This episode is about the legendary pigman of Denton, Texas. Kinda. The thing is, I'd never heard of the pigman, so it's really an episode about how urban legends and folklore are spread, what makes one urban legend take off while another lingers in obscurity, and what our urban legends say about us. Though I do also tell the story of the pigman somewhere in there. Highlights include:  the "Cowboy Mafia" the WPA Folklore Project  Content note: this episode contains a brief mention of sexual assault, stories about violent attacks that lead to disfigurement, quoted language that suggests that facial disfigurement is tied to someone’s moral character, mentions of the war on drugs and corruption in the U.S. legal system. Check out the shownotes.

The Pigman of Bonnie Brae Bridge (Haunted Denton, Texas)

Not far from the famed Goatman's Bridge in Denton County, Texas, a courthouse square has its share of spirits. I return once more to North Texas—a place of strange UFO and cryptid encounters, and also where I grew up. This time, I'm looking at Denton Square, a historic spot where urban legends, history, and hauntings intersect. Content note: This episode contains mentions of violence against Black and indigenous people and suicide. Highlights include:  an opera house that became a used bookstore a digression about how urban legends spread and develop a ghost horse!!  Check out the shownotes. Support the New Blood Kickstarter! Please spread the word and—if you’re able to—back the project to help bring two new queer paranormal shows into the world! Check out newblood.tv for more info.

Outlaw ghosts and a haunted bookstore (Haunted Denton Square)

Continuing my deep dive into nostalgia and the paranormal! Does the way we feel about paranormal investigation tools change their efficacy? How do our emotions (especially nostalgia) interact with the paranormal?  Highlights include:  My continuing fascination with whether the ghosts of living people can haunt us  Looking at nostalgic paranormal investigation tools through the lens of Amanda D. Paulson’s Paranormal Emotive Touchpoint theory   Support the New Blood Kickstarter! Please spread the word and—if you’re able to—back the project to help bring two new queer paranormal shows into the world! Check out newblood.tv for more info.  Shownotes and written version of this episode at buriedsecretspodcast.com.

Feelin' nostalgic: emotions and analog paranormal investigation tools

A look at lore surrounding the legendary Panasonic RR-DR60. How did the late 1990s audio recorder become a device that now sells for $4,000-5,000 USD on eBay? What makes the DR60 so special? Highlights include:  plenty o' nostalgia (and skepticism) a digression about hard drives (everyone's favorite) some arguments in favor of using older gear to investigate the paranormal   Check out the shownotes for sources and a written version of the episode.

The hype around the Panasonic RR-DR60

A wild ride through nostalgia about instant photography, the pitfalls of both analog and digital photography, the weirdly zeitgeisty history of the Polaroid Corporation, and the search for images we can "trust." Highlights include:  My attempts to doctor Polaroid photos Spirit photography Computational photography  Check out the shownotes for sources and a written version of the episode.

Instant photography, nostalgia, and the paranormal

A deep dive into nostalgia, liminality, and the paranormal. Are we interested in the paranormal because we feel nostalgic? Could that be why so much paranormal investigation gear is inspired by 1980s and 1990s tech? Highlights include:  Could a state of feeling deep nostalgia help with spirit communication? Radio Shack memories Internet aesthetics Attempts to find meaning in a chaotic world    Check out the shownotes for sources and a written version of the episode.

Spirit boxes and paranormal nostalgia

In 1897, a series of mysterious airships were sighted all around the United States. This is a look at the flap in general, with a particular focus on some of the North Texas UFO sightings. Highlights include:  The Dallas-Fort Worth area as a "window area" with heighted strange activity A glimpse into how Victorian-era people responded to UFOs Lots of bearded aliens   Check out the shownotes for sources and a written version.

The 1897 UFO Flap in North Texas

A look at the Aurora, Texas, UFO crash, one of many sightings during the mystery airship flap of 1897. Highlights include:  airships! urban legends and uncertain truths Jacques Vallée  Check out buriedsecretspodcast.com for the shownotes.

The UFO crash in Aurora, Texas

I really get into it in this one! The stated goal of this episode is to talk about some fascinating takeaways from Consorting with Spirits: Your Guide to Working with Invisible Allies by Jason Miller. However, get ready for many digressions about my own paranormal experiences, several of which I haven't talked about yet on the podcast. Highlights include:  a possible doppelganger encounter poltergeist-type activity caused by a living person a terrifying experience in a church in Portugal local spirits and Randonautica churches as especially haunted and magical locations  Note: Sorry about the radiator noise in this one! I did my best to eliminate as much as it as possible, but these NYC radiators love to make a racket. Sign up for my newsletter!

Local spirits, ghosts of the living, and haunted churches

Do you ever read a book so interesting that you gotta tell everyone about it? I recently read Consorting with Spirits: Your Guide to Working with Invisible Allies by Jason Miller and was struck by how much great information and advice it contained for paranormal investigators. Though the book is ostensibly geared toward magickal practitioners, it might actually be the most helpful ghost hunting book that I've read so far. So here are the insights and nuggets of wisdom that I found most illuminating from a paranormal investigation perspective. This episode will be focused on advice about how to stop doubting paranormal experiences, ways to think critically about encounters with spirits, how to be braver and take risks, and other cool insights. Highlights include:  the perception/projection ratio a digression about neurodivergence how to be less afraid of the paranormal an exercise to look past the veil  Sign up for my newsletter!

Doubt and the paranormal

I’ve been told that if I were in a horror movie, I would die first. But can I help it if I'm curious, chaotic, and solitary? Anyway, here's a look at some solo paranormal investigations I did around Halloween 2021 in two North Carolina state parks: Eno River State Park in Durham and William B. Umstead State Park in Raleigh. Highlights include: - phantom footsteps - a breath on my neck while I was alone - an abandoned house in the woods  - a solo Estes session in an environment where I was being told fairly clearly that I wasn’t wanted Sign up for my newsletter!

Phantom footsteps in the woods (Paranormal Investigation of Eno River State Park and William B. Umstead State Park)

A look at a place full of cemeteries, ruins, and ghosts of the past. Also actual ghosts. Those too. Eno River State Park, in Durham, North Carolina, is said to have its fair share of hauntings. I dive into the history of the park, especially the area around the Cabelands Cemetery, which is supposed to be one of the most haunted areas of the park. Plus, I dug up some of the paranormal experiences people have reported in the area. Highlights include: - Some grim parts of the area's history - A demonstration of my superb math skills - Hidden cemeteries Content note: this episode contains a lot of discussion of colonialism and chattel slavery. Sign up for my newsletter!

Ghosts among the ruins

When we go to "spend time in nature," we like to think that the parks that we visit are separate from the bustling cities that we live in. But in reality, parks are as human-made and full of history as any landmarked building. You just have to look a little more closely to uncover that history. This episode explores the forgotten history of William B. Umstead State Park in Raleigh, North Carolina, which is full of hidden cemeteries, ghostly gardens, and unexpected stories. Highlights include:  the connection that Umstead State Park has to the evacuation of Dunkirk during WWII the gardens that remain hidden in the woods even after houses have been torn down cemeteries in the woods  P.S. I forgot to mention that there's a book about the park's history called Stories In Stone: Memories From A Bygone Farming Community In North Carolina by Tom Weber (2011) that I can't find for the life of me. If you have a lead on getting a copy of it, please let me know! Sign up for my newsletter!

The Hidden History of a State Park

What if, after you died, a close friend of yours made a bust commemorating you, spending years trying to make the piece of art capture your very essence? What if some of your ashes were put into said statue, which was then displayed in a prominent public area? Might you haunt that statue? Well, that's what happened to Jason Miller, Scranton native and the actor who played Father Karras in *The Exorcist*. And Scranton residents have claimed that things have gotten weird. That's just one of the many strange stories I explore in this episode about some of the most interesting haunted sites in Scranton, PA. Highlights include: - A grand masonic temple with many ghost stories - A haunted trolley car (!!) - A gruesome murder P.S. This episode has nothing to do with Scranton's lost Luna Park, but I covered the park earlier in the series and I wanted to draw its old gate so here you go anyway. Sign up for my newsletter pls: https://www.buriedsecretspodcast.com/newsletter/

The Exorcist Statue and Other Scranton Hauntings (Haunted Scranton)

Stories of a haunted museum, a former hotel, a historic home, and a pub in Scranton, PA. Plus a couple cool urban legends about a stone couch and a lady in black. Highlights include: - a nun psychopomp - a child who followed a ghost into the basement - a ghost that sneaks up on people in a storage closet - a mannequin that moves on its own

Ghosts in the Museum (Haunted Scranton)

A dive into some of Scranton's haunted locations, including the Lackawanna Station Hotel and Nay Aug Park. Plus, a haunted real estate listing. Highlights include:  two defunct amusement parks ghosts that love to haunt minor league baseball players a weird treehouse a mine that was never used one of the worst zoos in the US

Ghosts of Nay Aug Park and the Lackawanna Station Hotel (Haunted Scranton)

I tell the story of a weird paranormal experience I had during a recent trip to Scranton, PA.  Highlights include: - my first sleep paralysis experience - a strange roadside creek - my thoughts about Scranton

Sleep Paralysis in Scranton (Haunted Scranton)

Some thoughts about mylar balloons, what they represent in the paranormal, and what else they might mean in terms of our world and our future. Highlights include: - mylar balloons' history in the paranormal and position as garbage - the idea of being haunted by trash - the power of imagination - some solarpunk reading recs

On Mylar Balloons and Forgotten Futures

A look at what urban legends, especially the Goatman's Bridge urban legends, do in society, including urban legends as "folk news." Plus, some possible debunkings of some of the Old Alton Bridge phenomena. Content note: This episode contains discussions of white supremacist hate groups. Highlights include: • Reflections on the legends on the bridge • Debunkings and hoaxers • A haunted house that operates near the bridge Check out the shownotes for sources and more.

Folk News and the Haunted Old Alton Bridge (Goatman's Bridge Series)

An attempt to trace the current tales of the Goatman's Bridge to their source: a 2008 YouTube video that contained seemingly new information about the urban legend, including some information that linked the story to the Mothman legends. Highlights include: • Thoughts about how the internet transforms and changes urban legends • A little digital gumshoeing • Some Mothman easter eggs Check out the shownotes for sources and more.

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