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The Untold Story Of Dudleytown - Connecticut (CT) · Mystery Archives Episodes

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For decades, Dudley Town has been infamous for countless
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legends, from ghostly apparitions to frightening and
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strange creatures, paranormal curses, and more.
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But what is it about this small Connecticut ghost town that has
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spawned these legends? Is this place truly cursed?
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Is it evil? That's what we'll be diving into
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here on Mystery Archives. Dudley Town's history, from the
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beginning has been shrouded in darkness.
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Settled in the 1740s by Gideon Dudley and Thomas Griffiths, as
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well as their families, other families soon flocked to join
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them. The town was never officially a
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town, however, it was more or less an isolated part of the
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Cornwall Township. The town or village rested in
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the middle of three large hills. In spite of this, settlers began
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to trickle into the area. The Tanner family, the Joneses,
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the Pattersons, the Dibbles, and the Porters all took up
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residence here. The community grew even larger
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after iron ore was discovered nearby and farming became a
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secondary concern. However, there were never any
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shops or schools or churches in Dudley Town.
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Provisions had to be purchased in nearby towns, and when one
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died, a trip to Cornwall was necessary because, in addition,
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there was no church in the town. There was no cemetery either.
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The population of Dudley Town was never large, and according
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to an 1854 map, the peak number of families who lived there only
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ever reached 26. In spite of all these things,
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the town did thrive. For a time, Dudley Town was
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noted for its timber, which was burned and used to make wood
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coal for the nearby Litchfield County iron furnaces in Cornwall
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and other towns. The furnaces later moved closer
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to the railroads and the more industrial towns though, and the
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lumber was no longer needed. Iron ore was used from the area
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for a time, and there were three water powered mills in Dudley as
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well. But despite the outward signs of
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prosperity, there were strange deaths and bizarre occurrences
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that began to take place in Dudley Town, things that make
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you question just what could have been happening there.
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The Carter Family, who had settled there originally in 1759
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shortly after arriving, would have six members pass away from
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a mysterious plague that swept through Cornwall.
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This later was believed to possibly be cholera, however no
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source was ever conclusively found.
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Devastated by the loss, the remaining members would relocate
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to Binghamton, NY in an attempt to leave the tragedy to the
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past. But life would have other plans.
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Inside what was called the Delaware Wilderness at the time,
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the remaining Carters would be attacked, raided, and
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slaughtered by Native American tribesmen.
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Nathaniel, his wife, and their infant child all would be
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killed. Nathaniel's remaining kin, the
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other three children would be kidnapped and taken N to Canada,
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where the two daughters were ransomed.
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The son, David Carter, remained with his captors and was
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essentially assimilated into their tribe.
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In 1792, a man named Hollister bizarrely passed away at his
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friend Tanner's home. The cause of his passing is
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unknown. However, following Hollister's
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death, Tanner began to see things that he couldn't explain
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in the weeks to come. He became obsessed with these
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strange, ominous creatures he said he was seeing out in the
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woods and at night. In just a short time, Tanner
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would lose his mind. His daughter would be tasked
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with taking care of him until the end of his life, and this
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wouldn't be an isolated incident either.
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As Tanner was slowly going insane, his neighbor next door,
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a man named Abel, also began telling people that he too was
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seeing weird creatures in the forest and at night, ominously
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lurking about. In due time, he is well, would
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go insane, and would have to be cared for by his family until
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his inevitable death. Another incident affected one of
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the most famous residents of the region, General Herman Swift, a
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man who had served during the Revolutionary War under George
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Washington. In 1804, as a cool breeze blew
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on an overcast day, the general and his wife were sitting on
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their front porch enjoying each other's company, and suddenly
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his wife, Sarah Faye, was struck by lightning, seemingly out of
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nowhere. She would die instantly from the
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strike, unable to come to terms with what had happened.
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Herman would go insane and would die himself shortly after with
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no discernible cause. And following this incident, yet
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another occurred, also affecting a famous individual for their
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time, the editor and founder of the New York Tribune, a man
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named Horace Greeley. Shortly after marrying his wife,
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Mary Young Cheney, Horace moved to the area from New York City
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as part of the Wellness movement.
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The movement for that time promoted breathing, fresh air,
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exercise and a vegetarian diet. Things seemed well for a time.
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That was until Mary, who suffered from a lung disease,
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possibly asthma, began having regular fits.
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These fits would occur whenever she saw something terrifying
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that she said was lurking in the woods.
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As a result of these continued episodes, the two would relocate
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yet again back to New York City, and once back, Horace decided to
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run for president against Ulysses S Grant, but lost the
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election. Mary would take her final
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struggled breath the night before the votes were cast.
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Horace Greeley himself would die just one month later.
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Throughout these notable cases, several other members of the
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town would lose their lives to strange circumstances, including
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but not limited to drowning, unknown plague, fire, and
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undetermined circumstances. It was if someone or something
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had put a curse on Dudley Town over the years of its
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settlement. Tanner, Abel, and Mary wouldn't
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be the only ones who said that they saw things that they
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couldn't explain. Soon, whispers spun into legends
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as many of those of the time came forward, also claiming to
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have seemed terrifying and bizarre looking entities
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originating from the forest. By the early 1900s, all of the
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residents of Dudley Town had either left or met their fate.
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Those that didn't leave abandoned their homes, and this
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was except for one family, the Brophies.
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However, their tenure as the last family in Dudley Town would
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be short lived in rapid succession.
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Their livestock would perish, The mother of the family would
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have tuberculosis and pass. Their two sons would be accused
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of theft in a nearby town and would disappear, presumably
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going on the run and never to be seen again.
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This then left John Brophy, the patriarch of the family, as its
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only remaining resident. Just weeks after his boys
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disappeared, his home would burn down.
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Escaping the blaze and overcome with grief, John, with the
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clothes on his back, simply wandered into the forest and was
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never seen or heard from again. Following the disappearance of
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John Brophy, the town officially became uninhabited, a ghost of
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its former self. But although a ghost town, this
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too is far from the last chapter of the story.
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In the summer of 19 O 6A, husband and wife enjoyed a
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beautiful drive throughout the countryside of Litchfield
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County, Connecticut, a place filled with forests, fresh air,
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and winding roads. As they drove by, off in the
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distance, they spotted a covered wooden bridge that seemed to
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lead up towards a forested area on top of a hill, and this
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piqued their interest because this area appeared to be darker
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than the rest. Crossing the bridge and
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following the winding roads up near the forest itself, they
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finally had to pull their vehicle over and walk into where
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the forest began. The duo, who lived in New York
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City full time, was trying to get a break from the hustle and
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bustle of the Big Apple and sought peace and quiet in
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nature. They had hoped on this trip that
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they would find a place to build their second home, one that
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would allow them to get just what they thought they needed.
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It was here that the two believed that they had found
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just that. As they entered the forest, the
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thickness of the canopy above them, alongside the natural
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shade from the nearby hills made it almost as if it was dark
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during the day. Inside, however, the air was
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crisp and clean. Everywhere they seemed to look,
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they saw beautiful displays of nature, wildflowers, apple
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trees, and crystal clear streams of water.
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They walked through the ruins of what appeared to be a forgotten
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civilization. Old and crumbling stone walls.
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The King foundations were all that remained.
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The couple was blown away by what they had discovered and
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some background information about them.
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These two people were Doctor William Cogswell Clark and his
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wife Harriet. Doctor Clark was an oncologist
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or a cancer doctor in NYC, and was also a professor at Columbia
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University, teaching other physicians and surgeons.
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And although the couple's lives were busy and exciting, they've
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been extremely fortunate to be as successful as they were, and
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as previously mentioned, sought to have a place where they could
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go to recharge and check out from their schedules for a
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while. Feeling taken in as if the
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forest itself was answering their prayers, the clerks
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unanimously decided that this is where they would build their
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second home in due time. After returning to New York
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City, they would promptly turn in the paperwork, placing an
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order to purchase 1000 acres encompassing their little piece
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of heaven. The 1000 acres of forest they
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had purchased was of the dark Entry Forest, named so for the
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previously mentioned dark appearance.
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Once inside, Once the land deal was finalized, Doctor Clark
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began to search for local builders who would construct his
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home. The only problem was no one
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wanted to build it. No matter how much money he
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offered, he would be rejected time and time again, yet never
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truly receiving a straight answer as to what was going on.
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It was if these builders believed the land to be cursed,
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and perhaps they were riot. Paying no mind and being a
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handyman himself, Clark decided to take it upon his shoulders to
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construct the home for him and his wife.
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Therefore, every weekend for the next several months, Doctor
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Clark would travel to the couple's land and work on
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building this home, what would eventually turn out to be a
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modest two-story wooden cabin. By the time the cabin was
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finished, it was Thanksgiving, and to celebrate the holiday,
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the Clarks spent their time in their beloved cabin in the
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woods, never seeming to get enough time there.
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The couple, from there on out, would spend every free weekend
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and holiday fishing, hiking, and overall enjoying nature and each
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other's company. However, things would take a
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very different turn in 1918. It was the summer and the
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clerks, as they had been, were relaxing at their cabin when
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Doctor Clark received a message that there was an urgent medical
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emergency, one that beckoned him back to New York City.
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Harriet was unhappy, to say the least.
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The thought of being alone, surrounded by Woodlands for God
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knows how long didn't sit well with her, but as she dropped
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William off at the nearby train station she made him promise
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that he would return as soon as he could.
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William would agree and try to put his wife at ease and would
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board the train and disappear into the fog.
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The emergency would end up being rather short lived and Doctor
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Clark within 36 hours was back on a train and headed back
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towards his wife. But when the train pulled into
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the station, despite his previous communications, Harriet
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was nowhere to be seen. Not a superstitious man, but
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having an odd feeling in his gut, William began to worry.
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Mildly panicked, he began to vigorously walk towards the road
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that led to his home. Upon entering the dark entry
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forest, he began to hear the loud hooting of forest owls,
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something that normally wouldn't be eerie, but given the
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circumstances was unnerving. With that pit in his stomach
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ever sinking, William began to run towards his house.
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As he edges closer, he sees that the front door is partially
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open. With his heart pumping, he
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approaches the cabin and throws the door open, but almost as
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soon as his feet cross the threshold, a horrific high
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pitched noise begins emanating from upstairs.
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Frozen in his tracks at the cacophony of the owl's hooting
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and the high pitched noise, it takes the doctor a moment to
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come back to his senses. As he snaps back to reality, he
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realizes that this horrible noise is coming from his wife.
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Running upstairs as fast as he can, he rushes towards the
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bedroom, which is also partially open.
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Throwing it back, he discovers Harriet there in one of the
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corners of the room. She's curled up in a fetal
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position, her head and shoulder dropped against one of the
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walls. Her mouth is open and her jaw
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he's grotesquely unhinged. The high pitched sound, upon
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closer inspection is some kind of maniacal laughter emanating
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from his wife as her wide eyes stared into his.
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As the laughter continued, Doctor Clark broke.
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He turned and ran as fast as he could out of the cabin,
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presumably to seek outside help. Details are scarce as to what
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truly happened to Harriet Clark. Some say she was committed and
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spent the rest of her life in an asylum, and others that she
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ultimately went back to New York City but would take her own
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life. It's hard to say, but one
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converging detail that seems to emerge is that she wouldn't stop
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talking about the strange creatures that she saw in the
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woods. What was once a couple's dream
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ultimately turned into a nightmare.
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But before the true conclusion of Dudley Town, there are a few
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things I'd like to cover further with you.
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Some historians have attempted to downplay the unusual events
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in recent years. They will debunk the legends of
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the town by first stating how few people were there who lived
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there, and then will try to downplay the disappearances,
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cases of insanity and weird deaths, as if such things happen
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all the time. And perhaps they do.
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But why so many unusual happenings in such an isolated
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area with so few people living in it?
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How strange is it that numerous people lost their lives either
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to what seemed like freak accidents or insanity or both?
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Just what were these creatures that people kept seeing and or
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experiencing? Were they the product of the
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forest itself, some kind of infernal pact, or something else
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entirely? Just what exactly would cause
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such a supposed curse to exist and overtake those who dared to
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call Dudley Town home? Interestingly, those who have
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visited the area closer to the modern day.
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Have reported phantom figures and again seeing strange
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creatures and eerie sounds. One potential explanation might
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be this. In the 1970s, the famous
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paranormal couple Ed Lorraine Warren actually filmed a special
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inside the dark entry forest and their ultimate conclusion was
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that the whole area was infested with demons.
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My question further still that remains unanswered is how?
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Unfortunately, with this case, we are left with more questions
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than answers. However, what is certain today
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is this Dudley town or the area where it once stood is private
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property. This means that it is illegal to
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enter, so please do not trespass, not just for the legal
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consequences, but as we've learned today, this place is not
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fit for human beings. It is especially dangerous.
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So if you value your freedom, sanity, and soul, do not enter
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this place because you may never get the chance to return.
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Thank you all so much for watching this latest video.
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Please don't forget to give the video a like.
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If you enjoyed it, leave a comment below and share it
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around as well as subscribe with notifications on so you don't
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miss a new upload. And lastly, whether you're doing
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great or not so great, thank you guys so much for allowing me to
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entertain you. I truly not only enjoy doing
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this, but seeing the impact that I've had on people I probably
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wouldn't have otherwise has been truly magical.
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So again, I cannot thank you all enough.
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As always, this has been Cody here at Mystery Archives.
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Remember to please stay safe out there, don't trespass and take
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care. I'll see you next time.