December 5, 2024 • 26 mins
What eerie secrets lurk within the walls of King's Tavern, the oldest building in Natchez, Mississippi, where history and the paranormal intertwine? Journey with me, Carole Townsend, as we unravel the spine-chilling tales of murder and betrayal that haunt this ancient site and explore the historic Natchez Trace, a travel corridor rich with stories of coexistence and conflict. As we gather on my front porch, I promise you'll be captivated by the legends that echo through this historic site, questioning whether the energies of the past still linger. Expect to be both enthralled and unsettled as we connect the dots between history and ghostly encounters.
In our pursuit of dark history, we uncover the harrowing tale of America's first serial killers, the Harp brothers, infamous for their ruthless acts along the Natchez Trace. Their chilling legacy is theorized to influence the ghostly phenomena that make King's Tavern a supernatural hotspot. As we weave through history, we also touch upon the enigma of the lost colony of Roanoke, bringing together elements of mystery that define Southern folklore. With insights from resources like "Paranormal Mississippi Case Files" and "The Bloodthirsty Harp Brothers," this episode offers a thrilling blend of history, legend, and the supernatural, inviting you to share with fellow aficionados of historical mysteries.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Carole Townsend (00:06):
Haunted houses and haunted places.
Who among us hasn't sharedeerie tales about them as
children?
The very notion that a place ishaunted by spirits and
happenings intrigues us.
It frightens us and itfascinates us us.
(00:30):
It frightens us and itfascinates us.
But what exactly is a hauntedhouse or a haunted place?
Is it what we see on television, a camera crew tiptoeing
through an abandoned hospital oran old prison or a house
registering mysteriouselectrical impulses on a meter,
recording static-y garble andtrying to make some sense of the
noise?
Or is it exclaiming every nowand then about a drop in
(00:55):
temperature?
Well, maybe here in the South welove our stories.
We begin in childhood huddledaround campfires, whispering of
things best spoken in the dark,confiding in our small, trusting
(01:16):
circles.
Why is that, do you suppose?
I have researched andinvestigated Southern history
for more than 20 years and Ibelieve it has to do with this
region itself.
There's a lot that hangs in theether here and much that is
buried deep in the soil.
There's beauty here in thesouth and shame and courage and,
(01:40):
make no mistake, there is evil.
There's always been the elementof the unexplained, the just
out of reach that we can allfeel but can never quite
describe, and the best place fortelling tales about such things
is the comfort and safety of anold front porch.
So I invite you tonight to comeup here with me, settle back
(02:04):
into a chair and get comfortable, pour yourself a drink if you
like, and I'll share with yousome of the tales best told in
the company of friends, talesthat prove that truth really is
stranger than fiction.
And I'll turn on the light.
You're going to want that.
I'm Carole Townsend.
(02:26):
Welcome to my front porch.
The following podcast containsmaterial that may be disturbing.
Listener discretion is advised.
I have investigated a fewreported hauntings over the
(02:52):
years, but in truth I've done soin preparation for writing an
occasional piece or a magazineor newspaper.
Readers enjoy suchtongue-in-cheek stories and
business owners often see aslight increase in sales when
their establishment is rumoredto be haunted.
In fact, a good, convincinghaunting is a great marketing
tool.
It's only been recently that Ihave been truly captivated by
(03:17):
the history and the haunting ofa very old building.
There is a place known as King'sTavern in Natchez, Mississippi.
It is the oldest building inthe oldest port city on the
timeless Mississippi River, thestructure built in 1769 by the
(03:39):
British to serve as a fortstronghold was constructed using
beams taken from scrapped NewOrleans ships, which were
brought to Natchez via mule.
So even when the structure wasbrand new, it already had a
unique history.
Of course Natchez Mississippialso boasts a distinctive
(03:59):
history.
Natchez became part of theUnited States with the
establishment of the MississippiTerritory in 1798, and it
served as the first capital forthe new state of Mississippi in
1817.
The mild climate and rich soilbrought planters to the area who
made their fortunes in cottonand in the slave trade.
(04:22):
And of course, the NatchezTrace is the 444-mile travel
corridor used by the Cherokee,Choctaw and Natchez people, by
European settlers, by slavetraders, soldiers, outlaws and
even future presidents.
(04:42):
But historians believe that theNatchez Trace dates much farther
back in time.
Initially formed by herds ofbison traveling to Salt Licks
near Nashville, tennessee, fromthe Mississippi River, the trace
itself seems almost timeless.
Famous explorer MeriwetherLewis is buried along the trace
(05:05):
at mile marker 385.
Debate continues today as towhether he was murdered or he
committed suicide.
Murderous outlaw Joseph Hare issaid to have buried his
unfaithful mistress alive alongtrace.
Hare was reportedly haunted bythe vision of his lover riding a
(05:27):
phantom white horse until theend of his days when he was
hanged for his crimes in 1818.
King's Tavern was a favoritestop for him along the trace.
President Andrew Jackson wasfamous for fearlessly leading
his troops along the dangeroustrace during the War of 1812.
(05:48):
Jackson and his men restedoften at King's Tavern.
In all of the many historicallyrich areas of the South we'd be
hard-pressed to find a place asstoried and as vivid as Natchez
Trace.
Cultures coexisted there,converged there and eventually
(06:11):
battled along the trace.
The trails that make up thetrace have evolved from tangled,
often narrow passages to the444-mile highway that we use
today, to the 444 mile highwaythat we use today.
And King's Tavern has stoodsilent, vigil, as the conflicts,
crimes, murders, trade andoutright atrocities have
(06:34):
unfolded through the centuries.
In romance literature, thewindows of a building have been
likened to the eyes of a humanbeing.
And with King's Tavern beingthe oldest structure in the
oldest city along the mightyMississippi, this historic
building is steeped in history,in passion, in betrayal, in
(06:59):
anguish and in violence.
Do you suppose it's possiblefor a place to absorb such
energies?
Let's travel back nearly 300years to the historic Natchez
Trace in Mississippi and stepthrough the doors of King's
Tavern.
The air is thick and electricaching to reveal what it knows
(07:24):
to those who will hear.
In 1789, a New Yorker namedRichard King bought the British
fort following the RevolutionaryWar.
The British had, of course,abandoned it at war's end and
the port stood silent vigil overthe powerful waters of the
(07:44):
Mississippi and Natchez Tracefor years.
King took great pains torenovate the fort and opened a
combination tavern and inn, andhis establishment was also the
place where mail for the areawas delivered.
It also served as a stagecoachstop for weary travelers.
As a result, richard King andhis wife were well-known and
(08:09):
popular, even celebrities in thetown, and King's Tavern became
a gathering place and stopoverfor travelers along Natchez
Trace, travelers of all kinds.
We must understand that at thispoint in history the New World
was an untamed and wild frontier, and the Natchez Trace in
(08:32):
Mississippi was no different.
Bandits, marauders, rapists,pillagers and murderers even
British loyalists who simplyrefused to concede defeat, had
their way throughout thesouthern states and in
appalachia.
Outlaws settled in natchez asboatmen and travelers were easy
(08:54):
prey.
The infamous harp brothersmicaiah and wiley were among
those outlaws.
We'll explore their violent anddepraved legacy in a moment,
but first let's look closer atRichard King, his wife and a
server they employed at thetavern named Madeline.
(09:19):
Life was good for the Kings, andat the height of the popularity
of their inn and tavern thekings.
And at the height of thepopularity of their inn and
tavern, the couple hiredmadeline to serve their often
rowdy and unruly patrons.
She was young and beautiful,friendly and, by many accounts,
completely enchanting.
Her charms helped to keep theoutlaw customers somewhat in
(09:40):
check when they passed throughnatchez.
It seems that that Richard Kingwas just as smitten with young
Madeleine as were his patrons,and the two soon became lovers.
Visitors to the inn, taverncustomers and even friends of
the King's would catch glimpsesof Richard and his young
(10:01):
mistress stealing kisses,chancing scandalous encounters
in the dark corners of thetavern.
And one evening, just before itwas time to close the tavern
for the night, richard's wifesaw the two entangled in an
impassioned embrace in a darkpantry in the kitchen.
The enraged wife never tippedher hand as to her newfound
(10:25):
knowledge of her husband'strifling with the help.
But just a few days after thatimpassioned embrace, madeline
disappeared without a trace andno one ever learned.
What became of the fair maidenIn the 1930s during a renovation
to the tavern.
(10:45):
The skeletal remains of a womanand two men were found hidden
in the wall behind a fireplace.
Close examination of thewoman's remains indicate that
she was in her 20s at the timeof her murder.
There are no records indicatingwho the two men might have been
, but a Spanish jeweled dagger,assumed to be the murder weapon,
(11:10):
was also found with the woman'sremains.
Had Richard King's wife, havingdiscovered her husband's
illicit affair, taken mattersinto her own hands?
Or had Richard, fearing hiswife's discovery of his
philandering, killed his loverto keep his dark secret?
Now I can't say for certainthat Mrs King murdered Madeline,
(11:35):
but it is curious to note thata bejeweled dagger belonging to
Richard's wife, a gift from herfather upon his return from a
trip to Spain, went missing atthe very same time that Madeline
disappeared.
No matter how Madeline's lifewas taken from her, visitors to
(11:55):
King's Tavern have, for morethan a century, reported seeing
a young woman's ghost roamingthe halls of the establishment.
They tell of hearing a woman'svoice calling the name Richard
again and again, as if searchingfor her lover.
They report feeling warm spotson their bed in the inn.
They tell of voices andscratching sounds coming from
(12:20):
inside the walls and of glimpsesof a beautiful young woman's
face appearing in mirrorsthroughout the establishment.
When tales or legends orsightings and experiences are
recounted again and again formore than 100 years, the matter
(12:41):
deserves a closer look.
Earlier in this story, Imentioned the infamous Hart
brothers.
Let's look at their lives andhow they intersected with King's
Tavern and with Natchez Trace.
Now, history disputes whetherthese two men were actually
(13:01):
brothers or just cousins, butthat question really doesn't
matter.
What does matter is that theywere inseparable and each of
them was just as mean andhardened as the other.
Neither of them had any qualmsabout torture, senseless killing
, kidnapping or even murderinghelpless infants.
In fact, these two monstersearned the dubious distinction
(13:27):
of being named this country'svery first serial killers,
having taken the lives of morethan 40 people during their
reign of terror.
King's Tavern eventually becameone of their favorite haunts,
so to speak, became one of theirfavorite haunts, so to speak.
(13:50):
Micaiah and Wiley Harp came toNorth Carolina by way of their
parents' immigration fromScotland.
Now, when Europeans arrived inthe New World, the majority of
those who came to theAppalachian region came from the
northernmost areas of England,from Scotland and from Ulster or
modern-day Northern Ireland.
I share this point because it'simportant to understand why
(14:11):
these English and Scottishsettlers chose to live in what
they called the wild backcountryof the New World.
They were tired of monarchiesthat unfairly controlled their
religious choices, they weretired of the restrictions of the
strangling governments they hadleft behind and some, as the
Hart brothers, were simply tiredof laws.
(14:34):
In Appalachia, immigrants couldfind land, stake their claim
and live life on their own termswithout interference.
Land, stake their claim andlive life on their own terms
without interference.
The people of Appalachia becameknown for their
self-sufficiency, theirindependence and grit, and they
enjoy that reputation stilltoday.
(14:56):
Micaiah and Wiley, nicknamed BigHarp and Little Harp because of
their physical stature, wereloyalists siding with the
British and not with the patriotsettlers in the New World.
They reveled in raping,pillaging and murdering the
settlers with a disturbing lustfor blood and torture that had
(15:17):
not yet been seen in thepromising new land.
When the two became teenagers,they left North Carolina for
Virginia, intending to be slaveoverseers on two of the large
plantations there.
But along came the AmericanRevolution, interrupting their
(15:37):
lofty career plans.
Even though Micaiah and Wileykilled and burned in the name of
the British, as staunchloyalists, it soon became clear
that their interest was more inviolence and in bloodshed than
in helping the British reachacross the pond to control a new
land.
Along with other loyalists, thetwo took great delight in
(16:00):
burning farms, raping women andchildren and murdering entire
families of American patriots.
When the Revolutionary War wasover, the two brothers continued
killing and marauding for theirown purposes.
Their reign of terror took theminto East Tennessee, then over
(16:21):
to Cave-in-the-Rock, illinois,where they joined a band of
river pirates who prayed onslow-moving boats navigating the
Ohio River.
But after a time even thepirates told the two men to
leave, as they were too violentand depraved to remain in the
company of the Samuel Mason Bandof Pirates and band of pirates.
(16:45):
One account of their time withthese pirates relates the
practice of the harps forcingboat crews and passengers to
strip naked, march blindfoldedto the top of a cliff
overlooking the river, and thenpushing the hapless victims to
their death, all for thebrothers' amusement.
Many accounts tell of thebrothers murdering people,
(17:07):
disemboweling them, then fillingtheir bodies with rocks and
throwing them into a river or alake.
They killed with wanton abandon, whether one victim or entire
families.
Their heartless cruelty, itseemed, had no bounds.
Their heartless cruelty, itseemed, had no bounds.
(17:30):
Perhaps the most horrible crimesthese men committed took place
when they were on the run fromthe posse that had been pursuing
them.
The brothers had kidnapped twowomen and made them their wives.
The women were treated brutally, but they were too afraid of
their captors to try to escape.
Eventually, both women gavebirth to babies fathered by the
(17:51):
Hart brothers.
One night, as the group campedwhile on the run, micaiah's
daughter started crying.
Her father picked her up by oneleg and beat her to death
against a tree until she stoppedUnbelievably.
This was not the only time thatMicaiah Harp had murdered a
(18:12):
baby.
Once, when the Harp brotherswere staying at King's Tavern, a
baby who belonged to a couplestaying at the inn began crying.
During the night, micaiah leftthe tavern, went upstairs to the
inn and killed the crying babywith one lethal plunge of his
knife.
When the baby's mother saw whatwas happening, she began
(18:35):
screaming and Micaiah killed hertoo.
The murderous brothers soongained the reputation of being
the most feared trace bandits inthe area.
(18:56):
They, along with other piratesand outlaws and natchas, would
spend their days stealing andmurdering and their nights
drinking, robbing patrons andgenerally making trouble at
King's Tavern and in the area.
The posse was still hot on thebrothers' trail, but the outlaws
(19:16):
always seemed to be two stepsahead of them.
One night, though, micaiah hadridden over to Henderson,
kentucky, when he heard that theposse was close.
It was on this day that hisluck ran out, and someone in the
posse shot him in the back andin the leg.
He continued to ride, though,until the men caught up with him
(19:40):
and pulled him from his horse.
Until the men caught up withhim and pulled him from his
horse when the rest of the possecaught up to him.
We are told that Micaiahconfessed, laughing to twenty
murders as he lay there in thetall grass bleeding from his
wounds.
It was then that one member ofthe posse slowly but
(20:00):
deliberately decapitated Micaiah, who was fully conscious and
aware of what was happening.
You see, it was this man whosewife and infant son were
murdered by Micaiah Harp atKing's Tavern.
Once the man had separatedMicaiah's head from his body, he
(20:21):
and the other men in the possemounted that head on a stake at
a crossroads in Kentucky as acaution to other outlaws to
beware, and to this day thatcrossroads is known as Harp's
Head Road.
Tales of the two brothers'atrocities are many, as it has
(20:43):
been determined that they killedat least 40 people during their
years-long rampage.
Wiley too, was eventuallycaptured and executed in time.
But let's get back to thebrothers' ties to Natchez Trace
and King's Tavern.
There is, not surprisingly, anotherworldly twist to the Harp
(21:03):
Brothers' tale, and it involvesMicaiah.
In addition to terrorizing thestates of North Carolina,
kentucky, mississippi, tennesseeand Illinois, remember that the
Harps were often known to havetraveled along the Natchez Trace
, have traveled along theNatchez Trace.
(21:24):
Between Tupelo and Houston,mississippi, there is a place
called Witch Dance, steeped inmystery for centuries.
It was not only the home of themound builders of Mississippi,
from which the Cherokee andother Native American nations
descended, but it was also saidto have been used by a coven of
witches who would gather therefor nighttime ceremonies.
(21:47):
Legend has it that wherever thewitches' feet touched the
ground during their dances, thegrass would wither and die,
never to grow again.
At some point, not long beforehis death, micaiah Harp was
traveling along the NatchezTrace with a Native American
(22:07):
guide who showed him the barespots in the ground and told him
of the legend of witch dance.
Micaiah laughed at this notionand began to jump from spot to
spot, daring the witches to comeout and fight him.
Of course, nothing happened, atleast not at that time.
Eventually, micaiah returned toKentucky and his headless fate.
(22:31):
But one day Kentucky localsdiscovered that the gruesome
head was no longer mounted onthe stake.
The skull, they eventuallylearned, had been removed by a
witch, ground into powder andused as a potion to cast a spell
on a very evil man.
Word traveled quickly about thewitch's ultimate revenge and
(22:55):
still today, when travelersretell the story along Natchez
Trace near King's Tavern, theyswear they can hear cackling
laughter coming from the roomMicaiah used to frequent as he
passed through.
It's been said that even thetrees and grasses laugh in
vengeful glee as they whisperthe name Micaiah.
You see the evil man upon thewitch cast the spell was Wiley
(23:21):
Harp.
Was Wiley Harp, if the windowsof a building are indeed its
size?
King's Tavern has borne witnessto nearly 300 years' worth of
anguish, betrayal and senselessdeath.
Yes, if you ever get theopportunity to visit this
historic structure, as I have,take a moment to listen when you
(23:45):
walk through the doors, take amoment to breathe.
The ghosts of river pirates aresaid to stroll the halls,
always looking for their nextvictim.
You may smell Madeline's sweetperfume or hear her calling her
lover's name.
You may see the ghosts of amother and child, she lovingly
(24:07):
comforting the crying baby.
You could very well see aphantom white steed being ridden
by a woman.
You may feel the weight of someof the wicked souls that refuse
to pass on to their finaldestination.
That refuse to pass on to theirfinal destination.
The air inside King's Tavern isindeed thick and heavy, with
(24:30):
centuries of stories to share,and if you listen closely to the
winds that ride the mightyriver, you may very well hear
the gleeful laughter of along-ago coven of witches having
the last laugh on one of themost wicked murderers ever to
curse the south.
(26:04):
Join me next time as we examinethe age-old mystery of the lost
colony of Roanoke.
The clues as to what happenedto these settlers are
contradictory and confusing, andthe traces they left behind are
mystifying.
I'm Carole Townsend, veterannewspaper journalist and
(26:27):
six-time award-winning author.
You can find me on social mediaand check out my website at
caroltownsendcom.
As always, thanks for listening, and if you're enjoying these
tales of Southern history andlore, I hope you'll tell your
friends.
Subscribe to this podcast onSpotify, apple Play, iheart and
(26:51):
anywhere you listen.
My team and I research King'sTavern and the Natchez Trace
using the following resourcesParanormal Mississippi Case
(27:12):
Files, king's Tavern,mississippi Haunted Houses, the
Devil in Appalachia, theBloodthirsty Hart Brothers.
The Bloodthirsty Hart Brothersand my own experience of King's
Tavern, a handsome establishmentwith the undeniable patina of
age and history.
Haunted houses and haunted places.
Who among us hasn't sharedeerie tales about them as
children?
The very notion that a place ishaunted by spirits and
happenings intrigues us.
It frightens us and itfascinates us us.
(00:30):
It frightens us and itfascinates us.
But what exactly is a hauntedhouse or a haunted place?
Is it what we see on television, a camera crew tiptoeing
through an abandoned hospital oran old prison or a house
registering mysteriouselectrical impulses on a meter,
recording static-y garble andtrying to make some sense of the
noise?
Or is it exclaiming every nowand then about a drop in
(00:55):
temperature?
Well, maybe here in the South welove our stories.
We begin in childhood huddledaround campfires, whispering of
things best spoken in the dark,confiding in our small, trusting
(01:16):
circles.
Why is that, do you suppose?
I have researched andinvestigated Southern history
for more than 20 years and Ibelieve it has to do with this
region itself.
There's a lot that hangs in theether here and much that is
buried deep in the soil.
There's beauty here in thesouth and shame and courage and,
(01:40):
make no mistake, there is evil.
There's always been the elementof the unexplained, the just
out of reach that we can allfeel but can never quite
describe, and the best place fortelling tales about such things
is the comfort and safety of anold front porch.
So I invite you tonight to comeup here with me, settle back
(02:04):
into a chair and get comfortable, pour yourself a drink if you
like, and I'll share with yousome of the tales best told in
the company of friends, talesthat prove that truth really is
stranger than fiction.
And I'll turn on the light.
You're going to want that.
I'm Carole Townsend.
(02:26):
Welcome to my front porch.
The following podcast containsmaterial that may be disturbing.
Listener discretion is advised.
I have investigated a fewreported hauntings over the
(02:52):
years, but in truth I've done soin preparation for writing an
occasional piece or a magazineor newspaper.
Readers enjoy suchtongue-in-cheek stories and
business owners often see aslight increase in sales when
their establishment is rumoredto be haunted.
In fact, a good, convincinghaunting is a great marketing
tool.
It's only been recently that Ihave been truly captivated by
(03:17):
the history and the haunting ofa very old building.
There is a place known as King'sTavern in Natchez, Mississippi.
It is the oldest building inthe oldest port city on the
timeless Mississippi River, thestructure built in 1769 by the
(03:39):
British to serve as a fortstronghold was constructed using
beams taken from scrapped NewOrleans ships, which were
brought to Natchez via mule.
So even when the structure wasbrand new, it already had a
unique history.
Of course Natchez Mississippialso boasts a distinctive
(03:59):
history.
Natchez became part of theUnited States with the
establishment of the MississippiTerritory in 1798, and it
served as the first capital forthe new state of Mississippi in
1817.
The mild climate and rich soilbrought planters to the area who
made their fortunes in cottonand in the slave trade.
(04:22):
And of course, the NatchezTrace is the 444-mile travel
corridor used by the Cherokee,Choctaw and Natchez people, by
European settlers, by slavetraders, soldiers, outlaws and
even future presidents.
(04:42):
But historians believe that theNatchez Trace dates much farther
back in time.
Initially formed by herds ofbison traveling to Salt Licks
near Nashville, tennessee, fromthe Mississippi River, the trace
itself seems almost timeless.
Famous explorer MeriwetherLewis is buried along the trace
(05:05):
at mile marker 385.
Debate continues today as towhether he was murdered or he
committed suicide.
Murderous outlaw Joseph Hare issaid to have buried his
unfaithful mistress alive alongtrace.
Hare was reportedly haunted bythe vision of his lover riding a
(05:27):
phantom white horse until theend of his days when he was
hanged for his crimes in 1818.
King's Tavern was a favoritestop for him along the trace.
President Andrew Jackson wasfamous for fearlessly leading
his troops along the dangeroustrace during the War of 1812.
(05:48):
Jackson and his men restedoften at King's Tavern.
In all of the many historicallyrich areas of the South we'd be
hard-pressed to find a place asstoried and as vivid as Natchez
Trace.
Cultures coexisted there,converged there and eventually
(06:11):
battled along the trace.
The trails that make up thetrace have evolved from tangled,
often narrow passages to the444-mile highway that we use
today, to the 444 mile highwaythat we use today.
And King's Tavern has stoodsilent, vigil, as the conflicts,
crimes, murders, trade andoutright atrocities have
(06:34):
unfolded through the centuries.
In romance literature, thewindows of a building have been
likened to the eyes of a humanbeing.
And with King's Tavern beingthe oldest structure in the
oldest city along the mightyMississippi, this historic
building is steeped in history,in passion, in betrayal, in
(06:59):
anguish and in violence.
Do you suppose it's possiblefor a place to absorb such
energies?
Let's travel back nearly 300years to the historic Natchez
Trace in Mississippi and stepthrough the doors of King's
Tavern.
The air is thick and electricaching to reveal what it knows
(07:24):
to those who will hear.
In 1789, a New Yorker namedRichard King bought the British
fort following the RevolutionaryWar.
The British had, of course,abandoned it at war's end and
the port stood silent vigil overthe powerful waters of the
(07:44):
Mississippi and Natchez Tracefor years.
King took great pains torenovate the fort and opened a
combination tavern and inn, andhis establishment was also the
place where mail for the areawas delivered.
It also served as a stagecoachstop for weary travelers.
As a result, richard King andhis wife were well-known and
(08:09):
popular, even celebrities in thetown, and King's Tavern became
a gathering place and stopoverfor travelers along Natchez
Trace, travelers of all kinds.
We must understand that at thispoint in history the New World
was an untamed and wild frontier, and the Natchez Trace in
(08:32):
Mississippi was no different.
Bandits, marauders, rapists,pillagers and murderers even
British loyalists who simplyrefused to concede defeat, had
their way throughout thesouthern states and in
appalachia.
Outlaws settled in natchez asboatmen and travelers were easy
(08:54):
prey.
The infamous harp brothersmicaiah and wiley were among
those outlaws.
We'll explore their violent anddepraved legacy in a moment,
but first let's look closer atRichard King, his wife and a
server they employed at thetavern named Madeline.
(09:19):
Life was good for the Kings, andat the height of the popularity
of their inn and tavern thekings.
And at the height of thepopularity of their inn and
tavern, the couple hiredmadeline to serve their often
rowdy and unruly patrons.
She was young and beautiful,friendly and, by many accounts,
completely enchanting.
Her charms helped to keep theoutlaw customers somewhat in
(09:40):
check when they passed throughnatchez.
It seems that that Richard Kingwas just as smitten with young
Madeleine as were his patrons,and the two soon became lovers.
Visitors to the inn, taverncustomers and even friends of
the King's would catch glimpsesof Richard and his young
(10:01):
mistress stealing kisses,chancing scandalous encounters
in the dark corners of thetavern.
And one evening, just before itwas time to close the tavern
for the night, richard's wifesaw the two entangled in an
impassioned embrace in a darkpantry in the kitchen.
The enraged wife never tippedher hand as to her newfound
(10:25):
knowledge of her husband'strifling with the help.
But just a few days after thatimpassioned embrace, madeline
disappeared without a trace andno one ever learned.
What became of the fair maidenIn the 1930s during a renovation
to the tavern.
(10:45):
The skeletal remains of a womanand two men were found hidden
in the wall behind a fireplace.
Close examination of thewoman's remains indicate that
she was in her 20s at the timeof her murder.
There are no records indicatingwho the two men might have been
, but a Spanish jeweled dagger,assumed to be the murder weapon,
(11:10):
was also found with the woman'sremains.
Had Richard King's wife, havingdiscovered her husband's
illicit affair, taken mattersinto her own hands?
Or had Richard, fearing hiswife's discovery of his
philandering, killed his loverto keep his dark secret?
Now I can't say for certainthat Mrs King murdered Madeline,
(11:35):
but it is curious to note thata bejeweled dagger belonging to
Richard's wife, a gift from herfather upon his return from a
trip to Spain, went missing atthe very same time that Madeline
disappeared.
No matter how Madeline's lifewas taken from her, visitors to
(11:55):
King's Tavern have, for morethan a century, reported seeing
a young woman's ghost roamingthe halls of the establishment.
They tell of hearing a woman'svoice calling the name Richard
again and again, as if searchingfor her lover.
They report feeling warm spotson their bed in the inn.
They tell of voices andscratching sounds coming from
(12:20):
inside the walls and of glimpsesof a beautiful young woman's
face appearing in mirrorsthroughout the establishment.
When tales or legends orsightings and experiences are
recounted again and again formore than 100 years, the matter
(12:41):
deserves a closer look.
Earlier in this story, Imentioned the infamous Hart
brothers.
Let's look at their lives andhow they intersected with King's
Tavern and with Natchez Trace.
Now, history disputes whetherthese two men were actually
(13:01):
brothers or just cousins, butthat question really doesn't
matter.
What does matter is that theywere inseparable and each of
them was just as mean andhardened as the other.
Neither of them had any qualmsabout torture, senseless killing
, kidnapping or even murderinghelpless infants.
In fact, these two monstersearned the dubious distinction
(13:27):
of being named this country'svery first serial killers,
having taken the lives of morethan 40 people during their
reign of terror.
King's Tavern eventually becameone of their favorite haunts,
so to speak, became one of theirfavorite haunts, so to speak.
(13:50):
Micaiah and Wiley Harp came toNorth Carolina by way of their
parents' immigration fromScotland.
Now, when Europeans arrived inthe New World, the majority of
those who came to theAppalachian region came from the
northernmost areas of England,from Scotland and from Ulster or
modern-day Northern Ireland.
I share this point because it'simportant to understand why
(14:11):
these English and Scottishsettlers chose to live in what
they called the wild backcountryof the New World.
They were tired of monarchiesthat unfairly controlled their
religious choices, they weretired of the restrictions of the
strangling governments they hadleft behind and some, as the
Hart brothers, were simply tiredof laws.
(14:34):
In Appalachia, immigrants couldfind land, stake their claim
and live life on their own termswithout interference.
Land, stake their claim andlive life on their own terms
without interference.
The people of Appalachia becameknown for their
self-sufficiency, theirindependence and grit, and they
enjoy that reputation stilltoday.
(14:56):
Micaiah and Wiley, nicknamed BigHarp and Little Harp because of
their physical stature, wereloyalists siding with the
British and not with the patriotsettlers in the New World.
They reveled in raping,pillaging and murdering the
settlers with a disturbing lustfor blood and torture that had
(15:17):
not yet been seen in thepromising new land.
When the two became teenagers,they left North Carolina for
Virginia, intending to be slaveoverseers on two of the large
plantations there.
But along came the AmericanRevolution, interrupting their
(15:37):
lofty career plans.
Even though Micaiah and Wileykilled and burned in the name of
the British, as staunchloyalists, it soon became clear
that their interest was more inviolence and in bloodshed than
in helping the British reachacross the pond to control a new
land.
Along with other loyalists, thetwo took great delight in
(16:00):
burning farms, raping women andchildren and murdering entire
families of American patriots.
When the Revolutionary War wasover, the two brothers continued
killing and marauding for theirown purposes.
Their reign of terror took theminto East Tennessee, then over
(16:21):
to Cave-in-the-Rock, illinois,where they joined a band of
river pirates who prayed onslow-moving boats navigating the
Ohio River.
But after a time even thepirates told the two men to
leave, as they were too violentand depraved to remain in the
company of the Samuel Mason Bandof Pirates and band of pirates.
(16:45):
One account of their time withthese pirates relates the
practice of the harps forcingboat crews and passengers to
strip naked, march blindfoldedto the top of a cliff
overlooking the river, and thenpushing the hapless victims to
their death, all for thebrothers' amusement.
Many accounts tell of thebrothers murdering people,
(17:07):
disemboweling them, then fillingtheir bodies with rocks and
throwing them into a river or alake.
They killed with wanton abandon, whether one victim or entire
families.
Their heartless cruelty, itseemed, had no bounds.
Their heartless cruelty, itseemed, had no bounds.
(17:30):
Perhaps the most horrible crimesthese men committed took place
when they were on the run fromthe posse that had been pursuing
them.
The brothers had kidnapped twowomen and made them their wives.
The women were treated brutally, but they were too afraid of
their captors to try to escape.
Eventually, both women gavebirth to babies fathered by the
(17:51):
Hart brothers.
One night, as the group campedwhile on the run, micaiah's
daughter started crying.
Her father picked her up by oneleg and beat her to death
against a tree until she stoppedUnbelievably.
This was not the only time thatMicaiah Harp had murdered a
(18:12):
baby.
Once, when the Harp brotherswere staying at King's Tavern, a
baby who belonged to a couplestaying at the inn began crying.
During the night, micaiah leftthe tavern, went upstairs to the
inn and killed the crying babywith one lethal plunge of his
knife.
When the baby's mother saw whatwas happening, she began
(18:35):
screaming and Micaiah killed hertoo.
The murderous brothers soongained the reputation of being
the most feared trace bandits inthe area.
(18:56):
They, along with other piratesand outlaws and natchas, would
spend their days stealing andmurdering and their nights
drinking, robbing patrons andgenerally making trouble at
King's Tavern and in the area.
The posse was still hot on thebrothers' trail, but the outlaws
(19:16):
always seemed to be two stepsahead of them.
One night, though, micaiah hadridden over to Henderson,
kentucky, when he heard that theposse was close.
It was on this day that hisluck ran out, and someone in the
posse shot him in the back andin the leg.
He continued to ride, though,until the men caught up with him
(19:40):
and pulled him from his horse.
Until the men caught up withhim and pulled him from his
horse when the rest of the possecaught up to him.
We are told that Micaiahconfessed, laughing to twenty
murders as he lay there in thetall grass bleeding from his
wounds.
It was then that one member ofthe posse slowly but
(20:00):
deliberately decapitated Micaiah, who was fully conscious and
aware of what was happening.
You see, it was this man whosewife and infant son were
murdered by Micaiah Harp atKing's Tavern.
Once the man had separatedMicaiah's head from his body, he
(20:21):
and the other men in the possemounted that head on a stake at
a crossroads in Kentucky as acaution to other outlaws to
beware, and to this day thatcrossroads is known as Harp's
Head Road.
Tales of the two brothers'atrocities are many, as it has
(20:43):
been determined that they killedat least 40 people during their
years-long rampage.
Wiley too, was eventuallycaptured and executed in time.
But let's get back to thebrothers' ties to Natchez Trace
and King's Tavern.
There is, not surprisingly, anotherworldly twist to the Harp
(21:03):
Brothers' tale, and it involvesMicaiah.
In addition to terrorizing thestates of North Carolina,
kentucky, mississippi, tennesseeand Illinois, remember that the
Harps were often known to havetraveled along the Natchez Trace
, have traveled along theNatchez Trace.
(21:24):
Between Tupelo and Houston,mississippi, there is a place
called Witch Dance, steeped inmystery for centuries.
It was not only the home of themound builders of Mississippi,
from which the Cherokee andother Native American nations
descended, but it was also saidto have been used by a coven of
witches who would gather therefor nighttime ceremonies.
(21:47):
Legend has it that wherever thewitches' feet touched the
ground during their dances, thegrass would wither and die,
never to grow again.
At some point, not long beforehis death, micaiah Harp was
traveling along the NatchezTrace with a Native American
(22:07):
guide who showed him the barespots in the ground and told him
of the legend of witch dance.
Micaiah laughed at this notionand began to jump from spot to
spot, daring the witches to comeout and fight him.
Of course, nothing happened, atleast not at that time.
Eventually, micaiah returned toKentucky and his headless fate.
(22:31):
But one day Kentucky localsdiscovered that the gruesome
head was no longer mounted onthe stake.
The skull, they eventuallylearned, had been removed by a
witch, ground into powder andused as a potion to cast a spell
on a very evil man.
Word traveled quickly about thewitch's ultimate revenge and
(22:55):
still today, when travelersretell the story along Natchez
Trace near King's Tavern, theyswear they can hear cackling
laughter coming from the roomMicaiah used to frequent as he
passed through.
It's been said that even thetrees and grasses laugh in
vengeful glee as they whisperthe name Micaiah.
You see the evil man upon thewitch cast the spell was Wiley
(23:21):
Harp.
Was Wiley Harp, if the windowsof a building are indeed its
size?
King's Tavern has borne witnessto nearly 300 years' worth of
anguish, betrayal and senselessdeath.
Yes, if you ever get theopportunity to visit this
historic structure, as I have,take a moment to listen when you
(23:45):
walk through the doors, take amoment to breathe.
The ghosts of river pirates aresaid to stroll the halls,
always looking for their nextvictim.
You may smell Madeline's sweetperfume or hear her calling her
lover's name.
You may see the ghosts of amother and child, she lovingly
(24:07):
comforting the crying baby.
You could very well see aphantom white steed being ridden
by a woman.
You may feel the weight of someof the wicked souls that refuse
to pass on to their finaldestination.
That refuse to pass on to theirfinal destination.
The air inside King's Tavern isindeed thick and heavy, with
(24:30):
centuries of stories to share,and if you listen closely to the
winds that ride the mightyriver, you may very well hear
the gleeful laughter of along-ago coven of witches having
the last laugh on one of themost wicked murderers ever to
curse the south.
(26:04):
Join me next time as we examinethe age-old mystery of the lost
colony of Roanoke.
The clues as to what happenedto these settlers are
contradictory and confusing, andthe traces they left behind are
mystifying.
I'm Carole Townsend, veterannewspaper journalist and
(26:27):
six-time award-winning author.
You can find me on social mediaand check out my website at
caroltownsendcom.
As always, thanks for listening, and if you're enjoying these
tales of Southern history andlore, I hope you'll tell your
friends.
Subscribe to this podcast onSpotify, apple Play, iheart and
(26:51):
anywhere you listen.
My team and I research King'sTavern and the Natchez Trace
using the following resourcesParanormal Mississippi Case
(27:12):
Files, king's Tavern,mississippi Haunted Houses, the
Devil in Appalachia, theBloodthirsty Hart Brothers.
The Bloodthirsty Hart Brothersand my own experience of King's
Tavern, a handsome establishmentwith the undeniable patina of
age and history.
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