Ohio & Washington: Justice Buried for a Century

Ohio & Washington: Justice Buried for a Century

Author: Shane L. Waters, Wendy Cee, Gemma Hoskins April 21, 2026 Duration: 28:43

Content Warning: This episode contains descriptions of gun violence, intimate partner violence, poisoning, and discussions of coercive control in same-sex and heterosexual relationships. Crisis resources are listed at the end of these notes.

In this episode of Foul Play, Shane and Wendy examine two cases from the American Gilded Age connected by the same institutional failure: not a lack of evidence, but a refusal to act on it. The Ashtabula bridge disaster killed 92 people and led to the silencing of the one man who told the truth. The Hells Canyon massacre left as many as 34 Chinese miners dead — and an all-white jury acquitted the confessed killers.

Season 40: Twin Portraits — two states, two stories. Ohio, 1877. Washington and Oregon, 1887. A murdered railroad engineer whose autopsy was hidden for 123 years, and Chinese gold miners massacred in the deepest gorge in North America while federal law declared them less than citizens. Two historical murder cases where the evidence existed and the institutions responsible chose silence.




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Step back into an era of flickering gaslight and whispered secrets, where justice was often as murky as the London fog or as stark as a frontier town’s saloon. Foul Play: A Historical True Crime Podcast exhumes long-forgotten criminal cases from the 1800s and early 1900s, meticulously piecing together stories that newspapers sensationalized and time nearly erased. Hosts Shane Waters, a veteran whose work helped shape the genre, and Wendy Cee, alongside researcher Gemma Hoskins, guide you through each meticulously researched season. They focus on a single, complete narrative, building the tension from the crime itself through the investigation and into the courtroom’s hushed drama. You’ll hear more than just the facts; you’ll get a sense of the societal pressures, the legal limitations, and the human lives entangled in each historical moment. This isn't about quick summaries-it's a deep, immersive audio experience that treats the past with the gravity it deserves. The podcast connects the dots using original documents, period accounts, and a clear-eyed analysis that separates legend from truth. It’s for anyone who wonders about the real stories lurking in the shadows of history, told with a journalist’s precision and a storyteller’s care for the victims and the complexities of their times. Listen to Foul Play for a compelling journey where every clue matters and history itself is the most important character.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Foul Play: A Historical True Crime Podcast
Podcast Episodes
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Duration: 29:00
Billy Wimbish - was born around 1859. A Black man who made his life in the Alaska Interior, Wimbish earnedrespect among the miners of the Fairbanks district. In 1906, he served as lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against mine…
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S39E05 - Four Suspects, No Justice [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:11
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S39E04 - The Longest Inquest [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:34
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S39E03 - Three Days of Dying [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:40
Content WarningThis episode contains detailed descriptions of poisoning and prolonged death. Support resources are listed at the end of these notes.This EpisodeSeason 39: The Balham Mystery. For seventy-two hours, Charle…
Balham: The Fatal Night at The Priory [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:10
Content WarningThis episode contains discussions of poisoning and death. Support resources are listed at the end of these notes.This EpisodeSeason 39: The Balham Mystery. April 1876—a young barrister collapses in agony m…
Balham, London: The Priory Poisoning Mystery [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 16:31
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London: A Murder Verdict in Victorian Court [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:16
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New York: The Doctor's Care [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:52
Enter 'The Doctor's Care' in New York—a chilling glimpse into the remaining shadows of the Rugeley Poisoner series, Part 2. This four-part narrative dissects the devious manipulations of Dr. William Palmer, a man whose a…
Staffordshire: The Rugeley Poisoner's First Victim [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:10
In the fog-laden lanes of Victorian Staffordshire, William Palmer found his first victim, igniting a path of sinister intent that would crown him the notorious Rugeley Poisoner. Season 38 of Foul Play delves deep into th…