Jersey Gothic: Swamps, Surgeons, and Surf

From Southern Ghost Stories by Southern Ghost Stories

April 1, 2026 · 21 min · Episode 175

About this episode

This episode explores chilling tales from New Jersey's past, including a notorious predator, a horrific psychiatrist, and a spectral figure from the surf.

Beneath the neon lights and boardwalk glitz of the Garden State lies a history stained by blood, madness, and the unexplained. In this episode of Southern Ghost Stories, we journey north to explore three chilling tales from New Jersey’s past: the reign of the Duck Island Shotgun Stalker, a predator who turned a swampy peninsula into a private hunting ground in the late 1930s; the industrial-scale horror of Dr. Henry Cotton, the "surgical psychiatrist" at Trenton Psychiatric Hospital who performed literal slaughterhouse procedures on his patients in the name of science; and the ethereal mystery of the Lady in White, a spectral figure that rose from the Atlantic City surf in the summer of 1899. From the reeds of the Delaware River to the decaying halls of the Kirkbride building, we examine the fine line between the monsters we hunt in the woods and the ones we allow to walk among us. Be sure to like, subscribe and leave a review! Check out Allen's books on Amazon! https://amzn.to/3HEf2u9 Got a question or comment? Hit us up on our socials! Instagram https://www.instagram.com/southernghoststories/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/southernghoststoriesonline Follow Allen on X…

People in this episode

Host: Allen

Topics covered

New Jersey history
true crime
ghost stories
psychological horror

Keywords

Duck Island Shotgun Stalker
Dr. Henry Cotton
Lady in White
Atlantic City

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Allen's books

Books & works: Jersey Gothic: Swamps, Surgeons, and Surf, Southern Ghost Stories

Places: the Garden State, New Jersey’s, Atlantic City, the Delaware River