Happy Thanksgiving all! This week, due to the holiday, we are revisiting an episode from March this year covering the mysterious remains found in a cave in 1979; remains that wouldn’t be identified until 2019. His name was Joseph H. Loveless, and he was no innocent man. Learn more about who he was and his family ties with Joseph Smith and his new religion as they crossed the country to settle in Utah.
Read MoreWe are finally here with Part 2 covering the story of Frazier B. Baker, the postmaster lynched in 1898 for the crime of being Black in South Carolina. In this episode, we explore Baker’s family tree and the shocking revelation Denise found in the census records. Then we discuss the villains; who were they and what happened to them? At the end we finish our discussion exploring the lives and family history of the “heroes”, Ida B. Welles and Lillian Clayton Jewett.
Read MoreLast week we discussed all that Marsha accomplished as well as her unsolved death and immediate family. In part 2 covering Marsha P. Johnson, we continue the conversation with her nephew Al Michaels and learn more about her parents and ancestors, including her grandmother, a Voodoo priestess..
Read MoreAfter a day of festivities and fun at the Gay Pride Parade in New York City, the body of one of its most notable residents who fought for civil rights for all people, was found floating in the Hudson River on July 6, 1992. Marsha P. Johnson, born Malcolm Michaels, Jr, identified herself as a drag queen and was an outspoken activist for gay rights who first gained prominence during the Stonewall Uprising. We may never know the circumstances of her death, but her work lives on today.
Read MoreIn Part II of our conversation on Dian Fossey, Denise and Zelda finish up their discussion of Fossey’s family tree, starting where they left off in the last Summersode, The Woman That Lives Alone on the Mountain. In this week’s Summersode, they finish their conversation on the family of Fossey’s mother, Hazel Kidd, then explore her father's side.
What else is left to discuss? Well, at least two more murders, a scandalous will, a family history of train deaths, a famous British naval hero, and so much more.
Nynyiramachabelli, the woman that lives alone on the Mountain, is a Rwandan word used to describe gorilla conservationist Dian Fossey on her grave in Rwanda. It was the name given to her by Rwandan’s who lived near her in the Virugan Mountains of Rwanda. In 1963, Fossey first arrived on the continent of Africa. It would soon after become her permanent home until her murdered body was found in the early morning hours of December 27, 1985.
Listen to Part 1 of The Woman That Lives Alone on the Mountain…
In the early morning hours of August 28, 1955, two white men entered the home of Mose Wright armed with a flashlight and a pistol. The men, Roy Bryant and J. W. Milam, came for Wright’s 14-year-old nephew, Emmett Till. With his uncle and aunt pleading the men to stop, they abducted Till into the night. It would be the last time Till’s family would see him alive.
On this summersode, Zelda and Denise discuss the events that led up to the horrific lynching of Chicago-native Emmitt Till as well as what happened next. Then we go further by discussing his family tree, an interesting history of struggle, success, and heartbreak.
In June 1985, the body of a young woman was found naked, wrapped in a sheet, in the trunk of a car. Upon looking at her body, a police officer told the press that it appeared as if she died of a drug overdose. When the autopsy came back, she had no drugs in her system.
In this episode, we talk about what led up to Catherine Mowrey’s death and how it affected her family. Then we get into her family tree, with the help of her niece Catrina Marshal, where we found a lot of generational tragedy and trauma.
Read MoreIn this episode. listen as we discuss the events leading to disappearance, including the murder of his wife, Agnes Octavia Caldwell Loveless. Our guest this week, Julie Dixon Jackson, genetic genealogist and podcast host of Cut-Off Genes, helps us understand how Loveless was identified using forensic genealogy. Then, of course, Denise discusses Loveless’s family history, tied to the history of the Mormon church, and what happened to his children after his disappearance.
Read MoreWe planned to share a holiday special we recorded with a few others, but technical difficulties prevented that from happening. Instead, we are sharing one of our favorite episodes, from August 20, 2020, Episode 5: Black Dahlia. In this episode we discussed the unsolved murder and family tree of Elizabeth Short. And boy, was her tree amazing!
We hope you enjoy the episode. We will be back with new episodes at the end of January 2021.
