In the last twenty-five years, ghost hunting has entered something of a golden age, with all sorts of technology playing its part and filling up an investigators kit bag. Cameras, EMF metres, InfraRed thermometers and spirit boxes all help to carve a science out of a difficult premise, with differing levels of credibility. In the early 1800s, things were a little bit different. It was a simpler time. All you needed back then was a stiff drink, or maybe two, and a loaded revolver, because as we all know, if you want to catch a ghost, you need to shoot it first. All well and good, provided the ghost you shoot isn’t just a man in his work overalls.

SOURCES

Old Bailey Proceedings Online (1804) Trial of FRANCIS SMITH (t18040111-79). Available at: https://www.oldbaileyonline.org/record/t18040111-79.

Kirby, R.S. (1804) Kirby’s Wonderful & Scientific Museum. Barnard & Sultzer, London, UK.

Taylor, Joseph (1815) Apparitions; Or, The Meaning of Ghosts, Hobgoblins & Haunted Houses, Developed. Macdonald & Son, London, UK.

Waters, Thomas. (2015) Magic and the British Middle Classes, 1750–1900. Journal of British Studies, vol. 54, no. 3, 2015, pp. 632–53.

Mitchell, Valentine (1926) The Newgate Calendar. Garden City Publishing CO. NY, USA.

The Star (1804) Coroner’s Inquests. The Star, Fri 06 Jan 1804, p4. London, UK.

The Star (1804) The Hammersmith Ghost. The Star, Mon 09 Jan 1804, p2. London, UK.

Morning Post (1804) The Ghost of Hammersmith. Morning Post, Fri 06 Jan 1804, p3. London, UK.

Kentish Gazette (1804) The Real Hammersmith Ghost. Kentish Gazette, Fri 13 Jan 1804, p3. London, UK.

Johnson’s Sunday Monitor (1804) Hammersmith Ghost. Johnson’s Sunday Monitor, Sun 15 Jan 1804, p3. London, UK.

Illustrated Police News (1937) Ghost Shot Dead In Village Cemetery. Illustrated Police News, Thurs 04 March 1937, p1. London, UK.

For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com

Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories

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The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye

Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017

Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.

In the first half of the 19th century, there was a single murder that, having ensnared the English countryside in a web of scandal, permeated throughout society and popular culture for decades after its conclusion. Having all the elements of a story written as a gothic thriller, theso-named Red Barn murder sparked a year-long mystery, culminating in a revelation that exposed a history of darkness, hidden beneath a façade of respectability that shocked the nation to its core. SOURCES

Harley, Laurence (1988) The Church And Parish of Polstead, Suffolk. BGA Print, Suffolk, UK.

McCorristine, Shane (2014) William Corder & The Red Barn Murder: Journeys of the Criminal Body. Palgrave Macmillan, Hampshire, UK.

Maggs, Peter (2015) Murder in the Red Barn: The Tragic Story of Maria Martin and William Corder. Mirli Books Ltd. Essex, UK.

Foster, George (1828) An Accurate Account of the Trial of William Corder. George Foster, London, UK.

Gibbs, Dorothy & Maltby, Herbert (1949) The True Story of Maria Marten. East Anglian Magazine, UK.

Morning Chronicle (1828) Horrible Murder. Morning Chronicle, Thurs 24 April 1828, p3. London, UK.

Morning Chronicle (1828) The Mysterious Murder. Morning Chronicle, Sat 26 April 1828, p3. London, UK.

Morning Chronicle (1828) Murder At Polstead. Morning Chronicle, Mon 28 April 1828, p3. London, UK.

For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com

Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories

The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: http://author.to/darkhistories

Dark Histories merch is available here: https://bit.ly/3GChjk9

Connect with us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/darkhistoriespodcast

Or find us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/darkhistories

& Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dark_histories/

Or you can contact us directly via email at contact@darkhistories.com

or join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/cmGcBFf

The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye

Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017

Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.

Following the first world war, Germany, having never found its feet economically throughout the conflict, now found itself crumbling under the further weight of heavy reparations. Many of those that had survived the fighting found themselves in a desperate state, carrying out all sorts of underground, legally dubious, or just straight up illegal activities, in order to get by. There were some that thrived in the lawless environment, profiteering from others misfortune, and then there were others, a very select few, who not only thrived, but positively excelled at breaking the law, and amongst those, there were one or two who did so in some very dark ways. Friedrich Haarmann was one such individual. Trading used clothing by day, he carried out a series of brutal murders that would earn him the monikers of “The Butcher of Hanover,” “The Wolf Man,” and “The Vampire of Hanover.” Perhaps even more frightening than his nicknames, was the attitude of the man himself, who once told a shocked audience, “Oh believe me, I’m not ill, it’s only that I occasionally have funny turns.”

SOURCES

Theodor, Lessing (1925) Monsters of Weimar. Haarmann - The Story of a Werewolf. Nemesis Books, London, UK.

Daily News (1924) Behead Me! Vampire Slayer Cries, Raving, Tossing In Cell. Daily News, Sun 13 July 1924, p36. NY, USA

The Muncie Morning Star (1925) Germany To Behead Both Murderers. The Muncie Morning Star, Fri 6 Feb 1925, p1. IN, USA.

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For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com

Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories

The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: http://author.to/darkhistories

Dark Histories merch is available here: https://bit.ly/3GChjk9

Connect with us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/darkhistoriespodcast

Or find us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/darkhistories

& Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dark_histories/

Or you can contact us directly via email at contact@darkhistories.com

or join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/cmGcBFf

The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye

Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017

Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that.