Crimes and Witch-Demeanors

Join me in uncovering the truth behind the legend of Angola's Pigman. This half-man, half-beast spectre stalks Holland Road in Angola, New York. In life he was a brutal butcher responsible for murdering teens and countless others, in death he still terrorizes those who dare step foot on his property...or was he? We use archival resources to dissect this legend and discover the truth.

Submit your feedback or personal stories to [email protected]

Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crimesandwitchdemeanors/

Episode Transcript:

https://crimesandwitchdemeanors.com/2020/12/11/ep001-legend-of-the-pigman/

Podcast Artwork by GiAnna Ligammari: https://gialigammari.wixsite.com/portfolio

Sources:

Angola Butcher Slain; Suspect Held. (1931, July 13). Buffalo Evening News, 1, 3.

Anselmo, Francis J. WWII Draft Card (1947). WWII Draft Registration Cards for California, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947 (Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 49). The National Archives in St. Louis, Missouri.

Carnegie Hero Medal and $1,000 Cash Awarded Ted Miller for Saving Boy’s Life. (1919, May 1). Angola Record, 1.

Colmerauer, Catherine. (2011, October 27). Misguided man or unmerciful monster: Uncovering the legend of Pigman. The Hamburg Sun, 35–36.

Francis Joseph Anselmo (1913-1981)—Find A Grave... (n.d.). Retrieved November 7, 2020, from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/85844336/francis-joseph-anselmo

THEODORE MILLER, Angola, New York. (n.d.). Carnegie Hero Fund Commission. Retrieved November 7, 2020, from https://mychfc.org/hero.aspx?hero=18422

Theodore Miller Dies, Native Angolan. (1962, April 26). Evans Journal, 2.

Vogel, Charity (2013). The Angola Horror: The 1867 Train Wreck That Shocked the Nation and Transformed American Railroads. Cornell University Press.

TRANSCRIPT:

Hello, and welcome to the first episode of Crimes and Witch-Demeanors, I am your host Joshua Spellman. On this podcast, we investigate the paranormal, historic crimes, myth, legends, and other curiosities through a critical lens. I am an academic and a skeptic, but also a practicing witch. I find many paranormal podcasts are either a little dry in their tellings or are poorly researched and a detached from reality. I am a librarian and archivist by day and have worked in museums, special libraries, and universities. I have an undergraduate degree in anthropology and a master’s degree in information science. With my professional background, I’m hoping to bring a little archival spice into the usual ghostly gab, and see if we can seek out the truth among the tall tales. I’m hoping to strike a balance between fun and facts while also looking for logical explanations of some of our favourite ghostly tales.

I want to play around with format, but the idea is that each episode will begin with a formal story time, after which we will have a ghoulish gossip sesh where we investigate the history of the locations or topics using primary sources, seeing what is fact and what is fabrication, and read first-hand accounts of the ghostly activities experienced in these locations. In today’s episode we will be covering the Legend of the Pigman. The Story? A crazed butcher with a deformed face, placed pig heads on stick s outside his home to keep away intruders and he was responsible for the brutal slayings of innocent teenagers, leaving their bodies hanging from hooks in town. He murdered his children and his wife. In death, the Pigman now roams Holland Road as a half-man half-pig hell beast summoned from the hereafter by demonic rituals and pagan sacrifice. In his new form, he continues his reign of terror confronting anyone brave enough to enter his land between the two tunnels on Holland Road. Sit back, relax, and let’s learn about the alleged history of Angola’s Pigman.

The myth of the Pigman is part of an intricate interwoven web of tales, or as I see it, a tangled mess resulting from using a common thread to attempt to weave together a number of tragic events that befell a small town. But, in order to understand the story of the Pigman, we must begin our tale with a seemingly unconnected, very real mass casualty event: The Angola Horror.

The village of Angola, in Evans, New York, is a town seemingly plagued by strife. It is located 30 miles south of Buffalo, New York and sits on the west...

One of the most famous haunted houses in all of Ohio is located on Franklin Boulevard, and known to most as Franklin Castle. This glorious home, though not a castle, has a unique architectural style, described as “Victorian eclectic” Its stone face and castle turret are strongly reminiscent of Shirley Jackson’s Hill House (the book, not the poorly adapted Netflix show). However, can Franklin Castle hold a candle to Hill House? Tales of a family curse, a stern patriarch prone to fits of rage, murder, staged suicides, incest, Nazis, and infanticide all surround this kingly estate.

Submit your feedback or personal stories to [email protected]

Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crimesandwitchdemeanors

Podcast artwork by GiAnna Ligammari: https://gialigammari.wixsite.com/portfolio

Sources:

Year: 1880; Census Place: Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio; Roll: 1007; Page: 100C; Enumeration District: 031

Tenth Census of the United States, 1880. (NARA microfilm publication T9, 1,454 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

Year: 1870; Census Place: Cleveland Ward 10, Cuyahoga, Ohio; Roll: M593_1191; Page: 428A; Family History Library Film: 552690

1870 U.S. census, population schedules. NARA microfilm publication M593, 1,761 rolls. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.

Deaths. (1895, March 29). Plain Dealer, p. 1. Available from Readex: America's Historical Newspapers: https://infoweb-newsbank-com.i.ezproxy.nypl.org/apps/readex/doc?p=EANX&docref=image/v2%3A122AFBBA107AC9E4%40EANX-125B82720365D544%402413282-1259E7039A87F410%400.

A.J. Tiedemann Dead. (1906, April 21). Plain Dealer (111), p. 14. Available from Readex: America's Historical Newspapers: https://infoweb-newsbank-com.i.ezproxy.nypl.org/apps/readex/doc?p=EANX&docref=image/v2%3A122AFBBA107AC9E4%40EANX-125D4300F8779155%402417322-125B863C012FB806%4014-138EBFA6F9A8C3CE%40Mortuary%2BNotice.

Colangelo, B. J. (n.d.). Artist Zac Webb Talks About Living in Franklin Castle, the “Most Haunted House in Ohio.” Cleveland Scene. Retrieved November 12, 2020, from https://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2018/10/11/artist-zac-webb-talks-about-living-in-franklin-castle-the-most-haunted-house-in-ohio

Quinn, T., J. (1999, November 8). Fires set in historic Franklin Castle. Plain Dealer, 1A.

R/GhostAdventures—Newest Season, Latest Episode, #2. At seven minutes and thirty second I to the episode ( 7:30) Zach explained how as man set “Franklin Castle” on Fire. Zach said he could not disclose the details of the Mans Intent, or his name, or anything else about the Arsonist. Does any1 know why that it ??? (n.d.). Reddit. Retrieved November 12, 2020, from https://www.reddit.com/r/GhostAdventures/comments/ff7ouv/newest_season_latest_episode_2_at_seven_minutes/

Many ghosts haunt the famed Fairmont Empress in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada including that of its architect, Francis Rattenbury. Rattenbury himself was part of a salacious love triangle that led to a murder-suicide in Bournemouth, England. His ghost, however, haunts the Empress in Canada alongside the spirit of Lizzie McGrath and the lost soul of Margaret.

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Episode Transcript:

Visit the website: https://www.crimesandwitchdemeanors.com

Main podcast illustration by GiAnna Ligammari: https://gialigammari.wixsite.com/portfolio

Sources:

Accidental Death is Jury’s Verdict: Rider Against Contractors Recorded in Inquest on Death of Mrs. Elizabeth McGrath. (1910, August 2). The Victoria Daily Times, page 5.

Adultery, jealousy and murder: How the Rattenbury case gripped the nation. (n.d.). Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved December 24, 2020, from https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/13217933.adultery-jealousy-and-murder-how-the-rattenbury-case-gripped-the-nation/

Bournemouth’s most sensational murder | Dorset Life—The Dorset Magazine. (n.d.). Retrieved December 24, 2020, from https://www.dorsetlife.co.uk/2006/08/bournemouths-most-sensational-murder/

British Columbia, Canada, Death Index, 1872-1990—AncestryLibrary.com. (n.d.). Retrieved December 28, 2020, from https://search.ancestrylibrary.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=6093&h=463325&tid=&pid=&queryId=65f42413adf181b27bd90780bad3225e&usePUB=true&_phsrc=eBA210&_phstart=successSource

Cold spots, scandals and Victoria’s Empress Hotel – The Superstitious Times. (n.d.). Retrieved December 23, 2020, from http://www.superstitioustimes.com/cold-spots-scandals-and-victorias-empress-hotel/

Elizabeth B. McGrath (Unknown-1910)—Find A... (n.d.). Retrieved December 28, 2020, from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/121312245/elizabeth-b.-mcgrath

Five haunted hotels with true-crime stories. - The Washington Post. (n.d.). Retrieved December 23, 2020, from https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:wA5SdAuQMGkJ:https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/like-a-good-scare-here-are-five-haunted-hotels-with-stories-fit-for-true-crime-files/2018/10/25/ddd4e70e-d3cb-11e8-b2d2-f397227b43f0_story.html+&cd=6&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

Francis Rattenbury. (2020). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Francis_Rattenbury&oldid=995725423

Has anyone had a ghost experience here LOL. (n.d.). Retrieved December 28, 2020, from https://www.tripadvisor.com/FAQ_Answers-g154945-d155472-t3751444-Has_anyone_had_a_ghost_experience_here_LOL.html

Mrs. Alma Rattenbury Found Dead in a River: Man Tells of Seeing Her Fall, Knife in Hand, Vain Efforts to Save Her, Six Stab Wounds. (1935, June 5). Gloucestershire Echo, Page 1.

Murder comes with a question mark. (2011, October 30). Vernon Morning Star. https://www.vernonmorningstar.com/life/murder-comes-with-a-question-mark/

Staveley-Wadham, R. (n.d.). A Seaside Drama – The 1935 Murder of...

Everyone always says “Remember the Alamo” and the ghosts of San Antonino are keen on making it difficult to forget. Particularly, the spectral denizens of the Menger hotel, once known as the “finest hotel the west of the Mississippi” now holds the moniker of “the most haunted hotel in Texas” The battle of the Alamo, a deadly fire, a murdered maid, and more are the causes of its infamous reputation, allegedly being home to over 32 spirits...including that of Teddy Roosevelt. Now...let’s hear the so-called history of the hotel before we dig deep in the archive to separate fact from folklore...

Abandoned for well over a decade, the Winderbourne Mansion in Boyds, Maryland is a decaying reminder of a tragic past. Once belonging to the wealthy Totten family, things quickly took a turn as their children died. Is this property cursed?