new podcast: crimes of the carolinas

I am thrilled to announce that I am the co-host of a new historical true crime podcast that launched last summer. Crimes of the Carolinas focuses on crimes in Western North Carolina. I say "historical" meaning we try to look at crimes 1970ish and earlier. So far, we have covered crimes from 1865 up through 1937. Technology and criminal investigations have changed drastically in the last few decades. We try to look at old crimes through a modern lens. We also highlight the historical context in which these crimes occurred. It's not enough to know who did what and why. We want to know what was going on in the area at the time of the crime and how it affected the situation.

Some of these cases have been solved while others have not. Bringing these people back to life is important to keep their family's story alive.

Episode 1- "Till Death do us Part"

• When women murder their husbands. We explore the 1883 murder of Mary Minish's husband in Union Grove and the tragic story of Neta White Harrison's struggle with mental health in 1912 that led to her husband's murder.

Mary Minish Photo credit abandonednc.org

Episode 2- "Murder in the Mountains"

• The unsolved case of the murder of Elva Brannock in Alleghany County from 1937. We get some insight from a retired captain of the Iredell County Sheriffs Office on how modern forensics might have solved this case.

Elva Brannock from local newspaper, 1937

Episode 3- "Brother Against Brother"

• In the midst of the Civil War, the mountains of Western North Carolina were plunged into the chaos of guerrilla warfare from feuding families, specifically we look at the Coffey family. The murders of William and Austin Coffey in the winter of 1865 exemplified the phrase, "turning brother against brother."

Episode 4- "Murder, Trains, and Social Injustice, Part 1"

• We explore the murder of the Lyerly family in 1906 from Salisbury and how the racial political climate of North Carolina at the turn of the century played a huge role in the aftermath of the crime. Three black men were lynched for the crime in order to feed the fear of African Americans.

Episode 5- "Murder, Trains, and Social Injustice, Part 2"

• The potential true criminal behind the murder of the Lyerly family is revealed and we discuss how if this theory is true, the killer hopped trains between 1898 and 1912 and killed more than 100 people.

Episode 6 (COMING SOON)- "The Woman in the Well"

• The unsolved case of the murder of Lue Cree Overcash Westmoreland. Newly married, her body was discovered in the well on the family property. Even after a detailed inquest, investigators never pointed a finger, formally charged, or even whispered the name of who they thought committed the crime.

Crimes of the Carolinas is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast streaming platforms.