NEARLY DECAPITATED IN A LOCKED APARTMENT: The Mysterious Murder of Helen Knabe

Weird Darkness: Paranormal & True Crime Stories

In 1911, Indianapolis' pioneering female doctor was found nearly decapitated in her locked apartment with no sign of how the killer entered or escaped—and the murder weapon had vanished without a trace.
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IN THIS EPISODE: A child walking into their parent’s room in the middle of the night is something every parent who has ever had a child has experienced on multiple occasions – but one parent’s experience ended with a dark twist. (The Child Not Really There) *** Georgette Bauerdorf was a young socialite with a grand future – when her life was cut short in the dead of the night. Her screams went unanswered, and her murder became a mystery. And Georgette’s murder remains unsolved almost 80 years later. (The Unsolved Murder of Georgette Bauerdorf) *** The bat is a mysterious creature. To some, such as the Chinese, it is considered a symbol of luck. To others such as the Europeans and Americans, it is seen as something scary. And of course horror films see it as the flying form of Bela Lugosi. But the Mayans might have the strangest, or maybe coolest – depending on your outlook – opinion on the bat; they believe it is the representation of a deadly vampire god. (Camazotz: The Death Bat Vampire God) *** Helen Knabe's life was remarkable, in the best sense of the word. Unfortunately, her death was also remarkable, but in the worst possible way. (The Deadly House Call) *** Blanche Monnier was kept locked in her bedroom for a quarter of a century. When finally rescued she looked inhuman. What her mother did to her was inhumane. (Locked In Her Room For 25 Years) *** An historian has come forward saying that his father, the former Commander of White Sands Missile Range in the 1940s, analyzed some of the material found at the UFO crash site at Roswell. I’ll tell you what he found.(Navy Captain Tested Roswell UFO Debris) *** The lynching of Sheriff Henry Plummer poses one of the most haunting mysteries of the Old West. But I’ll share some of the details that not everyone has heard about this grim 1863 incident. (The Lynching of Sheriff Plummer)
ABOUT WEIRD DARKNESS: Weird Darkness is a true crime and paranormal podcast narrated by professional award-winning voice actor, Darren Marlar. Seven days per week, Weird Darkness focuses on all thing strange and macabre such as haunted locations, unsolved mysteries, true ghost stories, supernatural manifestations, urban legends, unsolved or cold case murders, conspiracy theories, and more. On Thursdays, this scary stories podcast features horror fiction along with the occasional creepypasta. Weird Darkness has been named one of the “Best 20 Storytellers in Podcasting” by Podcast Business Journal. Listeners have described the show as a cross between “Coast to Coast” with Art Bell, “The Twilight Zone” with Rod Serling, “Unsolved Mysteries” with Robert Stack, and “In Search Of” with Leonard Nimoy.DISCLAIMER: Ads heard during the podcast that are not in my voice are placed by third party agencies outside of my control and should not imply an endorsement by Weird Darkness or myself. *** Stories and content in Weird Darkness can be disturbing for some listeners and intended for mature audiences only. Parental discretion is strongly advised.
CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Show Open
00:02:50.059 = The Deadly House Call
00:16:17.448 = Camazotz: The Death Bat Vampire God
00:19:38.471 = Locked In Her Room For 25 Years
00:27:06.447 = Unsolved Murder of Georgette Bauerdorf
00:32:45.952 = Child Not Really There
00:36:27.996 = Navy Captain Tested Roswell UFO Debris
00:47:55.099 = Lynching of Sheriff Plummer
01:09:13.573 = Show Close
SOURCES AND RESOURCES FROM THE EPISODE…
“The Deadly House Call” from Strange Company: https://tinyurl.com/ybq4snl6
“The Unsolved Murder of Georgette Bauerdorf” by Elisabeth Tilsra for The Line Up: https://tinyurl.com/yae6ccll
“The Child Not Really There” by Kest from Your Ghost Stories: https://tinyurl.com/y8qvyp7u
“Camazotz: The Death Bat Vampire God” by A. Sutherland for Ancient Pages: https://tinyurl.com/ydbxxuaw
“Locked In Her Room For 25 Years” from Bugged Space: https://tinyurl.com/y9tsr6m7
“Navy Captain Tested Roswell UFO Debris” by Anthony Bragalia for UFO Explorations: https://tinyurl.com/yazkthbn
“The Lynching of Sheriff Plummer” by R.E. Matter and R.E. Boswell for Wild West Magazine: https://tinyurl.com/ydffcl8c
=====(Over time links may become invalid, disappear, or have different content. I always make sure to give authors credit for the material I use whenever possible. If I somehow overlooked doing so for a story, or if a credit is incorrect, please let me know and I will rectify it in these show notes immediately. Some links included above may benefit me financially through qualifying purchases.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2025, Weird Darkness.=====Originally aired: June 17, 2020
NOTE: Some of this content may have been created with assistance from AI tools, but it has been reviewed, edited, narrated, produced, and approved by Darren Marlar, creator and host of Weird Darkness — who, despite popular conspiracy theories, is NOT an AI voice.
EPISODE PAGE at WeirdDarkness.com (includes list of sources): https://weirddarkness.com/HelenKnabe
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