The True Crime genre seems to have exploded in popularity in recent years, but, truthfully, people have always had a fascination with sensational crime stories. Long before podcasts, musicians transformed these true crime tales into popular songs that have been sung and passed along for hundreds of years. In this special Halloween episode, reference archivist Katie Crickmore breaks down five popular North Carolina murder ballads and the true stories that inspired them. John, Josh, and Katie also examine archival records found in the State Archives that back up or refute the narrative of these songs. Tune in and make up your own mind about what happened in these cases.
Sources Mentioned:
General
Murder, Mystery, and Mayhem in the Old North State – Office of Archives and History Blog: https://medium.com/murder-mystery-and-mayhem-in-the-old-north-state
Omie Wise
Randolph County, Superior Court Minutes, 1807, C.081.30008
Randolph County, Criminal Action Papers, 1807-1813, CR.081.326.10
Randolph County, Superior Court Minutes, 1811, CRX 86
Randolph County, Miscellaneous Records, CR.081.928.1
Randolph County, Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions, 1815, C.081.317
Frankie Silver
Burke County, Criminal Action Papers, 1832, CR.014.326.3
Burke County, Superior Court Minutes, 1832, CR.014.321.1
Several Petitions for Pardon to Gov. Swain, Mar-Jun 1833, GP.66-67
Tom Dula
Tom Dula Papers, PC.1272
NC Supreme Court, State v. Thomas Dula, Jan 1867, Case No. 8922
NC Supreme Court, State v. Thomas Dula, Jan 1868, Case No. 8923
Wilkes County, Criminal Action File, 1866, CR.104.326
Wilkes County, Superior Court Minute Docket, 1868, CR.104.311.4
Ellen Smith
Forsyth County, Superior Court Minutes, 1886, CR.038.311.6
Forsyth County, Superior Court Minutes, 1893, CR.038.311.8
Lawson Family
NC Death Certificates, Stokes County, 25 Dec 1929, Lawson Family
Stokes County, Deeds, Charlie and Fannie Lawson, Bk. 75 Pg.360
Stokes County, Record of Administration, Lawson Family, 1929, Vol. 2
Stokes County, Record of Accounts, Lawson Family, 1929-19
