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Folklore and B/S · July 29 · 40 min

We are "PRO" combustion

Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Can people really burst into flames or were our ancestors just really bad at explaining fires? This week, Amber and Keegan dive headfirst into the strange world of spontaneous human combustion, where bodies turn to ash, slippers somehow survive, and absolutely nobody can agree on what happened. Along the way, we roast Victorian-era theories, question Farmer John, and ask the important scientific questions—like,do old people become more flammable?Grab a fire extinguisher and join us for one of history's hottest mysteries. Contact us: folklorepodcast26@gmail.com Buy us a coffee: Folklore and B/S | Podcast on RSS.com Resources: BBC News. (2011, September 23). “first Irish case” of death by spontaneous Combustion - BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-15032614 Cold Files. (2026, May 26). Death of Mary Reeser . Temperature and Time: The Death of Mary Reeser, 1951. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Mary_Reeser Cornelia Zangari Bandi — Grokipedia. Cornelia Zangari Bandi. (n.d.). https://grokipedia.com/page/Cornelia_Zangari_Bandi Howard, Krissy. "Is Spontaneous Human Combustion Real? The Science Behind This Baffling Phenomenon." AllThatsInteresting.com, March 24, 2024, https://allthatsinteresting.com/spontaneous-human-combustion. Accessed July 15, 2026. July 1, 1951: St. Pete Woman’s burning death baffles investigators. Florida History . (n.d.). http://www.floridahistorynetwork.com/july-1-1951-st-pete-womans-burning-death-baffles-investigators.html New Scientist. (2012, August 18). Journal of Physics Special Topics an undergraduate physics journal. The Big Burn Theory . https://journals.le.ac.uk/index.php/pst/article/download/864/796/1784 Spontaneous Human Combustion. (n.d.) Segen's Medical Dictionary. (2011). Retrieved July 15 2026 from https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/spontaneous+human+combustion Team, R. (2025, June 25). 10 bizarre spontaneous human combustion stories. https://rankedfacts.com/oddities/10-bizarre-spontaneous-human-combustion-stories/ Weird Darkness. (2024). Matilda Rooney’s Christmas combustion - weird darkness. https://weirddarkness.com/matilda-rooneys-christmas-combustion/

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Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note.

Can people really burst into flames or were our ancestors just really bad at explaining fires? This week, Amber and Keegan dive headfirst into the strange world of spontaneous human combustion, where bodies turn to ash, slippers somehow survive, and absolutely nobody can agree on what happened. Along the way, we roast Victorian-era theories, question Farmer John, and ask the important scientific questions—like,do old people become more flammable?Grab a fire extinguisher and join us for one of history's hottest mysteries.

Contact us: folklorepodcast26@gmail.com

Buy us a coffee:

Folklore and B/S | Podcast on RSS.com

Resources:

BBC News. (2011, September 23). “first Irish case” of death by spontaneous Combustion - BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-15032614 Cold Files. (2026, May 26). Death of Mary Reeser . Temperature and Time: The Death of Mary Reeser, 1951. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Mary_Reeser Cornelia Zangari Bandi — Grokipedia. Cornelia Zangari Bandi. (n.d.). https://grokipedia.com/page/Cornelia_Zangari_Bandi Howard, Krissy. "Is Spontaneous Human Combustion Real? The Science Behind This Baffling Phenomenon." AllThatsInteresting.com, March 24, 2024, https://allthatsinteresting.com/spontaneous-human-combustion. Accessed July 15, 2026. July 1, 1951: St. Pete Woman’s burning death baffles investigators. Florida History . (n.d.). http://www.floridahistorynetwork.com/july-1-1951-st-pete-womans-burning-death-baffles-investigators.html New Scientist. (2012, August 18). Journal of Physics Special Topics an undergraduate physics journal. The Big Burn Theory . https://journals.le.ac.uk/index.php/pst/article/download/864/796/1784 Spontaneous Human Combustion. (n.d.) Segen's Medical Dictionary. (2011). Retrieved July 15 2026 from https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/spontaneous+human+combustion Team, R. (2025, June 25). 10 bizarre spontaneous human combustion stories. https://rankedfacts.com/oddities/10-bizarre-spontaneous-human-combustion-stories/ Weird Darkness. (2024). Matilda Rooney’s Christmas combustion - weird darkness. https://weirddarkness.com/matilda-rooneys-christmas-combustion/

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