In the summer of 1518, a woman stepped into a Strasbourg street and started dancing. This is the story of the dancing plague, the strangest outbreak in medieval history.

She did not stop. Not that day, not the next. Within weeks the streets were full of people dancing day and night, their feet bleeding and their bodies giving out, and no one could say why. The woman history calls Frau Troffea became the face of a mystery no one has solved.

The city's physicians blamed overheated blood. The council built stages and hired musicians, prescribing more dancing as the cure. The priests called it the curse of Saint Vitus, the saint whose name gave St. Vitus's Dance to history. Later centuries blamed poisoned bread, mass hysteria, and religious frenzy.

But the city records tell a stranger story than any of the theories. And the woman who started it all may never have existed.

Join host Amanda Joy on Down the Crooked Path for the full story of the 1518 dancing plague.Connect with the show: Instagram and TikTok @downthecrookedpath. New episodes every Thursday.

This week's sponsors: Cozy Earth: 21% off luxurious bamboo sheets and pajamas with code DTCP2000:

https://promocode.to/cozy-earth/dtcp2000-zhz

Everwild Designs: 20% off lifestyle and gift jewelry with code CROOKED: https://promocode.to/everwild-designs/crooked-c4c

On February 24, 1978, five friends left a college basketball game in Chico, California and never came home. Days later their car was found abandoned on a remote mountain road in the Plumas National Forest, seventy miles in the wrong direction. Four of the men were eventually found dead. The fifth, Gary Mathias, was never found at all.

In this episode:

• The night of the game and the drive that went seventy miles off course
• The abandoned Mercury and Joseph Schons, the stranger stranded on the same road that night
• The Forest Service trailer, the tucked sheets, and Ted's months of survival
• The search for Gary Mathias and the 2020 sheriff's memo calling it a homicide case
• Every major theory: the wrong turn, foul play, the bridge, and what the evidence actually supports

Sources: Wikipedia (Yuba County Five), StrangeOutdoors.com, Den of Geek, Tony Wright's Things Aren't Right: The Disappearance of the Yuba County Five (2024), Netflix's Files of the Unexplained Season 1 Episode 3, Stuff You Should Know.

Connect with me: Instagram: @downthecrookedpath TikTok: @downthecrookedpath Listen: https://rss.com/podcasts/down-the-crooked-path/

Support the show: Cozy Earth, luxurious bamboo sheets, pajamas and more. Get 21% off with promo code DTCP2000: https://promocode.to/cozy-earth/dtcp2000-zhz Everwild Designs, meaningful lifestyle and gift jewelry. Get 20% off with promo code CROOKED: https://promocode.to/everwild-designs/crooked-c4c

Keywords: Yuba County Five, Gary Mathias, 1978 disappearance, Plumas National Forest, Chico California, unsolved mystery, missing persons, Ted Weiher, Jack Madruga, Bill Sterling, Jackie Huett

In November 1929, a young London occultist named Norah "Netta" Fornario traveled to the remote, wind-swept Scottish island of Iona. Deeply embedded in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn lineage and Alpha et Omega temple, Netta was searching for a "thin place"—a geographic portal where the earthly veil drops and nature spirits can be summoned. Days later, she was dead.

Was she the victim of a catastrophic psychic feud? Did she successfully open a gateway to interdimensional UAPs or the mythical Sidhe? Or did her extreme ritual fasting trigger a tragic, undiagnosed medical emergency known as metabolic acidosis?

Join host Amanda Joy as we peel back the layers of this classic gothic mystery, exploring the physical evidence left on the mound, the strange chemical reaction that turned her silver cross pitch black, and the final night that the island of Iona refuses to give up.

Connect With Us

Thank you for walking down this crooked path with me! Let’s keep the conversation going on social media:

• TikTok: @downthecrookedpath
• Instagram: @downthecrookedpath

✨ Creator Shoutout: Massive love to our incredible creators collective! Give them a follow for all things eerie and unexplained on Instagram: @spookypodsquad

Exclusive Listener Discounts & Sponsors

Support the brands that make this show possible! Use our links and promo codes below to grab your exclusive listener deals:

• 🛒 Cozy Earth - Indulge in the world's most luxurious, eco-friendly bamboo sheets, premium pajamas, and loungewear.
  • 💰 Get 21% OFF | Promo Code: DTCP2000
  • 🔗 Claim Your Cozy Earth Deal Here
• 🛒 Everwild Designs - Handcrafted, meaningful lifestyle and gift jewelry designed with intention. Featuring stunning natural gemstone birthstones, celestial talismans, and original collections crafted from 100% recycled silver.
  • 💰 Get 20% OFF | Promo Code: CROOKED
  • 🔗 Claim Your Everwild Designs Deal Here