State of the Unknown | Documented Hauntings and Real Paranormal Cases Across America

Robert Barber
  • 5.0 (17)
  • DOCUMENTARY
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

Strange things happen. Sometimes they leave records.  State of the Unknown examines strange events that disrupted real lives. From documented hauntings and unexplained encounters to cases that forced police, clergy, doctors, or investigators to respond, each episode focuses on what actually happened — who was involved, what was reported, and what changed afterward. These are not campfire stories. They are incidents with names, dates, locations, and consequences. Some have clear explanations. Others do not. But all of them left a mark. If you’re drawn to strange events told straight, without exaggeration, without theatrics, this is your show. New episodes every week. 🔗 www.stateoftheunknown.com📸 @stateoftheunknownpodcast

  1. The Snedeker Haunting | The Case Inside a Funeral Home That Investigators Couldn’t Explain — Ep. 49

    3D AGO

    The Snedeker Haunting | The Case Inside a Funeral Home That Investigators Couldn’t Explain — Ep. 49

    In the 1980s, the Snedeker family moved into a house in Southington, Connecticut, looking for space and stability while their son Philip underwent cancer treatment. What they didn’t fully understand at the time was what the house had been before they moved in. It wasn’t just an older home. It had once operated as a funeral home. Rooms that didn’t quite make sense. Doorways wider than expected. A basement built around a fixed porcelain table and a floor designed to drain. At first, those details didn’t mean much. But over time, the family began to describe experiences inside the house that they couldn’t explain—starting in the basement, and eventually extending beyond it. Join host Robert Barber as he examines the reported events of the Snedeker haunting, a case that drew in Ed and Lorraine Warren and later became the basis for The Haunting in Connecticut. Through firsthand accounts, reported experiences, and the way the story was later shaped and retold, this episode looks at what was said to have happened inside that house—and what remains uncertain. According to the family, what began as a sense that something wasn’t right became something more direct. Objects appeared to move. Sounds were heard in empty rooms. And in the basement, Philip described encounters that went beyond anything easily explained. As the situation escalated, the Warrens were called in to investigate. After spending time in the house, they concluded that what was happening wasn’t isolated—and wasn’t likely to stop on its own. Their involvement gave the case a framework, but it didn’t bring it to a clear end. Over time, the story of the Snedeker haunting spread beyond the house itself. It was documented, adapted, and eventually turned into a major motion picture. But as the story grew, so did the questions. How much of what’s known today comes directly from what the family experienced? And how much was shaped afterward? This episode of State of the Unknown breaks down the layers of the case—what was reported, how it was presented, and why the details don’t always line up the same way. Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    25 min
  2. The Lindley Street Poltergeist | The Girl Said It Was a Hoax… So What Did Police Witness? — Ep. 48

    MAR 31

    The Lindley Street Poltergeist | The Girl Said It Was a Hoax… So What Did Police Witness? — Ep. 48

    A young girl said the haunting was a hoax. But police were inside the house when objects reportedly moved…. In 1974, police were called to a small home on Lindley Street in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Inside, they reported objects moving on their own. Furniture shifting. Activity that continued while people were in the room watching—and without a clear source. What started inside that house didn’t stay there. Neighbors came to see it. More people followed. Even those who arrived expecting to find an explanation began reporting things they couldn’t account for. But as more people became involved, the story became harder to pin down. Some described movement happening directly in front of them. Others described moments where something had already changed before they realized it. And over time, the question shifted. Not just what was happening inside that house… but whether everyone was seeing the same thing when it did. Join host Robert Barber as he examines the Lindley Street Poltergeist—what was reported, who was there, and what holds up under closer examination. Episode mentioned:  The Haunting of Madison Seminary: The Investigation That Spoke Back - Ep. 27 on Apple Podcasts on Spotify Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    28 min
  3. The Cash–Landrum Incident | The Night the Sky Burned Over Texas — And What It Did to Them — Ep. 47

    MAR 24

    The Cash–Landrum Incident | The Night the Sky Burned Over Texas — And What It Did to Them — Ep. 47

    On December 29, 1980, three witnesses driving along a rural road outside Dayton, Texas reported one of the most unusual UFO encounters ever documented in the United States. Betty Cash, Vickie Landrum, and Vickie’s seven-year-old grandson Colby Landrum were returning home after a night of bingo when they noticed a bright light ahead on Farm-to-Market Road 1485. As they drove closer, the light revealed a massive diamond-shaped craft hovering low above the road. Witnesses later said flames burst from the underside of the object and intense heat filled the car. When Betty Cash briefly stepped outside to look at the craft, she later said the air itself felt hot enough to burn. Moments later, the sky filled with multiple military-style helicopters surrounding the glowing craft. Witnesses estimated that as many as twenty helicopters were present, and several observers later noted that the aircraft described resembled CH-47 Chinook helicopters, a heavy-lift aircraft used by the United States Army. Within hours of the encounter, the witnesses began suffering severe physical symptoms including burning skin, blisters, nausea, headaches, and hair loss. Betty Cash was eventually hospitalized with documented burns and blistering, injuries that some physicians said resembled patterns sometimes associated with radiation exposure, although no confirmed radiation source was ever identified. In 1982, Betty Cash and Vickie Landrum filed a lawsuit against the United States government under the Federal Tort Claims Act, arguing that the presence of military helicopters suggested the object might have been connected to a government operation. After several years of investigation, the case was dismissed in federal court in 1986 because the witnesses could not prove the helicopters belonged to the U.S. military. More than four decades later, the Cash–Landrum Incident remains one of the most controversial UFO encounters ever reported. Topics CoveredCash–Landrum Incident Texas UFO encounter Dayton Texas UFO sighting Betty Cash and Vickie Landrum CH-47 Chinook helicopters UFO lawsuit against the U.S. government Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    30 min
  4. Bonus Episode: The Black Forest Haunting | The Colorado Poltergeist Case That Was Never Explained

    MAR 17 ·  BONUS

    Bonus Episode: The Black Forest Haunting | The Colorado Poltergeist Case That Was Never Explained

    In the late 1960s, a quiet home in the Black Forest area near Colorado Springs became the center of a disturbing series of events. The family living there claimed objects moved on their own, household items were thrown across rooms, and unexplained disturbances seemed to occur while people were standing there watching. In this bonus episode of State of the Unknown, join host Robert Barber as he examines the reported events surrounding the Black Forest haunting, a lesser-known American poltergeist case that has circulated in paranormal literature for decades. Accounts of the case place the disturbances in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the Black Forest region was far more isolated than it is today. According to the family who lived in the home, the activity began with small incidents before escalating into objects sliding across tables, items falling from shelves, and objects reportedly being thrown across rooms without anyone touching them. Reports of the disturbances eventually reached paranormal researchers familiar with alleged poltergeist activity. Investigators looked for ordinary explanations including structural issues, environmental factors, and psychological stress within the household. But like many reported poltergeist cases, the events eventually faded and no clear explanation was ever established. Today the Black Forest haunting remains one of many unsettling cases that sit somewhere between witness testimony and documented evidence. Were the disturbances the result of misunderstood natural causes… or something that investigators simply couldn’t explain? This episode was inspired by a listener suggestion. If there’s a case you think I should cover, you can email me at contact@stateoftheunknown.com — I read every message Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    14 min
  5. The L-8 Ghost Blimp | The U.S. Navy Airship That Landed Without Its Crew — Ep. 46

    MAR 10

    The L-8 Ghost Blimp | The U.S. Navy Airship That Landed Without Its Crew — Ep. 46

    The L-8 Ghost Blimp is one of the strangest unsolved aviation mysteries of World War II — a Navy patrol airship that returned from a mission over the Pacific with its engines running and its crew missing. In August of 1942, a U.S. Navy patrol blimp lifted off from Naval Air Station Treasure Island for what should have been a routine anti-submarine patrol along the California coast. Hours later, the aircraft drifted inland over Daly City. The engines were still running. The controls were still set for flight. But the control cabin was empty. The blimp, known as L-8, had returned from its mission without the two officers flying it. Earlier that morning, Lieutenant Ernest Cody and Ensign Charles Adams radioed that they were investigating a suspicious oil slick near the Farallon Islands, a possible sign of a Japanese submarine operating off the West Coast during World War II. That transmission would be the last confirmed contact with the aircraft. In this episode, join host Robert Barber as he examines one of the strangest aviation mysteries of the war: the case of the L-8 Ghost Blimp, a patrol airship that continued flying after its crew disappeared. Investigators searched the ocean west of San Francisco for days. They never found the men. So what actually happened aboard the L-8 that morning? Did the crew fall while investigating the oil slick? Did something go wrong during the patrol? Or is there another explanation for how two trained Navy officers vanished from an operational aircraft? This is the story of the L-8 Ghost Blimp. Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    25 min
  6. The San Pedro Poltergeist | When LA Police Responded to the Unexplainable — Ep. 45

    MAR 3

    The San Pedro Poltergeist | When LA Police Responded to the Unexplainable — Ep. 45

    In the late 1980s, a family living in San Pedro, California reported a series of unexplained disturbances inside their apartment. Objects allegedly moved without physical contact. Items fell from shelves. Activity was said to occur in front of multiple adult witnesses who later stated they were standing in the room when it happened. The incident became known as the San Pedro Poltergeist, one of several Southern California poltergeist cases reported during that era. Unlike folklore-based hauntings, this case centered on direct claims of physical object movement and escalating disturbances inside a single residence. In this episode, host Robert Barber examines the San Pedro poltergeist case through reported timelines, witness statements, and contemporary coverage. What was described? Who claimed to see it? And how does this apartment case compare to other documented American poltergeist reports from the 20th century? Rather than dramatizing the story, this episode focuses on what was claimed, what can be supported, and why the San Pedro case continues to be referenced in discussions of modern poltergeist activity. Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    30 min
  7. The Mothman and the Silver Bridge Collapse: Witness Reports Before the 1967 Disaster — Ep. 44

    FEB 24

    The Mothman and the Silver Bridge Collapse: Witness Reports Before the 1967 Disaster — Ep. 44

    In November 1966, residents of Point Pleasant, West Virginia began reporting encounters with a tall, winged figure near the McClintic Wildlife Management Area, known locally as the TNT Area. Police documented statements. The local newspaper recorded names. Witness descriptions were consistent: a figure six to seven feet tall, wings folded behind its back, and red eyes reflecting in headlights. Sightings continued for more than a year. On December 15, 1967, the Silver Bridge collapsed during rush hour traffic, killing forty-six people. The official investigation concluded that the disaster was caused by a fractured eyebar, an internal structural crack that could not be detected through routine inspection. There is no official finding linking the Mothman sightings to the bridge collapse. Yet the timing created a lasting association in the community. Reports stopped soon after the disaster. In this episode, host Robert Barber examines the original police reports, the Indrid Cold encounter, the engineering findings behind the Silver Bridge collapse, and the tension between documented mechanical failure and repeated witness accounts. Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    25 min
  8. The Ammons Demon House: The Possession Case Authorities Could Not Explain — Ep. 43

    FEB 17

    The Ammons Demon House: The Possession Case Authorities Could Not Explain — Ep. 43

    In 2011, a family in Gary, Indiana reported escalating disturbances inside their rental home on Carolina Street. What began as unexplained noises and strange behavior would eventually involve the Gary Police Department, Methodist Hospital medical staff, and the Indiana Department of Child Services. According to official DCS documentation later obtained by the Indianapolis Star, a hospital caseworker reported witnessing a child walk backward up a wall during a medical evaluation. The case generated a 77-page investigative file and drew the attention of local clergy, including Reverend Michael Maginot, who later performed exorcisms. Years later, paranormal investigator Zak Bagans purchased the property and documented his own investigation in the film Demon House before demolishing the structure in 2016. Join host Robert Barber as he examines the documented reports, the custody battle, the hospital incident, and the demolition that turned a Gary rental house into one of the most debated haunting cases in modern American history. Support the show State of the Unknown is a documentary-style podcast tracing the haunted highways, forgotten folklore, and unexplained phenomena across America’s 50 states. 👁️‍🗨️ New episodes every Tuesday — with full-length stories every other week, and shorter mini tales in between. 📬 Reach out: contact@stateoftheunknown.com 📣 Follow the strange: @stateoftheunknownpodcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, & Threads 🔍 Want more? Visit stateoftheunknown.com to explore show notes and submit your own story. Join the Conversation Join the conversation! Head to our Facebook group at State of the Unknown Listeners to connect with other listeners, suggest topics, and get behind-the-scenes updates. Share Your Take Have a theory about this episode? Message me anytime on Instagram @stateoftheunknownpodcast - I read every DM. Some stories don’t stay buried. We go looking anyway.

    26 min
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5
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About

Strange things happen. Sometimes they leave records.  State of the Unknown examines strange events that disrupted real lives. From documented hauntings and unexplained encounters to cases that forced police, clergy, doctors, or investigators to respond, each episode focuses on what actually happened — who was involved, what was reported, and what changed afterward. These are not campfire stories. They are incidents with names, dates, locations, and consequences. Some have clear explanations. Others do not. But all of them left a mark. If you’re drawn to strange events told straight, without exaggeration, without theatrics, this is your show. New episodes every week. 🔗 www.stateoftheunknown.com📸 @stateoftheunknownpodcast

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