#12 - The Vampires of Wilno, Ontario

Unsolved Canadian Mysteries

Wilno, Ontario, a small and quiet town, holds one of Canada's strangest and most unsettling folklore mysteries. In 1972, a researcher named Jan Perkowski published a report titled Vampires, Dwarves and Witches Among the Ontario Kashubs, detailing eerie claims of vampiric entities that were said to stalk the Kashubian-Polish settlers in the region. These were no mere legends—the report described in detail how the community allegedly identified, feared, and even destroyed these creatures.

According to Perkowski’s findings, some Wilno residents believed in two distinct types of vampires. The first was a physical being, a reanimated corpse that rose from its grave to torment the living. The second was a more spectral entity, an unseen force that drained vitality and brought misfortune. The community was said to have methods for detecting these beings, including observing unnatural behaviors in animals or finding blood at a grave site. The ultimate remedy? Exhumation and destruction of the suspected vampire—often through decapitation or burning.

Despite these astonishing claims, the people of Wilno have since distanced themselves from Perkowski’s research. Many insist that these stories were exaggerated or misunderstood, painting their community in an unfair light. Some residents argue that the so-called vampire beliefs were simply old European superstitions that had no real presence in Canada.

But is there more to the story? Seeking answers, we took a deep dive into the accounts, tracing back the origins of these legends and speaking to sources close to the town. What we found raises more questions than it answers. Were these truly tales of the supernatural, or were they rooted in something more tangible—fear, illness, or even community control? And why, decades later, does Wilno still reject these stories so strongly?

Join us as we unravel the mystery of Wilno’s vampires, separating fact from fiction and exploring whether these creatures ever really walked among us. Don’t forget to check out our episode on Unsolved Canadian Mysteries for the full investigation!