Dark October

The dark history under your feet

Every town keeps a record of its worst days: the fires and floods, the hangings and murders, the graves nobody marks any more. Strata reads that record for the exact ground you are standing on and tells it with its dates and sources. These are the dark chapters the library has found so far, in 329 places across 147 towns.

The darkest ground in the library

Galveston · United States

The storm that killed thousands overnight

The deadliest natural disaster in American history broke over this exact stretch of the Gulf Coast.

Disaster · Burial ground · Crime · A death · 1839 – 1941

Boise · United States

A former territorial prison, now a museum

This point sits inside the walls of Old Idaho State Penitentiary, a prison that ran for 101 years east of Boise.

A death · Burial ground · Disaster · Local lore · Hidden history · 1872 – 1973

Rome's market square and former execution ground

This point sits in Campo de' Fiori, a rectangular square south of Piazza Navona that still holds a daily market.

A death · Crime · Hidden history · 1553 – 1889

Kutna Hora · Czechia

A bone chapel below a cemetery church

This point sits at the Sedlec Ossuary, a small chapel beneath the Church of All Saints in Kutná Hora, decorated with the bones of tens of thousands of the dead.

Disaster · Hidden history · Local lore · 1142 – 1870

Lancaster · United Kingdom

A medieval castle and former prison

This point sits at Lancaster Castle, a working Crown Court and heritage site in Lancaster, England.

A death · Crime · Hidden history · 1093 – 1911

Mount Pleasant · United States

Irving founded a cemetery and then had it renamed for him

A burying ground of 90 acres in Sleepy Hollow grew from a crowding problem into the resting place of writers, industrialists and a vice president.

Burial ground · Crime · Unsolved · A death · Local lore · 1640 – 1927

Ashford · United Kingdom

A Kent village with a dark-tourism reputation

Pluckley is a small farming village in Kent, now known for its ghost stories and its 13th-century parish church.

Hidden history · A death · Local lore · 1772 – 1950

Deadwood · United States

A hillside cemetery above Deadwood

This point sits inside Mount Moriah Cemetery, the burial ground on the mountain above Deadwood, South Dakota.

A death · Burial ground · 1876 – 1903

Edinburgh · United Kingdom

An underground street, now a tourist attraction

This point marks a sealed-off close buried beneath Edinburgh's City Chambers on the Royal Mile.

Disaster · Crime · A death · 1585 – 1977

London · United Kingdom

Central Criminal Court of England and Wales

This point sits at the Old Bailey, London's main criminal courthouse, on the site of old Newgate Prison.

Disaster · A death · Crime · 1419 – 1868

The king who did not see it coming

Half a mile from where you stand, a monarch survived two attempts and died on the third.

Crime · Disaster · A death · 1900 – 1973

Peniche · Portugal

Built for pirates, kept for prisoners

A coastal fort at Peniche spent four centuries deciding who could not leave.

Disaster · Crime · A death · Hidden history · 1786 – 1960

Every place, by country

United States

The storm that killed thousands overnight Galveston · Disaster, Burial ground, Crime, A death · 1839 – 1941 A former territorial prison, now a museum Boise · A death, Burial ground, Disaster, Local lore, Hidden history · 1872 – 1973 Irving founded a cemetery and then had it renamed for him Mount Pleasant · Burial ground, Crime, Unsolved, A death, Local lore · 1640 – 1927 A hillside cemetery above Deadwood Deadwood · A death, Burial ground · 1876 – 1903 The siege that made room for this street Provo · Disaster, Crime, A death · 1849 – 1918 The family that claimed this ground for its dead Boston · Crime, Disaster, Hidden history · 1894 – 1992 A murder house, now a bed and breakfast Fall River · Crime, Hidden history, Disaster · 1854 – 1908 A Gothic Revival prison, now a tour site Moundsville · A death, Disaster, Crime, Hidden history · 1835 – 1986 A burned tabernacle rebuilt as a temple Provo · Crime, A death, Disaster, Burial ground, Hidden history · 1849 – 1900 A siege that ended in beheadings on the Provo River Provo · Crime, A death, Disaster, Unsolved · 1849 – 1918 The two-day fight that ended in beheadings Provo · Disaster, Burial ground, Unsolved · 1849 – 1895 A 1802 county jail, now an event venue Charleston · Disaster, Burial ground, Hidden history · 1680 – 1888 A ruin became a rehearsal for the White House Charleston · Disaster, Crime, Local lore · 1718 – 1933 A Gothic Revival asylum, now a museum Courthouse-Collins Settlement District · Hidden history, Disaster, Crime, Burial ground, A death · 1861 – 1935 A hospital that opened for 95 and closed for none Preston City · Disaster, Hidden history · 1686 – 1954 Fire gutted the tabernacle and the church built a temple inside its bones Provo · Disaster, Crime, Burial ground, Unsolved · 1849 – 1895 The siege that cleared this valley Provo · A death, Disaster, Burial ground · 1849 – 1918 Site of the 1914 Ludlow Massacre Aguilar · Disaster, Crime · 1906 – 1918 The site of the Bath School bombing Charter Township of Bath · Disaster, Hidden history, Burial ground · 1838 – 1927 The town that moved to a creek and vanished Fillmore · A death, Hidden history · 1851 – 1857 The shell they refused to knock down Provo · Disaster, Crime · 1849 – 1850 The boy who measured the electron and came back to the wall American Fork · Crime, Burial ground · 1852 – 1992 A Gothic asylum, now apartments Boston · Hidden history, A death, Crime · 1692 – 1878 A colonial burying ground, Salem Boston · Burial ground, Unsolved, A death · 1637 – 1992 A student killed for being gay Cedar City · Crime, Disaster, Hidden history · 1857 – 1865 Open farmland near Hurricane, Utah Hurricane · A death, Disaster · 1899 – 1985 The president who called this the most beautiful church he'd seen Knoxville · Crime, Disaster, Hidden history · 1793 – 1868 A stereo shop robbery became a night of torture and murder Ogden · A death, Hidden history · 1845 – 1854 A fire that ended in a temple Provo · Crime, A death, Disaster · 1850 – 1897 A stone gatehouse at a Civil War cemetery Sharpsburg · A death, Burial ground · 1862 Tombstone's old pioneer cemetery, now a roadside memorial Sierra Vista · Crime, Burial ground, A death · 1878 – 1882 A near-ghost town over a burning coal fire Township of Conyngham · Disaster, Crime · 1868 – 1981 A Civil War burial ground founded in 1863 Township of Cumberland · A death, Burial ground, Unsolved · 1863 Site of the 1890 massacre Wounded Knee · A death, Burial ground, Crime · 1890 – 1973 A crowd, a musket, five dead in the snow Boston · Disaster, Hidden history · 1800 – 1872 A 1944 big-top fire that killed 168 people Hartford · Disaster · 1944 – 1968 The hotel that hosted the Beatles and died on purpose Miami · Disaster, Crime · 1926 – 1990 Built and rebuilt on a river that kept taking it back Naugatuck · Disaster, Hidden history · 1845 – 1955 A river that kept coming back for the valley Naugatuck · Disaster · 1893 – 1955 The condemned man who chose the bullet over the rope Provo · Disaster, Hidden history · 1849 – 1850 The trap on the Jordan River Salt Lake City · Disaster, Hidden history · 1849 – 1938 A riverside cemetery outside Savannah Savannah · Burial ground, A death · 1864 – 1922 Prairie families raised a church to hold their dead and living together Steinauer · A death · 1894 – 1918 A warden's house built by prison inmates Township of Jefferson · Hidden history · 1836 – 1962 A 19th-century territorial prison, now a museum Wellton · Hidden history, Disaster · 1924 – 1931 Site of America's deadliest nightclub fire Boston · Disaster · 1942 A bronze sculpture marking a bombing and trial Chicago · Disaster · 1886 A working state prison on Conley Lake Road Deer Lodge · Hidden history · 1979 The man who signed Heber City into being Heber City · Disaster · 1866 A 9.6-acre park, once a graveyard and a world's fair site New York City · Disaster · 1928 A Confederate prison camp, now a national cemetery and memorial Oglethorpe · Hidden history · 1993 The girl who died a secret death at nineteen Pomfret · A death · 1897 The mansion where Utah made peace with the army sent to crush it Salt Lake City · Crime · 1866 An Italianate mansion where its owner shot a man in 1981 Savannah · A death · 1981 A massacre site, now a national historic site Sheridan Lake · Disaster · 1900 The father built it, the son died for it Simsbury · Unsolved · 1744 A theater in Washington, now a working stage and museum Washington · A death · 1865 A 25-acre historic district, built on mining money Provo · Crime, Disaster, Burial ground, A death, Hidden history · 1849 – 1865 A quiet residential lot in San Jose San Jose · A death, Disaster, Burial ground · 1853 – 1965 The road that got erased Fillmore · A death, Hidden history, Crime · 1851 – 1866 A Provo lawyer argued 59 cases before he lost his life Provo · Crime, Disaster, A death, Burial ground · 1849 – 1860 A downtown historic district on Main Street Mount Pleasant · Crime, Disaster, Hidden history · 1852 – 1946 An 18th-century fort, now a museum Philadelphia · A death, Crime, Local lore · 1777 – 1864 The lawyer Congress gave a post office to Provo · Crime, A death, Burial ground, Disaster · 1849 – 1918 BYU land near the Missionary Training Center Provo · Disaster, Crime, Burial ground, Hidden history · 1849 – 1867 How Provo built a school system out of nothing Provo · A death, Disaster, Crime, Hidden history, Unsolved · 1849 – 1895 A schoolhouse turned Colonial Revival duplex Saint Johnsbury · Burial ground, A death · 1790 – 1902 The dirt here used to grow bitterbrush, not spires Salt Lake City · Hidden history, Crime, A death · 1849 – 1854 A Sanpete Valley farm town Ephraim · Disaster, Crime · 1854 – 1867 A vanished Mormon tabernacle Lehi · Disaster, Crime, Hidden history · 1849 – 1850 The falcon on empty ground Lehi · A death, Hidden history · 1849 – 1850 The bishop who signed his own war's peace treaty Mount Pleasant · A death, Crime, Disaster, Unsolved · 1853 – 1872 Open farmland near a small Sanpete hamlet Mount Pleasant-Moroni · Disaster, Crime, Hidden history · 1853 – 1869 Open ground near Moroni, Utah Mount Pleasant-Moroni · A death, Disaster, Crime · 1852 – 1872 A park built over a demolished slum New York City · Hidden history, Disaster, Crime · 1807 – 1872 An 1893 Italian Renaissance church, still an active congregation New York City · Crime · 1881 – 1987 The towers that never got their steel above the ground Salt Lake City · Crime, Burial ground, Disaster · 1847 – 1883 A 1941 Moderne post office Tonopah · Disaster, Crime · 1902 – 1912 Open hillside in the Santa Cruz foothills West Santa Clara · Disaster, A death, Burial ground, Crime, Hidden history · 1777 – 1906 A brickmaker built his house from his own backyard Windsor · A death, Burial ground, Disaster · 1637 – 1979 A 19th-century park on Boston Harbor Boston · Disaster, Crime · 1849 – 1973 Open parcel on Delta's grid Delta · A death, Disaster · 1853 – 1866 A California state park and memorial Donner · Hidden history, Crime, A death · 1865 – 1876 A mining town's opera house, now a convention hall Eureka · Disaster, Crime · 1879 – 1880 A 1905 flour mill, still grinding Lehi · Crime, Burial ground, Hidden history · 1849 – 1852 A falcon named Flash and ten years of state titles Lehi · Crime, A death · 1849 – 1984 The falcons have no history yet Lehi · Crime, Hidden history · 1849 – 1865 A 1934 house on a 1980s lot Orem · A death, Hidden history · 1849 – 1865 The mines needed dry shafts, so a railroad grew here Park City · Disaster, A death · 1880 – 1925 A Federal-style brick house in downtown Provo Provo · Crime, A death, Burial ground · 1849 – 1870 The house that raised a mayor Provo · A death · 1849 – 1850 A 1969 statewide college board Salt Lake City · Hidden history · 1870 – 1908 An industrial stretch of Santa Clara San Jose · Burial ground, A death · 1820 – 1977 A Carnegie library turned local museum Charter Township of Portage · Disaster, Hidden history · 1880 – 1927 A 1926 movie palace, now a Broadway house Chicago · Disaster, Hidden history · 1850 – 1903 The farm town that sent a boy to the big leagues Goshen · Crime, Burial ground · 1853 – 1863 The railroad that ran where you're standing, then vanished Lehi · Crime, Disaster · 1849 – 1865 A hotel turned civil rights museum Memphis · A death, Crime · 1919 – 1968 One of the world's oldest working power plants Ouray · Hidden history, Disaster · 1886 – 1936 A bungalow built in 1929 was picked up whole and carried across town Salt Lake City · A death, Burial ground, Hidden history · 1849 – 1977 Open ground near Moffett Field San Jose · Crime · 1979 – 1988 A Greek Revival mansion on Madison Square Savannah · Disaster, Hidden history · 1778 – 1888 A mountain toll road in Santa Clara County West Santa Clara · Disaster, Hidden history · 1865 – 1942 The largest brick house tobacco money built Windsor · Crime, Burial ground · 1637 – 1996 The highway that outran its own town Beaver · Disaster, Hidden history · 1865 – 1873 A ranching town in Sanpete Valley Fountain Green · A death, Disaster · 1853 – 1865 A lumberman's turret arrived a century late Galveston · Disaster, A death · 1867 – 1900 A platted road in Highland City Lehi · A death, Burial ground · 1850 A Lehi city parcel Lehi · Disaster · 1858 – 1931 A bond built the school, the town supplies the names Lehi · Crime, A death · 1849 – 1984 A teenager crossed an ocean alone for a faith he had never seen practiced Logan · Crime, Disaster · 1863 – 1873 A Manhattan park built over a burial ground New York City · Burial ground, Disaster · 1807 – 1991 The line that outlived the mines it was built to save Park City · Crime, Disaster · 1853 – 1898 A 19th-century medical museum, still open Philadelphia · Hidden history · 1787 – 1870 Dedicated to a man who never read it Pinedale · A death, Burial ground · 1904 – 1980 The clearing that came before the houses Pleasant Grove · Crime, Burial ground · 1849 – 1851 A schoolhouse turned double house Saint Johnsbury · Burial ground · 1790 – 1859 A Victorian beach hotel, built 1888 San Diego · A death, Hidden history · 1000 – 1892 A sprawling Victorian mansion, now a tourist attraction San Jose · A death · 1866 – 1922 Tombstone's livery turned gunfight shrine Sierra Vista · Crime, A death · 1881 – 1882 A desert town at two desert highways Silver Springs · Crime, Burial ground · 1860 – 1862 Farmland on the edge of Spanish Fork Spanish Fork · Hidden history · 1852 A mountain range in eastern Nevada Baker · Burial ground · 1220 A winter chapel that grew into a clock empire Bristol · Disaster · 1896 A quiet road south of Burley Burley · Crime · 1995 A 1909 Georgian Revival hotel, now a resort Estes Park · Hidden history · 1909 A road above the Deep River Franklinville · Crime · 1782 A highway above Deer Creek Reservoir Heber City South · Hidden history · 1847 Settlers had to fight twice before this ground held Plano · Disaster · 1842 A railroad corridor turned city block Salt Lake City · A death · 1866 A college built on ground with no past Salt Lake City · Burial ground · 1863 The village that became a shopping center Salt Lake City · Hidden history · 1000 Cupertino's old West Side San Jose · Local lore · 1922 A brewing dynasty's house of suicides St. Louis · A death · 1904 Tulsa's historic Black neighborhood Tulsa · Disaster · 1921

Portugal

Built for pirates, kept for prisoners Peniche · Disaster, Crime, A death, Hidden history · 1786 – 1960 The man who faked his own death in a sea cave Cascais · Disaster, A death, Crime · 1373 – 1755 A hole where the sea comes in to kill Cascais · Disaster · 1575 – 1952 Where the dead ran out of room Evora · Crime, A death, Disaster · 1181 – 1646 The building where the last shots for the dictatorship were fired Lisbon · Hidden history, Disaster · 1498 – 1768 A former prison, now a museum Lisbon · Disaster, Crime, A death · 1755 – 1918 The bridge that gave a battlefield its name Lisbon · A death, Burial ground, Disaster · 1755 – 1816 The king locked in his own family's house Sintra · Disaster, Crime · 1350 – 1755 A former prison, now a post office Sintra · Disaster, Hidden history · 1154 – 1755 The cave where the dead were buried with shells Cascais · Disaster · 1755 Where the kings had nowhere left to go Cascais · Disaster · 1606 – 1755 A road crew found a Roman town buried under Loures Loures · Disaster · 1598 – 1755 Where the dead were laid under stone Sintra · Hidden history · 1147 – 1674 A stretch of ancient burial ground near a lagoon Grandola · Disaster · 1755 A street in Algueirão Sintra · A death, Disaster · 1151 – 1980 Porto's central square Porto · Hidden history, Disaster, A death · 1694 – 1916 Sintra's town hall, built in a royal style Sintra · Disaster, A death, Crime, Local lore · 1350 – 1984 A Manueline monastery turned royal pantheon Lisbon · Disaster, Local lore, Hidden history · 1517 – 1831 A Pombaline fountain in a quiet square Lisbon · Hidden history, Disaster, Crime · 1147 – 1755 A seaside fortress, now a hotel Cascais · Disaster, Local lore · 1575 – 1930 Lisbon's central square, still named for a king it never wanted Lisbon · Hidden history, Disaster, Crime · 1147 – 1755 Wooded hillside outside Sintra Sintra · A death, Crime, Hidden history, Disaster · 1350 – 1758 A tomb older than Rome Sintra · Disaster, Burial ground, A death · 1147 – 1966 A 19th-century summer house, now a small hotel Cascais · Disaster, Hidden history · 1575 – 1968 A 19th-century summer villa, now a small hotel Cascais · Disaster, A death · 1580 – 1952 The kings who fled to a Portuguese fishing town Cascais · Disaster, Hidden history · 1575 – 1646 Villas first, then a wall of forts Cascais · Disaster · 1575 – 1952 An iron elevator in the middle of Lisbon Lisbon · Crime, Disaster · 1506 – 1761 An 18th-century bronze king on horseback Lisbon · A death, Hidden history, Disaster · 1147 – 1755 The knight who blocked a closing gate with his body Lisbon · Disaster, Hidden history · 1147 – 1755 Porto Porto · A death, Hidden history, Disaster · 1638 – 1928 A square built by demolition Porto · Burial ground, Crime, Hidden history, A death · 1286 – 1801 A Moorish hilltop fortress, now a ruin Sintra · A death, Disaster, Hidden history, Local lore · 1109 – 1755 A quiet corner of Sintra's hills Sintra · Hidden history, Disaster, Crime, Local lore · 1676 – 1866 A Dutch consul's mansion in Sintra Sintra · Disaster, Hidden history · 1674 – 1966 The plotting room of Portugal's last dictatorship Sintra · Disaster, Hidden history · 1676 – 1966 Where the water meets the sea, then vanishes Albufeira · Disaster, Crime · 1755 – 1833 Roman farmland above the coast Cascais · Disaster, Local lore · 1588 – 1857 The wave that drowned All Saints' Day Cascais · Disaster · 1606 – 1939 A sea chasm on the Cascais coast Cascais · Disaster, Burial ground, A death · 1755 – 1956 The invasion that never came Cascais · Disaster · 1575 – 1755 Rebuilt for a king, disarmed within a year Cascais · Disaster · 1575 – 1755 Traces of a synagogue erased by decree Evora · A death, Hidden history · 1634 – 1977 A riverside street in Parque das Nações Lisbon · Hidden history · 1828 – 1990 A roofless Gothic ruin, now a museum Lisbon · Disaster, Crime · 1506 – 1755 A bronze poet rose over Lisbon's ruined square Lisbon · Disaster, Hidden history · 1373 – 1860 Lisbon's 14th-century city wall, now in fragments Lisbon · Disaster, Crime, Hidden history · 1147 – 1755 Lisbon's Gothic-Romanesque cathedral Lisbon · Disaster, Crime · 1506 – 1755 A Baroque church above the Alfama Lisbon · Hidden history, Disaster · 1147 – 1755 The ledger the state kept for the poor Lisbon · Disaster, Hidden history · 1643 – 1960 An architect who never saw it finished Lisbon · Hidden history, Disaster, Burial ground · 1755 The king who wouldn't sit for his own portrait Lisbon · Hidden history, Disaster · 1147 – 1755 Where Lisbon's secret police kept its files and its cells Lisbon · Disaster · 1755 A medieval royal palace, now a museum Sintra · Disaster, Hidden history · 1755 A Gothic Revival estate, now a museum Sintra · Disaster · 1755 – 1966 A Romantic palace on a mountaintop ruin Sintra · Burial ground, A death, Disaster · 1348 – 1755 A wooded hillside in the Sintra hills Sintra · Crime, Hidden history, A death · 1147 – 1777 The stones nobody could explain Sintra · Disaster, Hidden history · 1755 – 1840 Near a parish church outside Sintra Sintra · Local lore, Disaster, Hidden history · 1147 – 1967 Open coastal ground near Cascais Cascais · Disaster · 1755 A pocket of grand 1900s villas Cascais · Disaster · 1575 – 1755 The researcher who dug up forty forgotten rabbis Cascais · Disaster, Hidden history · 1488 – 1755 A castle built for show became a gift to strangers Cascais · Disaster · 1575 – 1606 A riverside plaza in Parque das Nações Lisbon · Hidden history · 1942 – 1989 The nobleman whose name swallowed a hillside Lisbon · Disaster, Hidden history · 1755 – 1757 The city that starved for a king it never chose Lisbon · Hidden history, Disaster · 1147 – 1755 A hilltop parish above Nazaré's beach Nazare · Disaster, Local lore · 1182 – 1945 The institute that tried to abolish the boss Oeiras · Disaster · 1755 – 1807 A friars' convent built into bare granite Sintra · A death, Burial ground · 1596 – 1684 Sintra's neo-Manueline town hall Sintra · A death, Disaster · 1674 – 1755 A suspension bridge, now two stone towers Vila Nova de Gaia · Disaster · 1893 A 19th-century summer villa, now a hotel Cascais · Disaster · 1755 A seaside mansion built as a wedding gift Cascais · Disaster · 1755 A Manueline fort on the Tagus Lisbon · Hidden history · 1514 An avenue above the Atlantic coast Sintra · Local lore · 1108 The house where a comeback was planned Sintra · Disaster · 1350 A Copper Age burial ground Torres Vedras · A death · 1823

United Kingdom

A medieval castle and former prison Lancaster · A death, Crime, Hidden history · 1093 – 1911 A Kent village with a dark-tourism reputation Ashford · Hidden history, A death, Local lore · 1772 – 1950 An underground street, now a tourist attraction Edinburgh · Disaster, Crime, A death · 1585 – 1977 Central Criminal Court of England and Wales London · Disaster, A death, Crime · 1419 – 1868 A prison turned museum in Southwark London · Crime, Disaster, A death · 1381 – 1783 The garrison that fired on London and paid for it London · A death, Hidden history · 1536 – 1941 The doctor who pulled the handle off a killer London · Crime, Hidden history, Disaster · 1606 – 1973 A 17th-century graveyard around a Reformation church Edinburgh · Crime, Burial ground, Disaster, Hidden history · 1621 – 1919 A Jacobite battlefield, now a protected moor Inverness · Disaster, A death · 1746 A sheep, a stopwatch, and a world championship Lillingstone Dayrell with Luffield Abbey · Hidden history, Burial ground · 1124 – 1493 A Victorian school beside a murder site London · Crime, Burial ground, Local lore · 1538 – 1888 A mosaic survived fifteen centuries, then a week North Leigh · Burial ground, Hidden history · 1813 – 1928 A quarrel over bad wine ended in a massacre Oxford · Disaster, Crime · 1577 – 1752 The admiral shot on his own quarterdeck Portsmouth · Disaster, Crime · 1450 – 1848 A dead girl the parish refused to bury South Luffenham · Disaster, Hidden history · 1848 – 1913 London's execution ground London · Burial ground · 1881 A lock between two basins London · Crime, Unsolved, Burial ground, A death, Disaster · 1381 – 1941 The garrison that shelled its own city London · Disaster, Crime, Burial ground, Unsolved, A death · 1100 – 1974 The ruined keep of York Castle York · Hidden history, A death, Burial ground, Crime · 1066 – 1826 A red phone box, Grade II listed London · Hidden history, Burial ground, Disaster, Crime, Unsolved · 1066 – 1985 The knights who fought for a strip of mud outside the wall London · Burial ground, Disaster · 1583 – 1870 The Father who walked into the cholera ward London · Crime, Burial ground · 1549 – 1888 A pedestrian square in London's West End London · Crime, Burial ground · 1665 – 1888 A public square built around a naval victory London · A death, Disaster, Crime, Burial ground · 1486 – 1783 London's first planned square London · Hidden history, Crime, A death · 1603 – 1948 A coaching inn on Bodmin Moor, now a hotel and museum Altarnun · A death, Crime · 1700 – 1911 A sergeant beaten bloody on the Bicester road Bicester · Burial ground, Crime · 1182 – 1818 A Norman castle turned museum London · Disaster, Hidden history · 1615 – 1940 A dying Edinburgh preacher's church became Europe's first Coptic church London · Crime, Disaster · 1870 – 1949 A mansion that became a maternity ward North Leigh · Hidden history, Burial ground · 1908 – 1939 A sandstone hill in Lancashire Barley-with-Wheatley Booth · Local lore · 1652 A Tudor mansion inside a ruined castle Berry Pomeroy · Local lore, A death · 1549 – 1552 A medieval castle, now a historic house museum Chillingham · A death · 1298 – 1945 A show cave under West Wycombe Hill High Wycombe · Crime, Hidden history · 1748 – 1829 A 1960s market hall with the largest concrete dome in Europe London · Disaster · 1945 – 1958 A crowd swallowed the racetrack to reach one man Silverstone · A death, Hidden history · 1194 – 1949 The princess locked in a rotting hunting lodge Woodstock · Local lore, Hidden history · 1625 – 1967 A 600-year-old market square Edinburgh · Disaster · 1916 A Norman castle, still a working court Lincoln · Hidden history · 1732

Italy

Rome's market square and former execution ground Rome · A death, Crime, Hidden history · 1553 – 1889 The king who did not see it coming Monza · Crime, Disaster, A death · 1900 – 1973 The killing that ended the Republic Rome · Hidden history · 1695 – 1928 A friar burned on the stones he once purified with fire Florence · A death, Hidden history · 1497 – 1498 The town hall that still watches a square that killed a king Monza · Crime, Hidden history · 1900 Assassination of Julius Caesar Rome · Hidden history, Disaster · 1926 An oval baroque square built inside a Roman stadium Rome · A death, Hidden history · 1450 – 1556 The stadium buried under a square Rome · Crime · 1600 – 1660 A Capuchin church with a bone-lined crypt Rome · Disaster · 1973 A prince died a prisoner steps from Roman ruins Santo Stefano · Hidden history · 1569 An enclosed stone bridge over a Venice canal Venice · A death · 1600 The Chimera has watched Monza's square for centuries Monza · A death, Disaster, Hidden history, Crime · 1527 – 1961 An unnamed farm ridge above the Greve valley Impruneta · Crime, Disaster, Burial ground · 1591 – 1968 Sixteen brass names mark a street in Padua Padua · A death, Disaster · 1944 A 3,300-year-old Egyptian obelisk in a Roman square Rome · Crime, Hidden history · 1587 – 1864 A Baroque fountain, still fed by an ancient aqueduct Rome · A death, Burial ground · 1214 – 1734 A clock tower timed its light to reach approaching ships Venezia-Murano-Burano · Unsolved, Crime · 1291 – 1675 Soft clay beneath Pisa made its tower lean Pisa · Disaster · 1943 Rome's largest baths left their footprint on a modern square Rome · A death · 1732

France

Paris's largest cemetery Paris · Disaster, A death, Crime, Hidden history · 1778 – 1961 A judicial island has held prisoners, kings and corpses alike Paris · Hidden history, Crime · 1314 – 1965 A castle's foundations lie beneath the glass pyramid Paris · Crime, Burial ground · 1572 – 1841 A small park over the Barrière d'Enfer Paris · Hidden history, Burial ground · 1786 – 1944 Egyptian dead lie beneath the Louvre's old fortress yard Paris · Crime, A death · 1789 – 1793 Eight hundred fell where a Paris street narrows Paris · Disaster, Crime · 1358 – 1832 The merchant they called Champagne Charlie Bezannes · Disaster · 1914 An officer was shot forty-one metres from Point Zéro Paris · Hidden history · 1864 A bronze victory column in central Paris Paris · A death, Burial ground, Hidden history, Disaster · 1652 – 1830 A courthouse built on a royal palace Paris · Crime, Hidden history, A death, Disaster · 1572 – 1968 The garden at the center of Place des Vosges Paris · A death, Crime · 1515 – 1845 A bronze victory column, toppled once Paris · A death, Hidden history · 1700 – 1912 Paris's largest public square Paris · Disaster, A death, Hidden history · 1770 – 1836 A royal square on the Île de la Cité Paris · Crime · 1572 – 1831 Renaissance merchant's house Rodez · Hidden history · 1792 – 1900 Bullet scars still mark the École Militaire's windows Paris · Disaster · 1944 Innkeepers near this corner were fined for smuggled wine Paris · Crime · 1972

Hungary

A Danube embankment in Pest, Budapest Budapest · A death, Disaster · 1896 – 1945 A Ferencváros street corner Budapest · Disaster, Hidden history · 1799 – 1978 A private gold museum, now closed Budapest · Crime, A death · 1944 – 1945 A castle hill street in Buda Budapest · Disaster, Hidden history · 1541 – 1709 A square in Esztergom's castle district Esztergomi Jaras · Disaster, A death · 1180 – 1956 A street near Deák Ferenc tér Budapest · Hidden history, Disaster · 1944 – 1957 Hungary's Formula One racetrack Godolloi Jaras · A death, Disaster, Hidden history · 1074 – 1985 A cultural center on Andrássy Avenue Budapest · Crime · 1944 – 1956 A Budapest boulevard corner Budapest · Disaster, Burial ground · 1790 – 1956 Danube Promenade Budapest · Disaster · 1849 – 1944 An Art Nouveau palace, now a hotel Budapest · A death · 1944 A street in Rákospalota Budapest · Hidden history · 1926

Spain

The bride who was walled in and never let out Jerez de la Frontera · Crime, Disaster, Hidden history · 1391 – 1884 A friar's zeal built a university, a soldier burned its books Valencia · Hidden history, Disaster · 1936 – 1957 A mayor's stunt got a track banned from Formula One forever Jerez de la Frontera · Crime, Hidden history · 1261 – 1892 The day a conquest got a name Jerez de la Frontera · Crime, A death · 1391 – 1892 The parking lot that dug up two thousand years Sevilla · A death, Hidden history, Burial ground · 1521 – 1810 A quiet street above Manilva's coast Manilva · Hidden history · 1497 A prince took a palace that was never legally his to take Murcia · Disaster, Burial ground, Hidden history · 1266 – 1982 The car park that dug up two thousand years Sevilla · A death, Hidden history, Disaster · 1647 – 1810 The mosque that became a church that became a ruin Estepona · Disaster · 1941

Ireland

A former prison, now a museum Dublin · A death, Crime, Hidden history, Burial ground · 1730 – 1921 The prince who crowned a dead king's son Bandon · Disaster · 1601 – 1915 A monastery turned fortress turned prison Templerobin · Hidden history, Crime · 1602 – 1603 The pillar Dublin argued about for 157 years Dublin · Crime, Disaster, Local lore · 1808 – 1966

China

A canal-side treasury that became a ruler's birthday stop Beijing · Crime, Burial ground · 1427 – 1995 This is the first instance of cross-platform interchange in the Beijing Subway Beijing · Burial ground, Hidden history · 1115 – 1974 An air force built its hospital where nothing stood before Beijing · Crime, Disaster · 1860 – 1989

Czechia

A bone chapel below a cemetery church Kutna Hora · Disaster, Hidden history, Local lore · 1142 – 1870 A nonprofit for Europe's archaeologists Prague · A death, Disaster, Burial ground, Hidden history · 1422 – 1945

Germany

A closed Munich department store Munich · Crime, Hidden history · 1850 – 1983 The organ that outlived an empire Hofheim am Taunus · Disaster, Hidden history · 1546 – 1882

Switzerland

The palace the town threw its bishop out of Bulle · Disaster, Crime · 1781 – 1805 Built like Savoy, held against it Bulle · Disaster · 1805

Sweden

The heads on the western gate Kalmar · Crime, Disaster · 1505 – 1647

Belgium

The emperor his own city locked up Brugge · Crime, Disaster · 1280 – 1741

Bulgaria

A medieval church lies sunk beneath a Sofia shopping mall Sofia · A death, Burial ground · 1889 – 1945

Vatican City

Peter's disputed grave lies beneath Bernini's bronze canopy Rome · Burial ground · 1939 – 1968

Morocco

A shelter for shunned mothers Casablanca · Disaster, Crime · 1907 – 1947

Serbia

Crusader knights fought Byzantine troops at Niš in 1096 Opstina Nis-Medijana · A death, Crime · 1809 – 1821

Japan

Japan's first movie theater Tokyo · Disaster · 1635 – 1945

Netherlands

A village that kept losing its own name Gemeente Utrecht · Disaster · 1674

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