We are not talking about students at the University of Virginia, who are known as “Yahoos,â€� but about reports of wild men in North America who made sounds resembling “yahoo.â€� Reports are cited from three different locations—Maryland, Carolina, and Virginia—over a period of two decades. Dr. Beach traces the origin of the word “yahooâ€� back […]
Dr. Beachcombing succinctly summarizes Chris Woodyard’s latest offering on death and dying in the 19th century. “Make no mistake death is a difficult subject and BotD is not a page turner: the stories, however, stay with you like head-lice”, a compelling blurb that screams “Shut up and take my money!” While haughty academics with better […]
Dr. Beach brings us the story of Indranil and his search for the Rhino Horn alluded to in a story he read to his daughter. In the story some people gathered fire from the horn of a rhino. Since rhino horns don’t typically contain fire, it is assumed that the rhino horn was the description […]
Here is Dr. Beach’s 5-part take on the strange case of the Green Children of Woolpit. The Green Children were two kids from medieval England that were found in a pit outside a village. The two children appeared to have green skin to those that saw them. One child died, but the other one went […]
We’re not talking about a bunch of ghosts getting together to cause a mass uprising, but people causing, or nearly causing, riots in order to witness ghostly happenings. Dr. Beachcombing brings us several reports from 1800s England where the interest in local ghost sightings would bring people together in such large numbers that mayhem sometimes […]
Historical accounts note that, much like a seventh son of a seventh son, there’s a time of day when babies are born granting them psychic powers. Since Dr. Beachcombing’s welcomed a third member to his clan, one wouldn’t be surprised if Beach just wants to know if #3 is a chime child. Several accounts outline […]
Another gem from Beach’s archives is this account of a man being stalked by an odd light. Guided by an unearthly intelligence, it’s only when the protagonist of this 19th century account is confronted by the phenomenon, he realizes it wasn’t a fellow Norfolkian with a lantern but something much more queer. One can only […]
Arabs and Romans may have come ashore by accident in the New World, so Dr. Beachcombing wonders why Europeans didn’t humor the idea of heading west ’til they could go no further. Folks knew, long before the advent of GPS, something was waiting over the horizon, but either their wanderlust, or funding, was elusive. Columbus’s […]
Even if you don’t have an encounter to share, the survey wants to hear from you! Dr. Beachcombing isn’t asking you to simply clap your hands if you believe (C’mon Tinkerbell!), but share your preconceptions on what a fairy encounter might entail. The Fairy Investigation Society is building steam, having been featured in Fortean Times […]
Some people visit Ethiopia to find the lost Ark of the Covenant. Not so with Dr. Beachcombing, as our fairy-bent friend swears this faraway land could be the birthplace of the unicorn. Interesting tidbit about this historical snippet, the author Cosmas Indicopleustes knows the difference between a rhinoceros and a unicorn. Tales like these are […]