In Austin, Texas in 1884 a female servant was killed in a gruesome ax murder. Feeble attempts were made to find the murderer, but to no avail. Soon a series of gruesome ax murders and attacks followed. Each one more horrific than the other, and the murders spread beyond the black servant population to the white community.

What originally was considered a black problem in the South twenty years after the Civil War became society's problem. This was a birth. The birth of legions of Demons cast out by Jesus. The birth referred to in the occult addicted mind of William Butler Yeats in his poem The Second Coming. The birth of something much more sinister.

Episode Highlights:

• The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats
• Yeats obsession with the occult and marriage to medium Georgie Hyde-Lees
• The murder of Molly Smith
• Many believed a demon had come to Austin
• The Gospel of Mark and Jesus casting out demons in the Gerasenes
• The legend of the boogeyman can be found in all cultures
• The attack of Susan Hancock and murder of Jimmy and Eula Phillips
• Christmas Day, 1885 the day “Hell Broke Loose”

Resources:

The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats

Enjoyed this episode? Please support the show by rating, reviewing, and subscribing on iTunes.

Please visit Pleasing Terrors, the podcast behind Old Charleston’s best ghost tour, on Facebook and Twitter!