This is a continuation to part one of 'Two Creepy Tourist Spots with Bizarre Backstories'. You can find it here.
Catacombs of Paris, Paris
Catacombs of Paris
Imagine getting lost in a tunnel network made of skulls with no way out. This petrifying incident actually took place in the early 1990s when an unidentified man purportedly got lost in the Catacombs of Paris. The camera in which he recorded his experience was found many years later by a group of "illicit tomb explorers". The footage shows a man exploring the passageways and checking the human skulls scattered here and there. He initially appears to be calm but then frantically looks for a way out. His only source of light is his camera which he drops in the end of the video trying to get away from 'something'. The man was never found.
Catacombs of Paris
So, there are tons of speculations regarding what could have happened with no definite conclusion. This incident even inspired the movie 'As Above So Below'. Some of the scenes in the movie were shot in the tunnels where the man's camera was found. Several documentaries were made about the footage. The most notorious one being 'Lost in Catacombs' by Francis Freedland.
The Footage
Coming back to the speculations, some believe the whole thing was staged while some state that no one is going to drop their only source of light in a labyrinth-like place and run into utter darkness. However, no matter what anyone believes, one cannot ignore the strange background noises heard in the video. The unidentified man was described as a skillful cataphile in the documentary by Freedland which makes everything even more unsettling.
Tombe-Issoire Quarries
To summarize the origin of Catacombs of Paris, it was originally Tombe-Issoire quarries which engulfed roughly 1977 acres. The underground quarries were abandoned after the 15th century. Later, in 1810, to accommodate the overflowing dead bodies, the quarries were converted into catacombs. More than 6 million human remains exists there. The ossuary became open to public visitation in 1874. The site is open from 10 AM to 8 PM. Apparently, you are allowed to touch the skulls.🤒
Villisca Axe Murder House, Iowa
Villisca Axe Murder House
On June 10th, 1912, between midnight and 5 AM, the entire Moore family which included Josiah B. (aged 43), Sarah (née Montgomery) (39), and their four children: Herman Montgomery (11), Mary Katherine (10), Arthur Boyd (7), and Paul Vernon (5) along with two house guests Ina Mae (8) and Lena Gertrude Stillinger (12) were bludgeoned to death with an axe. The next morning, when an eerie stillness enwreathed the house, a concerned neighbor Mary Peckham contacted Ross Moore, Josiah's brother. He opened the door with a spare key and found eight dead bodies.
Victims
After studying the crime scene, it was suggested that the killer or killers waited in the attic until the Moore family went to sleep. This was concluded based on the two spent cigarettes in the attic. The killer or killers first entered the master bedroom where Josiah and Sarah were asleep. Then, proceeded to the children's room and killed the three children, went back to the master bedroom to attack Josiah and Sarah some more, and finally to the guest room to kill Ina and Lena. Josiah was attacked more number of times, comparatively. Also, the blade of the axe was used on Josiah alone. The rest of them were killed with the blunt end of the axe.
Noticing the defensive wound on Lena, authorities believed she could have been the only person awake at that time. Also, her clothes were lifted upwards which led the cops to believed the killer or killers must have sexually assaulted her.
Suspects
The case still remains unsolved. Several suspects popped up from time to time but there was no evidence to prove their link to the murder. Now, the house is open for public visitation. Visitors can also stay overnight inside the house if they wish.
Thanks for reading!❤️