“Somewhere amid the narrow lanes, the congested wharves, the stables, workshops, forges and fairs of the medieval city of Strasbourg, Frau Troffea stepped outside and began to dance. No music was playing and she showed no signs of joy as her skirts flew up around her rapidly moving legs. To the consternation of her husband, [...]

Madame Delphine Lalaurie was born Marie Delphine Macarty, circa 1775 to Louis Barthelemy McCarty and Vevue McCarty, prominent members of the New Orleans community. On June 12th, 1825, Marie Delphine Macarty married her third husband (the previous two had died), to Dr. Leonard Louis Lalaurie, a prominent dentist. In 1832, Dr. Lalaurie and his wife [...]

If you were to time-travel to San Francisco in the 1800s, you might run into a strange man making an inspection of the city streets. He would be dressed in a military uniform, a beaver hat with a peacock feather protruding from it, and he would be carrying an umbrella as if it were a [...]