Ep. 73 Theodosia Burr: How a Famous Daughter's Disappearance Remains a Mystery

Check out Outer Lore! In January of 1812 a schooner named The Patriot disappeared off the coast of North Carolina's Outer Banks. This dangerous stretch of coastline has claimed some 3,000 ships, earning it the nickname "Graveyard of the Atlantic." Aboard the Patriot was Theodosia Burr Alston, daughter of infamous US vice president Aaron Burr, on her way to visit her father in New York. The disappearance of The Patriot and its famous passenger remain a mystery to this day. The discovery of a portrait resembling Theodosia that supposedly washed up with a shipwreck along the Outer Banks only adds to the mystery. Is the Nags Head portrait really Theodosia Burr? What really happened to her? A storm? Mutiny? Pirates? Is it possible she survived?

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Sources: 

• Library of Congress Blogs "The Unsolved Mystery of Aaron Burr's Daughter" 
• ECU Joyner Library Special Collections "Unsolved North Carolina Mysteries: The Case of Theodosia Burr Alston"
• South Carolina Historical Society "December, 1812: Theodosia Burr Alston is Lost at Sea" 
• allthatsinteresting.com "Inside the Mysterious Disappearance of Aaron Burr's Daughter, Theodosia Burr Alston"
• teachingamericanhistory.org "The Mysterious Disappearance of Theodosia Burr Alston"
• DigitalNC "The Real Life 'Hamilton' Sequel Set in Nags Head"
• National Constitution Center "Aaron Burr's trial and the Constitution's treason clause"
• The Aaron Burr Association "The Tragedies in Aaron Burr's Life"
• Encyclopedia Britannica "Aaron Burr"
• ThoughtCo "Dueling in the 19th Century"

Support the show! 

• Join the Patreon
• Buy Me a Coffee
• Venmo @Shea-LaFountaine