The Secret Life of Death Podcast

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**The Secret Life of Death Podcast**

The Secret Life of Death is a podcast which explores the stories of ordinary people, starting with their gravestone and placing them into the context of the history of their life and times. The show primarily is based in New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts, but it stories reach throughout New England and beyond. Local historian and archaeologist Gail Golec researches, writes, hosts and produces this podcast.

Latest Episodes:

**Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 4** Nov 22, 2019
Show notes

At the end of Part 3, we learned that the Langmaids were a family who knew loss and tragedy well. Just months after daughter Josie was murdered, their teenaged son, Waldo died of pneumonia. We found out that by 1880, while Sarah and the Langmaid children still lived in Pembroke, NH, James was then living in the middle of Minnesota! Why?*
With all of the twists and turns in their live up to this point, what else could have happened to split this family up? And how would the rest of their lives play out?
Part 4 is the final installment of the Langmaid story. Come and see how it all ends….
11/10/20 *It has since been brought to my attention that in this episode, I say that James Langmaid was living “430 miles away in Yellow Medicine County, MN”. Of course, Yellow Medicine County is more like 1430+ miles west of Pembroke, NH, so I think I dropped a “1” somewhere along the way. Thank you to Corey Nasman for showing me the goof and paying such close attention!
Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 4 Gail Golec Download
**Transcript** Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 4
View fullsize
Minnesota Falls Twp Map 1900 View fullsize
The Farm Between Two Rivers View fullsize
James Langmaid, ca 1900
**Special Thanks:**
*Jennifer Vannell and Badger Studios:* musical arrangement and performance
*Jennifer Disbrow, Yellow Medicine County Historical Society, Yellow Medicine County, MN*: document research
**Thanks:**
Pembroke Historical Society: Pembroke, NH
Denver Percussion: Denver, CO

**Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 4** Nov 22, 2019
Show notes

At the end of Part 3, we learned that the Langmaids were a family who knew loss and tragedy well. Just months after daughter Josie was murdered, their teenaged son, Waldo died of pneumonia. We found out that by 1880, while Sarah and the Langmaid children still lived in Pembroke, NH, James was then living in the middle of Minnesota! Why?*
With all of the twists and turns in their live up to this point, what else could have happened to split this family up? And how would the rest of their lives play out?
Part 4 is the final installment of the Langmaid story. Come and see how it all ends….
11/10/20 *It has since been brought to my attention that in this episode, I say that James Langmaid was living “430 miles away in Yellow Medicine County, MN”. Of course, Yellow Medicine County is more like 1430+ miles west of Pembroke, NH, so I think I dropped a “1” somewhere along the way. Thank you to Corey Nasman for showing me the goof and paying such close attention!
Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 4 Gail Golec Download
**Transcript** Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 4
View fullsize
Minnesota Falls Twp Map 1900 View fullsize
The Farm Between Two Rivers View fullsize
James Langmaid, ca 1900
**Special Thanks:**
*Jennifer Vannell and Badger Studios:* musical arrangement and performance
*Jennifer Disbrow, Yellow Medicine County Historical Society, Yellow Medicine County, MN*: document research
**Thanks:**
Pembroke Historical Society: Pembroke, NH
Denver Percussion: Denver, CO

**Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 3** Nov 14, 2019
Show notes

The 1875 murder of 17 year-old Josie Langmaid broke the hearts of everyone in her hometown, Pembroke, NH. And since the manner of her death was heretofore unheard of, so was the community’s response to it. A “murder ballad” was composed, telling the story of her abduction and death in grim detail; her town erected a large, marble obelisk on the site of her abduction; a local minister wrote a poem and printed a book to her memory; and a constant stream of sight-seers from all over made the pilgrimage to the site of her murder, her home and her grave. And at the center of this outpouring of grief, were the remaining members of Josie’s family; father, James; step-mother, Sarah; brother, Waldo, and sisters Grace, Elizabeth and Abbie. How would they cope? What would become of the Langmaid’s of Pembroke?
Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 3 Gail Golec Download
**Transcript** Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 3
View fullsize
The Murdered Maiden Student View fullsize
Josie A. Langmaid View fullsize
The Langmaid Home ca. 1875 View fullsize
The Langmaid Monument View fullsize
The Langmaid Family Grave View fullsize
Ella and Clarence Langmaid View fullsize
MaryAnn Marden Langmaid View fullsize
Waldo Langmaid
**Acknowledgements for this Episode:**
***Musical Performance and Arrangement***: Jennifer Vannell and Badger Studios, Denver, CO
***Voice Actor:*** Tom Durnford
***Historic Folk Recordings***: Flanders Ballad Collection, Special Collections, Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT
**Special Thanks:**
Denver Percussion, Denver, CO

**Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 3** Nov 14, 2019
Show notes

The 1875 murder of 17 year-old Josie Langmaid broke the hearts of everyone in her hometown, Pembroke, NH. And since the manner of her death was heretofore unheard of, so was the community’s response to it. A “murder ballad” was composed, telling the story of her abduction and death in grim detail; her town erected a large, marble obelisk on the site of her abduction; a local minister wrote a poem and printed a book to her memory; and a constant stream of sight-seers from all over made the pilgrimage to the site of her murder, her home and her grave. And at the center of this outpouring of grief, were the remaining members of Josie’s family; father, James; step-mother, Sarah; brother, Waldo, and sisters Grace, Elizabeth and Abbie. How would they cope? What would become of the Langmaid’s of Pembroke?
Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 3 Gail Golec Download
**Transcript** Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 3
View fullsize
The Murdered Maiden Student View fullsize
Josie A. Langmaid View fullsize
The Langmaid Home ca. 1875 View fullsize
The Langmaid Monument View fullsize
The Langmaid Family Grave View fullsize
Ella and Clarence Langmaid View fullsize
MaryAnn Marden Langmaid View fullsize
Waldo Langmaid
**Acknowledgements for this Episode:**
***Musical Performance and Arrangement***: Jennifer Vannell and Badger Studios, Denver, CO
***Voice Actor:*** Tom Durnford
***Historic Folk Recordings***: Flanders Ballad Collection, Special Collections, Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT
**Special Thanks:**
Denver Percussion, Denver, CO

**Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 2** Nov 07, 2019
Show notes

Pembroke, NH 1875*: Authorities working the murder of 17 year-old Josie Langmaid had reached an impasse in their investigation when the alibis of all of their local suspects checked out. They were wondering where to look next when they received a telegram from officials in St. Albans, VT, a town near the Canadian border. St. Albans reported that a little over a year before, there was a similar murder in their town, of a school teacher, Marietta Ball, and the man they felt was responsible, Joseph LaPage, was now living in Suncook/Pembroke, NH. Police found LaPage, arrested him, and took items from his house and had them tested against evidence gathered from the crime scene. The State of NH assembled quite a case against LaPage but we are left to wonder, 140 years later, how accurate were their scientific findings?
*A reminder: just as in Part 1 of Episode 4, Part 2 contains descriptions of assault, sexual violence and murder and may not be suitable for all listeners. Parts 3 and 4 of Episode 4 put us past those topics, so please, come back for the rest of the story.
Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 2 Gail Golec Download
**Transcript** Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 2
View fullsize
Only Correct Likeness of LaPage View fullsize
That is the man! View fullsize
Condemned to Death
**Acknowledgements for this Episode:**
***Jennifer Vannell and Badger Studios***: musical performance and arrangement
***Adam Gerhardt***: lab protocol consultant
**Special Thanks:**
Denver Percussion, Denver , CO

**Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 2** Nov 07, 2019
Show notes

Pembroke, NH 1875*: Authorities working the murder of 17 year-old Josie Langmaid had reached an impasse in their investigation when the alibis of all of their local suspects checked out. They were wondering where to look next when they received a telegram from officials in St. Albans, VT, a town near the Canadian border. St. Albans reported that a little over a year before, there was a similar murder in their town, of a school teacher, Marietta Ball, and the man they felt was responsible, Joseph LaPage, was now living in Suncook/Pembroke, NH. Police found LaPage, arrested him, and took items from his house and had them tested against evidence gathered from the crime scene. The State of NH assembled quite a case against LaPage but we are left to wonder, 140 years later, how accurate were their scientific findings?
*A reminder: just as in Part 1 of Episode 4, Part 2 contains descriptions of assault, sexual violence and murder and may not be suitable for all listeners. Parts 3 and 4 of Episode 4 put us past those topics, so please, come back for the rest of the story.
Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 2 Gail Golec Download
**Transcript** Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 2
View fullsize
Only Correct Likeness of LaPage View fullsize
That is the man! View fullsize
Condemned to Death
**Acknowledgements for this Episode:**
***Jennifer Vannell and Badger Studios***: musical performance and arrangement
***Adam Gerhardt***: lab protocol consultant
**Special Thanks:**
Denver Percussion, Denver , CO

Episode 4: Langmaid, Part 1 Oct 31, 2019

Show notes

The morning of October 4, 1875, was like many others in home of the Langmaid’s of Pembroke, NH. Seventeen year old, Josie, was late for school and rushing out the door to make the 1.5 mile walk to her school, Pembroke Academy before the bell. But Josie would never make it to school that day. Her body* was found that evening by a group of search volunteers, horribly assaulted and mutilated. A crime of this magnitude was unheard of in Pembroke and big-city professionals were brought in from Boston to conduct the search for her killer.

This is a four-part series that will be released weekly, so be sure to come back for Parts 2-4!

*Just a warning, Parts 1 and 2 of Episode 4 contain detailed descriptions of Josie’s murder and what happened to her body. While not gratuitous, it is a frank presentation of the facts. If you are at all squeamish about such things or could be triggered by discussions of stalking, sexual assault or murder, you may be better off waiting picking up the story with Part 3, which will be coming out in a few weeks.

Episode 3: Relief Aug 26, 2019

Show notes

Old New England cemeteries showcase history, art and let’s face it, some really weird names. Deliverance, Jazaniaah, Mindwell and Relief. Why? What do they mean? Where do they come from? Come with me and my friend Kate to Halifax, VT, where explore the answers to those questions and more, through the analysis of a very unique gravestone belonging to Mrs. Relief Clews Wilcox Towne. Local historian and archaeologist, Gail Golec, writes, hosts, researches and produces this show.

Episode 2: Graffiti, Part 2 May 02, 2018

Show notes

The Old Dodge Tavern was built around 1800 in Walpole, NH. It served as a stop of the early stage coach routes through southwest NH, connecting Boston to Montreal. Many people have come and gone over the past 200 plus years, leaving many things behind in the house, including a gravestone! Who did it belong to? How did it get there? And how does it fit into the history of The Tavern?Local historian and archaeologist, Gail Golec, writes, hosts, researches and produces this show.

Episode 2: Graffiti, Part 1 May 01, 2018

Show notes

The Old Dodge Tavern was built around 1800 in Walpole, NH. It served as a stop of the early stage coach routes through southwest NH, connecting Boston to Montreal. Many people have come and gone over the past 200 plus years, leaving many things behind in the house, including a gravestone! Who did it belong to? How did it get there? And how does it fit into the history of The Tavern? Local historian and archaeologist, Gail Golec, writes, hosts, researches and produces this show.

Episode 1: Epidemic Mar 26, 2017

Show notes

At the turn of the 19th century, the town of Acworth, NH was a microcosm of the rapid social, economic and environmental changes that were barreling though interior New England. In early 1812 Acworth endured a devastating "Spotted Fever" epidemic, an unintended consequence of the increased population density and mobility. This episode walks you through the impact of the epidemic via the the lives of two Acworth families, the Grears and the McCollums...and so, let us begin...at the end... Local historian and archaeologist Gail Golec researches, writes, hosts and produces this podcast.