About this episode

This episode explores the violent legacy of the Harpe Brothers in early America, revealing a grim story of fear and murder that blurred the lines between legend and reality.

In the years following the American Revolution, when the country was still uncertain of itself and the frontier was still a place of violence, two brothers carved out a story of fear across the wilderness. When their story was first published in 1824, many people thought it was so terrible it simply had to be fiction, and whilst the facts may have been a little blurred, it sadly had much more truth to it than people wanted to accept. Behind the legend lay a grim and disturbing story of violence and murder and even a twinge of mystery, that is still as troubling today as it ever was.SOURCES Grandjean, Katherine (2026) Kingdom of Devils. Random House, NY, USA. Coates, Robert (1930) Outlaw Years, The: The History of the Land Pirates of the Natchez Trace. Pelican Publishing Co. USA. Hall, James (1833) The Harpe’s Head, a Legend of Kentucky. Key & Biddle, NY, USA. The Poughkeepsie Eagle (1799) Domestic Intelligence. The Poughkeepsie Eagle, Tues, 26 Deb 1799, p3. USA. Kentucky Gazette (1799) Lexington, April 18. Kentucky Gazette, Thurs 18 April 1799, p2, USA. Kentucky Gazette (1799) Lexington, April 25. Kentucky Gazette, Thurs 18 April…

People in this episode

Host: Ben Cutmore

Topics covered

• American Revolution
• Harpe Brothers
• violence
• murder
• frontier history
• mystery

Keywords

• Harpe Brothers
• American Revolution
• frontier violence
• murder
• history
• mystery
• legends

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Random House, Pelican Publishing Co., The Poughkeepsie Eagle, Kentucky Gazette, The United States Gazette

Books & works: The Harpe’s Head, a Legend of Kentucky

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