Content Warning: This episode includes discussion of a murder scene and a suicide. Please use care deciding when or whether to listen.

We pick up moments after Mayor Dr. George P. Archer is found shot beside his car outside his clinic in Prestonsburg, KY (July 12, 1973). A witness reports a beige-on-green Buick LeSabre fleeing the scene—similar to the car driven by Judith Archer, the city clerk and executive director of the Housing Authority, married to Archer’s cousin William “Bill Tom” Archer. As rumors snowball (including an alleged affair), timelines shift, pressure mounts, and within eight days Judith dies by suicide—before any arrest is made. A grand jury later calls dozens of witnesses but issues no indictments, and the case cools. Fifty-plus years on, questions about conflicts of interest, missing records, and political entanglements still shadow Prestonsburg.

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Content Warning: This episode discusses a murder scene in detail as well as a suicide. Please use care deciding when or whether to listen.

In this episode of Kentucky History & Haunts, we travel back to 1970s Floyd County to uncover the high-profile—but surprisingly underreported—murder of Prestonsburg Mayor Dr. George P. Archer.

Born into a prominent Eastern Kentucky family of doctors and civic leaders, Archer carried on a legacy of medicine, public service, and political influence. From expanding healthcare access in rural communities to transforming Prestonsburg’s infrastructure and serving as mayor, Archer’s career was full of ambition and impact.

But his story came to a shocking and violent end on the night of July 12, 1973, when he was gunned down outside his medical clinic. The crime, committed in a well-lit, public space across from a drive-in theatre, stunned the small community. Despite early leads—including a suspiciously similar revolver attack on Archer’s home earlier that year, eyewitness accounts of a fleeing Buick LeSabre, and questions directed toward those close to him—the case was never solved.

Along the way, we’ll also trace Archer’s deep ties to Prestonsburg’s most powerful families, his clashes with the United Mine Workers Association, his role in reshaping healthcare access in Eastern Kentucky, and the political pressures of leading a coal town during a time of economic and social change.

This is the story of a man who seemed untouchable—until he wasn’t.

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Jessie Bartholomew

9115 Leesgate Rd, Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222

In this episode of Kentucky History & Haunts, we head back to August 1925—a month of sensational scandals and small-town crime sprees that made big headlines.

First, you’ll hear the wild tale of Lucy Wagner McMills, a young woman accused of kidnapping her husband and tricking him into marriage after a whirlwind romance. Newspapers from Kentucky to New York branded her a “Modern Cavewoman,” while her groom swore he’d been too drunk to know he was saying “I do.”

Then, we dive into the chaotic, decades-long saga of the Alford family of Winchester, known as “the Bootleg Syndicate” during Prohibition. From barn raids to shootouts, jailbreaks to safe-cracking, the Alfords’ rap sheets stretched across generations. George Alford was dubbed the Bootleg King of the Bluegrass, while his children—including Virgil, Tommy, and Woodrow—made headlines for everything from moonshining to armed robbery.

This episode has it all: star-crossed lovers, outlaw families, jailbreaks, scandals, and tragedy.

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9115 Leesgate Rd Suite A

Louisville, KY 40222