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The Strange and Unusual Podcast

History Podcasts

The unknown. It lies at the root of all fear, and has inspired legends, superstition, folklore, customs, hysteria, and even murder throughout history. Still today we feel the shadowy presence of our ancestors' struggles to explain the mysterious in almost every facet of our lives. Whether it be in the form of religion, urban legends, pop culture, ghost stories, superstitious rituals, and so much more we are still just fighting to keep our monsters in the dark. Welcome to The Strange and Unusual Podcast.

Location:

United States

Description:

The unknown. It lies at the root of all fear, and has inspired legends, superstition, folklore, customs, hysteria, and even murder throughout history. Still today we feel the shadowy presence of our ancestors' struggles to explain the mysterious in almost every facet of our lives. Whether it be in the form of religion, urban legends, pop culture, ghost stories, superstitious rituals, and so much more we are still just fighting to keep our monsters in the dark. Welcome to The Strange and Unusual Podcast.

Language:

English


Episodes
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Haunted Waters, Pt. 3, Monsters of the Deep | Ep 102

6/16/2025
In this episode of the Haunted Waters series, we explore sea monsters of myth from around the world. These frightening creatures include the Lusca, Umibōzu, Akhlu, Morgawr, and Ningen, as well as the 1734 account of a sea monster off the coast of Greenland by Hans Egede. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:01:06:11

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Haunted Waters, Pt. 2: A Beacon In The Dark | Ep 101

6/2/2025
On this episode in the Haunted Waters series, I cover lighthouses with haunted reputations, as well as the history of lighthouses. We explore Smalls lighthouse in Wales, Pharos of Alexandria, Tower of Hercules, Big Bay Point in Michigan, South Manitou lighthouse in Michigan, South Solitary lighthouse in Australia, and St. Augustine in Florida. Stirrings: https://www.youtube.com/@StirringsStories See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:01:00:02

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Haunted Waters, Pt 1: Still Waters Run Deep | Ep 100

5/1/2025
Join me for a new 'Haunted Waters' series. In this first episode I explore lakes, marshes, and ponds and their legendary ghosts. Our stops in this episode include Bell Island in Canada, Haunted Lake in New Hampshire, White Rock Lake in Texas, Deadman's Pond in Canada, and Lake Lanier in Georgia. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:50:53

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Valley of the Headless Men | Ep 99

3/31/2025
In this episode, I explore the Nahanni Valley of the Northwest Territories in Canada, which has been given the nickname Valley of the Headless Men. This due to a series of deaths of goldhunters and fur trappers after they entered the valley. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:55:35

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Listen Now: Scam Factory

2/24/2025
You know those messages that you get all the time, the ones that pop up out of nowhere? They could be real, but something about them seems fishy. You likely dismiss these texts and emails as mere annoyances, thinking you’ve stopped some random stranger from ripping you off. But the shocking truth is, the person behind that message might be trapped inside a “scam factory” on the other side of the world and forced to scam others against their will. From Wondery, comes a new series about the brutal reality behind these operations, where one family discovers a horrifying truth: the only way out is to scam their way out. Listen Now: Wondery.fm/Scam_Factory See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:06:01

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The Cursing of Russian Hill, Pt 3: The Happenings at 1000 Lombard St | Ep 98

2/10/2025
In the conclusion to this series on Russian Hill, I delve into the events which affected Pat Montandon and her friends and family at 1000 Lombard Street, as well as the occult resurgence in the 1960s, including the role of Anton LeVay. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:48:23

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The Cursing of Russian Hill, Pt 2 | Ep 97

1/8/2025
In the second episode of this series, I tell the story of a young, widowed migrant during California's Gold Rush, and the horror of what she found in her new home on Russian Hill. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:50:05

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The Cursing of Russian Hill, Pt 1 | Ep 96

12/5/2024
In this episode we explore some of the strange goings-on in the earlier days of Russian Hill in San Francisco, including the ill-fated union of a Russian count and Spainish maiden, the first legal execution in California history, seances, the arrival of Fanny Stevenson to the hill, the earthquake of 1906 and more. In part 2, we get into the experimental '60s, Anton LeVay, mysterious deaths, and many more strange goings-on during that time. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:42:50

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Introduction of The Cursing of Russian Hill | Ep 95

11/20/2024
A short series coming to the strange and unusual podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:01:48

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Legally Haunted | Ep 94

10/24/2024
In 1991, the New York State Supreme Court decided on a case that would set a legal precedent for house haunting in the state for years. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:37:14

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Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Part 11 The Conclusion | Ep 93

9/24/2024
We reach finally the conclusion of Frankenstein, where we discover the fates of Frankenstein and the Creature See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:01:09:50

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Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, PT 10 | Ep 92

9/17/2024
In this episode, we follow Victor Frankenstein to his wedding day, which ends in tragedy, and the dominos really begin to fall. Though I thought I could cover the remaining chapters of Frankenstein in this episode, that was before I realized the final chapter was like two chapters in one. So, I will be releasing the final episode in week, instead of the usual two weeks, to finish up this epic tale, before we begin Halloween season spookiness! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:50:12

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Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, PT 9 | Ep 91

9/3/2024
In this episode, we cover chapters 20-21, in which Victor struggles with whether or not he will create a mate for the creature, and is confronted and threatened by the creature as well. Victor is then faced with an unexpected shock. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:58:58

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Strange & Unusual Headlines | The Buried Alive | Ep 90

8/19/2024
This week's headline comes from The Inter Ocean, published on December 21, 1890. This article covers the "buried alive" convent of nuns in Naples, Italy. The convent is raided when strange rumors spread of this order of nuns, and things are changed for these nuns forever. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:35:25

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Scared To Death | Ep 89

7/29/2024
In this week's episode, Alyson explores the phenomenon of being scared to death through real life examples, folklore, pop culture, and medical mysteries. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:36:14

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Listen Now: Hysterical

7/25/2024
Hysterical investigates a mysterious illness that spreads among a group of high school girls in upstate New York. What is causing their sudden, often violent symptoms? Is there something in the water or inside the school? Or is it “all in their head?” The series examines the outbreak in LeRoy, NY, believed by some to be the most severe case of mass hysteria since the Salem Witch Trials. In his search for answers, Dan Taberski (9/12, Missing Richard Simmons, Running from Cops) explores other seemingly inexplicable events of the last few years – CIA officers being crippled with nausea and vertigo; cops OD'ing from exposure to fentanyl – and discovers they’re far more connected than we realize. From Wondery and Pineapple Street Studios, this 7-part series forces us to grapple with the mysteries of our own minds, and reckon with a contagion that we thought was long dead, but may be the defining disorder of our time. Follow Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ at Wondery.fm/Hysterical_Morbid. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:06:28

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Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, PT 8 | Ep 88

6/18/2024
In this episode, we cover chapters 17 through 19, when the creature confronts and begs his maker to build him a new companion. Victor then goes on a journey to perform his dreaded task. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:58:17

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The Evil Eye and Witchcraft Murder in Kalamazoo | Ep 87

6/4/2024
On this week's episode we delve into the superstition of the evil eye and a case of witchcraft murder in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1929 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:43:51

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RE-RELEASE: Strange and Unusual Headlines | Kept Dead Child In Their Home | Ep 86

5/20/2024
This week's headline comes from St. Louis Post Dispatch, published on December 23, 1900 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:51:57

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Nymph of the Woods, The Vanishing of a Child Prodigy | Ep 85

5/6/2024
Barbara Newhall Follett was considered a child prodigy when her first novel "The House Without Windows" was published at age 12 in 1927, and then she had vanished forever when she was 25 in 1939. What happened to Barbara? And what does her disappearance possibly have to do with another woman who vanished in New Hampshire in 1936, Elsie Whittemore? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Duration:00:57:31