Episodes

  • SYMHC Classics: Paul Robeson

    SYMHC Classics: Paul Robeson
    Oct 11 2025

    Paul Robeson’s stances on political and civil rights issues and his communist affiliations catalyzed protests that were fueled with an undercurrent of racism and antisemitism.

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    37 mins
  • Behind the Scenes Minis: Complicated Werewolf

    Behind the Scenes Minis: Complicated Werewolf
    Oct 10 2025

    Holly discusses the complicated nature of the Loudun possessions. Tracy talks about the ways that entertainment media can cause fear.

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    19 mins
  • Peter Stumpp, Werewolf of Bedburg

    Peter Stumpp, Werewolf of Bedburg
    Oct 8 2025

    Peter Stubbe or Peter Stumpp, also known as the Werewolf of Bedburg, was part of a case in Germany where the concepts of witchcraft and lycanthropy were interconnected.

    Research:

    • Baillie, Nathan. “Monstrous Lessons: Peter Stumpp, the Werewolf of Bedburg.” University of Saskatchewan Undergraduate Research Journal Volume 9, Issue 2, 2024.
    • Baring-Gould, Sabine. “The Book of Were-wolves: Being an Account of a Terrible Superstition.” London. Smith, Elder and Co. Cornhill. 1865. https://archive.org/details/thebookofwerewolvesbarin/
    • Barker, Sara. “Time in English Translations of Continental News.” News Networks in Early Modern Europe. Brill. Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w8h1ng.21
    • Beck, Melinda. “Before America Had Witch Trials, Europe Had Werewolf Trials.” History. 10/15/2021. https://www.history.com/articles/werewolf-trials-europe-witches
    • Crabb, Jon. “Woodcuts and Witches.” The Public Doman Review. 5/4/2017. https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/woodcuts-and-witches/
    • Davidson, Jane P. and Bob Canino. “Wolves, Witches, and Werewolves: Lycanthropy and Witchcraft from 1423 to 1700.” Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, 1990, Vol. 2, No. 4 (8) (1990). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43308065
    • de Blécourt, Willem. “Monstrous Theories:: Werewolves and the Abuse of History.” Preternature: Critical and Historical Studies on the Preternatural , Vol. 2, No. 2 (2013). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/preternature.2.2.0188
    • Dinwiddie, Gerda, trans. “The Execution of Werewolf, Peter Stump: A Translation.” Dana K. Rehn. https://danakrehnblog.wordpress.com/2021/05/22/the-execution-of-werewolf-petter-stump/
    • Dinwiddie, Gerda, trans. “Truthful and Frightening Description of the many Sorcerers or Witches: An English Translation.” Dana Rehn. https://danakrehnblog.wordpress.com/2022/01/02/truthful-and-frightening-description-of-the-many-sorcerers-or-witches-an-english-translation/
    • Priest, Hannah. “The She-wolves of Julich.” History Today. Vol. 65, Issue 6. June 2015.
    • Summers, Montague. “The Werewolf in Lore and Legend.” Dover Publications. 1933. https://archive.org/details/TheWerewolfInLoreAndLegend/page/n273/mode/2up

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    41 mins
  • Loudun Possessions

    Loudun Possessions
    Oct 6 2025

    In 17th century France a group of nuns described some unsettling visitations at their convent, which developed into a story of possession, political intrigue, and a moment in time that was rife with social tensions.

    Research:

    • The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Wars of Religion". Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Mar. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/event/Wars-of-Religion
    • “Hawthorn.” National Institute of Health. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/hawthorn
    • Cameron, Teagan. “A Diabolical Martyrdom: Urbain Grandier, the Transgressive Outsider, and the Surrogate Victim in The Possession at Loudun.” Constellations. Vol. 13, no. 2. Aug. 2022, doi:10.29173/cons29475
    • deCerteau, Michel. “The Possession at Loudun.” University of Chicago Press. 2000.
    • Dumas, Alexandre, Pere. “Urbain Grandier – 1634.” 1910. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2746/2746-h/2746-h.html
    • Ferber, Sarah. “Demonic Possession and Exorcism in Early Modern France.” Routledge. 2013.
    • Hunter, Mary Kate. “Loudun Possessions: Witchcraft Trials at The Jacob Burns Law Library.” Newsletter of the Legal History & Rare Books Special Interest Section of the American Association of Law Libraries. Volume 16 Number 3. Hallowe’en 2010. https://www.aallnet.org/lhrbsis/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/lhrb-16-3.pdf
    • Huxley, Aldous. “The Devils of Loudun.” London. Chatto & Windus. 1952. Accessed online: https://ia601400.us.archive.org/3/items/in.ernet.dli.2015.469712/2015.469712.The-Devils_text.pdf
    • Niau, Des and Edmund Goldsmith (tr.) “The history of the devils of Loudun; the alleged possession of the Ursuline nuns, and the trial and execution of Urbain Grandier, told by an eye-witness.” Edinburgh. Private Printing. 1887. Accessed online: https://archive.org/details/historyofdevilso00desn/page/n31/mode/2up
    • Sluhovsky, Moshe. “The Devil in the Convent.” The American Historical Review , Vol. 107, No. 5 (December 2002), pp. 1379-1411. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Historical Association. https://.www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/532851
    • Soth, Amelia. “A Mother Superior’s Demons.” JSTOR Daily. Oct. 31, 2024. https://daily.jstor.org/a-mother-superiors-demons/

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    35 mins
  • SYMHC Classics: Bell Witch

    SYMHC Classics: Bell Witch
    Oct 4 2025

    This 2016 episode covers a haunting story from the early 1800s. Many narratives have blossomed from the Bell Witch story, but when you really try to look at the facts, they're few and far between.

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    30 mins
  • Behind the Scenes Minis: Ticks and Spiders

    Behind the Scenes Minis: Ticks and Spiders
    Oct 3 2025

    Tracy shares a story about getting poor directions from GPS. Holly talks about her theory regarding William Outlaw's confession, and both hosts discuss the spiders in their yards.

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    25 mins
  • Alice Kyteler and the Kilkenny Witch Trials

    Alice Kyteler and the Kilkenny Witch Trials
    Oct 1 2025

    Alice Kyteler's witchcraft trial shocked 14th century Ireland. Today, the charges against her are seen largely as nonsense, and more about personal vendettas and struggles for power.

    Research:

    • Bailey, Michael D. “HISTORICAL DICTIONARY of WITCHCRAFT.” Scarecrow Press. 2003.
    • Callan, Maeve Brigid. “The Templars, the Witch, and the Wild Irish: Vengeance and Heresy in Medieval Ireland.” Cornell University Press. 2015.
    • “Dame Alice Kyteler.” Historic Kilkenny. https://www.historickilkenny.com/alice-kyteler
    • Iribarren, Isabel. “Black Magic to Heresy: A Doctrinal Leap in the Pontificate of John XXII.” Church History , Mar., 2007, Vol. 76, No. 1 (Mar., 2007), pp. 32-60. Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American Society of Church History. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27644923
    • “Kilkenny Witch Trials.” Kilkenny Heritage Forum and Kilkenny Heritage Plan. https://kilkennyheritage.ie/2024/12/kilkenny-witch-trials/#:~:text=On%203rd%20November%201324%2C%20Petronilla,world%20for%20centuries%20to%20come.
    • Pavlic, Brian A. “Lady Alice Kyteler Is Found Guilty of Witchcraft.” EBSCO. 2022. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/law/lady-alice-kyteler-found-guilty-witchcraft
    • Ledrede, Richard. “A contemporary narrative of the proceedings against Dame Alice Kyteler, prosecuted for sorcery in 1324.” London. Printed for the Camden Society, by John Bowyer Nichols and Son. 1843. https://archive.org/details/b33096831/page/n11/mode/2up
    • “A Medieval History.” Kyteler’s Inn. https://www.kytelersinn.com/history-of-the-inn/
    • Murphy, Mrs. C.J. “Alice Kyteler.” Old Kilkenny Review. 1953. https://kilkennyarchaeologicalsociety.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/OKR1953-09-Claire-Murphy-Alice-Kyteler.pdf
    • Neary, Anne. “The Origins and Character of the Kilkenny Witchcraft Case of 1324.” Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy: Archaeology, Culture, History, Literature , 1983, Vol. 83C (1983), pp. 333-350. https://www.jstor.org/stable/25506106
    • Riddell, William Renwick. “First Execution for Witchcraft in Ireland.” Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology. Vol. 7, Issue 6. 1917. https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?params=/context/jclc/article/1500/&path_info=83_7JAmInstCrimL_Criminology828_May1916toMarch1917_.pdf
    • Seymour, John Drelincourt. “Dame Alice Kyteler the Sorceress of Kilkenny A.D. 1324 (Folklore History Series).” Read Books. 2011.
    • Walsh, James. “The Popes and Science: THE HISTORY OF THE PAPAL RELATIONS TO SCIENCE DURING THE MIDDLE AGES AND DOWN TO OUR OWN TIME.” NEW YORK
      FORDHAM UNIVERSITY PRESS. 1915. Accessed online: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/34019/34019-h/34019-h.htm
    • Williams, Bernadette. “The Sorcery Trial of Alice Kyteler.” History Ireland, vol. 2, no. 4, 1994, pp. 20–24. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27724208

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    35 mins
  • Three More Eponymous Diseases: Arthropod Bites

    Three More Eponymous Diseases: Arthropod Bites
    Sep 29 2025
    These diseases - West Nile Virus, Lyme disease, and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever - are named for the places where outbreaks happened. But they're also all things you get from being bitten by mosquitoes or ticks. Research: Balasubramanian, Chandana. “Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF): The Deadly Tick-borne Disease That Inspired a Hit Movie.” Gideon. 9/1/2022. https://www.gideononline.com/blogs/rocky-mountain-spotted-fever/Barbour AG, Benach JL2019.Discovery of the Lyme Disease Agent. mBio10:10.1128/mbio.02166-19.https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.02166-19Bay Area Lyme Foundation. “History of Lyme Disease.” https://www.bayarealyme.org/about-lyme/history-lyme-disease/Caccone, Adalgisa. “Ancient History of Lyme Disease in North America Revealed with Bacterial Genomes.” Yale School of Medicine. 8/28/2017. https://medicine.yale.edu/news-article/ancient-history-of-lyme-disease-in-north-america-revealed-with-bacterial-genomes/Chowning, William M. “Studies in Pyroplasmosis Hominis.("Spotted Fever" or "Tick Fever" of the Rocky Mountains.).” The Journal of Infectious Diseases. 1/2/1904. https://archive.org/details/jstor-30071629/page/n29/mode/1upElbaum-Garfinkle, Shana. “Close to home: a history of Yale and Lyme disease.” The Yale journal of biology and medicine vol. 84,2 (2011): 103-8.Farris, Debbie. “Lyme disease older than human race.” Oregon State University. 5/29/2014. https://science.oregonstate.edu/IMPACT/2014/05/lyme-disease-older-than-human-raceGalef, Julia. “Iceman Was a Medical Mess.” Science. 2/29/2012. https://www.science.org/content/article/iceman-was-medical-messGould, Carolyn V. “Combating West Nile Virus Disease — Time to Revisit Vaccination.” New England Journal of Medicine. Vol. 388, No. 18. 4/29/2023. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2301816Harmon, Jim. “Harmon’s Histories: Montana’s Early Tick Fever Research Drew Protests, Violence.” Missoula Current. 7/20/2020. https://missoulacurrent.com/ticks/Hayes, Curtis G. “West Nile Virus: Uganda, 1937, to New York City, 1999.” From West Nile Virus: Detection, Surveillance, and Control. New York : New York Academy of Sciences. 2001. https://archive.org/details/westnilevirusdet0951unse/Jannotta, Sepp. “Robert Cooley.” Montana State University. 10/12/2012. https://www.montana.edu/news/mountainsandminds/article.html?id=11471Johnston, B L, and J M Conly. “West Nile virus - where did it come from and where might it go?.” The Canadian journal of infectious diseases = Journal canadien des maladies infectieuses vol. 11,4 (2000): 175-8. doi:10.1155/2000/856598Lloyd, Douglas S. “Circular Letter #12 -32.” 8/3/1976. https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/departments-and-agencies/dph/dph/infectious_diseases/lyme/1976circularletterpdf.pdfMahajan, Vikram K. “Lyme Disease: An Overview.” Indian dermatology online journal vol. 14,5 594-604. 23 Feb. 2023, doi:10.4103/idoj.idoj_418_22MedLine Plus. “West Nile virus infection.” https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/007186.htmNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease. “History of Rocky Mountain Labs (RML).” 8/16/2023. https://www.niaid.nih.gov/about/rocky-mountain-historyNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease. “Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.” https://www.niaid.nih.gov/diseases-conditions/rocky-mountain-spotted-feverRensberger, Boyce. “A New Type of Arthritis Found in Lyme.” New York Times. 7/18/1976. https://www.nytimes.com/1976/07/18/archives/a-new-type-of-arthritis-found-in-lyme-new-form-of-arthritis-is.html?login=smartlock&auth=login-smartlockRucker, William Colby. “Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.” Washington: Government Printing Office. 1912. https://archive.org/details/101688739.nlm.nih.gov/page/Sejvar, James J. “West Nile virus: an historical overview.” Ochsner journal vol. 5,3 (2003): 6-10. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3111838/Smithburn, K.C. et al. “A Neurotropic Virus Isolated from the Blood of a Native of Uganda.” The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. Volume s1-20: Issue 4. 1940.Steere, Allen C et al. “The emergence of Lyme disease.” The Journal of clinical investigation vol. 113,8 (2004): 1093-101. doi:10.1172/JCI21681Steere, Allen C. et al. “Historical Perspectives.” Zbl. Bakt. Hyg. A 263, 3-6 (1986 ). https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/281837/1-s2.0-S0176672486X80912/1-s2.0-S0176672486800931/main.pdfWorld Health Organization. “West Nile Virus.” 10/3/2017. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/west-nile-virusXiao, Y., Beare, P.A., Best, S.M. et al. Genetic sequencing of a 1944 Rocky Mountain spotted fever vaccine. Sci Rep 13, 4687 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-31894-0See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    49 mins