True Fiction Project:

S7 Ep 4 – Hidden: The Unsolved Mystery of Sarah Mumford
Host: Reenita Hora
Guest: Michelle Graf (author of Hidden)
Date: December 30, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of the True Fiction Project dives into the century-old mystery of Sarah Mumford, a 15-year-old girl whose death in 1899 remains unsolved. Host Reenita Hora interviews Michelle Graf, the author of Hidden: The Unsolved Mystery of Sarah Mumford. Graf unravels her personal journey of researching Sarah’s story, uncovering both a historical and familial connection that inspired her dual-narrative book. The episode explores forgotten girls, hidden truths, and the echoes of historical injustice in today’s world, blending true crime with the transformative power of storytelling.

Main Discussion & Key Insights

Who Was Sarah Mumford?

• Introduction to the Mystery
  • Sarah Mumford died in 1899 at age 15. Her death remains the subject of local lore and historical investigation in Pendleton, NY. ([02:42])
  • The intrigue: “Her death remains a mystery to this day. Historians, local history buffs still talk about her... and her death remains a mystery.” – Michelle Graf ([02:42])
• Why Her Death Stands Out
  • Sarah was a ward—an “adopted daughter” but treated more like a servant, reflecting common practices of indentured child labor from orphanages of the era.
  • Michelle’s research was motivated by parallels between Sarah’s life and her own great-grandmother’s erased story.

Personal Connection: The Author’s Family

• Graf’s Motivation
  • Her father and grandmother had “forgotten” their ancestor Amelia, Michelle’s great-grandmother, due to family shame over an unwed pregnancy.

    “I have been compelled to tell my great grandmother's story since before I even knew her name.” – Michelle Graf ([03:31])

  • The investigation into Amelia’s past led Michelle to Sarah Mumford, revealing striking parallels in circumstance and treatment.
  • Both women’s stories highlight patterns of societal stigma against unwed mothers and how history erases women’s names.

The Investigation: What Happened to Sarah?

• Circumstances of Death
  • Sarah was found dead on train tracks. Initial reports were suicide or accident, but the coroner’s diligence raised questions.

    “He knew something was odd about this mystery. And when he began his inquest, his inquiry, witnesses came forward telling a different story of what was happening to Sarah in the home.” – Michelle Graf ([05:54])

  • The body was exhumed; findings showed she was dead before the train hit her—no blood at the scene—pointing to murder and possible cover-up.
• Exploitation & Injustice
  • Sarah, not an orphan, was indentured out for profit. She became essentially an unpaid servant, separated from family, with her life—and death—subject to others’ interests and exploitation.

    “...her body was placed on those tracks to cover a more horrific crime than even murder.” – Michelle Graf ([10:37])

  • Touches on themes of human trafficking, historical and modern, and the systematic hiding and erasure of vulnerable girls.

The Research Process

• Sources & Techniques
  • Graf combined primary newspaper accounts, genealogical records, orphanage documents, and contextual research into child welfare and forensics from the era.

    “Much of my primary sources were the newspapers, and I had to consider those primary sources, though I did have to fact check them...” – Michelle Graf ([08:56])

  • She notes even 19th-century newspapers exhibited sensationalism—“fake news” was alive and well.
  • Genealogy skills played a key role in reconstructing timelines and relationships.

Echoes in the Present

• Themes of Secrecy, Stigma, and Justice
  • The title Hidden refers to the literal and figurative concealment of girls like Sarah and Amelia, with their stories buried by shame and social stigma.
  • Michelle calls truth-telling an act of justice:

    “The greatest form of justice is the truth. And so I just want to tell these stories. And I think a lot of what happened to these girls is still relevant today.” – Michelle Graf ([12:02–14:12])

  • Direct parallels are drawn to ongoing issues of trafficking and the marginalization of vulnerable young people.

The Book: An Intertwined Narrative

• Structure of Hidden

  • Two alternating threads:

    • Nonfiction narrative: Sarah Mumford’s investigation (drawn from primary sources and period quotes)
    • Historical fiction: Amelia’s story (Graf’s great-grandmother) – grounded in fact, with reconstructed dialogue and scenes

    “I wrote the story. It's two alternating narratives of the two girls lives. One follows the investigation of Sarah Mumford... that one is a narrative nonfiction... Amelia's story... is also a true story... but I did create dialogue, and that's where the nonfiction part comes in.” – Michelle Graf ([14:34])

  • Additional details: Book is available widely, easiest to find on Amazon: Hidden: The Unsolved Mystery of Sarah Mumford.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Michelle Graf on the Value of Research:

  “Context matters when you want to really understand what happens in a story.” ([09:54])

• On Historical Parallels:

  “There are so many of these young girls that were hidden away. What happened to them was hidden away. And they were literally hidden away because there was so much shame and stigma around unwed pregnancies. But there were other reasons... There's different layers to that title.” ([12:02–13:00])

• On Truth as Justice:

  “The greatest form of justice is the truth. And so I just want to tell these stories.” ([13:00])

• On Relevance for Today:

  “A lot of what happened to these girls is still relevant today. Maybe not to the same extreme, but we still have issues of human trafficking throughout our world.” ([13:40])

Fictionalized Excerpt Reading

([19:03–24:23])

Graf reads a poignant scene from Amelia’s story, capturing the emotional aftermath of her great-grandmother giving birth under the weight of illegitimacy and social stigma. The passage conveys Amelia’s exhaustion, her fraught relationship with her parents, and the act of naming her daughter, Maude Amanda, while insisting that the father’s name be recorded—against custom.

“Why should Owen get a choice when she has none? I'm sure, she said. Her jaw stiffened. Owen Ryan. He lives in Lockport and he knows he is the father.” ([21:40])

Her mother’s wisdom resonates:

“Someday, Amelia, she said, you'll learn to see through other people's eyes.” ([24:00])

The reading bridges fact and fiction, deepening the emotional truth at the story’s heart.

Important Timestamps

• 00:59 – Introduction to the Sarah Mumford case and the coroner’s suspicions
• 02:42 – Who was Sarah Mumford?
• 03:31–07:43 – Michelle Graf’s personal and research journey; family ties to the story
• 08:56–10:12 – Research methodologies and sources
• 10:37–14:12 – Exploring exploitation, stigma, and human trafficking parallels
• 14:34–16:29 – Structure and approach of Hidden
• 19:03–24:23 – Graf reads an excerpt from Amelia’s story

Conclusion

Michelle Graf’s passion for uncovering hidden histories brings Sarah Mumford’s story—and those of countless forgotten girls—to light. This episode intertwines genealogy, true crime, social history, and the limits of non-fiction, culminating in a moving blend of fact and literary imagining. Graf’s work reveals how the past’s hidden stories resonate with the present, and demonstrates storytelling’s role in both justice and memory.

Find Michelle Graf’s book:
Hidden: The Unsolved Mystery of Sarah Mumford – Available on Amazon and other major booksellers.