Before dawn each February, thousands gather in the frozen darkness to hear the verdict of a groundhog said to be more than a century old. In this episode of The Haunting Truth, we uncover the folklore, mystery, and strange enduring power behind Punxsutawney Phil—the immortal weather prophet of Pennsylvania.

Sources:

• Encyclopaedia Britannica – Groundhog Day History – Origins of Groundhog Day, European folklore, and Punxsutawney Phil history.

• Punxsutawney Groundhog Club – About Phil – History of the Inner Circle, Gobbler's Knob, and the "Elixir of Life" legend.

• Punxsutawney Groundhog Club – Groundhog Day Origins – German folklore and Candlemas traditions.

• CBS Pittsburgh – Origins of Punxsutawney Phil – Historical background of the annual ceremony.

• WBNS 10TV – Origins of Groundhog Day and Phil – Modern overview of the tradition and its popularity.

• Punxsutawney Groundhog Club Official Website

• Additional cultural and attendance information from Groundhog Day historical reporting.

• Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania - Wikipedia

• Punxsutawney Groundhog Club - The Home of Groundhog Day!

Contact Us:

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Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com

She’s gorgeous. She’s toxic. And she’s been seducing humans for centuries.

Join us as we step once more into the Poison Garden to meet Belladonna — the beautiful lady whose allure shaped medicine, magic, murder, and myth. From Renaissance beauty rituals to witchcraft ointments and true‑crime poisonings, this episode explores how one plant blurred the line between healing and harm.

Sources:

 Botany and Chemistry

 https://powo.science.kew.org

 https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.govhttps://www.cdc.gov https://casereports.bmj.com https://plants.usda.gov💀 Historical and Folkloric Context

Ott, J. (1996). Pharmacotheon: Entheogenic Drugs, Their Plant Sources and HistoryWarner, M. (2013). The Witch: A Cultural History. Oxford University Press

⚕️ Medical and Pharmacological Use

•  https://www.who.int

• American Heart Association. (2020). Guidelines for Bradycardia Treatment. Circulation, 142(16), e558–e622U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense. (2021). Field Antidote Kits for Nerve Agents. USAMRICD Technical Bulletin

🕵️ True Crime and Forensic History

· Livia Drusilla:biografia e storia della prima imperatrice dell'antica Roma

· Augustus |Biography, Accomplishments, Statue, Death, Definition, & Facts | Britannica

Images:

· Bella Donna (album) -Wikipedia

· DilatedPupils Vs Normal

HallucinationArt

Movie:

Belladonna of Sadness (1973)Contact Us: Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

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Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com

There are places that don’t just hold history…they hold echoes.

Tonight’s story takes us to Glen Mills, PA where one of the oldest juvenile reform institutions in the US had echoes of discipline that sounded more like punishment.

Source Notes:

Glen Mills Schools - Wikipedia'House Of Horrors': Former Glen Mills Schools Students Claim In New Lawsuits They WereSexually, Physically Abused By Staff - CBS Philadelphia‘I Went into This Dark Shell’: 2 Men Recount Beatings, Sexual Assaults InsideShuttered Glen Mills Schools – NBC10 Philadelphia

Despite Denials, SF Officials Knew of Abuse at Reform School Where City Sent Juveniles | KQED

Despitewarnings, Pennsylvania failed to detect, stop abuses at Glen Mills and otherschoolsGlenMills leaders broke child-abuse law, state auditor finds

Settlementsets up education fund in Pa. school abuse case | AP News

It’stime to get rid of reform schools — History News Network2ex-counselors at Glen Mills Schools charged with assaulting teen - 6abcPhiladelphiaContact Us:

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

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Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com

In 1921, Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood — until a party at the St. Francis Hotel ended with the death of actress Virginia Rappe.

Join us as we discuss the events behind the scandal and the ghosts it left behind.

Sources:

The Skinny on the Fatty Arbuckle Trial

Fatty Arbuckle Scandal - FoundSF

Spite Work: The Trials of Virginia Rappe andFatty Arbuckle | A reconsideration of the Fatty Arbuckle case of 1921-22 and the life and death of the victim, Virginia Rappe

Roscoe Arbuckle - Wikipedia

Contact Us: Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com

Nursery rhymes were never meant to be sweet. This episode uncovers the plague, execution, witchcraft, and supernatural fears hidden beneath the songs we learned as children. Once you hear the real stories, you’ll never sing them the same way again.

If you love dark folklore, historical mysteries, and the eerie truth behind everyday traditions, join us for this week's episode of The Haunting Truth.

Sources:

Iona and Peter Opie’s The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery RhymesMarina Warner’s No Go the Bogeyman: Scaring, Lulling, and Making Mock

SnopesMental Floss

BBC History MagazineHistory.com

Encyclopaedia Britannica

Historic Royal PalacesKatharine Briggs’ Dictionary of FairiesThe Folklore Society archivesJSTOR folklore articles

Smithsonian magazines

Library of Congress folklore collectionABC AfterschoolSpecial - Wikipedia

Images courtesy of Shutterstock

Nursery music courtesy of Free Music Library

Contact Us: Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com

Journey with us again to New Orleans, during the time of Storyville and when a phantom killer with a taste for good music plagued the city...

Sources:

The Haunting Truth Podcast: Episodes 12 & 15, Mary Jane Bricktop and Zack and Addie

AHS season 3 Coven

David Hennessy: David Hennessy Murder Trial Documents - City

Archives & Special CollectionsDigital Collections

https://www.newspapers.com/

The Axman of New Orleans.louisiana-anthology.org

Esther Pepitone: Modesto Bee 15 December 1921 — CaliforniaDigital Newspaper Collection

Wikipedia

Smithsonian Magazine — "The Axeman of NewOrleans Preyed on Italian Immigrants" by Miriam Davis (Feb. 15, 2018Contact Us:

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

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Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com

Join us as we explore a Philadelphia cave that looks like an innocent spring house but may just be the start of the first doomsday cult in America (related to Dracula according to Woo!)

Sources:

• Historical Society of Pennsylvania / PhilaPlace – “Cave of Kelpius: Johannes Kelpius and the Society of the Woman in the Wilderness”
  
  PhilaPlace Article

• Christian History Institute – “The Wissahickon Hermits”
  
  Christian History Institute

• U.S. History.org – “Cave of Kelpius”
  
  USHistory.org Article

• Friends of Wissahickon – “Kelpius & Hermit’s Cave”
  
  Friends of Wissahickon

• WHYY Philadelphia – “Cave a vestige of the Hermits of the Wissahickon”
  
  WHYY Article

• Wikipedia – Johannes Kelpius / Wissahickon Creek
  

• Hidden City Philadelphia – “Doomsday Cult on the Wissahickon”
  
  Hidden City Philadelphia

• Reddit discussions and folklore references regarding modern legends and paranormal experiences associated with Kelpius Cave

• A Brief Biography of Kelpius

• Johannes Kelpius - Wikipedia

Contact Us:

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

Instagram: the_haunting_seeker

Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com

Join us for the next chilling Poison Garden episode, where we unravel the history of a silent killer that bridges Cold War espionage and modern pop culture.

Source Notes:

James Bond movies:

From Russia with Love, The Spy Who Loved Me, A View to a Kill, GoldenEye, and The World Is Not Enough

https://alchetron.com/Ricin

Breaking Bad (TV Series 2008–2013) - IMDb

Document Friday: The Poisonous Umbrella and the Assassination of Georgi Markov – UNREDACTED: The National Security Archive Blog

James Bond Agent 007 #198170 - Operation KGB (Issue)

www.kindpng.com

Contact Us:

Facebook: Jenn Woo Thehauntingtruth

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Email: hauntingtruth@outlook.com