Ep. 51 - The Woolfolk Family Massacre

Summary

Episode Summary: Ep. 51 - The Woolfork Family Massacre

Released on July 14, 2025, "My Victorian Nightmare" hosted by Genevieve Manion delves into the chilling and tragic story of the Woolfork Family Massacre of 1887. This detailed episode unpacks the events leading up to the horrifying murders, the ensuing investigation, and the lasting impact on the community.

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1. Introduction to the Woolfork Family Massacre

Genevieve Manion opens the episode by introducing the grim subject matter: the annihilation of the Woolfork family, comprising nine members, in Bibb County, Georgia, in 1887. She emphasizes the harrowing nature of the story, noting, "The details are harrowing, horrible, heartbreaking, and some are truly strange" (02:44).

2. Background of the Woolfork Family

The Woolfork family, rooted in a wealthy cotton plantation lineage, experienced deep familial strife. Tom Woolfork, the perpetrator, was born into this affluent family but faced turmoil early on with the death of his mother and subsequent upbringing by his aunt in Athens, Georgia. Manion details Tom's troubled disposition, describing him as "a sharp, cunning, dissipated, unscrupulous fellow and a very perverse, obstinate, etc." (15:28).

3. Tom Woolfork's Descent into Hatred

As Tom matured, his resentment towards his stepmother and six step-siblings intensified. His marriage to Georgia Byrd was short-lived and tumultuous, further highlighting his volatile nature. "He hated his stepmother. He was argumentative, grumpy, and also hated his six step siblings," Manion explains (15:25).

4. The Night of the Massacre

On the night of August 5, 1887, tensions reached a boiling point. The Woolfork family was gathered in their parlor, enjoying a seemingly peaceful evening. However, shadows loomed as Tom's rage became palpable. Manion narrates the gruesome events:

"Tom just busted through the door with an axe in his hand and he just swung at his father's head." (20:03)

The episode graphically recounts the massacre, detailing the brutal attacks on each family member, including innocent children and elderly relatives.

5. Discovery and Public Reaction

At daybreak on August 6, a neighbor, Mr. Anderson James, was alerted by Tom's frantic screams about the murders. Manion highlights the immediate suspicion towards Tom:

"He [Tom] claimed that while his family was being murdered by a man with an axe, he managed to escape by jumping out a window." (22:18)

Despite his claims, evidence mounting against him was undeniable. A bloody shirt belonging to Tom was discovered in a well on the property, leading to widespread condemnation among the community.

6. Investigation and Trial

The investigation swiftly pointed fingers at Tom Woolfork. Manion notes the limitations of the time's forensic technology, yet the circumstantial evidence was overwhelming. "His shirt had been found in the well," she states (30:40). The trial was swift, with the jury deliberating for only twelve minutes before finding Tom guilty. Despite his prolonged trial and his lawyer's exhaustive efforts, Tom maintained his innocence until his execution on October 29, 1890.

7. Aftermath and Legacy

The Woolfork family home stood vacant for decades before being destroyed by fire in the 1920s. Manion reflects on the cyclical nature of horror and peace:

"I take a lot of comfort in knowing just how quickly and completely the earth takes us all back. No horror lasts forever." (38:11)

In a more recent event, in 2024, the family's headstones were vandalized, sparking community efforts to restore and honor the family's memory.

8. Final Reflections

Genevieve Manion concludes the episode by contemplating the enduring impact of such tragedies and the importance of remembering the past to find solace in the present. She offers a somber yet comforting perspective on the inevitable reclamation by nature:

"Nothing remains but a hole in the ground where that well was. I know it sounds dark, but I take a lot of comfort in knowing just how quickly and completely the earth takes us all back." (38:19)

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Notable Quotes:

• "The details are harrowing, horrible, heartbreaking, and some are truly strange." — Genevieve Manion (02:44)

• "He is the meanest man I ever saw and there is nothing too mean for him to do." — Georgia Byrd, Tom’s ex-wife (16:15)

• "Tom just busted through the door with an axe in his hand and he just swung at his father's head." — Genevieve Manion (20:03)

• "He sounded calm and unshaken, denying all accusations despite the mounting evidence." — Genevieve Manion (30:58)

• "Nothing remains but a hole in the ground where that well was. I know it sounds dark, but I take a lot of comfort in knowing just how quickly and completely the earth takes us all back." — Genevieve Manion (38:19)

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This comprehensive examination of the Woolfork Family Massacre not only recounts a dark chapter in history but also explores the psychological and societal factors that culminated in such a tragedy. Genevieve Manion's meticulous research and engaging storytelling bring to life the eerie and somber atmosphere of the Victorian era.

Transcript

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[Genevieve Manion]

Yeah, finance.

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[Genevieve Manion]

Financed, right?

[Co-host]

That's what I said.

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[Genevieve Manion]

Hello and welcome to my Victorian Nightmare. I'm your host, Genevieve Manion, and I'm here to talk about mysterious deaths, morbid fascinations, disturbing stories, and otherwise spooky events from the Victorian era. Because to me, there's just something especially intriguing, creepy and oddly comforting about horror and mayhem from the 19th century. So listener discretion is advised. Hello, friends, and welcome to this, my 51st episode. I hope that you had a lovely week. I had a delightfully, exquisitely air conditioned one, thank you very much for asking. Despite the horrors, the never ending horrors, I've decided to refine one of my very favorite coping mechanisms, and that is fashioning the most succulent and flavorsome girl dinner nightly. I'm refining my presentation. I am mixing and matching courses. Tonight, I will be enjoying an expertly sliced endive with a side of dill dressing, two clementines white cheddar atop eight Triscuits slathered in jalapeno hummus, garnished with an olive tapenade and a tiny bowl of radish kimchi, which makes my whole apartment smell like a garbage can.

[Co-host]

I don't care. What are your girl dinner accoutrements?

[Genevieve Manion]

As I said, this is a beloved coping mechanism and I'd really like to broaden my horizons.

[Co-host]

All that aside, I have some simply awful things that I cannot wait to.

[Genevieve Manion]

Tell you on today's episode. Today for you, dear listener, I will be discussing the Woolfork family massacre, the annihilation of a family of nine that occurred in 1887. The details are harrowing, horrible, heartbreaking, and some are truly strange. So strange that I had to verify them in numerous sources just to make.

[Co-host]

Sure that they were true.

[Genevieve Manion]

But first, a little Haunted Housekeeping. I would like to announce that the Fan Coven will officially be dropping on the 21st of this month, and I.

[Co-host]

Am only already glowing at the idea of sharing what I have been creating for you guys. It's been taking so much time because like I've mentioned, I've written and recorded.

[Genevieve Manion]

An entire audiobook on eclectic witchcraft philosophy, manifestation and intention setting called where to Begin that I will be including in the subscription. But you can also get it just all by itself without the subscription. Almost every time someone tells me that they're interested in the craft, they say that they don't know where to begin. So I did my best to give you some ideas about where to begin. I have also started cooking up the monthly content that I will be sharing, but I will wait till next week to give the full rundown.

[Co-host]

I will say, however, one more thing, and that is that there will be very cool buttons, apart from a whole bunch of other very cool stuff that I will be sending you and your.

[Genevieve Manion]

Welcome presents in the mail.

[Co-host]

Okay, the 21st is the fan Coven's.

[Genevieve Manion]

Birthday and it will be available on the website myvictoriannightmare.com on that date, which.

[Co-host]

I am also into entirely redesigning at the moment. I am so embarrassed about the current state of it.

[Genevieve Manion]

It's gonna look so pretty. And as always, thank you for your comments, thank you for rating the show and you can find images from today's show and every show on Instagram @MyVictorian Nightmare and Blue sky at A Victorian Nightmare. And I am also on TikTok, but.

[Co-host]

I have no idea what to really post there yet. That will be the next thing that I have no time to figure out how to do because I've done all of this to myself. I've given far too many things to do. It's just too fun a grave to dig. I just can't stop myself.

On WhatsApp, no one can see or hear your personal messages. Whether it's a voice call message or sending a password to WhatsApp, it's all just this. So whether you're sharing the streaming password in the family chat, or trading those late night voice messages that could basically become a podcast, your personal messages stay between you, your friends and your family. No one else, not even us. WhatsApp message privately with everyone.

[Genevieve Manion]

Okay, before we get to the horrific massacre of the Woolfork family, we begin with our ever so spooky weekly segment.

[Co-host]

With their own eyes.

[Genevieve Manion]

Where I share with you the personal accounts of spooky ghost sightings endured by petrified Victorians. And today we will be returning to the boarding house of horrors at 131 W. 14th St. That we discussed last week.

[Co-host]

There were quite a number of sightings.

[Genevieve Manion]

Here in this 1881 article called Two Spectral Lodgers. We begin with the experience of one of the gentlemen boarding in the house, and his experience reads as follows. One night between 12 and 1 o', clock, the gentleman awoke in a cold sweat to find the male ghost standing by his bedside and looking down upon him contemptuously with his large black eyes. While the boarder was endeavoring to collect his senses, the ghost reached forward and seizing the bedclothes, pulled them from the prostrate form of the boarder, deposited them on the floor, and then mysteriously disappeared. The gentleman is not a coward, but a visitation of this unusual character in the dead of night is not calculated.

[Co-host]

To increase one's confidence in his surroundings.

[Genevieve Manion]

Aptly assumed.

[Co-host]

I continue.

[Genevieve Manion]

He mentioned the fact to his landlady in the morning, but finally came to the conclusion that he had been afflicted with a nightmare and dismissed the affair from his mind. The ghostly visit, however, was repeated the next night and the next, until finally one One morning this most eligible of boarders packed his trunk and fled from the ghost and from the house. The story now began to be circulated among the inmates of the house and the more timid dropped away one by one. But others came to take their places and Mrs. Carr, the landlady, was not discouraged. On Monday of last week a gentleman engaged a room in the house and.

[Co-host]

On two Tuesday morning he took his baggage and left.

[Genevieve Manion]

The ghost of the man had paid him a visit on his first and.

[Co-host]

Only night in the house and he.

[Genevieve Manion]

Had not the nerve to risk a repetition of the visit.

[Co-host]

God, that's terrifying. Why do they stare at you? I looked it up and I was astounded to see Google's AI Overview Answer Loading. According to the Internet, it's because they are attempting communication, seeking help, or they.

[Genevieve Manion]

May be drawn to your fear or emotional state. I also learned a new fascinating pareidolia. This is where your brain perceives patterns like a face where no exist. It's what makes you see two dots.

[Co-host]

And a curved line and you think that it's a face with emotions on it. This is the reason why you may perceive a face looking at you in.

[Genevieve Manion]

The dark, because you may be constructing dark patterns in your environment to appear as a face.

[Co-host]

But I don't know about that I have definitely been stared directly at by a ghost.

[Genevieve Manion]

I wonder if we're gonna start seeing.

[Co-host]

Ghosts staring at ghost iPhones instead of like at us now at the foot of our beds.

[Genevieve Manion]

That's almost creepier.

[Co-host]

Ghosts uplit by iPhones standing in the corner of your bedroom at 3am I.

[Genevieve Manion]

Wonder what ghosts would google. Also, P.S.

[Co-host]

Why do they need to rip the sheets off of you? That is such a common ghostly experience people mention and it's absolutely horrifying. Have you ever done that to a living person in your life? What a terribly shocking thing to do to a person. I guess that's maybe what they're going for.

[Genevieve Manion]

I can think of no better ghost.

[Co-host]

Repellent than a sheet though for sure. I understand why they want to get rid of them.

[Genevieve Manion]

They are powerful.

[Co-host]

I simply do not understand anyone who sleeps with like a foot out of their sheets. I cannot think of a more irresponsible way to all but assure you will be attacked by a ghost or a.

[Genevieve Manion]

Demon in the night. How do you people sleep without having.

[Co-host]

Dunked your feet in holy water first is bewildering. Okay, I know I said I wasn't.

[Genevieve Manion]

Going to do this segment every week.

[Co-host]

But I have changed my mind.

[Genevieve Manion]

I need to. I am compelled to.

[Co-host]

It is far too marvelous.

[Genevieve Manion]

Won't you follow me into the seance room where I share with you goings on in the Spiritualist society of the 1800s?

[Co-host]

The only reason I didn't want to do this segment every week was simply because I'm afraid of running out of articles eventually from the spiritualist publication. And I figured I could milk it longer if I don't do it every week. But it occurred to me that there are even more fabulous publications like this out there and God knows these folks were all over the society pages of the day in countless other papers. So I don't think I will be.

[Genevieve Manion]

Running out of material anytime soon. And oh my, what a treat I.

[Co-host]

Have to share with you today.

[Genevieve Manion]

It is the evidence of a medium's skill provided by Mr. H.D. jenkin, MrTFRGS Barrister at Law of Kilmory House, Peng. He submits to the Spiritualist newspaper the following evidence of Mr. Holmes mediumistic qualifications which are as follows. Mr. Jenkin deposed that he had often seen the levitt imitations of Mr. Holmes body. He had seen Mr. Holmes body rise in the air and pass out of.

[Co-host]

One open window and into another at Ashley House near the Victoria Railway station. And he had seen him gliding in.

[Genevieve Manion]

The air several feet above the ground at Aldare Manor. He had often heard the raps and seamed tables suspended in the air without visible means of support. And once at the house of Dr. Gully at great Malvern, he had seen an accordion suspended in space and played by invisible agencies, the music being accompanied by three spirit voices chanting a hymn. He had also deposed that he had seen Lord Adair hold in his bare hand without pain, a burning live coal which Mr. Home had placed there and had burned the hands of other persons who only touched it momentarily. He had likewise seen a burning coal similarly placed on top of the head of Mr. S.C. hall, FSA barrister at law, without any injury resulting. He had seen Mr. Holmes place his head in the flames of the grate and seen the flames playing between the locks of Mr. Holmes's hair, but no injury or pain resulted. He had seen the elongation and contraction both of the body of Mr. Home and Mrs. Bertolacci. He had also often seen spirit hands and forms at circles. Many witnesses beside himself have seen these things at the same time.

[Co-host]

End quote I learned new talents that these mediums possessed at the time all the time. I never heard that they could fly through windows or shoved their heads into fireplaces.

[Genevieve Manion]

I also am just learning that people claimed to see whole other hands appear in the air and do things like write or play the accordion apparently.

[Co-host]

Oh, I simply love this stuff.

[Genevieve Manion]

Thank you for joining me in my spooky little seance room. We shall return next week. My main references for today's episode are an article by Donald E. Wilkes Jr. From NewGeorgiaCyclopedia.com, a Murderpedia.com article and few articles in the Atlanta Constitution from 1887. All of these and my other resources can be found in the show Notes okay, let's discuss the tragic axe massacre of the Woolfork family in 1887, which included nine victims, mostly children. The only good news in this story is that it is not a cold case. The son of the oldest member of the family, Tom Woolfork, was found guilty and executed for this crime in Bibb County, Georgia on October 29, 1890. Although the name of the family is spelled Wool Folk, it's actually pronounced Wool Fork, according to Murderpedia. At least I had a tricky time trying to verify that, but I did see it in a few other sources. Thomas G. Woolfork was born in Georgia in Bibb county, near Macon in June 19, 1890, at the very beginning of the Civil War. Born into a family of cotton plantation owners, he was the third child of his parents, Richard and Susan. Shortly after Tom was born, his mother died and he was sent to stay with his aunt Fanny Moore. Tom lived with his aunt at her house in Athens, Georgia for seven years. Other than these details, little is known of Tom's childhood in Athens other than he loved his aunt very much. His childhood was spent against the backdrop of the Civil War and Reconstruction. After those seven years, Tom moved back to his father's mansion to find that his father had remarried a woman with whom he had already had a few children.

[Co-host]

So while he was sent away, his.

[Genevieve Manion]

Father, who could not take care of him, found a woman and was taking care of his new children. Tom became a very angry little guy. He hated his stepmother. He was argumentative, grumpy, and also hated his six step siblings. In his 20s he was described as, quote, a sharp, cunning, dissipated, unscrupulous fellow and a very perverse, obstinate, etc. End quote. He was also described as cranky, which.

[Co-host]

Is such deep burn for a good grown man.

[Genevieve Manion]

Some also called him deranged. He married a woman named Georgia Byrd on a train.

[Co-host]

She was warned by literally all of.

[Genevieve Manion]

Her friends not to marry this guy.

[Co-host]

She agreed, but then she changed her.

[Genevieve Manion]

Mind and met him at a train station to meet a minister and they.

[Co-host]

Decided to get married on the train.

[Genevieve Manion]

Before the random passengers instead of family.

[Co-host]

It doesn't sound like anyone agreed to this union, but she left him within.

[Genevieve Manion]

Three weeks and divorced him. She described him as, quote, not crazy. It is simple meanness. He is the meanest man I ever saw and there is nothing too mean for him to do. End quote. Good gracious. Am I still loving my Blissey pillowcase? Not only is it helping to keep me cool on these dewy toasty nights in Brooklyn, but my skin looks amazing. The pillowcases look like satin and I knew those are terrible for your skin, so I was a little apprehensive when mine arrived. But they are not satin. They are dermatologist tested and recommended silk and way better than cotton which also clogs your pores. Also, folks have been commenting on my hair in my Instagram videos and literally all I've done is start sleeping with this pillowcase. It has smoothed out my usually frizzy, red wiry hair and even my ends are smoother. This pillowcase was voted best Gift of the year of 2024 and I can absolutely see why. The naturally hydrating silk fibers keep your skin moisturized but not sweaty. It's antibacterial and hypoallergenic machine washable, so no sink washing Blissey has been featured on Live with Kelly and Mark, the View, Oprah Daly, Good Morning America, and they have sold over 3 million of them. Oh, and the company is so sweet. They sent me their lavender pillow spray as well and it just makes me feel like a fairy princess. I cannot believe how many problems this pillowcase has solved for me. Because you're a listener, Blissey is offering 60 nights risk free plus an additional 30% off when you [e-mail] MVNPod that's B L-I-S-S-Y.com MVNPod and use code MVNPod to get an additional 30% off. Your skin and hair will thank you. Tom's hatred for his family grew as he got older, as they stood in the way of him receiving a full inheritance of his father's money and properties. In 1887, Tom traveled to visit his aunt. He was 27 by this time, still living at home with his family he hated so much. His aunt claimed that he behaved bizarrely. His speech was incoherent. He was deeply suspicious and paranoid. He paced back and forth in her home home and carried a gun with him everywhere he went. She was deeply concerned that he was having a breakdown. Unlike many folks of this time who exhibited this kind of behavior, he was never sent to an asylum, which is very strange to me. That was the go to quote unquote solution for family members like this, especially in wealthy families. Perhaps they were just too afraid of him to try to have him committed. And if you would follow me through this back gate across this patio area behind this Greek revival home, I want to show you something. Don't get too close. Just look through the window. It's 9pm August 5, 1887, Bibb County, Georgia, and we are at the home of the Woolfork family who are enjoying. Ouch. Dammit, mosquitoes.

[Co-host]

I almost forgot.

[Genevieve Manion]

I brought us some spray here. Get your ankles and your elbows. These bastards will suck your elbows to the bone.

[Co-host]

Someone told me the mosquito was Georgia's.

[Genevieve Manion]

State bird, so I made sure to bring the spray and some deodorant.

[Co-host]

I'm just gonna give that guy's dirty.

[Genevieve Manion]

Work a little smear.

[Co-host]

I swear to God, if you didn't.

[Genevieve Manion]

Already know, antiperspirant will erase mosquito bites.

[Co-host]

It's miraculous.

[Genevieve Manion]

All right. As I was saying, the family is enjoying a little entertainment Courtesy of Richard Jr. That's him on the fiddle there. The parlor is lit with dim lamps. Little Annie, Rosebud and Charlie are holding hands and swinging around in a circle. Maddie is 10, Rosebud 7 and little Charlie is 5. 5. Maddie and Richard, Tom's stepmother and father, are fondly looking at the scene. Maddie holds a little baby in her arms and Tom's 84 year old aunt is I think passed out in the corner in a rocking chair. It appears must be past her bedtime.

[Co-host]

It's already past my bedtime. It's no judgments.

[Genevieve Manion]

And although the lamps are dim, you can just make out the searing rage in the eyes of Tom back there in the corner, watching them all from the shadows. His eyes have all the seemings of a demon's. That is dreaming, wouldn't you say? Oh God. He just stormed off quite dramatically. The family looks quite startled there. They're probably often on the edge with that guy. Looks like they're all packing it in. Okay, follow me. We are not sneaking into this house. We're just gonna go around the side where we can see into the mother and father's bedroom. They're having a tense conversation. Oh, little Maddie Junior's getting fussy. Okay, stand back. Tom just busted through the door with an axe in his hand and he just swung at his father's head. He's fallen onto the bed. Maddie's backing away, holding the baby tightly. He just cracked the axe into her head as well. She's fallen to the floor with the baby. Turn away. Don't look. He just slammed the ax down on the little baby's skull. He's finishing off his father. His sister just ran in and. Come away with me. We are not staying for the rest of any of this. At daybreak on August 6, 1887, a man named Anderson James, who lived in a carriage house on the property, was abruptly awakened by Tom screaming outside of the house to a neighbor, Mr. Green Locket, that his family had been murdered. Mr. James ran to the neighbor's house where he found Tom. They both told James to run for help, which he did to the other neighbors houses. Two other little boys, the sons of Mr. Locket were also sent to notify other neighbors as well. Tom was trying to convince Mr. Locket to go up into the house to see for himself what happened. But he was not willing to go until more help arrived. Tom claimed that while his family was being murdered by a man with an axe, he managed to escape by jumping out a window. He claimed that he decided to return to save the day maybe and found all members of the family were dead and that he had heard the sound of the back house gate slamming shut. The killer must have run out the back he said he quickly washed himself and changed his clothes, which was right.

[Co-host]

Off the bat all quite suspicious to the neighbor.

[Genevieve Manion]

He also admitted that bloody footprints in one of the rooms were his. He also had a bloody handprint on his pants and flecks of dry blood in his ears. The sheriff, who got there very quickly, didn't wait for the coroner's jury to render a verdict of what was was.

[Co-host]

Seemingly obvious to him and the few.

[Genevieve Manion]

Neighbors who were gathered at first. This man killed his whole family and would be likely lynched if he didn't get him out of there fast very quickly. Word of the murders spread and within a few hours the home was swarmed with thousands of gawkers, neighbors and reporters, one of which from the Atlanta Constitution wrote harrowing first hand descriptions of what had been done to that family. He writes, we entered the house and with bowed heads we were conducted into the bloody chamber of death. Opening the door, we beheld a scene that the stoutest hearted among us will not forget till his dying day. On the bed lay Captain Woolfork, next to the wall, his features and limbs naturally composed, closed, but with the whole corner of his head burst in and the brains scattered on the bed, floor and walls. He had been struck just over the left ear with the eye of the axe and the left eye with the same part of the axe and on the forehead in the same manner. On the same bed, with her form doubled upon that of her dead husband lay Mrs. Mattie Wolfork, his wife, with her long hair all dabbed in blood. She had been stricken down with a single blow delivered on the back of her head with the eye of the axe. But the cruelest sight of all were the bodies of a young lady and a little babe lying dead by the parents who loved them so fondly. Ms. Pearl Woolfork, a young girl of 17, had apparently been thrown across the bed after her poor young soul had taken its flight. A large pool of blood on the floor in the hall and crimson spatterings on the wall told told the tale. Her head with its blood matted crown of silken hair rested on the bodies of her parents and her feet hung off the foot of the bed, almost touching the sea of blood that was rapidly coagulating on the floor of the large room. End quote. Tom slammed the axe into her left ear, another in her left eye, and dealt a blow to the right side of her forehead and another in the back of her skull. The porter described the little baby as having night clothes stained to a dark crimson with the lifeblood of its parents, men of iron soul were melted to tears. Tom's brother Richard was found in the next room with his face all cloven and distorted with the murderous blow of the assassin. He was met with a blow from the eye of the fatal axe. This probably knocked him down as it crushed in the skull over the right eye. Another blow on the back of his head crushed his skull. End quote. The little boy Charlie was found in the next room with serious head wounds. The article says, quote, the bedding dripped with blood, the floor was a pool of gore, the walls were all bespattered with the same dark stains. End quote. One of the little sisters, Annie had apparen tried to run to a back window on the first floor, but Tom came up behind her and likely used the axe handle to knock her down as quote. There were dark bruises on her back, her face was horribly distorted as though she was in the act of screaming when stricken down. Little Rosebud, the seven year old girl was found hacked in the face in her bed and as the article very poetically states, quote, not content with robbing the cradle, the villain must have needed to rob the grave. And by the side of the little girl lay Mrs. Tempeh West, 84 years old, with her withered features distorted by two ugly wounds, one behind the left ear and the other in the left temple. All these were dealt with the pull of the axe and the wounds were most horrid. From all appearances, neither the old lady nor little girl girl ever knew what struck them. End quote. That is obviously conjecture on the part of the reporter, but God, let's hope he was right.

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[Genevieve Manion]

There's an interesting detail in this article that I already mentioned, but that Tom demanded that Mr. Lockett, the neighbor, go into the house and look at the family before anyone else got there. Mr. Locket was a black man. It makes me wonder if Tom was trying to get him to go up there and make some footprints in the blood or perhaps touch anyone. Clearly Tom didn't think too far past killing his family before he did it. He didn't clearly think of covering his tracks very well, but it really makes me wonder if he was sloppily trying to set that man up. To be Frank, framed. Luckily, Mr. Lockett didn't go anywhere near that house. And thank God Tom was so bad at acting like he didn't do it. Otherwise this story would very likely have had a whole other tragic ending for Mr. Lockett. The article says that when Tom Woolfork was brought into the room where the father, mother and four children lay, he pointed nonchalantly to the dead bodies, describing the position they were in when he came and felt on the them. He told how he returned alone and felt the bodies to see if they were dead and how afterwards he went out and washed the blood off his face, feet and hands, end quote.

[Co-host]

He also gave a very telling explanation for why he had blood inside of his ear.

[Genevieve Manion]

He said, quote, how could I have.

[Co-host]

Avoided it when blood was spattering everywhere? Blood doesn't spatter after someone has been killed.

[Genevieve Manion]

My guy. After Tom had been expediently shuffled off to prison by the sheriff, before the throng of people turned up, the coroner's jury delivered the verdict that Tom was the most likely suspect and should be tried for murder. Of all nine family members at this time, a number of men took it upon themselves to drag the well on the property, which was a very smart idea because they found a bloody shirt that belonged to to Tom. Once the shirt was found, men were enraged that the sheriff had already taken him away.

[Co-host]

There was even a terrible detail in the story. Well, they're all terrible, but a few.

[Genevieve Manion]

Of those men had drunk from the.

[Co-host]

Well before they thought to search it and so they absolutely wanted to kill him themselves.

[Genevieve Manion]

The father of Maddie, the mother, was quickly notified and he came to the house. And this sentence simply broke my heart. Old Mr. Ben Howard sat heartbroken in the hallways of the desolate home today, contemplating the death of his daughter and his grandchildren. He sat there with all of the bodies before they had been taken away. Girlfriends of Pearl, the 17 year old, came to the house as well.

[Co-host]

It's unclear if they actually went through.

[Genevieve Manion]

The house with the bodies still there her. But it wasn't until 6:00 clock that evening that the undertaker, a Mr. J.J. clay, sent five hearses and two delivery wagons to collect the bodies. The reporter writes that as they were all removed from the rooms, they were all laid out in the hallway and a more heartrending sight was never witnessed. They had bled so much that they looked more like wax figures than human Beings, end quote. They were placed in coffins and left there for a few hours before they could be taken away. Before they were removed, up to 2,000 people had traipsed through the house to view the bodies. Interesting side note, it wasn't until 1893 when securing and protecting crime scenes from the public became a thing. It was at this time when fingerprint technology was was just starting to be used in criminal investigations. Crime scene photography was also new and still not even being used everywhere. Rudimentary ballistics, the analysis of bullets, and the ability to trace them to specific guns. These technologies were all in their infancy, but it was in the 1890s officially.

[Co-host]

Established that to collect important evidence, Joe Public and thousands of his neighbors shouldn't.

[Genevieve Manion]

Be allowed to just shuffle around the place. In another article, a reporter says of his own. Approaching the house in the morning, there was the aroma of flower and shrub betoking the refinement of its owners. But the horrible stench of human blood soon overcame it and rendered further approach impossible. This was truly a dead house. The reporter was able to smell the blood from the road. He did eventually pull it together enough to walk up to the front door, where a lurker, a neighbor standing at the door, asked him, do you want to see the dead people? The door was thrown open and I stood in the presence of the dead. Three large black coffins rested on stools in the end of the room, while six white coffins were placed in a row on the other side. Their very number removed all sense of solemnity. There were too many bodies for the ordinary idea of death, and one could not help thinking of a wax figure show. As your correspondent passed between the coffins, he could not bring himself to realize that death was here. There was so much of it that all idea of death was banished. As the sun rose, the hearses were put in order and the work of removing the coffins began. All these thousands of people, by the way, were there before sunrise. The article continues. Major Ben Howard, an aged man scarcely able to stand, was present as chief mourner. He being the father of Mrs. Woolfork and the grandfather of the murdered children. He stood up upon the front porch and watched the coffins as they were taken out. His head was bowed and he leaned heavily on his stick. The last coffin was taken out and the old man was gently told that all was over. Farewell, farewell. He cried out in sepulchral tones. Strong arms helped him down the steps. Now this is the strangest detail in this entire story. As soon as the man made it to the last step. The steps of the home collapsed behind him with a crash, rendering it impossible to get back into the house.

[Co-host]

It's like the family was saying, now everyone get the hell out of this house.

[Genevieve Manion]

Perhaps it was just an issue of the weight of all those coffins being dragged down that made the stairs collapse. But after they would be brought down and collapsing behind him.

[Co-host]

It is noted in the article that.

[Genevieve Manion]

To the reporter as well, it was very, very strange. As the coffins traveled down the road, the reporter interviewed a woman who had apparently worked for the family. She was crying and saying that she had taken care of Mrs. Woolfork when she was sick and was always a good woman. Lord bless you, Mrs. Matty. I'll meet you in heaven. But that boy that kill you, he will roast in hell. Tom denied everything. He was interviewed straight away at the jail, and when it was mentioned that his shirt had been found in the well, he pretended that it wasn't his shirt at all. It was noted that he answered and never changed color nor quivered muscle during the conversation. End quote. As someone who is not in any way whatsoever qualified to diagnose anyone of anything, I would like to offer a diagnosis of schizophrenic sociopathy. He doesn't sound outright psychopathic. He appeared to love his aunt, and by all accounts, it sounds like she didn't experience any aggression ever from him. Only the rest of the family did. She only noticed the bizarre paranoid behavior in talking to himself. Delusions. That's my wholly unqualified opinion of what is happening here.

[Co-host]

Let me know if you are interested in a diagnosis yourself. You can tell me five things about yourself and I can make a pretty.

[Genevieve Manion]

Thorough assessment based on some true crime.

[Co-host]

Documentaries that I've seen like 400 times.

[Genevieve Manion]

I watch the same ones over and over again. It could be fun. Okay, getting a bit off time topic. Men were gathering around the jailhouse where Tom was being held, waiting for any potential movements of the prisoner, being closely watched by the police and the reinforcement police that were sent in to protect the jailhouse. The brother of Matty Woolfork also came by to loiter around the jailhouse, specifically saying that he wanted to kill Tom himself. Somehow he was smuggled out of the jailhouse by police without the gathering men suspecting, and was taken out of town to another prison by train. He had spent the night in the jail with a man in his cell who said, that's the coolest man I ever seen to have his whole family laid out in coffins. Tom kept his Cool all night. Tom secured a dedicated lawyer, John C. Rutherford, who worked pro bono for Tom for some reason. Not only that, he worked so hard that he literally died of exhaustion shortly after Tom's trial. So in a way, there are really 10 victims here, as I see it. The trial was held six months later. Tom continued to deny everything. The evidence was circumstantial, but very, very strong. His lawyer tried to direct attention elsewhere to the possibility that it was a neighbor. But all neighbors had solid alibis. That defense went nowhere fast. He was found guilty after the jury deliberated for only 12 minutes. However, because people in the courtroom began to chant, hang him. During the prosecutor's closing arguments, the Georgia supreme court ruled it a mistrial, but ordered another one to take place about a year and a half later in this trial. His lawyer's closing arguments lasted 13 hours. Unbelievable. This jury found Tom guilty in three minutes, more than the last one. It just took them 15 minutes. Tom was hanged in Perry on Wednesday, October 29, 1890, before a crowd of of 10,000 people. I read a note that possum sandwiches were sold at the hanging. For the love of God. He was offered the opportunity to make a confession, but he still claimed innocence till the very end. His death was gruesome and painful. The fall through the trapdoor didn't break his neck, so it took a full 15 minutes for him to choke to death. Death. The house remained vacant until the 1920s, when it was destroyed in a fire. Apparently, today there is nothing but a few bricks and ruins that are entirely grown over. I usually like to end these terrible stories with something positive. And I found one thing that starts very sad, but there's a happy ending. The head headstones of the entire Woolfork family were vandalized in 2024 by a bunch of men spotted on security cameras. They ripped up the brick, smashed the stones. Sadly, they'd never caught these monsters, but the town raised enough money to have them all restored and replaced. And one more thing. Of all the horror that that land saw, the land where that plantation house stood, where slaves were forced to work before the war, where one of the worst family massacres in American history took place. And who can say what massacres or displacements of native people possibly took place on that land as well. But before all of this, I find a little peace in knowing the earth took it all back. Nothing remains but a hole in the ground where that well was. I know it sounds dark, but I take a lot of comfort in knowing just how quickly and completely the earth takes us all back. No horror lasts forever. If you enjoyed this podcast and would like to hear more, please rate the show on Spotify and Apple podcasts and leave me comments which I cherish so much. Be kind to your sounds and I will see you in your nightmares.