Limited series examining paranormal/supernatural mysteries and myths that have been debunked or discredited over the years
Sadly, there was another mass shooting in America yesterday. Bad actors are attempting to blame the shooting on “transgender ideology” (which Elon Musk, among others, has been shamelessly propagating), an idea which is not only shameless but actively dangerous to … Continue reading History Thread: All Assassins are Democrats
Cryptozoology features so many curious, colorful creatures that only buffs would know about many of them. But it’s hard to understand why the Salawa, “a hellish canine creature that is supposed to be a cross between a wolf, a dog, … Continue reading History Thread: The Salawa, or the Failed Making of a Cryptid
Four years ago, to celebrate Halloween and to take a break from heavier historical writings, I started a limited series called Things That Are Not exploring paranormal hoaxes, myths and other stories that have been debunked. I’ve revisited this series … Continue reading History Thread: Revisiting Things That Are Not
Tales of giant squid and outsized octopuses have haunted mankind since ancient times. The fact that enormous beasts lurk beneath the ocean waves is no secret, and the discovery of a creature with tentacles the length of a football field … Continue reading History Thread: The Squid That Eats Man
In October 1888 Ambrose Bierce published a short story, “Charles Ashmore’s Trail,” in the San Francisco Examiner. Bierce’s tale concerned a sixteen year old boy from Troy, New York who left home one snowy evening in 1878 to retrieve water … Continue reading History Thread: Three Missing Olivers
I did not have time for a detailed write-up this week but I came across a fascinating article investigating (and debunking) one of the most famous ghost photographs of all time: the ghosts of the SS Watertown. If, like me, … Continue reading History Thread: The Case of the Phony Sea Specters
When Germans living the Weimar Republic weren’t battling unemployment, rampant inflation or dodging street battles between political extremists, they shuddered at stories of killers in their midst. German newspapers burst with accounts of monsters disguised as respected citizens. Peter Kürten, … Continue reading History Thread: The Serienmörder Who Never Was
Historians generally don’t have much nice to say about Andrew Johnson. The 17th President, who succeeded to office after Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, had a chance to heal the nation recently divided by civil war and end or at least ameliorate … Continue reading History Thread: Vampire of Liberty
On November 23, 1861 New Orleans hosted a military review like no other. A force of nearly 800 officers and men, most of them people of color, paraded through the Crescent City to the cheers of assembled citizens. One journalist … Continue reading History Thread: Black Confederates, or a Study in “Alternate Facts”
Note: I haven’t done a Things That Are Not article in awhile, and wanted a break from the heavier military-political focus of recent threads. Prepare to be spooked! Sailors and ocean travelers have always entertained and scared each other with … Continue reading History Thread: The Curse of the Ivan Vassili
Cornelia Zanghari di Bandi was a minor Italian noblewoman who lived in 18th Century Cesena with her husband, Count Francesco di Bandi, and seven children. If not for her spectacular demise, the Countess likely wouldn’t be remembered except perhaps by … Continue reading Things That Are Not: An Inquest into the Death of Mr. Krook
In November 1919 the Saturday Evening Post published a short story entitled “Rose Alvaro, Entrante.” It depicts a shy, unsatisfied store clerk named Mayme who desires a drastic life change. “I was sick of myself,” Mayme tells a friend. “I wanted … Continue reading Things That Are Not: Pearl Curran and the Real Ghost
One of history’s most unbelievable anecdotes involves the “Battle of Karansebes.” It’s a staggering, unbelievable tale cited as the epitome of military incompetence, with an Austrian army massacring itself through panic and drunken misunderstanding. Unfortunately, there’s no evidence that this … Continue reading Things That Are Not: The Army That Killed Itself
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a good story outruns evidence, plausibility and fact. For two hundred years, readers have thrilled to the dance of the Barbados coffins, a classic ghost story so often repeated that it’s familiar even … Continue reading Things That Are Not: The Case of the Dancing Coffins
There’s something intrinsically horrifying about man-eating animals. Being bitten a venomous snake or mauled by an angry bear isn’t enough; the idea that humans, Earth’s dominant species, could be laid low by lesser animals, devoured like some mindless fish or … Continue reading Things That Are Not: The Horrors of Ramree Island
In 1929, the French National Academy of Sciences hosted a startling presentation. George Montandon, the Swiss-born enfant terrible of French anthropology, presented a paper positing the discovery of an anthropoid ape in South America. He cited as evidence the testimony … Continue reading Things That Are Not: George Montandon’s Malicious Monkey Business
Welcome to this week’s Things That Are Not, a limited series exploring historical mysteries and paranormal phenomena that simply aren’t true. Having explored the Bermuda Triangle last week, we’ll take a deep dive into an even stranger maritime misadventure. When … Continue reading Things That Are Not: The Philadelphia Experiment
Welcome to Things That Are Not, a limited series examining paranormal/supernatural mysteries and myths that have been debunked or discredited over the years. I thought this might be a nice break from political-themed articles, particularly with Halloween around the corner. … Continue reading Things That Are Not: The Raifuku Maru, from Tragedy to Myth
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