Dudleytown: Connecticut’s Cursed Ghost Town
Morbid
12/14/23
•62m
About
Comments
Featured In
Deep in the woods near Cornwall, Connecticut, in a valley known as the Dark Entry Forest, lie the remains of the small village of Dudleytown. Settled in the mid-eighteenth century by British colonists, Dudleytown was a thriving mining community that for provided charcoal and other minerals for the growing steel industry in and around New England. But by the late nineteenth century, the mining industry had shifted west and slowly, but surely the population of Dudleytown shrank until there, by the early twentieth century, there were only a handful of people living in the village. By 1924, the village of Dudleytown was completely abandoned and fell into the ownership of a private trust, who sought to restore the forest ecosystem to its pre-colonial health.
In retrospect, historians and others familiar with the region have cited a variety of social, economic, and ecological reasons for the collapse and abandonment of Dudleytown, yet there are those who believe the abandonment of the village has a darker and more supernatural explanation. There were rumors of widespread madness among the villagers, unexplained deaths and other tragedies, and a curse that dates back to the founding of village in the 1740s.
Today, the area is said to be haunted and, despite being private property, it has become a popular destination for ghost hunters and legend trippers who are determined to find out whether Dudleytown is truly a cursed village or just a victim of shifting social and economic trends.
Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring me the Axe Podcast for Research!
References
Barlow, Bart. 1980. "A lost town populated by legends." New York Times, October 26: C2.
Campos, Chris. 1976. "The death of a town is the life of a curse." The Journal, May 29: 1.Cornwall Conservation Commission. 2012. The Land and People of Cornwall, Connecticut: A Conservation Perspective of Our Town's Natural Treasures. Historical evalutation, Cornwall, CT: Cornwall Conservation Commission.
Cornwall Historical Society. 2014. The Truth about Dudleytown. September 29. Accessed October 29,2023. http://cornwallhistoricalsociety.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-truth-about-dudleytown.html.
Drozdowski, Ted. 1978. "Old ghouls still haunt state's cliffs, villages." The Morning Record and Journal, October 28: 35.
Hartford Courant. 2006. "True curse haunting family's forest land was progress." Hartford Courant, October 25: B2.
Hutter, David. 2008. Man pays price to spot Dudleytown ghosts. August 3. Accessed October 3, 2023.
https://www.registercitizen.com/news/article/Man-pays-price-to-spot-Dudleytown-ghosts-12147138.php.
New England Historical Society. n.d. The Dudleytown Curse, Connecticut's Village of the Damned.
Accessed October 3, 2023. https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/the-dudleytown-curse-connecticuts-village-of-the-damned/.
Pallatto, John. 1980. "Only the ghost hunters walk in legend-cursed Dudleytown." Hartford Courant, November 1: 9.
Pettit, John. 1996. "The spirits were willing, but the flesh was weak." Record Journal, October 31: 1.
Revai, Cheri. 2006. Haunted Connecticut: Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Constitution State.
Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books.
Rierden, Andi. 1989. "A hamlet that can't get rid of its ghosts." New York Times, October 29: C2.
Ryan, Bill. 1986. "Dudleytown legend haunts Cornwall." Hartford Courant, April 13: 12.
Siedzik, Jason. 2011. In Cornwall, Dudleytown movie makers arrested. December 8. Accessed October 3, 2023. https://www.ctinsider.com/news/article/In-Cornwall-Dudley-Town-Movie-Makers-Arrested-16886230.php.
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)
Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since...
Previous Episode
Sharon Kinne- La Pistolera Pt.2
December 11, 2023
•58m
On March 19, 1960, Kansas City police were called to the home James and Sharon Kinne for what they believed was an accidental shooting. According to Sharon, she had found their two-year-old daughter lying on the couple’s bed, a gun near her hand and her father’s body next to her with a large hole in his head. Unable to find evidence to the contrary, the shooting was ruled an accident and Sharon collected on her husband’s life insurance policy. It wasn’t until a few months later, when the wife of Sharon’s new boyfriend went missing and eventually turned up dead, that investigators came to believe that James Kinne’s death was no accident.
Sharon Kinne was eventually arrested and charged with the murders of her husband James and of Patricia Jones, the wife of Sharon’s boyfriend at the time of her arrest. During the course of their investigation, detectives began unraveling a lurid tale of infidelity and conspiracy that resulted in at least two murders. Ultimately, Sharon would be acquitted of her Patricia Jones’ murder, and would be tried three times for the murder of James Kinne.
Before she could be tried for a fourth time, Sharon fled to Mexico with the help of yet another boyfriend, where she killed Francisco Parades Ordoñez in what she claimed was self-defense. The Mexican authorities rejected that claim and in 1964 Sharon was tried and convicted for murder, receiving a ten-year prison sentence. However, after serving just five years of her sentence, Sharon Kinne escaped the Mexican prison and has been on the run ever since. Today, more than fifty years later, she is still considered a fugitive with active warrants out for her arrest.
Thank you to the wonderful David White, of the Bring Me the Axe pod, for research assistance
References
Doyle, Patricia Janson. 1962. "Sharon thinks of trial, jury and jail." Kansas City Times, January 13: 1.
Hays, James C. 1997. I'm Just an Ordinary Girl: The Sharon Kinne Story. Leawood, KS: Leathers Book Publishing.
Kansas City Star. 1961. "Anxious in his hunt for wife." Kansas City Star, June 16: 1.
—. 1961. "'Changed her story on gun'." Kansas City Star, June 15: 1.
—. 1960. "Fin a woman slain in woods." Kansas City Star, May 28: 1.
—. 1962. "'Fixed a price for his death'." Kansas City Star, January 9: 1.
—. 1960. "Officers study life of families in slaying probe." Kansas City Star, May 28: 1.
—. 1960. "Puzzled over a fatal shot." Kansas City Star, March 20: 1.
—. 1960. "Rap coroner in slaying probe." Kansas City Star, June 2: 1.
—. 1960. "Weird ties in murder probe." Kansas City Star, May 29: 1.
Kansas City Times. 1962. "Boldizs views offer as jest." Kansas City Times, January 10: 1.
—. 1969. "Kinne Search Widens." Kansas City Times, December 9: 1.
—. 1962. "Mrs. Kinne found guilty." Kansas City Times, January 12: 1.
—. 1961. "Sharon Kinne goes free." Kansas City Times, June 23: 1.
—. 1962. "Somber Sharon Kinne starts jail routine." Kansas City Times, January 12: 1.
Kelleghan, Kevin. 1969. "Sharon Kinne hunt eases up." Kansas City Times, December 18: 31.
Maryville Daily Forum. 1961. "Testimony on death gun to KC jurors." Marysville Daily Forum, June 19: 1.
Olwine, Margaret. 1974. "Sharon Kinne: Is she free forever, part II." Kansas City Star Magazine, February 17: 14.
—. 1974. "Sharon Kinne: Is she free forever?" Kansas City Star Magazine, February 17: 17-19.
Weber, David. 1964. "Sharon Kinne in jail." Kansas City Star, September 20: 1.
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)
Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Next Episode
Velma Barfield
December 18, 2023
•130m
On November 2, 1984, fifty-two-year-old Velma Barfield was executed by lethal injection at North Carolina’s Central Prison, bringing an end to years of legal appeals and emotional debates over the death penalty and how, when, and to whom it gets applied. For six years, Barfield had sat on death row following her conviction for the poisoning murder of her boyfriend Stewart Taylor in 1976; however, during her trial she confessed to killing at least four other people.
Velma Barfield’s trial came at a time in the United States when Americans were just beginning to grapple with the concept of a serial killer, and the idea that a woman could commit such heinous acts seemed entirely inconceivable. Although woman had been sentenced to death for murder before in the US, none had confessed to methodically killing multiple people in such a callous way and for such a trivial reason. The debate only became more complicated following her death sentence, an already complicated subject among Americans that became exponentially so in 1984, when Barfield’s case and personal story became a major talking point for politicians running for office around the state.
Thank you to the Incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for Research!
References
Associated Press. 1984. "Hunt hopes Barfield's death will be deterrent." Asheville Citizen-Times, November 3: 1.
—. 1978. "Woman charged in poisoning ." Charlotte Obvserver, March 15: 1.
Barfield, Velma. 1985. Woman on Death Row. Nashville, TN: Oliver-Nelson .
Bledsoe, Jerry. 1998. Death Sentence: The True Story of Velma Barfield's Life, Crimes, and Punishment. Dutton: Boston, MA.
Carroll, Ginny. 1978. "Confessed poisoner awaits death." News and Observer, December 10: 1.
Charlotte Observer. 1984. "New Evidence: Velma Barfield's Sickness." Charlotte Observer, October 31: 12.
Journal Wire. 1984. "200 gather at funeral of Velma Barfield." Winston-Salem Journal, November 4: 35.
Margie Velma Barfield v. James C. Woodward, Secretary of Corrections; Nathan A. Rice,warden; Rufus Edmisten, Attorney General, Appellees. 1984. 748 F.2d 844 (US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, November 1).
Maxwell, Connie. 1984. "State executes Velma Barfield." Chapel Hill Newspaper, November 2: 1.
Monk, John, Sue Anne Pressley, and Gary Wright. 1984. "Velma Barfield executed by injection." Charlotte Observer, November 2: 1.
Ness and Observer. 1978. "Jailed woman eyed in more deaths." News and Observer, March 15: 1.
New York Times. 1984. "Relatives of murder victims urge no clemency for Carolina killer." New York Times, September 20: B15.
News and Observer. 1980. "Lawyer says he coached Mrs. Barfield." News and Observer, November 18: 17.
Pearsall, Chip. 1978. "Barfield jury calls for death." News and Observer, December 3: 1.
Stein, George. 1978. "Arsenic trail: Lumberton asks where it will end." Charlotte News, May 27: 1.
The Robesonian. 1969. "Parkton man succumbs to smoke inhalation." The Robesonian, April 22: 1.
Tilley, Greta. 1980. "She doesn't want to die." News and Record, September 21: 1.
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)
Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
If you like this episode you’ll love
Promoted