In 58 BCE, Julius Caesar marched on northern Europe to conquer the Celtic tribes. Between battles, he wrote of the druids’ horrific human sacrifices: entrapping victims in giant wooden structures and setting them ablaze. Were his accounts an accurate depiction of ritual murders? Or are the wicker men little more than anti-Pagan propaganda? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The tragedy — and the mystery — led people to look for answers anywhere they could: George Sodder’s shaded past in Italy, child trafficking trends, and even spontaneous human combustion. But the real explanation for the children’s disappearance might have to do with the house itself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In the aftermath of the fire, a startling number of tips, twists, and witnesses came forward regarding the fate of the Sodder children. Their father, George, followed the clues for decades, driven by a suspicion of the “official” story and a belief that the blaze was no accident. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Early Christmas day in 1945, Jennie Sodder woke up to her house on fire. The blaze consumed her home, and five of her children. Or did it? A series of strange events before, during and after the incident leave room for more nefarious — though no less tragic — possibilities. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
More than 70 years after the so-called Mad Gasser struck, historians are no closer to identifying a culprit. Some even propose that the victims imagined the attacks. But a pattern of similar gassings suggest the perpetrator might have been active for decades. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In the summer of 1944, the citizens of Mattoon, Illinois suffered a series of baffling attacks that left them nauseated and temporarily paralyzed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Over the past decade, thousands of people have realized their memories don't quite match history. Though these false recollections are usually insignificant, perhaps they point to someone making changes to space, time, or even the fabric of our reality… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In 2009, paranormal investigator Fiona Broome realized something odd: She had a memory of watching Nelson Mandela's funeral in the 1980s. The only problem? He was still alive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Geoscientist Andrés Ruzo traveled to the legendary Boiling River in 2011, determined to find the source of its incredible heat. His first theory: a massive underground volcano. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Hidden deep in the Peruvian Amazon, there supposedly lies a mythical, superheated river. While it's rumored to have healing properties and be protected by spirits, it will boil alive anything that falls into it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How did the soothsayer arrive at such uncannily accurate prophecies? The answer lies in both how he divined our futures, and why. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
He was a 16th century doctor, apothecary, and seer whose prophecies, published in 1555, still hold resonance today. Did Nostradamus foresee Hitler's rise in Germany, the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and the COVID-19 pandemic? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
With no official explanation of the alleged UFO encounters, ufologists and skeptics alike tried to construct the most likely scenario. Among their theories: astrological events, a patrol car prank, a nearby lighthouse… and time-traveling humans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In December 1980, American soldiers stationed in eastern England encountered flashing lights, irradiated trees, and impossible flight technology. And despite numerous eyewitness accounts, U.S. and U.K. authorities dismissed the bizarre events as rumor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Although they represent immense destruction, a supermassive black hole lies at the center of every galaxy in the known universe. Could these fearsome maws hold the key to life? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
For decades, researchers refused to believe they existed — inescapable pits of darkness so powerful, even light could be caught up in their gravitational pull. But in 1964, an astronomer proved the unthinkable: black holes are real. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In 2013, an L.A. hotel employee discovered the body of college student Elisa Lam decomposing in the building’s water tank. The only clue as to what happened was a bizarre CCTV recording from the date of her disappearance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In February 1983, an inmate on bereavement leave experienced something incredible: the spirit of an old man taunting him and scratching his arms. Just as Don Decker began to believe his deceased grandfather's spirit was haunting him, it began to rain indoors... and upwards. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Rare artifact, or possessed toy? Robert the Doll is a life-size figurine with a penchant for pulling hijinks. In 1996, he attracted the attention of a paranormal expert, who became determined to track down the source of Robert’s power. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In September 1991, a couple of hikers discovered the world's oldest naturally preserved mummy near Similaun Mountain. The mummy was a boon to researchers… But did their study awaken a deadly curse? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In December 2002, police responded to a call about a vehicle that had just swerved off a highway in Surrey, England. But when authorities arrived at the scene, they discovered a rusted car and a body that had undergone months of decomposition. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In February 2004, eBay user “spasmolytic” listed an antique wine cabinet for sale. According to the posting, he and the box's previous owners believed it was inhabited by a dark spirit from Jewish tradition called a Dybbuk. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
After the state took LaToya Ammons' children away, she turned to the church for help. She obtained an exorcism for herself and her young son, ending the haunting saga of the Ammons family—but not after enduring the bewilderment and trauma of occult occurrences. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In November 2011, LaToya Ammons and her family moved into a new house in Gary, Indiana. In the months that followed, she and her children were tortured, possessed, and tormented by over 200 demons. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
This urban legend tells of a maniac who ran amok in the forests of Fairfax County, Virginia. His infamous name is said to derive from his propensity to eat live rabbits and leave their mutilated corpses displayed on an overpass known as Bunny Man Bridge. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sometime in the 18th century, the island of Bermeja seemingly disappeared off maps and from the sea. Then, in the 1990s, the phantom island became the center of a tumultuous dispute between the United States and Mexico. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In 1977, a radio telescope at The Ohio State University received an extraordinarily strong signal from outer space. Scientists have suggested it might have been sent by aliens. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
On March 3rd, 1876, farmer and housewife Mary Crouch witnessed a bizarre weather anomaly: pounds of raw meat raining down across her farm in Bath County, Kentucky. Almost 150 years later, we're still trying to figure out what caused the flurry of flesh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
On January 26, 1972, Serbian flight attendant Vesna Vulović survived a 33,000-foot fall after her plane was bombed by terrorists. It's the highest recorded fall without a parachute, but even Vesna herself doesn't know how she lived through it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Between 1942 and 1976, lightning reportedly struck Virginia Park Ranger Roy Sullivan seven times. If you think that sounds crazy, just wait for how he handled 22 encounters with wild bears. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
