Mysteries at the Monument Season 2 Episode 9 The Reanimator

The episode titled "The Reanimator" from Mysteries at the Monument season 2 takes you on a journey to the city of Baltimore, Maryland, where one of its most iconic landmarks, the Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum, stands as a testament to the life and legacy of the famous writer. Poe is known for his spooky short stories and macabre poems, and this episode delves into his life and explores the strange and mysterious circumstances surrounding his final days.

The episode begins with host Don Wildman visiting the Poe House, which has been converted into a museum dedicated to the author's life and works. As he walks through the rooms, he recounts the story of Poe's death in 1849, at the age of 40. Poe was found wandering the streets of Baltimore, delirious and disoriented, and was taken to a local hospital where he died four days later. The cause of death has always been a mystery, and no one knows for sure what led to it, but many theories have been proposed over the years.

One of the most intriguing theories was put forth by a doctor named John Moran, who treated Poe during his final days. Moran wrote a letter to a friend in which he claimed that Poe had been deliberately poisoned with alcohol, and that the culprit was a man named Rufus Wilmot Griswold, who was a rival writer and had a longstanding feud with Poe. Griswold had actually written a scathing obituary of Poe after his death, portraying him as a drunk and a drug addict, and many people believed that he had something to do with Poe's demise.

Don Wildman visits the graves of Poe and Griswold in order to explore this theory and to see if there is any evidence to support it. He talks to experts on Poe and Griswold, including a forensic toxicologist who examines Poe's hair and determines that he had been drinking heavily in the months leading up to his death, but not necessarily in the days immediately prior to it. This casts doubt on Moran's theory and suggests that Poe's death may have had more to do with his chronic alcoholism and poor health than with foul play.

As Wildman continues his investigation, he learns about another strange and eerie incident that occurred in Baltimore several years after Poe's death. In 1884, a doctor named Robert Cornish attempted to bring a dead dog back to life using a technique he called "the reanimator." Cornish believed that he could revive a dead body by injecting it with a solution of chemicals and then applying electrical shocks to the heart. He tested his theory on a number of animals, with mixed results, but he never succeeded in reviving a human being.

Wildman visits the site of Cornish's laboratory and talks to experts on the history of medicine and science to learn more about this bizarre experiment. He also examines some of the equipment that Cornish used in his experiments and discusses the ethical and moral implications of his research. The connection between this event and Poe's writings is not immediately obvious, but as the episode progresses, it becomes clear that Poe was fascinated by the idea of resurrection and the boundary between life and death. The reanimator experiment serves as a metaphor for Poe's own obsession with death and his desire to transcend it.

The episode concludes with a visit to Poe's grave, where Wildman reflects on the enduring mystery of his death and the legacy that he left behind. Despite the many theories that have been proposed over the years, it is still unclear what really happened to Poe in his final days. But what is certain is that his stories and poems continue to captivate readers and inspire new generations of writers. Mysteries at the Monument season 2 episode 9, "The Reanimator," is a fascinating exploration of the strange and enigmatic world of Edgar Allan Poe, and a fitting tribute to one of America's greatest literary icons.