In Episode 375 Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger investigate a haunted home in Dixmont, Maine, that made the news back in 1905 because a ghost—believed to be the spirit of a murdered peddler from decades earlier—was stirring up activity throughout the house. Dozens of locals witnessed the unexplained phenomena that attracted the attention of the press.
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Produced and hosted by: Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger
Edited by: Ray Auger
Theme Music by: John Judd
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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:
*A note on the text: Please forgive punctuation, spelling, and grammar mistakes. Like us, the transcripts ain’t perfect.
[DRIVING]
JEFF: Welcome to downtown, Dixmont, Maine, Ray!
RAY: Where? I just see a few houses, an antique store, and a barn.
JEFF: Dixmont IS a small town. Right here at the intersection of Rt. 202 and Moosehead Trail Highway, is pretty much all you get for downtown.
RAY: Yeah, there’s not much here. The closest city is Bangor about 20 miles to the northeast.
JEFF: This is the kind of small town where people hear when something big happens.
RAY: I can imagine not much slips by the locals.
JEFF: That’s true. So when something as big as a murder occurs in a town this small, you can bet folks will talk about it for years to come… add in a ghost crying out for justice, and you’ve got a haunt Dixmont will never forget.
[INTRO]
JEFF: Hello! I’m Jeff Belanger and welcome to Episode 375 of the New England Legends podcast!
RAY: And I’m Ray Auger. Thanks for joining us on our mission to chronicle every legend in New England one story at a time. We couldn’t do it without you. So please reach out to us anytime through our Web site.
JEFF: Our Web site is also the place where you’ll find a link to buy my holiday book: The Fright Before Christmas: Surviving Krampus and Other Yuletide Monsters, plus dates to see my live holiday show of the same name, and dates to see Ray’s band the Pub Kings! Speaking of Ray, you have a big announcement this week!
RAY: This week I launched a NEW kind of radio station! (DESCRIBE A LITTLE)
JEFF: Looking for something fresh to listen to? Check out Raydio – your local soundtrack for great music and even better vibes. We’re all about upbeat tunes, local happenings, and keeping you entertained 24/7. Whether you’re at work, on the go, or just hanging out, Raydio has something for you. Click, listen, smile – it’s that easy. Tune in today at www.localraydio.com and let Raydio bring a little extra joy to your day! We’ll have a link to listed to Raydio in our episode description.
RAY: So like we said, Dixmont, Maine is a small town.
JEFF: It is. Nothing like a murder is going to slip by unnoticed here.
RAY: Here’s a little more background on Dixmont. This central Maine town is located in Penobscot County. The earliest settlement here was in 1799, back when this was still part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. They originally called the place Collegetown because Bowdoin College was first granted the land. The college then sold off parcels. One of the largest purchasers of land was Dr. Elijah Dix of Boston. When the town incorporated in 1807, they named it after him. “Dix” and “mont,” because the town sits on a hilltop. Dixmont.
JEFF: You could say the town was born under a bad sign, because in the year they incorporated, a strange fever broke out in the community killing many early settlers.
RAY: But Dixmont survived and grew, likely because it’s located on the stage-coach route between Bangor and Augusta. Since Dixmont is the top of the hill, the town became a natural place to rest the horses for the night. Today the population is just over 1,200 people.
JEFF: So yeah, everyone knows when something like a murder AND a haunting graces their town. So let’s head back to 1855 and see what happened.
[TRANSITION]
RAY: It’s a late afternoon June day in 1854 here in Dixmont, Maine. It’s a quiet day. Almost too quiet. Folks are tending to their farms and homes and going about their buisness. We’re standing at the farm of George Smither.
[HORSE AND WAGON ROLLING UP]
RAY: A traveling peddler has just rolled up to the farm.
JEFF: The peddler is asking the farmer for lodging for the evening. (PAUSE) The farmer nods.
[DOOR OPENS/CLOSES]
JEFF: And the two go inside the Smither home.
RAY: The peddler looks a little nervous.
JEFF: Yeah, I see that. And he seems to be holding his satchel pretty close to his body.
[WALKING UP STAIRS]
JEFF: Upstairs the farmer shows the traveling peddler to his room.
[WHACK]
[THUMP]
RAY: (SHOCK) The farmer just clubbed the peddler over the head!
JEFF: This is terrible! There’s blood spilling out all over the floor, it’s dripping through the floorboards!
RAY: Smither is going through the peddler’s satchel. There’s quite a bit of money in there.
[DRAGGING THE BODY]
JEFF: Now he’s dragging the peddler’s lifeless body back toward the stairs.
[THUMP, THUMP, THUMP DOWN THE STAIRS]
RAY: That was the most cold-blooded murder we’ve ever witnessed.
JEFF: The poor peddler didn’t know it, but Smither has a reputation for being greedy and money-driven. But no neighbor could have guessed he was capable of murder…
RAY: From here we’re going to jump ahead just over 50 years.
[TRANSITION]
RAY: It’s now June of 1905. George Smither died long ago. His home and farm were sold and resold. And though there were rumors that he might have killed a man, and that maybe there were witnesses, no one could ever prove anything. Dead men tell no tales… but sometimes haunted houses do.
JEFF: It seems like everyone in town has heard of this home’s haunted reputation. Word has spread enough that a reporter from the Bangor Daily News has come to investigate the house.
RAY: I just heard from one neighbor that he’s been in this house late at night sitting by the bedside of a sick family member. He said he’s heard all kinds of unnatural things he can’t explain. He doesn’t like being in there. He warned us to chase another story.
JEFF: Okay, now I REALLY want to go inside and experiences this.
(PAUSE)
[CRICKETS/NIGHT SOUNDS FADE IN]
JEFF: It’s just after dark when the reporter approaches the door of the house.
[KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK]
[DOOR OPENS]
JEFF: Let’s follow him inside.
(PAUSE)
RAY: I’ll admit it. I’m a little creeped out right now. Something feels off in here.
JEFF: I get that. I guess we should just get comfortable and see what we experience. I’ll take a seat on the couch over here.
RAY: I’ll grab this chair.
[SLOW FADE IN OF A TICKING CLOCK]
RAY: We’ve been sitting here a while, but I don’t…
[DRIP, DRIP, DRIP]
RAY: (NOT SCARED) What is that?
JEFF: I hear it too. It sounds like something dripping.
RAY: It’s not raining outside. Could there be a plumbing leak?
JEFF: I’m not sure. (AWAY FROM MIC) It seems a little louder over here.
RAY: You’re right. And we’re currently right below the guest bedroom upstairs.
JEFF: Okay, I just got a chill.
[DRIP STOPS]
RAY: The sound is gone.
[WALKING UP STAIRS WITH REVERB IN THE DISTANCE]
RAY: Is someone else here with us?
JEFF: I don’t think so. Just you me and the reporter in this room. But I hear someone on the stairs.
RAY: (AWAY FROM MIC) I’m looking up the stairs. There’s no one there.
JEFF: You’re kidding.
RAY: I’m not.
[THUMP, DRAG, THUMP, DRAG, THUMP]
RAY: Tell me you hear that.
JEFF: It sounds like someone being dragged down the stairs.
RAY: But there’s no one there!
[THUMPING STOPS]
RAY: I’m now completely freaked out.
JEFF: Yeah, something is off here for sure. But there’s one more place I want to check out.
RAY: Where?
[DOOR CREAKS OPEN]
JEFF: Down there.
RAY: The basement?! Are you kidding me?
JEFF: I’ve heard a story about the basement. We have to look.
[WALKING DOWN CREAKING STAIRS]
JEFF: Bring that candle over here.
RAY: What are we looking for?
JEFF: You see this brick wall?
RAY: Yeah, it’s part of the foundation, right?
JEFF: That’s the thing. It’s too far out from the wall. The house continues past it.
RAY: Hey, you’re right. This seems to have been added on after the original house was built.
JEFF: I’ve heard it’s a vault. And that the old farmer took the body of that murdered peddler, and he can be found on the other side of those bricks.
RAY: I think we should get out of here. I’ve seen and heard enough.
[QUICKLY UP THE STAIRS]
[OPEN DOOR]
[NIGHT SOUNDS CRICKETS]
JEFF: Locals will tell you there were at least two witnesses to the murder of the peddler fifty years ago. They say that one of the witnesses was found mysteriously drowned in a pond over a thousand miles away from this house. He was found dead just a few weeks after the murder occurred. The other was a man in a neighboring town who heard someone calling him from outside of his house in the early morning hours. When he walked outside he was shot dead right by his front door. The killer was never caught.
RAY: Which leaves us with this very haunted and mysterious house. And that brings us back to today.
[TRANSITION]
JEFF: Everything we know about this story was pulled from a June 5th 1905 Bangor Daily News article. Though the exact house location in Dixmont wasn’t identified in the article, there is a photo of the home that you can see on our website.
RAY: I don’t know what it is about small towns that make these stories all the more frightening.
JEFF: Maybe it’s because we think we know our neighbors. That we trust them. And to find out something like a brutal murder took place makes us question everything, including our way of life. Like: How could this happen here?!
RAY: We know all too well it can happen anywhere. Including right here in Dixmont.
JEFF: I love the idea that a ghost or spirit still calls out for justice. Or maybe it’s like a movie that plays over and over again even though years have passed. There’s an old expression: If these walls could talk… well sometimes… they do.
[OUTRO]
RAY: That they do, and that brings us to After the Legend where we take a deeper dive into this week’s story and sometimes veer off course.
JEFF: After the Legend is brought to you by our Patreon patrons! If you enjoy our show please thank a patron, because they’re the backbone of everything we do. They financially support us and help with our hosting costs, marketing, website, travel, and everything else it takes to bring you two shows each week. All we’re asking for is $3 bucks per month. Think of it as a holiday gift for your old pals Jeff and Ray. And for that, you’ll get early ad-free access to new episodes, plus bonus episodes and content that no one else gets to hear. To sign up head over to patreon.com/newenglandlegends.
To see some pictures of the haunted house in Dixmont, click on the link in our episode description, or go to our website and click on Episode 375.
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Until next time remember… the bizarre is closer than you think.
