In 1873, a quiet island off the coast of Maine became the setting for a crime that still unsettles historians more than a century later.

What happened on Smuttynose Island was shaped by isolation, fear, and the limits of certainty in a place where help was slow to arrive and answers were hard to come by. A violent night, a survivor’s account, and a rushed search for justice left behind questions that were never fully resolved.

In this episode of History’s Dark Corners, we travel to the Isles of Shoals to explore the Smuttynose Murders — and the uneasy space between truth, belief, and verdict.

Some stories don’t end cleanly. Some questions refuse to stay buried.

🎙️ History’s Dark Corners — America’s most unsettling stories, one state at a time.

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In southwestern Vermont, there’s a stretch of land where people didn’t just get lost — they vanished.

Between 1945 and 1950, multiple disappearances occurred in and around Glastenbury Mountain, an area that would later become known as the Bennington Triangle. An experienced hunting guide stepped ahead of his group and was never seen again. A college student walked around a bend on a well-marked trail and vanished without a trace. A young boy disappeared in the span of minutes near his family’s home. And one man boarded a bus… but never arrived at his destination.

These weren’t reckless people. They weren’t unprepared. They were seen, accounted for, and doing ordinary things — until they weren’t.

In this episode of History’s Dark Corners, we explore the real cases behind the Bennington Triangle, the history of Glastenbury, the warnings that existed long before the disappearances, and the theories — practical, psychological, and unsettling — that still fail to fully explain what happened.

Because sometimes the most disturbing stories aren’t about what we know.

They’re about what doesn’t add up.

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Because in every state, there’s a dark corner. I’ll meet you there.

Before Christmas became bright, loud, and nonstop, it was something quieter.

Slower.

And in that quiet — when the fire burned low and winter pressed against the walls — people gathered to tell ghost stories.

In this special Christmas episode of History’s Dark Corners, we explore the forgotten tradition of telling ghost stories during the holidays — and why the longest nights of the year were once meant for reflection, memory, and unsettling tales shared by candlelight.

After a brief look at how Christmas ghost stories became a Victorian tradition, we settle in for two classic fireside stories adapted for modern listeners.

First, a chilling tale from Charles Dickens about a railway signal-man whose entire job was to watch for danger — and who begins seeing warnings he doesn’t yet understand.

Then, a snowbound story adapted from Elizabeth Gaskell, told through the eyes of a nurse who witnesses a quiet haunting rooted in guilt, memory, and a door that was once closed — and never truly forgotten.

These aren’t slasher stories. They aren’t meant to shock.

They’re the kind of stories people once told at Christmas — the kind that linger, that ask you to listen more closely to the quiet, and that remind us the past doesn’t disappear just because the year turns over.

So get comfortable. Lower your voice. And keep the lantern lit.

Just in case.

Fog can make the coastline feel like a different world — sound bends, distance disappears, and the line between safe and lost gets dangerously thin. In Southeast Alaska, there’s a legend that’s lived in those conditions for generations: the Kushtaka — a shape-stealing presence said to appear almost human… but never quite right.

In this episode of History’s Dark Corners, we step into the mist and explore the folklore, the warnings, and the unsettling reason so many stories begin the same way: someone hears something in the fog, follows it… and is never the same afterward.

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High above the fog-drenched cliffs of Big Sur, countless travelers have looked up and seen the same impossible sight: a tall, silent silhouette standing on a ridge, watching… and disappearing the moment anyone approaches. From ancient Chumash legends to 19th-century settler journals, from Steinbeck’s writing to modern-day hikers on Reddit, the Dark Watchers have been part of California’s story for centuries. Who — or what — are these mysterious figures? Guardians? Spirits? Shadows? A trick of the mind? Or something older that refuses to be fully understood? In this episode, we explore the land that shaped the legend, the earliest Indigenous accounts, the chilling settler encounters, the literary references that kept the story alive, and the modern sightings that still happen today. And of course, we break down the leading theories — scientific, psychological, and supernatural. Because whatever the truth is… the watchers haven’t gone anywhere. 🕯️ Step into the fog with me. This is the mystery of California’s Dark Watchers. CONNECT WITH HISTORY’S DARK CORNERS Instagram: @historysdarkcorners TikTok: @historysdarkcorners Facebook: History’s Dark Corners Email: historysdarkcornerspodcast@gmail.com

In 1876, raw meat fell from a clear Kentucky sky—an event witnessed, collected, studied, and never explained. Scientists blamed vultures, locals whispered about curses, and newspapers turned it into national news. Nearly 150 years later, the mystery still stands.

Join me as we explore the bizarre case of the Kentucky Meat Shower: the science, the folklore, the theories… and the unanswered questions that linger.

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In 1897, a young bride in rural Appalachia was found dead at the bottom of her farmhouse stairs. The town accepted the explanation. The doctor signed the paperwork. And her husband insisted it was nothing more than a tragic accident.

But her mother knew better.

In one of the strangest cases in American history, a grieving mother claimed her daughter returned from beyond the grave—night after night—revealing the truth about what really happened inside that house. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, the investigation that followed uncovered a disturbing pattern, a violent husband, and a secret the community had tried to overlook.

This is the only known U.S. murder case where a “ghost’s testimony” helped secure a conviction.

Tonight, we pin West Virginia to the map and step into a story where intuition collides with evidence, folklore blends with fact, and justice refuses to stay buried.

Follow along with History’s Dark Corners on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok at @historysdarkcorners, or send your own stories and theories to historysdarkcornerspodcast@gmail.com.

In the heart of Louisiana’s bayou, a legend has lingered for hundreds of years — a creature born from folklore, shaped by culture, and fueled by countless eyewitness accounts. The Rougarou: a cursed, wolf-headed figure said to stalk the swamp at night, mimic familiar voices, and pass its curse from one unsuspecting victim to the next.

In this episode of History’s Dark Corners, we explore the origins of the Rougarou, the role of French settlers and Catholic tradition, the chilling 101-day curse, and some of the most disturbing encounters ever reported — from shadowy figures in sugarcane fields to glowing eyes on lonely backroads.

Folklore… warning… or something real lurking in the fog? Step into the bayou and decide for yourself.