Check out the Mysterious Chicago podcast! Subscribe on iTunes or our very own Youtube Channel. Great stories from Chicago history you won’t hear anywhere else! Also check out Adam’s other pocast, Cemetery Mixtape, featuring stories from cemeteries all over, with custom songs by special guests!
EPISODES
“Make No Little Plans”
No, YOU’RE apocryphal! Finding confirmation that Daniel Burnham’s most famous quote is the real deal.
archive.org or iTunes.
“The Devil and Daniel Elston”
Was the 1853 death of Knud Iverson a martyrdom or an accident?
archive.org or iTunes.
“The Cop Who Cried Wolf”
A Capone-era cop who invented stories of being shot at – repeatedly.
archive.org or iTunes.
A Suicide Bridge Ghost Story
From Adam’s Lincoln Park Zoo “Haunted History” tours.
archive.org or iTunes.
“The Black Hole” in the South Loop
Newspaper tales of an “immoral” neighborhood.
archive.org or iTunes.
Irving W. Carson, The First Journalist Killed in The Civil War
Including a reading of one of his dispatches.
The Hanging and Burial of HH Holmes
Full details from 9 eyewitness accounts, with notes on discrepancies.
Listen above, or download on archive.org or on iTunes.
Page with photos/video
HH Holmes and Jack the Ripper – Chicago Evidence
Examining evidence placing Holmes in Chicago, not London, in the Autumn of 1888
Listen above, or download on archive.org or on iTunes.
Page with photos/video
She Dreamed of a Skeleton
Examining a Victorian legend from Sheridan Road
Listen in above or on iTunes, or archive.org
Page with a Photo
Searching for a Pirate’s Grave
Finding the grave of “Cap” Streeter at Graceland Cemetery. A rare field recording!
Listen in above or on iTunes or archive.org!
Story and Pics
Dr. Thomas Neill Cream: Antique Serial Killer
Speaking with author A.J. Griffiths-Jones about Dr. Cream, who may be Chicago’s first serial killer.
Listen in above or on iTunes or archive.org!
Page with Pics
The Bloody Handprint of West Randolph Street
Digging deep into a ghost story from 1866 and how it had evolved by the last time it was retold (in 1888). Bloody handprints, flying chunks of stale codfish, and lingering mysteries!
https://ia801507.us.archive.org/15/items/mysteriouschicagowestrandolphghost/mysteriouschicagowestrandolphghost.mp3
iTunes
archive.org
Post, with some pics
Excavating the H.H. Holmes “Body Dump”
Once a great tour stop, it’s about to be condos. But we got to dig through the rubble! Available both as an audio file and video edition.
https://ia601506.us.archive.org/9/items/mysteriouschicagobodydump/mysteriouschicagobodydump.mp3
audio on archive.org
iTunes
Post, with expanded VIDEO VERSION
April 20, 2016: Charles Volney Dyer, Badass
Underground Railroad Conductor, Fighter, Doctor, Judge, and Comic who deserved to be better known.
https://ia601508.us.archive.org/9/items/mysteriouschicagodyer/mysteriouschicagodyer.mp3
archive.org
iTunes
Text Post with Pic
April 8, 2016: The Lonesome Death of Barton Edsall
A mysterious death that was soon swept from the news…but only got stranger.
https://ia601504.us.archive.org/13/items/myseriouschicagoedsalltrain/myseriouschicagoedsalltrain.mp3
archive.org
iTunes
Post With Pics
Jan, 2016: The Fool Killer Submarine
100 Years ago, a submarine wreck was found in the river…
https://mysteriouschicago.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/mysteriouschicagofoolkiller100podcast.mp3
iTunes
Post with Pics, Etc
Dec 07, 2015: Did H.H. Holmes Fake his Death?
Examining claims made by Holmes’ former janitor in 1898…
https://ia601500.us.archive.org/15/items/MysteriousChicagoDidHHHolmesFakeHisDeath/MysteriousChicagoDidHHHolmesFakeHisDeath.mp3
iTunes
archive.org
Youtube (with slideshow)
Post with pics and info
Dec 03, 2015: The Lost Aeronaut
What happened to balloonist W.H. Donaldson, who made his last flight in Chicago, 1875?
https://mysteriouschicago.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/mysteriouschicagodonaldsonballoonpodcast.mp3
Download: iTunes
archive.org
Post with pics and info
Nov 30, 2015: Police Controversies of Old
Would you have voted to convict Officer Cronan after he shot two men in 1872?? No one in the mob who witnessed the affair would have.
https://mysteriouschicago.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/MysteriousChicagoPoliceBrutality1870s.mp3
Download: archive.org
iTunes
Nov 23, 2015: Did H.H. Holmes Kill Dr. Holton?
H.H. Holmes, the killer from Devil in the White City, is often said to have killed Dr. Holton and his wife to get control of their pharmacy. We uncover the real story. Check out our upcoming public Holmes tour!
https://mysteriouschicago.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/mysteriouschicagoholmesholtonpodcast.mp3
Download: iTunes archive.org Stream: youtube (with slideshow)
Original article and pics Podcast post with some new info
Our Holmes Tour (w video trailer)
Nov 20, 2015: The Man Who Stole the Gallows
George W. Green allegedly stole the city’s first gallows – then was sentenced to hang himself 15 years later. Does a photo of his corpse still survive?
https://mysteriouschicago.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/george-green-podcast.mp3
Download: iTunes archive.org Stream: youtube (with slideshow) Pics and More
Nov 16, 2015: Zanzic, Charlatan Supreme!
Did a fake medium arrange for a man to have a conjugal visit with a “ghost” during the World’s Fair – with deadly results? Music by Stiffs Inc.
Download: archive.org iTunes Stream: Youtube (with slideshow)
From the Vault…
Adam previously hosted the Chicago Unbelievable and Weird Chicago podcasts. Some vintage episodes are still available right here!
2014:
November 19: A Revolutionary War Grave?
Just a quick one (15 minutes) to tide you over until we get to the next big one…
Pictures and More
Listen via archive.org, iTunes, or on feedburner (scroll to the bottom).
July 10th: The House at Death Corner
They’re tearing up part of the intersection once known as Death Corner in the neighborhood they called Little Hell in the 1880s-1920s. We went to check it out – and discovered the school on the site suffered a “gumacco” craze in 1901.
Pictures And More
Listen via iTunes, on archive.org, or on feedburner (scroll to the bottom).
June 11th: Geeking Out Over Mr. Couch
Adam, Hector and Erin meet with Rachel Williams, a great-great-great granddaughter of Ira Couch, whose mysterious family tomb still stands in Lincoln Park, the old City Cemtery, and geek out over old family papers and scrapbooks.
Pictures and More:
Listen via archive.org, or on feedburner (scroll to the bottom), or iTunes.
More on City Cemetery: Hidden Truths
June 5th: Goofin’ in the Graveyard
Adam and Hector are joined by Susan Sherman as they ramble through Rosehill Cemetery, talking about history, ghosts, and amusing last names. Mature? You bet we are.
Pictures and More
Listen via: archive.org feedburner, or iTunes
2013:
December 16: The Detective’s Grave
Adam and Ray Johnson seek out the grave of a private detective who worked on the HH Holmes case.
Pictures and Audio
Listen via: feedburner, archive.org, or iTunes.
September 7: Graceland Cemetery Safari
Hector returns the lump of coal he took from Bachelor’s Grove cemetery in 2010, and we discuss some new information and stories.
Pictures and Audio
Download via archive.org
August 25: Hector and the Lump of Coal
Hector returns the lump of coal he took from Bachelor’s Grove cemetery in 2010, and we discuss some new information and stories.
Pictures and Audio
Download via archive.org
June 12: THE ITALIAN BRIDE at MT CARMEL
We discuss new findings about a famous piece of Chicago Folklore: Julia Buccola-Petta, the Italian Bride!
Hear it (w/ slideshow) on Youtube
Download via archive.org
Pictures, Buccola Family timeline, and more
Order of the Good Death Article
2012
THE MURDER CASTLE SITE
A trip to the post office on the site of the H.H. Holmes murder castle, including a trip to the basement, which we got to explore during a TV show shoot. Includes on heck of a spooky audio file!
Download mp3 from archive.org  
Pictures, Video, Recipe, and More!
Our “Murder Castle Location” post
THE ASYLUM GRAVEYARD part 1
An initial visit to the Dunning Memorial Park, a memorial to the 38k (or so) unmarked graves of fire victims, asylum inmates, and unclaimed bodies (including at least two killers).
Download mp3 from archive.org
Additional twenty minutes!
Pictures and info
SEASON TWO (Fall 2011)
EPISODE 4: Resurrection Mary Roundtable
Dec 19, 2011: A roundtable discussion with Ray Johnson, “The Haunt Detective,” and Dale Kaczmarek of the Ghost Research Society about Resurrection Mary, Chicago’s most famous ghost! Is she real? Who is she the ghost of? We cover it all in our hour-long chat, including never-before-told information!
Download from archive.org
Photos, Videos and More!
EPISODES 2 and 3: H.H. Holmes and the Great Glass Bending Factory
Oct 9, 2011: A trip to the dead end street where the murderous H.H. Holmes once operated what he said was a glass bending factory (but was probably not used to bend glass – it was more likely a crematory) ten miles north of his famous “Murder Castle.” While we’re there, we chat via Skype with Jeff Mudgett, Holmes’ great great grandson, who talks about his new novel, Bloodstains, and his theories that Holmes was Jack the Ripper – and that he didn’t really die in 1896 at all…43 minutes.
Download mp3 of part 1 from archive.org
Download mp3 of Part 2 from archive.org
Pictures and Info
EPISODE 1: Ghosts in Lincoln Park?
Oct 3, 2011: With “Suicide Bridge” claiming dozens of victims, a slew of murders, and a history as the former City Cemetery (with one vault and many bodies remaining), Lincoln Park sure OUGHT to be haunted – and guards a century ago were certain that it was. We didn’t find any ghosts e, but we had a few laughs and pranks along the way!
Download Mp3 from archive.org
Pictures and Info
SEASON ONE: (Spring 2011)
EPISODE FIVE: Col. Selig’s Moving Picture Plant
April 15, 2011: The entire Southeast block at Irving Park and Western was once a massive silent film studio. Today, one building survives. And we explore it!
Download Mp3 from archive.org
Pictures and Info
EPISODE FOUR: Grave Robbing in Lincoln Park
March 31, 2011: At one time, Lincoln Park was the city’s main cemetery – and grave robbing was a common problem! We sit down with Daniel Kraus, author of ROTTERS, to discuss grave robbing – and whether the one remaining crypt in Lincoln Park would be an easy score!
Download mp3 from archive.org
Pictures and Info
EPISODE THREE: Inside Charlie Chaplin’s Vault
March 17, 2011: Did you know Chicago was once the film capital of the world? Few do, and even fewer know how much remains of Essanay Studios, the iconic Chicago studio where Charlie Chaplin himself briefly worked. The studio space and vaults are still around. Come explore with us!
Download mp3 from archive.org
Pictures and info
EPISODE TWO: Mysteries of Hull House
March 9, 2011: A trip to Hull House house to discuss the haunted room, the “devil baby,” and other strange mysteries and myths.
download mp3
Hull House “Ghost Pics”
EPISODE ONE: Bachelor’s Grove
Sept 2010: Adam and Hector check out Bachelor’s Grove, the supposedly-haunted cemetery on the outskirts of Chicago.
download mp3
Pictures
Some Old “Weird Chicago” Classics, 2006-8
The House of Crosses
Odin Tatu
HH Holmes Glass Factory (Adam and Ken’s first trip, with Ken’s hilariously bad Holmes info!)
An interview with “Hot Dog”
Bughouse Square