121. The Mystery of Josh Maddux / Haunted Manitou Springs

Summary

This week Beth leaves you with quite a head scratcher! Grab that cocktail ( Mountain Top Meadow Cocktail ), and listen with bewilderment, as you ask yourself “What happened to Josh Maddux”?! An 18 year old boy goes out for a walk, and is missing for 7 years … until his mummified body is found in a chimney of an abandoned cabin. Will his family find closure to all the mysteries surrounding his death? Bettina lightens the episode up with ghostly tales of areas in and around Manitou Springs. All of it ending with a haunting on top of or near by a mountain? Coffin races and a vampire team. Cheers!
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Transcription

The true crime this week will have you going down rabbit holes…so many questions and no answers. 18 year old Josh Maddux left his house on May 8, 2008 to go for a walk. Josh was not seen again until August 2015 when a demolition team found his body stuck in the chimney of a cabin less than a mile from his home. Had he tried to get into the cabin by way of the chimney? But then why were his clothes in a pile neatly folded inside the cabin? The coroner’s report stated “Accidental death”. Listen as Beth covers this mind boggling true crime. Was it an extremely odd accidental death or was it murder?

Who’s up for a road trip to the quaint, little town of Manitou Springs, Colorado? Bettina covers not one, but three places in the town which was founded in 1872. Disembodied voices of children, running footsteps and children’s laughter have been reported many times by guests of the historic Avenue Hotel B&B. For dinner one can go to Briarhurst Manor, but don’t just expect a delicious meal. There have been sightings of a skeletal lady in white who is said to float around the grounds. And many reports of a little girl playing ball on the lawn, only this little girl is wearing clothing from a century ago. Then there’s the story of poor, sick Emma Crawford whose only real desire was to be buried on the top of Red Mountain when she died. Her desire was fulfilled, but due to unfortunate circumstances Emma and her coffin did not stay in their original burial spot and instead where washed down the mountain. Emma was laid to rest in the town’s cemetery, but it is said that she roams Red Mountain searching for the spot she was originally laid to rest. Listen and you’ll find out how the town of Manitou remembers Emma every year around Halloween since 1994.

Joshua Maddux went missing May 8, 2008. Family and friends never gave up hope that Josh was alive until that horrible day, 7 years later, when his body was found. https://www.denverpost.com/2015/10/19/chimney-discovery-ends-mystery-over-young-mans-disappearance-but-questions-remain/

Josh’s body was discovered in the chimney of a dilapidated old cabin less than a mile from his family’s house on Aug 7, 2015. https://www.strangeoutdoors.com/strange-indoors/joshua-maddux

How Josh’s body got into the chimney and the positions it was found in raises so many questions including how is this an accidental death? https://allthecreepylittlethings.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-body-in-chimney-disturbing-case-of.html

The absolutely charming town of Manitou Springs, CO sits at the foot of Pikes Peak. Could a place this lovely really be haunted? https://www.pikes-peak.com/attractions/historic-manitou-springs/

Briarhurst Manor, the spirits that reside are said to be those of the Briarhurst family. Much happiness filled the home, so why wouldn’t the spirits come back to where they were happiest when alive? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Briarhurst