Southern Gothic
Southern Gothic
Southern Gothic Media
The Death of Lucinda Mills and the Cult of Unknown Tongues
1 hour 2 minutes Posted Oct 6, 2025 at 7:00 am.
0:00
1:02:20
Download MP3
Show notes

In the winter of 1933, a revival took hold deep in the hills of Martin County, Kentucky. What began as a week of prayer and fasting soon slipped past the line between faith and fanaticism. Each night, hymns echoed through the holler—voices crying out in tongues, neighbors whispering that something wasn’t right.

By the time the sheriff forced his way into that small farmhouse, the revival had become a nightmare. At the center of it all was a grieving preacher, his family lost in a fever of devotion, and a mother who believed that only through sacrifice could her children be saved.

The papers called it the Cult of the Unknown Tongues—a story that would haunt Appalachia for generations and cement the image of mountain religion in the eyes of the world.


Want to Listen to Southern Gothic Ad-Free?

Connect with Southern Gothic Media:

Advertise on this podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices