Editorial attribution
Sarah Fin covers historical mysteries and unsolved cases for Morbid Index, with a focus on what the surviving record — court documents, contemporary reporting, official investigations — actually establishes, as distinct from theories that developed afterward.
This is an editorial byline. Read our attribution policy and sourcing standards.
48 entries
The Index · Unsolved Cases
The Mary Celeste was found abandoned in the Atlantic in December 1872. A 2026 wood-and-ethanol experiment strengthened one old explosion theory, but it still does not prove why the crew left.
Sep 13, 2026
The Index · Unsolved Cases
Andrew and Abby Borden were killed with a hatchet in their Fall River home on August 4, 1892. Lizzie Borden was tried and acquitted -- the case was never legally resolved beyond that.
Sep 13, 2026
The Index · Unsolved Cases
The CIA confirmed Area 51's existence in 2013 as a Cold War aircraft-testing site. Bob Lazar's alien-technology claims are a separate story with serious credibility problems.
Sep 10, 2026
The Index · Unsolved Cases
The LA County Coroner ruled Elisa Lam's death an accidental drowning connected to her bipolar disorder. Here's what the official record actually established.
Sep 10, 2026
The Index · Dark History
Ed Gein admitted killing Mary Hogan and Bernice Worden, but he was tried only for Worden's murder. Here's the documented case, the 1968 insanity ruling, the grave robberies, and what horror films actually borrowed.
Sep 10, 2026
The Index · Unsolved Cases
A rancher found debris, the Army briefly called it a 'flying disc,' then reversed course within a day. The Air Force's later Project Mogul explanation accounts for the physical evidence.
Sep 9, 2026
The Index · Dark History
Nineteen people were hanged, one was pressed to death, and no one was burned. Here's the documented history of the Salem witch trials, separated from The Crucible.
Sep 9, 2026
The Index · Paranormal
Sleep paralysis happens when REM muscle paralysis persists into waking consciousness. Here's the science behind the sensed presence, chest pressure, and threatening figures people report.
Sep 9, 2026
The Index · Dark History
Sarah Winchester spent 36 years renovating her San Jose mansion. The story that she did it on a medium's orders to appease rifle victims has no contemporary evidence behind it.
Sep 9, 2026
The Index · Dark History
Six members of the DeFeo family were shot dead in their Amityville home in November 1974. Here is the documented criminal case, before any haunting story existed.
Sep 2, 2026
The Index · Paranormal
A barn owl is the leading natural explanation for the 1952 Flatwoods Monster. Here's how well it actually fits the witness descriptions, and where it doesn't.
Sep 2, 2026
The Index · Unsolved Cases
A careful guide to the Zodiac Killer case: the four confirmed attacks, victims, letters, ciphers, major suspects, DNA claims and what remains unsolved.
Aug 24, 2026