Episode 343 - The Watseka Wonder (Mary Lurancy Vennum Possession)

We’re back with another installment in our extra spooky, haunted object–filled series! This time, we’re diving into one of the eeriest possession cases in history: The Watseka Wonder. In the 1870s, during the height of the spiritualist movement, 13-year-old Mary Lurancy Vennum began slipping into trances and channeling spirits — until she claimed to be the long-dead Mary Roff, a neighbor’s daughter who had tragically died in a sanitarium. For three months, Roff “returned” in Lurancy’s body, recalling family memories and even handwriting. Was it true possession, or a chilling performance no one could explain? And we’re not alone… our haunted doll Elara is in the studio with us, speaking through the Ghost Tube app. 👀 Get ready for eerie history, hauntings, and plenty of spooky fun. Would you let a ghost borrow your body? Links from the episode: The Watseka Wonder Former Roff home Air bnb Watch the video version here. Have ghost stories of your own? E-mail them to us at [email protected] New Episodes are released every Thursday and Sunday at 12am PST/3am EST (the witching hour, of course). Corinne and Sabrina hand select a couple of paranormal encounters from our inbox to read in each episode, from demons, to cryptids, to aliens, to creepy kids... the list goes on and on. If you have a story of your own that you'd like us to share on an upcoming episode, we invite you to email them to us! If you enjoy our show, please consider joining our Patreon, rating and reviewing on iTunes & Spotify and following us on social media! Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Discord. Edited by Jaimi Ryan and produced by Emma Leventer and Jaimi Ryan, original music by Arms Akimbo! Disclaimer: the use of white sage and smudging is a closed practice. If you’re looking to cleanse your space, here are some great alternatives! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices