Home Podcasts Foul Play: A Historical True Crime Podcast
Foul Play: A Historical True Crime Podcast

Foul Play: A Historical True Crime Podcast

Shane L. Waters, Wendy Cee, Gemma Hoskins 322 Episodes Oct 13, 2026

Foul Play is a historical true crime podcast that investigates chilling murder cases from the 1800s and early 1900s across the United States and the United Kingdom. It is hosted by investigative crime journalists Shane Waters, who began crime podcasting in 2008, and Wendy Cee. Each season unravels one complete criminal case using original research, court records, and primary source material. The show puts victims first, telling their names and stories before examining how investigations unfolded in an era before modern forensics. New seasons are released throughout the year, with episodes dropping weekly on Tuesdays.

Episodes

Arkansas & Michigan: Town Secrets, 1875-1912
Arkansas & Michigan: Town Secrets, 1875-1912 Oct 13, 2026 2125 Season 40: America's 250th — 50 states, 50 forgotten crimes. Two communities. Two murders decades apart.In the Arkansas Ozarks, a town rushed to convict a man on circumstantial evidence and may have hanged thewrong person. In northern Michigan, an entire town conspired to kill its tyrannical founder — then said nothingfor sixteen years.In 1912, eighteen-year-old Ella Barham walked to a post of
Kansas and Virginia: Badges, Betrayal, and Frontier Justice
Kansas and Virginia: Badges, Betrayal, and Frontier Justice Oct 6, 2026 2122 Season 40: America's 250th Anniversary — fifty states, fifty crimes, two hundred and fifty years. This double--feature episode covers Kansas and Virginia.A city marshal with a gold-engraved Winchester and a secret past as a wanted killer. A mountain doctor whopreached Sunday sermons and planned a massacre on a mountain road. Two men who wore badges. Twocommunities that trusted them. Two moment
1898 America: The Burning of Baker, McGeisey & Sampson
1898 America: The Burning of Baker, McGeisey & Sampson Sep 29, 2026 2124 Season 40: America's 250th Anniversary -- 50 states, 25 double-feature episodes. Two fires burned in 1898America. One in South Carolina, where a mob murdered a Black postmaster and his two-year-old daughter. Onein Indian Territory, where a mob burned two Seminole teenagers alive. Both cases reached federal court. Neitherdelivered justice.Frazier Baker held a federal appointment. Lincoln McGeis
Rhode Island & North Dakota: Who Killed the King?
Rhode Island & North Dakota: Who Killed the King? Sep 22, 2026 2063 Season 40: America's 250th Anniversary -- 50 states, 25 double-feature episodes. This is Episode 13, coveringRhode Island and North Dakota with two true crime cases from the 1880s and 1890s that circle the samequestion: who do you believe when the dead cannot speak?October 1885. A wealthy Black businessman in Newport, Rhode Island, is found dead at his kitchen table -- twogunshot wounds, unche
Hawaii and Louisiana: The Plantation's Shadow, 1887-1889
Hawaii and Louisiana: The Plantation's Shadow, 1887-1889 Sep 15, 2026 2102 This episode is part of Season 40: America's 250th Anniversary -- 50 states, 25 double-feature episodesexploring the cases that shaped American history from every corner of the country.Hawaii, 1889. A Japanese shopkeeper is lynched from a telephone pole on the main street of Honoka'a forspeaking English on behalf of plantation workers. Louisiana, 1887. Ten thousand sugar cane workers strik
Wyoming and New York: Children in the Dock, 1892
Wyoming and New York: Children in the Dock, 1892 Sep 8, 2026 2095 Season 40: America's 250th Anniversary — fifty true crime stories from fifty states. Wyoming, 1892. A fiftee-n-year-old orphan train rider murders two young men in a boxcar and becomes the first person executed bythe state. New York, 1906. A seventeen-year-old immigrant kills the uncle who abused her and walks free froma packed Manhattan courtroom. Two teenagers. Two states. Two verdicts that
New Mexico & Illinois: Two Political Murders, No Justice
New Mexico & Illinois: Two Political Murders, No Justice Sep 1, 2026 2104 Season 40: America's 250th Anniversary. Fifty states. Fifty crimes. Two hundred and fifty years of Americanhistory, told through the true crime cases that other shows leave behind.New Mexico, 1892. A former sheriff walks into the dark with a man he trusts and never comes home. Illinois, 1871.A former Secretary of State steps off his porch for a midnight train and is shot dead in the street. Bo
The Keepers, Where Are They Now
The Keepers, Where Are They Now Jun 17, 2026 2796 Shane Waters and Gemma Hoskins close out their reunion by going down the list of the people who appeared in the Netflix documentary The Keepers, where they are today, who is still fighting, who has found peace, and who the world has lost. It is a warm, reflective conversation about the unsolved 1969 murder of Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik, the young School Sister of Notre Dame who taught English and
The Suspects and the Silence
The Suspects and the Silence Jun 11, 2026 3049 Shane Waters and Gemma Hoskins continue their first sit-down in over a year, working through the second half of the questions listeners submitted through the show's Facebook community. This is the follow-up to "The Mary Statue and Unanswered Questions, " a wide-ranging conversation about the unsolved 1969 murder of Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik in Baltimore, Maryland. Known to millions t
California & Alabama: When the Mob Decided to Be the Law
California & Alabama: When the Mob Decided to Be the Law Jun 2, 2026 2197 This episode contains descriptions of murder, mob violence, historical racial violence, and the execution of a convicted killer. If you need to skip this content, advance past the 18:00 mark. Support resources are listed at the end of these notes.This EpisodeSeason 40: Fifty states, fifty forgotten crimes, America's 250th year. Episode 9 covers California and Alabama — two cases, two communiti
New Hampshire & Colorado: Two Forgotten Murders, 1886-1897
New Hampshire & Colorado: Two Forgotten Murders, 1886-1897 May 26, 2026 2429 This episode contains discussions of murder, execution, racial violence, and a botched public hanging. If you need to skip any section, the chapter markers below will help you find your way around. Support resources are listed at the end of these notes.This EpisodeSeason 40 of Foul Play covers America's forgotten crimes — fifty states, 250 years, and the stories that slipped out of the history
Who Killed Sister Cathy, The Mary Statue and Unanswered Questions
Who Killed Sister Cathy, The Mary Statue and Unanswered Questions May 19, 2026 4923 Shane Waters and Gemma Hoskins sit down together for the first time in over a year for a wide-ranging conversation about the unsolved 1969 murder of Sister Catherine Ann Cesnik in Baltimore, Maryland. Known to millions through the Netflix documentary The Keepers, Gemma has spent more than a decade investigating what happened to Sister Cathy, the young School Sister of Notre Dame who taught English

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