Morbid - Episode 337: The Greenbriar Ghost

Episode Date: July 11, 2022

This case is the first and only time in U.S history that evidence from a ghost was admissible in the murder trial. Elva Zona Heaster Shue was married to the blacksmith in town, Erasmus “Edward” Stribbling Trout Shue. At first he seemed like a wonderful guy: charming, had good stories to tell, wooed her off her feet. Then as soon as they were married, things changed drastically and in the coming months more would be found out about this Edward character and more about Zona’s death.Check out this great resource on the case:The Haunting of Zona Heaster Shue by Nancy Richmond & Misty Murray-WalkupSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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That's W-O-N-D-E-R-Y-P-O-D. Audible.com slash wandery pod or text wandery pod to 500-500 to try audible for free for 30 days. Angie has made it easier than ever to connect with skilled professionals to get all your home projects done well. Just bring them your project online, or with the Angie app, and answer a few questions. With Angie, you can book instantly at an upfront price, or request and compare quotes from multiple pros, so you can find the best price for your project.

So the next time you have a home project, just Angie that and start getting the most out of your home. Download the free Angie mobile app today or visit Angie.com. That's ANGI.com. Hey, Weirdos, I'm Ash. And I'm Alena. And this is Morbid. We have a fun, crazy old-time case. Who could it be? It's mine! Wow! The guys, this one is really wild. It's got ghosts.

It's got moida, as Spencer Henry would say. And it's also got the first time in the first and only time in US history that spectral evidence was actually entered into like an official court document before. Like, you know, we're talking like Salem, which trials for sure had all that craziness. But this is when testimony from a ghost was actually entered into a legal document legal document. For a murder trial. Pretty fucking iconic if you ask me. It's a wild one. It is a wild one, so you just go right into it. Yeah, I think we should just get into this

because it's long, it's crazy, it's so interesting. This takes place in West Virginia, so on my West Virginians out there, you're in a place of West Virginia lately. I don't know what's going on, I'm in a place of West Virginia, so I don't know what's going on. I'm in a place of West Virginia. So I don't know if you guys all just like something about your vibes just brought me there

the last few weeks, but I don't know. I think this one was actually, I saw it suggested a bunch of times, like people were asking for it. So I looked into it, I had heard it before, actually I'd heard it on lore. Oh, they're in Minky. And I, as soon as I saw the name, I was like,

wait a second, where have I heard that? And I went right back and listened. So go listen to the lore episode, because it's really good. And I believe it's one that he remastered to. Erin Manky, friend of the pod. The friend of the pod. So yeah, so go listen to that after you listen to this, because it's great.

So we're going to be talking about the green briar ghost. This has a lot of stuff in it. Okay. A lot going on. All right. This is talking about a woman named Elva Zona Heaster shoe. Yes. We are going to call her Zona because that's what everybody

called her. And it just is much easier. Exactly. It's like it's a everybody called her. And it just is much easier. Exactly, it's like purposes. It's a very long name, but Elva Zona Heaster is like a very pretty name. I even just like Zona, all of it, but I like really like Zona. Yeah, that's what everybody called her.

She was born in 1875 in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. Everyone loved her. She was a very sweet girl. I love Zona. Her parents were Jacob Hege's heaster and her mother was Mary Jane Robinson heaster. They were farmers. She grew up on a farm. She was a little farm family. Their family traded in sold goods from the farm in town, like, you know, eggs, corn, other necessities. They could provide in town. And then they

could also get things in return for what they were providing the town. So Mary, the mother, was very religious, but she was like known to be a very honest, very hardworking, very kind, and just like fair woman. Like, people really liked this family. She also made sure all her children attended church at the sole Methodist Chapel. Mary and Zona in particular were very close. Like, people always thought they were sisters. Oh, cute. It's really cute.

They had a bond that was super unique. Kind of like Gilmore Girls. Kind of like Gilmore Girls. We can always bring it back. Lorela and Rory, baby. Baby. So Zona was the second oldest of seven children, and she had all brothers.

Oh, man. And also, that's probably why the bond with the mom kind of came about because it was highly. Hello. But yeah, they just like had something. It was just one of those relationships. Like you said, like Lori, Lorela and Rory, that's just like Lori.

They're bond names. But they just really loved each other. They were best friends. Everyone who knew her said she was a super sweet child. She grew up to be a very sweet woman. She just threw in through as a kind person. Sweet. Her brothers really looked out for her

and they were very protective of her, which is kind of adorable. I love that so much. This family was super nice to each other. They were nice to everyone around them. The kids were very happy and healthy. Seemed like the only thing going against them was the 1800s of it all.

Yeah, that'll really work against you. And eventually a man that would be named Trout. Trout? Yes, Trout. Given name? Oh, no. But, no. But he is a smelly fish man, so we'll go with that. Or at least

that's what I refer to him as. Grossy. I don't really know why they called him trout. So when really? Yeah, I really don't. There was no, this is, in these cases, you can get like bits and pieces of information, but yeah, to be expected. No one explained why he was called trout, but I just assume it's because he smelled like shit. Gross. Yeah. So when Zona was 16 years old, she was finally allowed a bit more freedom, because again, they were very overprotective of her.

Yeah. But her, her brothers were like, all right, she can come into town with us and start doing the trading in town. Like we'll bring her in. Yeah. But she's not going by herself. She is.

It's really cute. She could go in the wagon and all that. So one day when she was heading to the general store with her brothers, like a couple of her brothers, she ran into a boy named George Woldridge, who was working at the Liversea's mill. So they headed off immediately. She did.

Swoon, swoon, swoon. She did. They started making special trips into town to see each other. Oh my gosh. And soon after dates were being planned. Rounded for two. And then a romance, like a full-blown romance blossomed.

Oh, I love it. So this was, so this was in June 16th, in 1895, Zona became pregnant. Now the couple ended up not, not like getting married or anything like that because the families both decided that they were not in a position to be a successful family unit. So instead, George agreed to pay support for the baby and to have visits.

It was all very amicable, very, and this was the most. And this was the most outback then, that's interesting. Yeah, so November 29th of that year, she gave birth to a son, but he died shortly after birth. Oh, no. He wasn't even named like, I have a book that I want you guys to read.

And I'm going to look it up right now. And Ash is going to Vampampampampampampampamp. We're acquiring it. With Alina, this is your summer reading reminder. We just have to pull up the list of approved books. And we're doing so. We're doing so right now. So you should read. It's on Amazon, it's a really quick read.

The haunting of Zona Easter shoe, the green buyer, buyer ghost chronicles. It's by Nancy Richmond and Misty Murray walk up. Okay. It's a really good book. They have a ton of documents that I searched and they are hard to find, so it's nice to have them in like that little book.

But you can see that there is like a birth certificate for this baby boy, but there's no name given to him, so it's very clear that he died right after. So sad. I know, it's really sad. He was buried on the Heaster family farm because he was not able to be buried in a church cemetery since his own end. George were not married. Lame. Seems totally fair.

No, it doesn't. No, it doesn't. Just in case you couldn't tell that was the first time. I saw that twinkle of farcasm in your eye. You saw that twinkle of farcasm in your eye. So George married another woman only a year later. Wow, yeah, because they didn't stay together. They just everything got.

I wonder what happened. It was so lovely at first. Yeah, it's too hot and heavy in the beginning. I was just going to say, I think it was one of those like two quick puppy love like wow and this was also I think zone is like really first like relationship, you know, seeing a guy and like feeling that feeling and I think it happened very quickly, you know, so I don't think they were especially equipped together to deal with the grief of losing a child either. I think this was just too fast, too quick.

And it burned out really quick. And maybe that's why George moved on so quickly because he was kind of like, it is a brief. I think the grief kind of took them apart instead of bringing them together. Yeah. And of course, Zona was deeply entrenched in grief just from losing a child, but also now

from losing her partner. That was sad and seeing him move on really quickly. That's a lot on your plate all at once. That's a lot. So the next year while recovering from the tragedy she had just dealt with, she started venturing out into town again finally, because she really pulled back for a while. She didn't want to go anywhere like her mom said she was a totally different human being. So she's venturing out with her brothers again to pick up supplies at the mill or the general store drop stuff off from the farm.

And it was just a way to get herself back to who she was. Like she was just trying to get out there again, but her family said she was starting to come back, but she never really bounced back after the loss of her baby. It just, she wasn't the same zone. That will change anybody. Oh, I'm sure. Now in 1896, she met the new blacksmiths while she headed into town. Oh, the blacksmith? You know

is a Zaddi. He's a blacksmith. He's a Zaddi. You just, you know that. You're like, oh, I know this. Now his name or what he said, his name was was Edward Trout. Shoe. Okay, so he's not a Zaddi because I spoke too soon because I know that he is trout now. Here's the thing though. I can understand why she was physically attracted to him. He seemed like he was a physically attractive man. I wish he would say Zadi. Sure. But he seemed like he was a physically attractive man. I get why Zona was immediately drowned to him. Unfortunately sometimes bad people

are good looking and just happen. That happens a lot. Yeah. So she was immediately attracted to him. Again, he was good looking. He was loud. He was outgoing. He was just kind of like, you know,

something different. He was something different. She'd never been around that kind of thing before. He drew people to the blacksmith's shop with his charms and his tails, which were often embellished or just plain bullshit. She and her brothers began to go there regularly on their trips into town, and it seemed like Zona's personality was starting to shift and the weight of grief was lifting a little bit. So her family was like, I don't know who this guy is. She's going to see in there, but like he's doing something to her. Let's get it. So Mary and Jacob, Zona's parents,

they went into town one day and they were like, you know what, let's go see what this new blacksmith is. And they met Edward for the first time. They had heard again about the new blacksmith, his charming personality. They knew that Zona was kind of into him, but Mary literally hated him the moment she spoke to him. And Yamama, she always knows.

She always knows. She said it was, and he was an ego maniac. He was inappropriate. And in fact, she thought he acted entirely too flirty with girls that were barely above the age that it is even slightly appropriate. Disgusting. Yeah. So, he was a man that likely had a lot of secrets and Mary knew it. She was like, I just feel it. She had his number.

I literally wrote after this. She had his number immediately. We are on the same way. We are on the same wavelength. And she just knew she was like, I knew he was hiding something. Yeah. Like this, where were you before this black smith shop? I don't know. I don't like this. Are you even a blacksmith? Who are, is your name even Edward? It's not. I don't know. I don't like this. Are you even a blacksmith? Who are, is your name even Edward?

It's not. We all have that one friend. Yoss, the mother doing their like, oh my god, I'm totally fine. It's kind of the same with my cat, both of them actually. They seem fine. And you know, since I don't speak cat language,

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That's pretty litter.com slash morbid to save 20% on your first order. Pretty litter.com slash morbid. Now, Mary and Jacob found out that Zona had been indeed taking trips into town to meet Edward, and after they met him, they were like, Oh, no. They forbid her, but she kept meeting him behind their backs because you know how that worked. And it was probably even more fun.

Well, and he seemed to take pride in the fact that he knew he was not what her parents wanted for her their precious daughter. He took it as kind of a challenge, not to make them like him. Like, yeah. He basically just wanted to own Zona and to take her from them.

We all know this dude. Uh-huh, we've all dated that guy. We have all unfortunately dated this man. If you haven't, you're very lucky. Yeah. So soon, briefly into their doomed romance, he said they would run away. You know, let's run away and get married.

No. Let's just fuck everybody. Fuck your family. Who gives a shit? Let's get out of here. That's what he basically said. Lane, I don't have it like on, I didn't find a record of him saying that,

but I know that's what he said. He said, fuck your family. He said, fuck your family, let's leave. So she agreed immediately because she was very wrapped up in this like, so na honey. I, you know, I dated a guy like this. That's all I could think of this entire time.

And you're that's exactly what you're thinking. And I wasn't gonna throw you under the bus. Not to. Okay, I'll throw myself under the bus. Like, I, like, I've dated this man. And Mama knew. And Mama knew. Mama knew right from the second issue that I tried to sabotage a lot of people knew.

Debra, Debra, all knew the second issue. I would have known, I was just a bit, you were a child, so I didn't like him. Yeah, you, it was fine, but. So I get like, Zona got very wrapped up in the like, you know, he's good looking and he's charming and he treats me nicely when no one's around and like,

you guys just don't see him when we're alone and that's always a bad thing right there. Yeah, like my standards are in high school where like is he hot? Do my parents like him? Yes, no, perfect. There you go. So it's like, and when you get older,

it's like it just becomes, oh, it's just bad. So like I was like yelling at Zona here. I was like, no, Zona, listen to me. I know, I know. Now, she immediately agreed to marry him. She packed her bags and they ran off together to get married. October 20th, 1896.

October 20th. Yeah. That's my wedding date. There you go. Not 18th, something, something. This isn't great. So I don't know if we want to connect those two things, but I mean, I'm just thinking, my wedding date, I'm just being selfish here. This is't great, so I don't know if we want to connect those two things, but I mean, I'm just thinking, am I winning it? I mean, I'm just like being self-ashir.

This is a very doomed marriage. That's fine, mine's not. That's why I'm saying, that's not connecting. Yeah, whatever. So none of their family attended, none of them knew about it. She wore a deep red dress she had made herself. Oh honey, in a horror movie, there's the warning sign. Yeah, there it is. They then went back to town and moved into the home that Trout was renting at the time. That's when all the families found out that they had gotten married. Nobody was happy.

Wow. And it turns out Mary and Father Jacob were absolutely correct about Trout. Mary knew it. Mm-hmm. They had seen who he was, the second they had met him. And again, they had that number. He was a pretty terrible person with a very questionable past.

One that they had, had they known the details about, even Zona probably would have run to the hills from him is what I meant. But she didn't know any of this. So Edward's name was actually Arasmus Stribbling Trout Shoe. Oh, Trout was an nickname. Interesting. So his name was Arasmus Stribbling Shoe, which like, all right, that's a name.

That's an outward, but okay. I wish he was a cobbler. That, right? Shoe, cobbler. Shoe, feel the right. So he was going by Edward because he was trying to pretend he wasn't a felon and a dickhead, which he was.

Oh, good. So he was basically trying to start a new identity in that town. He was born in 1861. And his parents, Jacob Thomas Hue and Elizabeth Virginia, spoiled him rotten even though he was one of nine siblings. Damn. They all refer to him as trout.

Again, I like to think of it because like, maybe he was just like a smelly fishman, but who knows? We don't know. Oh, that reminded me of Kim Possible. Okay, I knew you wouldn't get it. I just say it for the listeners. For the Kim Possible heads out there.

I mean, they're there. They go. I'm also in Romano. I remember Kim Possible being on. He was like, are you watching it, but it was right out of my, yeah. Cause we love a Chrissy Carlson Romano moment. Yeah, we do.

We love her tick tock. I wasn't even Steven's gal because that was right before that. Mm-hmm. And I just like just missed it. I was there for the movie. There you go. Now, Trout's father was a Confederate soldier. I'm just gonna... So there's that.

Just putting that out there. Yeah, and he was also a blacksmith when he returned home from the Civil War. He taught Trout the ways of the blacksmith trade and he eventually became very successful financially. The father or the father. So the family was like doing well. Now growing up trout was known to be an asshole. He had a fiery temper.

He was very aggressive. He was just a little shithead. He lied all the time. He loved to be the center of attention. Even if it meant he was lying and spinning tails to do it He kind of sounds like a Gemini man When was he born? Do you have the date like the actual date? I don't think I have the axe. I'm gonna look it up. I'll look it up on the side while you talk about this There's an actual I couldn't find one but there has to be one somewhere maybe

So but this all carried into adulthood with him. Okay. Because, and he was soon a ladies man as well, because again, unfortunately, you've sent him. And his ability to bullshit mixed with his family wealth. Like, yeah. Sometimes bullshitters, like they just can draw people in. Now, he first dated and married a woman named Ellen, who they called Ali Esteline Cutlip,

who was a sweet and beautiful girl from Green Briar County. Okay. They married in 1885 on Christmas Eve, and immediately following the wedding, Trout started physically and verbally abusing Ali. Of course. He also cheated on her constantly and just wouldn't be home for weeks at a time and then show up without the need to explain where he was.

Wow, I literally hate him. Unfortunately, they had a daughter together in February 1887 named Gertie. And he continued to abuse his wife and by all accounts it got even worse until one day in March 1888 when Gertie was still in fact an infant, he suddenly told Ali to take the baby, take her shit, and get out of his house. What the fuck? He then threw all of her belongings and the baby's outside of the house and was like, get out. What is wrong with this man? He turned even more chaotic at this point and was struggling financially because he knew his father would just be disappointed in his loser-ass son. So he wasn't asking his family for any help

because they would have told him to get fucked. Right. Because in the end his family literally tells him to get fucked. I like they don't. Good for him at all. They should. So in 1888, after he had thrown his infant child and his wife of like barely any time out of his house, he was arrested for stealing a horse. He got two years in prison for the crime, and he spent the sentence at Mountsville Prison, which he would come to know and love. He continued blacksmith work as part of his incarceration, and that's how he got like kind of good at it, and that's when he came out. He was able to get a job. You weren't able to find his... I could find it, it's It's like circa. Yeah, that's the thing

So on November 5th 1889 Ali divorced his ass while he was locked up good in the record It states that she said quote he without any cause abandoned and deserted me He moved out when he moved out when Gertie was about a year old He never visited his child again. That's so disgusting. Kicked her out of the house, never to see her again. It's like, how do you have a whole baby and just not care? Now, there are some sources, if you read this, that say that Alan died as a result of falling off a haystack

and breaking her neck. Down. And that people thought he might have murdered her. But from what I saw, I think that's like added into the story later to make it even worse. And they're so much. Which they don't need to because as we'll see, there's more shit in his past that you really don't need to make it worse. But I think they like the like, oh, he might have murdered this

one as well. Yeah. No, she just divorced him by all records that I could find at least. I couldn't find any like kind of death certificate for Ali at all. Now, when he was released December 20th, 1890, he started Blacksmith work again in Pocahontas County. There he met another woman in 1894. Her name was Lucy and Trit. Now Trout was about 33 years old at the time, and Lucy was reported in a lot of case sources

to be 16. Oh, but when I found her marriage record, she listed as 24. When I looked up her death records, they state she was born in 1871, so this would line her up with 24 years old. Oh, okay. Or actually more 23, I think, based on her date. Do you think that there's a possibility that they lied on the marriage license, and then 24 years old. Oh, okay. Or actually more 23, I think, based on her date. Do you think that there's a possibility

that they lied on the marriage license and then it carried into the death certificate? That's what I wonder, but that didn't happen. Yeah, I'm not sure which one's correct. Yeah, because you would think that you would go by the birth certificate when you're doing the death certificate and not like the marriage license, which is like, I don't know.

So I don't, it could be either one. Hell. I don't know, so it could be either we care for our minds affects how we experience life. So it's important to invest time and care into being and keeping them healthy. There are plenty of ways to support a healthy brain, like learning a new language, taking a power nap, going for a hot girl walk. There's also better help online therapy.

You know, I love learning new languages, power naps, and taking hot girl walks, but better, I'll help online therapy, and just therapy in general are a lifesaver for me. I absolutely love going to therapy. I look forward to my appointment every week. I'm like, sit down girl, she's always sitting at it. I just tell her to sit down and I'm like, buckle up because I had a crazy week always. It just helps having that one person. You know that you can tell the craziest stuff to, or just like any kind of stuff to, and they're there to sit there and listen, and empathize

with you, and give you tools to, you know, make things better. And BetterHelp is online therapy that offers video phone, and even live chat only therapy sessions, so you don't have to see anybody on camera if you don't want to. It is much more affordable than in-person therapy and you can be matched with a therapist in under 48 hours. Our listeners get 10% off their first month at BetterHelp.com slash morbid. That's betterhelp.com slash morbid. So they were married, unfortunately. So June 23rd of that same year. And apparently the winter weather that year between like 94 and 95, I think it was, was super crazy. They

said like a really bad winter. And so on February 1st of 1895, I believe only eight months into their marriage, Trout claimed he went on the roof of his home, he shared with Lucy, to repair the chimney, because the snow had messed up all the bricks. That is very normal. He was tossing old bricks off as he replaced them, and he said, Lucy came up with some water for him. He threw a brick, and it hit her head in the head accidentally. Convenient. She died from the trauma, but forced trauma to the head. The sheriff did question him because immediately they were like, that's fishy.

Yeah. And the family, her family was pretty sure that there was more to this story. They were like, I'm pretty sure this is foul play and not an accident. Yeah. But the case was dropped because there was no witnesses outside of Lucy and Trout and Trout said

that's what happened. Wow. He showed literally no sadness or remorse for any of it. Like, told people, it's really not a big deal. Like, you know, a whole last wife just died, sir. Well, he said he was planning on having seven wives at least. So, on to the next one. All right.

And he just thought he reacted. Throughout his lifetime or at the same time. No, throughout his lifetime. What? So he got really good. He's like, I'm too down. I'm moving on to that seven. Who's goal is that?

Trouts. It was there some kind of like, was there some kind of like religious motive behind that? Like he thought you would like make it to heaven or something? Oh no. Different wives? Oh no, no, no. He just wants something. No, because he didn't want like, seven at once. So he wasn't looking to like, I don't know if he like tried to find a loophole make it to heaven or something? Oh, no. Different wives? No, no, no. He just wants something.

No, because he didn't want like seven at once. He wasn't looking to like, I don't know if he like, tried to find a loophole and was like, I can have this separately. Oh, no. He literally was like, I would just like to have seven different wives. It's just very, very different life. So back to Zona. He has now tricked Zona into marrying her.

Remember, this is like, this was his past. Yeah. Now, we have one dead wife. We have one wife who he divorced, or not didn't even divorced, just abandoned with his infant daughter. Yeah. That's his past.

And now he has tricked Zona into marrying him. Zona is his third wife. Third wife, thirded into the seven. Now, again, she's completely unaware that he abused his first wife, abandoned her, infant baby, dead wife, he's just no idea. And Trout showed himself unfortunately right away to Zona once they were married too.

That seems to be his MO, is he gets them to marry him and then he flips the switch. Just like he had to Ali and just like he had to Lucy. So he was an abusive prick. He was demanding he wanted his wife to cook and clean and pamper him. If he didn't get what he wanted, he would lash out into terrifying rages. Do it yourself then. Now this was a terrible, this was terrible in about a million ways for Zona, but there was an added complication where she was not speaking to her family

because they didn't approve of this marriage to trout. Oh, so she's just completely isolated. She's super lonely and she's just dealing, and like she's dealing with this, especially without her mom. Yeah. Who like I stated she's super close to her mom. Right, and she's going into this just having lost a baby, just having gotten out of a relationship, you know?

And now this guy has bamboozled her. And like you said, isolated her away from everyone she loves and knows, which was his plan, you know. Oh, of course. Now shortly before her death, because unfortunately, this does end with Zona dying, Zona thought she might be pregnant. Oh, so according to trout, she wasn't feeling well January 23rd, 1897. Now at this point, they'd only been married for three months. Trout said he normally would walk home during the day to have lunch when he was working at the black psalmist shop. And he would do this several times a day, you would have lunch,

you would stop by first snack, it was just like a all throughout the day comes. He's also probably trying to keep tabs on her. Ah, exactly. Now this day, this particular day, he swore he did not, not once. Yeah, just randomly decided not to go home to no reason. Although no one could corroborate that except for Zona and she was obviously never able to. Or so we think. So instead of going home at all that day, he walked across the street during lunch time, or early in the morning.

It's like early, I'd say probably around like 9am, maybe 10am. He walked across the street from the blacksmith shop to where a man named Ruben Jones and his wife Martha Jones were living. Martha, they were like a beloved couple in around town and they had this sweet 11 year old son named Anderson Andy Jones. He was like a helper to everyone, and he had done some chores and errands for trout in Zona before. People called Martha Jones on T. Martha. Cudy. Now, trout asked them if Andy could check on Zona that day

because she was feeling sick. They said he had some, he, so they were like, yeah, sure, he can, but he has some, there's some things to do for a couple of other people first. So he'll get to yours after he does that. He said that they did say that trout was like very annoyed by that, but he said later he immediately knew something was off when he and he did when he arrived at the home, because he did his things.

And I think it was about an hour later that he went to his own his house. Okay. He said he immediately knew something was off. Just like the vibes, was like, and he's 11. Oh, wow. And he was like, I showed up at this house and something was wrong.

And he said, when he was walking up to the door, he said he spotted what looked like blood droplets on the front steps. And why would they be on the front steps? And when he knocked, he got no answer. So he pushed open the door, and he said he went inside. He saw board blood droplets that led into the dining room where he found the body of Zona Heaster.

Now, he checked her despite his absolute terror because he said he was paralyzed with fear. She was cold and stiff. Her eyes were wide open. And he ran home to tell his mother, Martha, and they ran over to the blacksmith's shop and got trout. So apparently trout freaked out. He was like, all upset.

What do you mean something's wrong with her? He ran to his home and he just ran straight to Zona. Now, he immediately, according to Martha and Andy, grabbed her in his arms when he found her, and he told Andy and Martha go and get Dr. Napp, who is Dr. George Napp, and he was the, like, county physician and coroner. Okay.

So he ran out, he's crying, holding Zona. They, so Dr. Napp actually ended up coming around 2 p.m. So there was a little bit of time, because I think he was in the middle of something else. He's in the middle of something. He's in the middle of something. He's in the middle of something. And when he got there, he didn't see anybody.

Not downstairs. So when he walked upstairs, he found that trout had carried Zona upstairs, washed her entire body, and changed her into a dress with a high collar and placed a black veil over her face. The fuck? He had literally washed her body. Why though? Why though? Why though?

Why? Why? Why would you do that? Because you are getting rid of evidence, but like what evidence is you to be found at that point? Well, the initial thought was that she, so when they walked in, he was like, this is strange, but okay, and the doctor was like,

oh, I imagine she died of everlasting faint. I don't think so, which is a heart attack, Beckman. No, I think that we need to figure out where the blood is on the front self. Well, so that's, so he came in here pretty quick and he's like, okay, this seems like that is probably, because a lot of people died of everlasting fate back then, but then he learns that she may have been pregnant.

And he thought, okay, maybe this is a complication with the pregnancy or a miscarriage that went to rye, but he couldn't check for sure. He went to go check, but trout wouldn't let the fucking physician touch her. And it's like, so why did you call him here anyway? That's the thing, why did he have him here anyway? That's the thing. Why did he have her come, income?

He then pushed him away. Like she went to, he was like, I need to check her and he was like, don't touch her. And then he, when he came like near her neck because he was like, can I just see her head? Like I need to see if there's any injuries. Nope. Can't touch her. Literally couldn't check her. It's also like, dude, at some point this, you said, because he's the coroner as well.

So it's like, he's going to have to take her at some point. You can't just like call Panzerim, or no, not Panzerim. Who is the Panzerim? The guy that Carl Panzerim? No, no. Wait, was it him that kept his wife? No. No. No.

No. No, no. No, no. No, no. You're thinking of a, was it Carl? I think it was Carl. Panzer. Panzer, there it is. So it was cool.

See? Yeah, exactly. You can't do that. No. But you know, both of us are like, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's fine. You can't do that. But you know, back then it was like different though. It's not like you could keep the body.

It was you for a while. Yeah, it was a very different. So he, but he grabbed the upper body. He wouldn't let her, the physician touch her at all. So he was like, okay, I guess I just have to guess at the cause of death because I don't want to upset this fragile man in front of me. Who can't let me touch this dead body to find out what happened.

Now in fact, I looked it up. Her original cause of death is listed as childbirth. Oh. She did not give birth through a child. Well, I'm like, where's the kid? Now, when her family was informed, they were devastated, obviously. Her mother was said to have yelled immediately

that devil killed her. Oh. And just imagine like on top of how they already felt like it was arranged. They were estranged at the time. Exactly. Like that's horrible. And she's like, I wasn't there.

I couldn't save her from him. And I'm sure the last words, they exchanged like, weren't great. Exactly, because they were probably aggravated, talking about him, like sucks. Now, they did have her body taken to the Heaster Family Farm and there was a funeral procession, the next morning, and trout would not leave her body. He touched her the entire time.

I hate it. He wouldn't let anyone up at the head of the casket. No one could come near her head. And there's a reason for that, my friends. Yeah. And that evening, they did, you know, the ceremonials sitting up with the dead. Yeah.

That was very common in, it was common in a lot of places, but in the appellation area at this time, it was like, that was what you did. You sat up all night with the dead. You would make offerings, people would make food. I mean, it was a whole thing. I kind of love that. I think it's nice. It's like awake.

And you spend time with them. And you're all probably sitting there like sharing stories about them. It really is like awake. I think it's kind of nice. I like it. I think it's like, I feel like people, I feel like America especially got way too precious

with like what is appropriate and what isn't with death. And it's like just teach the room. And it's like that seems like a nice ceremony. It's like who gives a shit? Like let people mourn how they want to mourn. Now preparing the body for burial was a whole different thing. Trout insisted on helping. And not just helping, but really taking control of preparing the body for burial

and not letting anyone else touch her. She was not invombed, which was not a strange thing back then. It was kind of a new back then. It was very common that you weren't gonna be involved. But what he wanted to, he was like, I wanna dress her, I'm the only one that's allowed to touch her, no one else is. Because I don't want you to see where I killed her.

Exactly. He also put a knotted and folded up sheet on one side of her head and clothing on the other to keep it straight and steady. He said he believed this would help her rest easier. Yes, definitely. And he insisted on putting a very thick scarf around her neck. Yeah, you know, keep her warm. And when people were like, Hey, it's June. Why are you doing that? He said this is Zona's favorite scarf and she had asked to be buried with it specifically.

Remember, they were only married three months. I don't know why that would have been in the discussion. And also her family was like, know why that would have been in the discussion. And also her family was like, I'm also her favorite scar. No, that's not a thing. No. But okay. [♪ OUTRO MUSIC PLAYING [♪

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from side to side when not supported. Did he stray? No, I don't know. Yes, you do. Now, throughout the night of setting up with the dead, Trout, he wouldn't stray away from her head. Like I said, he would not let it go. People were in according to the book that I'm going to link here. They said that everybody was kind of like nodding off and falling asleep at the door. He was vigilantly staying up. He would not leave the room. And I imagine it's because he didn't want anybody to touch her and find anything else.

So he had to watch everybody. He had something to hide. Yeah, so that's who he is. And the next morning, she was buried at the Soul Chapel Cemetery, which is the church that the family attended. Now her mother kissed her one last time on the cheek and then removed all the pillows and sheets from the casket.

Oh, yeah. He off, so she said that like, her head, well, I think she was on a pillow, so her head did kind of like fall, but like it wasn't so much that she was like super alarmed. Well, she probably expected it moving the pillow anyways. Yeah, and she doesn't know it till the floor. It's like a movement.

Now, she offered the pillow and sheet to trout. That was very kind of. Which was very nice of her. Like, do you want to keep these? He seemed annoyed at the off. He was like, of her. Like, do you want to keep these? He seemed annoyed at the op. He was like, ew. Like, why would you offer those to me? And he was like, no, I don't want those.

I feel like, cool. I didn't want you to have them anyway. And then she said, he ran out of there. As soon as the grave was filled in, he literally, she was like, I watched him. And a bunch of witnesses said they watched him watch that last thing of dirt go over her. And then he went, and he just left.

Like he wanted to make sure like she is underground. I don't know. I'm going to find what I did and I can get out. Yeah, I'm on my way to find my fourth wife. I'm on my way to seven. Now later when the mom Mary washed that sheet because she was like, I just feel like I need to like wash it and put it away. Yeah. It turned the water pink like blood. Of course it did. Now, she would testify to that fact later. Soon Mary started having dreams. Or what she said were hallucinations. She was like, I was awake. They were not dreams.

These were essentially waking nightmares, and there were four of them, four nights in a row. They all had Zona appearing to her, and telling her that her husband, Trout, had murdered her. Now, in one of the evenings, Mary was laying in Zona's bed in her bedroom. Wow. And she, because she would go in there and just lay in her bed and she would say, she would just like pray to God that like she would find out what happened to her and that like everything was okay.

And she said she was laying in Zona's bed in her bedroom and she was pleading with a higher power to tell her what happened to my daughter. This is when Zona appeared to her, she said. And she went on to explaining great detail how trout had murdered her. And what did she say? She said the day she died, she was in fact not feeling well. But she spent the morning getting ready for trout. Because she said otherwise, he would hurt her and fly into a rage. So she said, even though mom, I felt like shit. She was terrified, she said that. She was like, I had to get up

and I had to at least prepare him a meal because if he came home and it wasn't there, he would have hurt me. Oh, yeah. So he came home, she had prepared a meal, she had prepared a meal of fruit, jelly, and bread. I think she said. He came home, he was pissed. It was like a way to live with it.

Because there was no meat with his meal, and he flew into a fucking rage. He choked her until blood poured from her mouth. Oh my God. And she said that he had also taken all of her, I think the way she says it is, like, he had taken taken all of her, I think the way she says it is like, he had taken all my pretty's and he ripped them off the wall and out of things

and he ruined them, like he threw them in the basket. Like everything she loved, like he just took them and destroyed them. And later in the letter that the mom writes to a researcher, she wrote like we discovered that was true. Like we found that basket that he had like destroyed all of her things. She then told her mother that he hid her dress that had blood on it over around Martha Jones's home.

And she said, you should check like in the house. There's going to be blood in the house. And she also said check near, check in a field near a fence. But she didn't give her exactly what she would find there. Now one of the last times she visited her mom and her dreams because Mary's now in there, her room every night, being like, come back to me, tell me more.

Now one of the last times she said, Zona turned to walk away, but turned her head completely around to look back at her, showcasing her completely broken neck. Oh my goodness. She looked at her and then disappeared. Yeah. Yeah, that's wall.

So it was literally her being like, this is what happened. Holy shit. Now she finally, so Mary at first was like, what the fuck just happened to me? Like, did I am I losing my mind? And I was just gonna say, she's probably terrified to even tell anybody that she's having dreams.

She's like, they're gonna throw me in like the place where they throw their wives when they say crazy shit. You're gonna burn me at the stake? Like, what the fuck's gonna happen? Right. Oh no. But she finally, so she brings it to Jacob, her husband. And Jacob knows.

And her son. She's like, I have to tell you guys something. You're gonna think I'm crazy. Like, please don't force me anywhere. Jacob and her sons were like, I have to tell you guys something you're gonna think I'm crazy Of course, I'm you wear Jacob and her sons were like we believe you of course We know it and Jacob was like no you saw Zona and they all knew what an asshole Edward exactly So then she tells her she tells them and they encourage her you have to tell some of the neighbors and our friends because they're gonna back you to So she tells so scared right so she So she tells her friends around the area, what Zona had told her, and they all were like,

we believe you. Like we believe you. They all thought Trout was a horrible man. Also, you have to be the shittiest person for neighbor, your 1800s neighbors, to believe that a ghost came to you in the night and said what this meant. You have to be the shittiest person for them to be like, yeah, I'm not going to question

that at all. Because if you were like a little shitty, they'd be like, okay, I think she's like, you know, she's like, you know, she's not too many. She's grieving. Maybe she's just having a moment. Like you're a piece of shit if everybody believes this with no questions. And I was going to see most people in his life agreed that he was a piece of shit. They seem to be everybody's consensus here.

Now they were all like, oh yeah, he was a horrible man. We are not shocked that he murdered Zona. And he murdered a wife. I'm sure, like then Ali got brought up and his other wife as well, who he actually probably did kill. Uh huh. Or he definitely abused her so it was that.

Now, they all told her that they were like, you need to tell authorities and we will back you up. Like, they were like, we'll back you up with whatever you need. I love this community. We're going to be here to, like, if you need dates, we'll tell them dates like we will help you. They were like, we will mother fucking rally. Exactly.

So Mary Easter went to Lewisburg prosecutor, John A. Preston. And she, she knocked on his door, and she's like, I gotta tell you a story. He was like an older guy apparently, and he sat down, he listened to her. At first, he was like, hmm, girl what? And so he was like, let me just ask you this. So he starts speaking more with her.

He's interviewing her, asking her questions. And according to her, he never acted judgy. And her, like he was never like,gy. Like he was never like, bitch. Like he was literally, he was like, what now? Like are you kidding? So then when he was asking questions, he was really asking questions. Like he wanted to know more.

She tells him the whole story again after hours. He's like, I believe you. Okay. Uh-huh. So she calls, so he called the deputies in the county and he tells them, I want you to go out and I want you to question neighbors and I want you to question anyone who knew this guy trail.

What they hear, what they see. I want you to get Dr. Napp. So they got Dr. Nappen. And Dr. Napp was like, yeah, that was hell of a weird. Dr. Napp was like, yeah, I literally didn't get to do my job. So he and he was questioned and he was eager to say like, I've been this because he was like, this has been bothering me. I was actually surprised that he didn't call

the police. That's I think it was, I don't know if it was like things just works differently. One of the things was he didn't, he said he was worried that he was interfering with grief. Okay. Like pushing man. So he was like, I didn't want to like push too hard. And I think maybe he's just like, he's, I'm assuming he's very overworked doctor. So he was probably like, I'm a dung man. So he was like, I didn't want to like push too hard. And I think maybe he's just like, he's, I'm assuming he's very overworked doctor. So he was probably like, I'm just tired. And I didn't know what I should do here. And I'm sure in his career, he learned to like,

maybe not ask me. Yeah, hopefully that's like, yeah, exactly. So, but he told them he said, I felt intimidated by him. Yeah. And I felt very uneasy about his actions towards zone his body. I felt like something was wrong here,

but I didn't know how far to push this. And he told them, and he had also heard that trout was kind of an aggressive guy. And I'm sure he was like, I don't want to get in the fucking middle of this. True. But he told them, he said, I didn't get to conduct an autopsy because I was not allowed to even go near her body. So he was like, I just said she died of that. I'm assuming she did. That's all I know. I don't know anything else. So they declared she needs a fucking autopsy. And we need to know how she died. And because they were relying on the, like,

I guess she died from this cause of death. Like that's not good. And well, and it's like there's nothing to show that she did have a child or, you know, exactly. Now this is when they also started digging into his past. Because now they're like, why does everybody think he's an asshole? What's going on? Once they saw the stints in prison, the previous marriages, and him being an asshole, they were very intrigued. Then they found out that one of his previous wives had died strangely

not long ago, and it was taking the investigation into the next level. They were like, yeah, okay, we might have something here. So of course, a corner's inquest was assembled and an exhumation was ordered by Mary. Wow. Mary was like, oh yeah, let's go. Like bring her up. I want to see what's going on. Trout was pissed.

Of course, say the least. Yeah, because he walked away and he took that low like sigh of relief. And now he's stressed. And he wasn't even going to go to the corner's inquest, which you're supposed to. Of course. Like, loved ones are supposed to show up at the sin quest because they want to answer. The answers, yeah. No, he was like, I'm not going. And I guess one of the sheriffs was like, you have to do it. He would be in your best fucking interest to show up at this. Like, I guess the sheriff was like, we have your number, fucker. Like you better show up here

or we're gonna use this against you too. Right. And so I guess he was like, they'll never be able to prove I did it. Wow. Obviously he knows. Obviously he knows she was murdered and he just willingly let that information out

the first time with that statement. So he's a dumbass on top of being a murderer. So prosecutor John Preston secured a warrant to disturb a body, which is the exhumation, and to keep trout behind bars until the autopsy was completed. Hell yeah. So we can't flee. So she was exhumed on February 22nd, and they did the autopsy. I found this fascinating.

Any tiny log cabin schoolhouse named Nickel Schoolhouse next to the Chapel Cemetery. Yeah, so like I don't know about that. Get's better. Oh, literally had to cancel classes for the tiny children that day so they could autopsy a potential murder victim in their classroom. They used school tables pushed together to perform the autopsy. Alrighty. And then the kiddies went back to school the next day and did their stuff on those tables.

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Credence. Now, there was also the five men of the jury and just of the jury in quest, there's obviously 12 members of the jury, but there was five men for the in quest. And Justice Hallen McClung was there. And of course, Trout she was there under the watch of a constable because he was told by the constable,

I'm gonna be fucking watching you. He was like, I'm literally on you, bitch. Yeah. Now, he literally wouldn't stop talking the entire time. Like, Trout was just babbling, and he kept saying, she fell down the stairs, and they were like, well, how do you know that? You weren't there.

Right. I thought, didn't weren't you not home the whole day? And he was like, yeah, she died of everlasting fainting, I think, didn't that what they said? And he was like, I thought she fell down the stairs. And he was like, I don't know, she fell. And he kept saying that and they were like, you never said that, bro.

Yeah, you told us you weren't home. Right. So how would you know this? Exactly. Now, the winter weather had preserved the body. Oh, shit. We love a perfect storm. We love it.

That we love when the universe helps us out. We love when the universe says to Edwards who are shitty. Honey, you got a big storm. You got a big storm coming and it's going to preserve your not-and-bomb to murder victim's body in the wreck. Thank you. She was in remarkable condition. And that has something to do with her. I just know it. It does. She's not-she was found not to be pregnant. Good. She was not pregnant. They then removed the collar around her neck and her head fell to the side like a bowling ball. So when she had the mom had removed the sheet

and the clothing, it had moved slightly but in a very natural way, like I said, so it didn't alarm her. When they removed that collar and that thing that was tied like a bow under her chin, bowling ball just fell right down my goodness. And so there were also noticed immediately bruises in the shapes of fingers were very visible

around her neck as well. The doctors finally being able to touch the neck found that the neck was indeed broken between the first and second vertebrae, which were the C1 atlas and the C2 axis, which are at the base of the skull. Can I ask you like maybe a dumb question? Why did blood pour out of her mouth when she was strangled?

Because her windpipe had been crushed. Oh my God. Her ligaments were shredded and ruptured and her windpipe was crushed. Or as they later described it, mashed. Oh my God. Which they said could have been him strangling him her with his hands, and then maybe even

neighing on her neck or stomping on her neck. Jesus Christ. Yeah. So it was a very, very brutal death. They stated in no uncertain terms that she had been murdered by manual strangulation, and he immediately screamed when they said that they can't prove I did it. I'd be like, why don't we just bring your hand over here and just match it right up? I'd also be like, that proves you did it.

Yeah, exactly. That right there. You saying that proves you did it. Right. Well, Trout was arrested immediately by Sheriff Hill, Nickel, and was charged with murder in the first degree. Yeah, it's a show. He was placed into Lewisburg, jail, until trial and June.

Now in March 9th, they released a statement and they said, quote, the discovery was made that the neck was broken and the windpipe mashed. On the throat were the marks of fingers indicating that she had been chokin. The neck was dislocated between the first and second vertebrae. The ligaments were torn and ruptured. The windpipe had been crushed at a point in front of the neck. Wow. Now April 22, 19 or 1897, the evidence was presented to the jury and they found that he had likely caused the death of Zona. So he was held for trial for more until June. Now June

22, 1897, the trial began with began with Judge Joseph Marcellus presiding. Mary was going to be called to testify and was taking this so seriously that she rented a room to stay by the courthouse for the trial. For her. Because the farm was like kind of far away. And the whole family couldn't come every single time. They had to tend to the farm. They had to tend to the farm.

They couldn't leave it. So she stayed in a rooming house like near the courthouse. She's a bad bitch. She was like, if you call me, I'm there. Is there any movie about this? I feel like they're high-dove there. I don't know if there is actually.

I got it with that up. Well, if not TM. TM, we're gonna make a movie about it. Now, she was eventually brought up to testify, but the prosecutor Preston, John Preston, didn't ask her about the dreams or visions of seeing Zona because he was worried, he was like, I don't wanna make her seem.

Yeah, for rockers. So like, I'm just gonna ask her the very, like clear questions. Yeah. Yeah. Now, instead the defense came up and they did. Oh, and you think they're trying to make her look off her rocker?

100%. They were trying to make her look foolish. I don't even know. I said, do you think they're trying to make her look off her? 100% they were trying to make her look foolish. I don't even know. I said, do you think that's what it was? Or do you think they were trying to help? No, they were definitely trying to make her look foolish. And since newspapers at the time were going wild for this case, since the excavation had happened, there was a transcript of this exchange printed in the Green Briar Independent and a discussion about how truly, like, fucked

that trow was on July 1st, 1897. Now, first in the newspaper, they stated, quote, the evidence of medical experts, Dr. Napp and others who conducted the post-mortem examination makes it quite clear that Mrs. Schu did not commit suicide. The post-mortem made it clear that her neck had been dislocated, but there was not mark upon her person or other evidence to show that she had subjected herself to any sort of violence. They also pointed out that Shoe was in like a really good mood after her death. They wrote, quote, he showed no proper appreciation of the loss he had sustained.

Wow. So again, he's just like, I don't care. Yeah. On to seven. So here's the questioning that was given to Mary on the sand. Okay. Here's the question from the defense. I have heard that you had some dreamer vision which led to this post-mortem examination.

So she answered, they saw enough their selves without me telling them. They was no dream. She came back and told me that he... So she answered, they saw enough their selves without me telling them. There was no dream. She came back and told me that he was mad that she didn't have no meat cooked for supper. But she said she had plenty and said she had butter and apple butter, apples, and named two other or three other kinds of jellies, pairs and cherries and raspberry jelly, and she says, I had plenty. And she says, don't you think he was just mad and just took down all my nice things and packed them away and just ruined them. And she told me where I could look down back of Aunt Martha Jones' in the meadow in a rocky place, that I could look

in a cellar behind some loose planks and sea. It was a square log house and it was and it was huge up to the square. And she said for me to look right at the right hand side of the door as you go in, and at the right hand corner, as you go in. This is talking about their home that they, that this happened in. Okay.

Well, I saw the place just exactly as she told me, and I saw blood right there where she told me, and she told me something about that meat every night she came, just as she did that first night, she came four times and four nights, but the second night, she told me that her neck was squeezed off at the first joint. And it was just as she told me. Now later, she said the same exact thing and said there was a clear sign of a scuffle and blood where she was directed to go. Right, they never found the dress. Oh, that's interesting.

That she had said. Now, the next question was, now I would like, if I could, to get you to say that these were four dreams and not four visions or appearances of your daughter in flesh and blood. And she said, I'm not saying that. She said, I'm not going to say that, for I'm not going to lie.

Yes. So this defense guy was like, defense attorney, this defense guy, you know, the defense attorney was like, I would really just like you to say that that, like what a dick, I'm like, no, she's not gonna say that. I'm not gonna lie. And also do you really think that she's gonna say it for you defense attorney?

Oh, I'm sorry, sir, of course, these were no. Like she's like, I'm not gonna tell you I, brother, no. Now this testimony was allowed into the record and not argued as inadmissible by anyone in the court. Wow. It was the first and only time in the United States in a murder trial that a ghost testimony was entered into the record and used as of it.

That's incredible. Yeah. Now later Mary Heaster put together a list of eight names of people she told about Zona's visit, all the neighbors and all that. And like the testimony before the autopsy. Now she told them exactly what Zona had told her before the autopsy was conducted. So she said her neck was broken, she said all that. They all wrote all eight of these people wrote official letters testifying to the fact that she had indeed

told them about Zona's broken neck before that autopsy was done. Wow. And it's crazy. So apparently Trout ended up taking the stand as well. Like why though? Yeah. Now I guess it didn't go very well. He looked like a dick.

A dick? Yeah. Before sending the jury to deliberate, the judge told them that they really needed to look at the facts and not the circumstantial and truly spectral evidence in this case. He wasn't trying to be a dick. He was just being like, he's just doing a straw. You can't really base it on the spectral evidence. You have to go with the actual facts. Yeah, they maybe think about it. Yeah, just it's there. No, he said, quote, there was no living witness to the crime charged against defendant's shoe, and the state rests its case for conviction,

wholly upon circumstances connecting the accused with the murder charge. So the connection of the accused with the crime depends entirely upon the strength of the circumstantial evidence introduced by the state. There is no middle ground for you, the jury, to take. The verdict inevitably and logically must be for murder in the jury, to take. The verdict inevitably, and logically, must be for murder in the first degree, or for an acquittal. So they were

like no second degree, get out there. So like I said, spectral evidence was largely frowned upon since the Salem Witch Trials, that whole thing, that little moment in time. I think that maybe we've touched upon it before. We might have touched it. I might have mentioned it every once in a while, but so this was interesting that it was even being admitted into evidence. It was actually Reverend Cotton Mather, who's name you might recognize from the Salem Wattrow hysteria. I do.

He was the one who argued that it was totally fine to admit spectral evidence into legal proceedings back in the 1600s. You to fit his whole narrative. He also said it should not be the sole reason for conviction, and his reasoning for that was because the devil can take the shape of an innocent person. So that's when it gets hairy, not like because that's like wild. Kuku to like completely convict someone based off of spectral evidence. Yeah. But he was like, well, no, the devil can just take the shape of an innocent person.

That's why. Good. OK. OK, cotton mother. All right. He had a lot going on. He had a lot going on. It was later thought to be bad to even admit it

at all into evidence, like it changed, because demons can shape shift. Yeah, they can. Not because people can lie about seeing ghosts, because like in the witch trials, but just because demons can shape shit. The sheepshifting. So the process of taking it out of proceeding

started in 1692 with Massachusetts Royal Governor, William Phipps, telling the coit of the coit. The coit? Telling the coit. Telling the court of Oyer and Terminer to stop admitting spectral evidence at all. So that's very, it's just very interesting that like late 1800s we now have it. I know.

But I think it's kind of this similar thing where they're saying this can't be the conviction based on it. Yeah. It can be an end evidence because this ghost had it set somewhere. But don't like only sit with that. Yeah. With my schedule and how I am just constantly go go go go go go go go go and then go some more, I don't have a ton of time to do the things that I really love to do. And one of those things is reading, guys, I used to read all the time constantly, but

guess what? That's why I love Audible. Audible offers an incredible selection of audiobooks across every single genre. There's bestsellers, there's new releases, there's celebrity memoirs, I freaking love those. Mysteries, thrillers, obviously that goes without saying that I love those. Motivation, wellness, business, and more. Angel discover exclusive audible originals from top celebrities, renowned experts, and

exciting new voices in audio, always exciting. As an audible member, you can choose one title a month to keep from their entire catalog, including the latest bestsellers and new releases. It always feels like you're adding something super fun to your collection. All audible members get access to a growing selection of audiobooks, audible originals, and podcasts that are included with the membership. You can listen to all you want and more get added every single month. Audible has become such a staple in my research process because I'm a little bit of a slow reader, to be honest, so it takes me a while to get a book finished, but with Audible I can actually kind of speed through it a little bit faster, and you know get my case moving and grooving and give

you some really cool book recommendations. So let Audible help you discover new ways to laugh, be inspired, or be entertained. New members can try it free for 30 days. Visit audible.com slash morbid or text morbid to 500-500. That's audible.com slash morbid or text morbid to 500-500 to try audible free for 30 days. Audible.com slash morbid. [♪ music playing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in background, sounds of a bell ringing in They claimed that actually Mary's ghost story had very, like, really nothing to do with the verdict. I mean, his handprints are on her neck, guys. They were like, honestly, it was the facts that we did that. And then he, like, screamed out in the courtroom. You can't prove that.

We did it. Exactly. I feel like it was the fact for me. And they said, you know what? The defense didn't prove that he was innocent and actually gave them no reason to believe he was innocent. And in fact, had pushed them further into believing that he was a murderer. So did they get new jobs out there? So they're like, whoa, you're just part now.

Actually, 10 of the jurors voted to have him executed. Wow. So they didn't have a unanimous decision with that. So he was sentenced to life in state prison. I'd rather that. In the Green Briar Independent, they said, quote, taking the verdict of the jury as ascertaining the truth, then we must conclude that she deliberately broke his wife's neck

probably with his strong hands and with no other motive than to be rid of her that he might get another more to his liking. That's what they wrote in the newspaper. That's a lot. Now on July 9th, the Pocahontas times from his hometown basically roasted him. Fuck, yes. In the paper, they wrote at the end of the article, and I quote, she was a bad man, and he has no sympathy from the neighborhood in which he was raised.

Amazing. Boom. Roasted. Like, they were just like, you're a bad guy, and the place where you were born doesn't give a fuck about you. They're like, we don't claim you. We do not claim you. We do not receive you. Nope, we don't claim you. We do not claim you.

We do not receive you. No, we don't claim you, we don't receive you, and we're sorry we only issue one of the world. In the papers following the verdict and the sentencing, there were actually rumors printed that mob violence was going to be planned to take shoe from the jail he was being held at. And he had him.

Yeah. A lot of people were mad he didn't get sentenced to be executed, especially after all the information came out about him being abusive to all of his wives, and the fact that one of them had died strangely that he abandoned and threw his infant daughter out of the house. A few days later, an angry group of over 30 men met in a campground hatched a plan and they were going to attempt to hang him. Oh dang. Like rip him out of the jail. Now he was stopped by law enforcement who were alerted to about these plans from farmers

who had actually heard the meetings. Going on, the farmers agreed that they thought she got out too easily with life in prison, but they didn't want people dying during the commission of a vigilante act. They were worried about everybody else. Things going really awry, and they were like, we can't, they will. Exactly, and they said like, we can't in good conscience allow this plan to happen

and no people might die and not say something. Yeah, well, what could farmers? I love this commune. Yeah, so they ended up stopping it. And actually, I guess the law enforcement was able to convince the mob to like calm down, but some of them to get and to get charged for like planning this. It was probably the ones who like wouldn't settle. Yeah. Now, so shoe was actually taken out of the jail for short time because they were worried. But they brought him to Mountsville prison to stay. None of his family ever visited him. Good, I hope not.

Nobody visited him. In fact, no one ever visited him at all. I'm glad I got my wish. And they all, like, they didn't claim him after that. They were like, no. Why would you? Now, apparently at some time in prison, she started drawing.

He really took up drawing as a, as a, you know, what the fuck are you gonna do? You would draw for hours. And at one point, he drew a picture of himself in Zona, beneath a really shitty drawn tree. He was not a good artist. And he is sitting in this nice chair, and she's standing, of course.

And then also in the same picture, on top of the picture, on top of them, like sitting in this tree, or under this tree, he drew them both in coffins. And never explained this. He then asked the guards to mail this picture to the owner of the blacksmith shop where he had worked and originally met Zona. What?

The picture, which we will post a copy of, is now property of the Greenbrier Historical Society and it's displayed at the Northhouse Museum in Louisburg, West Virginia. Cause it's just an interesting like, what did that mean? Was it, cause people think, was Virginia. Because it's just an interesting, like, what did that mean? Was it, because people think, was this him admitting it? Yeah.

Or was this like, why was he in a coffin too? Well, that's what, because he's being like sentenced, I guess, like terminally sentenced. Yeah. I don't know. That's the thing. I think that's why it's historical. It's like, we need to know why he drew this.

I want to know why he drew that. What was the meaning behind that? Was that a confession? Yeah. It wasn't not. I've just mad that people have to look at his artwork. It's shitty, so it's funny to roast it. So he actually stayed in that prison until he died in March 1900.

He was only in prison for three years. Oh, wow. He fell to a flu epidemic that had spread across the area and had really like- I hope it sucks. It had like gnarled through prison communities and like killed a lot of inmates. Now no one came and claimed his body when he died.

So he was buried in white gate cemetery, which was specifically made for prisoners whose bodies were not claimed by their families. There is a plaque up where Zona Heaster Shoe is buried. And it says, in turn, in a nearby cemetery is Zona Heast or Shoe is buried, and it says, interred in a nearby cemetery is Zona Heast or Shoe. Her death in 1897 was presumed natural until her spirit appeared to her mother to describe how she was killed by her husband Edward. Autopsy on the exhumed body verified the apparitions account. Edward found guilty of murder was sentenced to state prison, only known case in which testimony from ghosts help convict a murderer.

That is so crazy. And that is the tale of Zona Heester Schoo. And she never, her mother never saw her again. Her mother said she never came to her again. But she said it was, I think it was because at least that's what I read that she, that she had told her what she needed to tell her. She believed she was happy and that justice was served. And that's why she was able to move on. Wow.

And what a wild case. And the mom, Mary, she maintained this for everyone who knew her said she was not this like woman who was prone to fanciful, like exaggeration. She's a very like logical, very level-hander. A very level-headed, very fair and very honest woman. Yeah. And she testified to it.

And she was right. I mean, I believe her. Yeah, just the fact that like she knew everything before the body was being exhumed. It's wild. That's crazy. And it's true. It's all true.

And I also just like love a mother-daughter bond like that. I do too. Or just like even like a sisterhood bond. Because yeah, like I feel like Zona came back and was probably like, you know, because they had that like a strange relationship on the unfinished business. It was only months that they had been apart from each other.

So it's like, you know those months were probably fucking terrible. You're growing. And she just, and on top of that, like the mom had never been in their home because she had never come to the home because they were a strength. She wouldn't come visit her. Right. So when she said, she told me in this corner of the house,

this is what it's going to look like, you're going to find blood. And they found it. Right. She had never been in that house. That's crazy. Like that's insane. Yeah. That's a crazy case, Elena.

That's the story of the Green Briar ghost. We hope you loved it, and we hope you keep listening. And we hope that you keep it weird. But that's the way that you do anything that I've retracted because he's a horrible person, and I don't even know about his whole entire life. Like, what were you even doing? You're stupid, and you suck, and I don't like you.

But do keep it so weird that in the afterlife, if your motor is unfortunately unsolved, like, appear to your mom or someone you love and tell them what happened, and like, maybe it'll happen again in the US, if your motor is unfortunately unsolved, it like appeared to your mom or someone you love until them would happen and like maybe it'll happen again in the US. There you go. Bye. Bye. Hey, Prime members! You can listen to Morvid, Early, and Add Free on Amazon Music.

Download the Amazon Music app today, or you can listen ad-free with Wondery Plus and Apple podcasts. Before you go, tell us about yourself by completing a short survey at Wondery.com slash survey. What if you were trafficked into a cult over shot nine times, or fell in love with a vampire, or went into a minor surgery and woke up one week later, paralyzed. What would you do? I'm Whit Missaldine, the creator of this is actually happening, a podcast from Wondry

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