenue and Dauphine Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans is a stately three and a half-story mansion that is said to be the site of a massacre so significant that blood flowed from the building and into the street. It is the tale of a mysterious Turkish gentleman, perhaps even the brother of a Sultan, who arrived in New Orleans, threw wild parties, and was then viciously murdered. But is this stor...
Aug 02, 2021•33 min•Ep. 68
Built in 1881, Sloss Furnaces was the first of many blast furnaces in Birmingham, Alabama to manufacture pig iron. The furnaces aided in catalyzing an Industrial Revolution in the postwar south. It was in Alabama, that the iron industry took off, providing the rest of the country with the material necessary to build everything from country bridges to the first skyscrapers. But this lucrative new economy came at a high cost to the men who toiled to keep the furnace fed. A majority of furnaces wor...
Jul 12, 2021•26 min•Ep. 67
LOST TO TIME AND THE SHIFTING CURRENTS OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER… It was in 1828 that the town of Rodney, Mississippi was formally incorporated. Located near the Mississippi River, the town would grow to become an essential port for steamboats traveling up and down the river. Rodney became known as a bustling town and thriving entertainment center, even building the state’s first opera house. The city survived a devastating yellow fever epidemic and was occupied by Federal forces during the Civil...
Jul 02, 2021•28 min•Ep. 66
In 1891 Octavia Hatcher was twenty years-old. She was married to the most successful businessmen in the state of Kentucky and was awaiting the birth of her first child. There should have been nothing but excitement and hope in a bright future for the family, but that was not to be. After the devastating loss of her child, Octavia became despondent, eventually becoming bedridden. She was pronounced dead on May 2, 1891. Yet just days later, an odd sleeping sickness struck the town, during which th...
Jun 14, 2021•26 min•Ep. 65
Enter our April T-shirt Giveaway by signing up for our newsletter at SouthernGothicMedia.com In October 1872, a small Georgia community was bursting with visitors and curiosity seekers in an attempt to discover the truth behind mysterious happenings at the family home of Allen Powell Surrency. In what many consider to be one of the most documented ghost story in American history, the Surrency family home seemingly became the epicenter of a destructive entity. From the benign—doors slammed open a...
Apr 23, 2021•35 min•Ep. 64
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 purporte...
Apr 02, 2021•27 min•Ep. 63
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...
Mar 05, 2021•22 min•Ep. 62
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 Mar...
Feb 19, 2021•30 min•Ep. 61
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 ca...
Jan 29, 2021•36 min•Ep. 60
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. Félic...
Jan 15, 2021•30 min•Ep. 59
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 tha...
Dec 09, 2020•24 min•Ep. 58
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 sanato...
Nov 26, 2020•31 min•Ep. 57
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: @SouthernGothicMedi...
Oct 31, 2020•36 min•Ep. 56
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 L...
Sep 29, 2020•40 min•Ep. 55
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, ...
Sep 17, 2020•27 min•Ep. 54
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.co...
Sep 03, 2020•24 min•Ep. 53
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/me...
Aug 07, 2020•24 min•Ep. 52
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 Resour...
Jul 09, 2020•37 min•Ep. 51
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 Gilber...
Jun 25, 2020•25 min•Ep. 50
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: @SouthernGo...
Jun 10, 2020•21 min•Ep. 49
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...
May 21, 2020•26 min•Ep. 48
