Filled to the brim with scandal, murder, and historic characters ranging from Queen Victoria to Thomas Edison to Wyatt Earp, the history behind the Golden Gate Villa is nothing to scoff at. In 1907 Santa Cruz was served a salacious historic scandal resulting in a horrific tragedy...leaving the house rumored to be haunted in its wake. Buy some merch and support the podcast! https://www.crimesandwitchdemeanors.com/shop Follow the Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crimesandwitchdemeanors Submit your feedback or personal stories to contact@crimesandwitchdemeanors.com Like The Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/crimesandwitchdemeanors Visit the website: https://www.crimesandwitchdemeanors.com Episode Transcript: Available below the sources in the show notes SOURCES: 7 Dec 1907, Page 1—Santa Cruz Evening News at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.Com. Retrieved September 14, 2021, from http://www.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=4203848&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjU1Mzc5MDMzLCJpYXQiOjE2MzE2MjAzMTAsImV4cCI6MTYzMTcwNjcxMH0.RvcF17nCqc3CPgInOgE9pYOuOODX01oAtIjpmA0sC0A Clipped From Oroville Daily Register. (1907, November 18). Oroville Daily Register, 1. Dormanen, S. (n.d.). The Golden Gate Villa. Santa Cruz Public Libraries. Retrieved September 10, 2021, from https://history.santacruzpl.org/omeka/files/original/dac12ae750afce922632b1d9a1f17930.pdf Frank McLaughlin Kills Daughter and Himself at Santa Cruz: Bullet and Poison Used. (1907, November 17). The San Francisco Call, 17–18. Golden Gate Villa. (2021). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Golden_Gate_Villa&oldid=1023021509 Metroactive Features | The Haunting of Santa Cruz. (n.d.). Retrieved September 12, 2021, from http://www.metroactive.com/papers/cruz/10.29.03/haunting-0344.html Poverty Pitiful at the End. (1907, November 19). Santa Cruz Sentinel, 2. Sweet House Dreams: Golden Gate Villa, 1891 Queen Anne Victorian in Santa Cruz, California. (n.d.). Sweet House Dreams. Retrieved September 10, 2021, from http://sweethousedreams.blogspot.com/2018/06/golden-gate-villa-1891-queen-anne.html Tom Brezsny. (2012, October 18). Golden Gate Villa—924 Third Street Santa Cruz California—Lavishly ornamented victorian. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jd72cnY_6E Transcript: Hello, and welcome to Crimes and Witch Demeanors, the paranormal podcast where we go beyond the Wikipedia page and delve into historic sources to find the truth behind your favorite ghostly tales. I’m your host and loveable librarian – Joshua Spellman. Today we have a very exciting ghost story filled to the brim with scandal, murder, and historic characters ranging from Thomas Edison to Wyatt Earp the outlaw but even these prominent figure are obscured by today’s ghostly tale. Trust me, it’s juicy, and we have all the gossipy progressive-era tabloids to prove it. And boy, are some of these newspapers gorgeous, so make sure to check them out on the podcast Instagram. Also thank you to everyone who purchased some merch from the shop! You are true bibli-ahh-graphers! If you want to support the podcast please go ahead and grab something for youself, crimesandwitchdemeanors.com link in the description! So, anyway, you’re here for the salacious historic scandal and the modern haunts that resulted from it. So put on your sunnies, grab a parasol, we’re headed to Santa Cruz and learning the legend behind the Golden Gate Villa and the tragedy that transpired there… Considered one of the most historically significant homes in all of California, Golden Gate villa is perched atop Santa Cruz’s historic Beach Hill neighborhood. It’s face is painted a buttery gold with a bright orchid trim; cheerful colors that belie it’s dark and twisted past. Major Frank McLaughlin was born sometime around 1840. During his early career he served on the police force in Newark, New Jersey and developed a life-long friendship with esteemed inventor Thomas Edison. He fought with Union forces briefly during the Civil War, but his stint was brief and it’s unlikely this is where he earned his military title. Instead, it is thought he achieved it from his later activity with the California state militia. McLaughlin became an engineer on the Pacific Railroad, helping to lay tracks across the plains and the Wild West. In the Wild West he earned quite the reputation, known as “one of the quickest men on the frontier” and was one of only a handful of men to ever challenge Wyatt Earp and live to tell the tale. In 1877, McLaughlin returned to the East coast where he began to court a New Jersey widow by the name of Margaret Loomis. During this period Thomas Edison was developing the incandescent light bulb but ran into trouble finding a dependable source of platinum to use as filaments. ...
