Unearthing the forgotten, the mysterious, and the legendary—one Southern story at a time. Hosted by Shannon Ballard, Southern Mysteries explores the rich and often untold history of the American South through a captivating mix of folklore, legends, unexplained mysteries, and true crime. Each episode uncovers a compelling tale from a Southern state, blending history with intrigue to reveal the fascinating stories that time left behind. While some episodes delve into chilling crimes, others spotlight legendary figures, ghostly lore, or baffling events.Sometimes the mystery is: why haven’t you heard the story?
Episodes
Monday Oct 27, 2025
Monday Oct 27, 2025
Across the South, the word witch has been used to explain what people fear and cannot control. For generations, healers, midwives, conjurers and root workers carried knowledge their communities needed, yet often faced suspicion when tragedy struck. In this episode of Southern Mysteries, we explore the real lives and southern legends behind those branded as witches. From colonial courts to mountain cabins and coastal swamps, these stories reveal how the line between healing and haunting has always been thin and how fear can turn ordinary people into figures of folklore.
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Episode Sources
- Anderson, Jeffery E. Conjure in African American Society. Louisiana State University Press, 2005.
- American Folklife Center, Library of Congress — regional oral history collections on conjure, hoodoo, and midwifery.
- Anniston Hot Blast and Birmingham Age-Herald (Alabama newspapers), 1880s witchcraft coverage.
- Deep South Magazine. “Julia ‘Aunt Julie’ Brown: Debunking Her Voodoo Priestess Mythos.”
- Encyclopedia of Louisiana. “Marie Laveau.” Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.
- Encyclopedia Virginia. “Sherwood, Grace (ca. 1660–1740).”
- Federal Writers’ Project. South Carolina Slave Narratives. Library of Congress, 1938.
- Ferry Plantation House Museum archives, Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Fett, Sharla M. Working Cures: Healing, Health, and Power on Southern Slave Plantations. University of North Carolina Press, 2002. - Foxfire 2: Houses and Appalachian Traditions. Edited by Eliot Wigginton. Anchor Books, 1973.
- Historic New Orleans Collection. “Julia Brown: Hoodoo, Hurricanes, and a Storm-Swamped Ruddock.”
- L’Observateur (St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana). “Voodoo Queen and Forces Unseen.”
- Library of Virginia. “The Case of Grace Sherwood, 1706.” Princess Anne County Court Records.
- Louisiana State Museum archives, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, New Orleans, Louisiana.
- Long, Carolyn Morrow. A New Orleans Voudou Priestess: The Legend and Reality of Marie Laveau. University Press of Florida, 2006.
- Martha Ward. Voodoo Queen: The Spirited Lives of Marie Laveau. University Press of Mississippi, 2004.
- McTeer, J.E. Fifty Years as a Low Country Witch Doctor. University of South Carolina Press, 1971.
- Mental Floss. “The Legend and Truth of the Voodoo Priestess Who Haunts a Louisiana Swamp.”
- Milnes, Gerald. Signs, Cures, and Witchery: German Appalachian Folklore. University of Tennessee Press, 2007.
- National Park Service. “Marie Laveau’s Tomb – St. Louis Cemetery No. 1.”
- Norton, Mary Beth. In the Devil’s Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692. Vintage Books, 2003.
- Princess Anne County Order Book, 1695–1709. Virginia State Library microfilm collection.
- Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. “Granny Women: Healers of the Southern Appalachians.”
- South Carolina Encyclopedia. “Dr. Buzzard.”
- South Magazine. “Lowcountry Root Doctors.”
- The State (Columbia, South Carolina). “In the mid-20th century, even the county sheriff was a witch doctor.”
- Swannanoa Valley Museum. “Mary Stepp Burnette Hayden: Midwife and Healer of Western North Carolina.”
- The St. John the Baptist Pioneer, October 1915, hurricane coverage.
- The Times-Picayune (New Orleans), October 1–3, 1915, storm and casualty reports; obituary, June 17, 1881.
- Virginia Memory, Library of Virginia. “Good Witch or Bad Witch? The Grace Sherwood Trial and Pardon.”
- Ward, Martha. Voodoo Queen: The Spirited Lives of Marie Laveau. University Press of Mississippi, 2004.
- Western Carolina University Digital Humanities Project. “Midwives and the Medicalization of Birth in Appalachia.”
- Wikipedia (used for verification of geography and storm data): “Frenier, Louisiana” and “1915 New Orleans Hurricane.”
- Wigginton, Eliot, ed. Foxfire 2: Houses and Appalachian Traditions. Anchor Books, 1973.
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Oct 20, 2025
Monday Oct 20, 2025
In 1872, the quiet Georgia town of Surrency became the center of one of America’s strangest mysteries. Inside the home of Allen Powell Surrency, glass shattered, clocks ran backward, and furniture moved without a hand touching it. The events drew scientists, skeptics, and spiritualists, including one from Salem, Massachusetts. Was it a hoax, hysteria, or something that defied explanation? In this episode of Southern Mysteries, uncover the story of the Surrency family and the haunting that shook a town, blurred the line between faith and fear, and became one of the most documented poltergeist cases in U.S. history.
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Episode Sources
- The Savannah Morning News (Oct–Dec 1872) – Coverage of the Surrency disturbances
- The Atlanta Constitution (Nov 1872–Jan 1873) – Reports on the “Surrency Mystery”
- The Augusta Chronicle (Oct 1872) – Editorial accounts of the Surrency haunting
- The New York Times (Dec 4 1872) – “Spiritual Manifestations in Georgia”
- The Albany Patriot – Reprinted witness letters and commentary, 1872
- The Philadelphia Inquirer (1872–1873) – Syndicated reports on the haunting
- Harper’s Weekly (1873) – “Poltergeists and the Marvels of Surrency”
- John W. Truesdell, The Bottom Facts Concerning the Science of Spiritualism (1873)
- The Boston Globe (1872–1873) – Reports on Charles H. Foster
- Georgia Historical Quarterly Vol. 47 (1963) – “The Surrency Ghost: A Georgia Poltergeist Reexamined”
- The Georgia Encyclopedia – Entry on Surrency, Appling County
- Alan Brown, Haunted Georgia: Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Peach State (2008)
- Charles Elliott, Strange Tales of the South: Haunted Houses and Ghost Legends (1974)
- Dennis William Hauck, Haunted Places: The National Directory (2002)
- Jim Miles, Haunted South Georgia (2017)
- J. Michael Norman, Spirits of the Southeast (2010)
- Rosemary Ellen Guiley, The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits, 3rd Ed. (2007)
- Tiya Miles, Phantoms of the Past: The American South and the Supernatural (2021)
- Alan Gauld & A.D. Cornell, Psychical Research and the Poltergeist (1979)
- Michael Norman & Beth Scott, Haunted America (1988)
- Nancy Roberts, Haunted Houses: Tales from the American South (1972)
- Jim Miles, Haunted Georgia: Ghosts and Legends of the Peach State (2010)
- Randy Russell & Janet Barnett, Spirits of the South: Ghost Stories of Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi (2000)
- Alan Dundes, Dictionary of American Folklore (1993)
- William G. Roll, The Poltergeist Phenomenon (2012)
- Nancy Roberts, Haunted Houses: Where Ghosts Still Roam (1979)
- Kathryn Tucker Windham, Southern Spirits: Tales of the Supernatural from the Deep South (1983)
- Ann Braude, The American Spiritualist Movement, 1848–1920 (2001)
- Muriel V. Murphree, Mysteries and Legends of Georgia (2009)
- Georgia Public Broadcasting (2021) – “The Surrency Poltergeist: Georgia’s Most Documented Haunting”
- Georgia Archives – Appling County records and land grants, Allen P. Surrency estate (1870s–1880s)
- U.S. Census Records – Appling County, Georgia (1870–1880)
- Library of Congress Chronicling America – Digitized newspaper archives, 1872–1873
- Frank Podmore, The Poltergeist in History (1896)
- American Hauntings Podcast, Season 4, Episode 14 – “The Surrency Ghost”
- Beast of Bladenboro – “The Surrency Haunting: Georgia’s Most Infamous Poltergeist”
- Otherworldly Oracle – “The Surrency Ghosts: True Terrifying Tales of Haunted Georgia”
- PANICd.com – “ParaPedia: The Surrency Family Poltergeist”
- US Ghost Adventures – “The Poltergeist of Phelps Mansion”
- Paranormal Research Society of New England – “Phelps Mansion”
- American Hauntings Ink – “The Stratford Poltergeist”
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Oct 13, 2025
Monday Oct 13, 2025
Across the South, battlefields and forts still bear the weight of the wars fought upon them. In this episode of Southern Mysteries, explore the haunting history of places like Shiloh, Franklin, Vicksburg, and Fort Morgan. From phantom soldiers and restless spirits to the families forever changed by the fighting, these are the stories where Southern history and haunting meet, and where the echoes of war still move through the land.
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Episode Sources
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs – Bivouac of the Dead poem and history
- Emerging Civil War – “Bivouacs of the Dead” and its legacy on battlefields
- Wikipedia – Theodore O’Hara biography and authorship of Bivouac of the Dead
- National Park Service – Shiloh National Military Park history and visitor resources
- American Battlefield Trust – Battle of Shiloh Overview
- National Park Service – Battle of Stones River history and maps
- Murfreesboro Historical Association – Legends of the Headless Horseman of Stones River
- Find a Grave / Military Memorials – Lt. Col. Julius Peter Garesché burial and biographical record
- National Park Service – Battle of Franklin: Carter House and Lotz House history
- Battle of Franklin Trust – Carnton Plantation and the McGavock Confederate Cemetery
- Tennessee Encyclopedia – Carrie McGavock, “Widow of the South”
- American Battlefield Trust – Battle of Franklin Overview
- National Park Service – Vicksburg National Military Park history
- National Park Service – The Shirley House and the Siege of Vicksburg
- Library of Congress – Civil War Diaries: Emma Balfour of Vicksburg
- American Battlefield Trust – Battle of Vicksburg Summary
- Encyclopedia of Alabama – Fort Morgan: History and Civil War significance
- Alabama Historical Commission – Fort Morgan Historic Site visitor and preservation info
- Legends of America – Ghosts of Fort Morgan, Alabama
- Alabama News Center – Fort Morgan’s haunted reputation and legends
- National Park Service – Fort Monroe National Monument history
- Encyclopedia Virginia – Fort Monroe during the Civil War and the “Contraband Decision”
- Fort Monroe Authority – Historic resources and preservation efforts
- American Battlefield Trust – Fort Monroe overview and historical context
- Virginia Department of Historic Resources – Fort Monroe National Historic Landmark documentation
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Oct 06, 2025
Monday Oct 06, 2025
Across the South, asylums were built with the promise of healing — but inside their walls, countless lives were marked by fear, neglect, and cruelty. In this episode of Southern Mysteries, explore the haunting history of institutions like Broughton Hospital, Cherry Hospital, Central State, and Bryce. From mysterious deaths and forced sterilizations to the tragedy of the Eller twins and the lifetime confinement of Junius Wilson, these are the real horrors that gave rise to Southern asylum ghost stories — and the suffering that still echoes through their halls.
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Episode Sources
- Associated Press coverage, April 1962 — “Twin Sisters Die Together in Asylum.”
- Winston-Salem Journal, April 1962 (coverage of coroner Dr. John C. Reece’s statements).
- Morganton News Herald, April 1971 coverage of Dr. Paul Douglas Boyles and Betty Cheek Yarborough.
- Associated Press regional wire, April 14–15, 1971.
- Find a Grave – Betty Jo Eller & Bobbie Jean Eller memorials.
- Southern Spirit Guide: “Ill Defined and Unknown Cause of Morbidity and Mortality.”
- Asheville Terrors: “Broughton Hospital.”
- Schoen, Johanna. Choice and Coercion: Birth Control, Sterilization, and Abortion in Public Health and Welfare. University of North Carolina Press, 2005.
- Segrest, Mab. Administrations of Lunacy: Racism and the Haunting of American Psychiatry at the Milledgeville Asylum. New Press, 2020.
- Pennsylvania Hospital Archives – Dr. Thomas Story Kirkbride papers.
- Grob, Gerald N. The Mad Among Us: A History of the Care of America’s Mentally Ill. Harvard University Press, 1994.
- Yanni, Carla. The Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States. University of Minnesota Press, 2007.
- “Central State Hospital Cemetery Restoration Project.” Georgia Department of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities.
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution archival coverage on Central State Hospital.
- The Crimson White (University of Alabama student paper):
- “The Hidden History Behind Bryce Hospital” (2023).
- “Bryce Uncovered: A Look at the Asylum’s Short-Lived Newspaper” (2017).
- “The Hidden History Behind Bryce Hospital” (2023).
- Wyatt v. Stickney, 325 F. Supp. 781 (M.D. Ala. 1971).
- Alabama Department of Mental Health archives.
- HauntedPlaces.org – “Bryce Hospital.”
- Ghost Hunts USA – “Bryce Hospital.”
- Ghost City Tours – “Central State Hospital.”
- US Ghost Adventures – “Central State Hospital.”
- UNC–Chapel Hill Southern Oral History Program — Junius Wilson case archives.
- News & Observer (Raleigh) coverage of Junius Wilson’s release and life, 1990s–2000s.
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Sep 29, 2025
Monday Sep 29, 2025
In 1891, fear and anger in New Orleans boiled over after the murder of Police Chief David Hennessy. Within months, eleven Italian immigrants were dead, their lives taken by a mob in one of the darkest and most violent moments in American history. In this episode of Southern Mysteries, we revisit the events that led to the tragedy
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Episode Sources
- New Orleans Public Library – Records of the Board of Police Commissioners, 1890–1891 (detailing Hennessy’s murder, police leadership changes, and subsequent arrests).
- Library of Congress – Historic photographs of New Orleans docks and immigrant labor, 1891.
- Smithsonian Magazine – “New Orleans Apologizes for 1891 Lynching of Italian Americans” (April 2019).
- History.com – “The Grisly Story of America’s Largest Lynching” (2019).
- American Italian Cultural Center, New Orleans – Archival material on Italian immigration and the 2019 mayoral apology.
- New Orleans Times-Democrat, October 1890–March 1891 coverage (contemporary reporting on Hennessy’s murder, the trial, and the mob attack).
- United States Department of State – Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, 1891 (diplomatic correspondence with Italy following the lynchings).
- Reimagining Migration – “The Lynching of Italian Immigrants” (educational resource on anti-immigrant violence).
- Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America (OSDIA) – The 1891 New Orleans Project (materials on commemoration and memorial efforts).
- John V. Baiamonte Jr. – “The Mafia and the 1891 New Orleans Lynching: The Question of Criminal Conspiracy” (Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association, Vol. 21, No. 3, 1980).
- Italian Sons and Daughters of America – “Our Darkest Hour: Anarchy, a Lynch Mob and 11 Souls Lost.”
- All That’s Interesting – “The Tragic Story of the 1891 New Orleans’ Lynchings of Italians.”
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Sep 15, 2025
Monday Sep 15, 2025
In June 1955, Judge Curtis Chillingworth and his wife Marjorie vanished from their Manalapan, Florida, beach cottage. There were haunting clues, but no bodies were ever found. Their disappearance exposed corruption in Florida’s courts and led to the downfall of a fellow judge. Curtis was known for integrity, Marjorie for her quiet strength — together, they became the heart of one of Florida’s most infamous true crime cases. Their story, and its unexpected ties to the legend of Trapper Nelson, remains one of Florida’s most haunting mysteries.
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Episode Sources
- Palm Beach Bar Association. Memorial Resolution for Judge Curtis E. Chillingworth. (1965) palmbeachbar.org
- Florida Memory. Justice Curtis E. Chillingworth Temporary Appointment Bio. floridamemory.com
- The Charley Project. Curtis Eugene Chillingworth Case File. charleyproject.org
- The Charley Project. Marjorie McKinley Chillingworth Case File. charleyproject.org
- Crime + Investigation UK. Judge Joe Peel and the Chillingworth Murders. crimeandinvestigation.co.uk
- The Coastal Star. Manalapan 60 Years On: Chillingworth Murders Still Shocking. thecoastalstar.com
- Mental Floss. What Happened to Judge Curtis Chillingworth? mentalfloss.com
- Town of Manalapan. History of Incorporation and Harold S. Vanderbilt. manalapan.org
- Wikipedia. Curtis Chillingworth. wikipedia.org/wiki/Curtis_Chillingworth
- Unlikely Friends — A municipal publication from Jupiter, FL, describing the unlikely friendship between Judge Curtis Chillingworth and Vincent “Trapper” Nelson.https://www.jupiter.fl.us/DocumentCenter/View/301/Judge-Chillingworth-Murder
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Sep 01, 2025
Monday Sep 01, 2025
In February 1922, a road crew in rural Copiah County, Mississippi, stumbled upon a horrifying scene—a woman’s charred remains hidden in a ravine known as Dark Hollow. For two days, her identity was a mystery. When a child's discovery of a burned key ring offered a name, the investigation quickly escalated into one of Mississippi’s most shocking murder cases of the 1920s.
This episode of Southern Mysteries unravels the tragic life and violent death of Ada Drury Converse. From a difficult upbringing and early motherhood to a string of marriages and financial success, Ada's life was marked by struggle—and, ultimately, betrayal.
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Episode Sources
- Feb 20, 1922 – Selma Woman Killed by Husband, Uncle Charges. The Selma Times-Journal, Page 1 – Newspapers.com
- Feb 23, 1922 – Sons of Mrs. Ada Drury Converse Held on Questioning of Death. The Montgomery Advertiser, Page 3 – Newspapers.com
- Feb 23, 1922 – Converse Held in Houston in Copiah Murder. Jackson Daily News, Page 1 – Newspapers.com
- Feb 26, 1922 – Mrs. Converse Wrote to Son Since Arrest. The Selma Times-Journal, Page 1 – Newspapers.com
- Mar 01, 1922 – Sheriff Confident Milton Drury Killed His Mother. The Selma Times-Journal, Page 1 – Newspapers.com
- May 13, 1922 – Milton Drury Please Guilty to Murder of Mother. The Montgomery Advertiser, Page 1 – Newspapers.com
- May 19, 1922 – Drury Says Pleaded Guilty to Avoid Hangman’s Noose The Winona Times, Page 1 – Newspapers.com
- Sep 15, 1933 – Infamous Copiah Murderer Once Again at Liberty. Clarion-Ledger, Page 1 – Newspapers.com
- Sep 20, 1933 – Normal People Won’t Waste Sympathy on this Convict. Clarion-Ledger, Page 6 – Newspapers.com
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Aug 18, 2025
Monday Aug 18, 2025
In 1957, Arkansas attorney Maud Crawford vanished from her home in Camden without a trace. Her disappearance became one of the state’s most enduring mysteries. This episode of Southern Mysteries examines Maud Crawford’s life, the corruption she uncovered, and the investigation that revealed what may have led to her disappearance.
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Episode Sources
- Maud Robinson Crawford – Encyclopedia of Arkansas
- Clyde Falwell Crawford (1894–1969) – Find a Grave Memorial
- Maud Robinson Crawford (1891-1957) - Find a Grave Memorial
- Maud R. Crawford (1891–1957) – Arkansas Women's Hall of Fame
- Maud Robinson Crawford – The Charley Project
- Cold Case, Southwest Arkansas: A Look at Two Unsolved Cases in the Region – [Arkansas True Crime Blog or Archive Source] “The Disappearance of Maud Crawford” – YouTube
- Small Town’s Biggest Secret: Author Says Arkansas Woman’s 1957 Disappearance Is Full of Corruption – KLRT FOX16
- The Disappearance of Maud Crawford. Beth Brickell. https://www.amazon.com/Disappearance-Maud-Crawford-Beth-Brickell/dp/1628909587
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Aug 04, 2025
Monday Aug 04, 2025
In the spring of 1955, the quiet community of Warren County, Tennessee was shattered by the brutal murders of the Bratcher family. Henry Bratcher, his wife Vassie, their young daughter Lily May, and toddler granddaughter Charlotte Ann were found dead on their family farm outside McMinnville. As the investigation unfolded, it became clear the killer was not a stranger. The case would become one of the most haunting crimes in Tennessee history. In this episode of Southern Mysteries, we explore the lives of the Bratcher family, the events that led to their deaths, and how their loss changed a community forever.
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Episode Sources
- Four Found Slain in Warren. The Nashville Tennessean, March 28, 1955.
- 4 Found Slain in Warren; Murder Suspect is Jailed. Chattanooga Daily Times, March 28, 1955.
- Young Tennessee Farmer Confesses Brutal Slayings. Bristol Herald Courier, March 29, 1955.
- Warren July Called in Death. The Nashville Tennessean. March 30, 1955.
- Gibbs Indicted in Warren Deaths. The Nashville Banner. April 2, 1955.
- Slayer of Four is Ordered to Asylum for Observation. Chattanooga Times, April 2, 1955.
- Trial on May 10 for Billy Gibbs. Chattanooga Times, May 3, 1955.
- Gibbs Blames Four Slayings on Drinking. Nashville Banner, May 25, 1955.
- Billy Gibbs Dies in Electric Chair, Confessed Slayer of 4 in Warren. Chattanooga Times, May 7, 1957
- Find A Grave. Henry Bratcher. Retrieved from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/33581745/henry-bratcher
- Find A Grave. Vassie Fields Bratcher. Retrieved from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/33581724/vassie-bratcher
- Find A Grave. Lily May Bratcher. Retrieved from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/33581700/lily_may-bratcher
- Find a Grave. Billy Thomas Gibbs. Retrieved from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/136592059/billy_thomas-gibbs
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.
Monday Jul 21, 2025
Monday Jul 21, 2025
In spring 1894, a courtroom became the stage for a scandal that gripped the nation. Kentucky Congressman William Breckinridge faced a lawsuit from Madeline Pollard, who claimed he promised to marry her after nearly ten years together, then broke that promise. The trial exposed a hidden affair, secret meetings, and disputed truths between a rising politician and a woman left behind. The scandal captivated newspapers, packed courtrooms, and reshaped public opinion about one of the South’s most prominent figures.
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Episode Sources
- “Sex, Scandal, and Suffrage in the Gilded Age.” The Historian: A Journal of History, vol. 42, no. 2, Feb. 1980, pp. 225-243.
Lexington, Fayette. The Celebrated Case of Col. W. C. P. Breckinridge and Madeline Pollard. Chicago: Current Events Publishing, 1894. - Ross, Shelley. Fall from Grace: Sex, Scandal, and Corruption in American Politics from 1702 to the Present. New York: Ballantine Books, 1988.
- “William Breckinridge Breach of Promise Trial, 1894.” Encyclopedia.com,
- “Madeline Pollard and the Gilded Age’s #MeToo Moment.” Wednesdays Women,
- “The Fall of Louise of Breckinridge.” StrangeCo, 13 Apr. 2017,
Episode Music
Out of the Mines, courtesy of Ross Gentry, Asheville, North Carolina.