The Niagara Murder: The Tragic Death of Frederick C. Benwell

Dark Poutine - True Crime and Dark History

Curiouscast

True Crime, Documentary, History, Society & Culture

4.7 • 2.3K Ratings

🗓️ 23 March 2026

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Episode 411: In February 1890, the body of 24-year-old Englishman Frederick Cornwallis Benwell was found in a shallow grave near Lundy’s Lane, just outside Niagara Falls, Ontario. Benwell had travelled to Canada after corresponding with John Reginald Birchall, aka Lord Frederick A. Somerset, a fellow Englishman who advertised opportunities for young men seeking work and advancement overseas. Within days of Benwell’s disappearance, suspicion fell on Birchall, who was arrested in Buffalo, New York, and returned to Canada to stand trial. What followed was one of the most closely watched murder cases in late 19th-century Ontario. Sources: The Swamp of death, or, The Benwell murder by Oliver Wendell Holmes | Canadiana.caCatalog Record: The Swamp of death, or, The Benwell murder | HathiTrust Digital LibraryNewspapers.com | Search: John Reginald Birchallhttps://www.themeister.co.uk/birchall/birchall_reginald.pdfBIRCHALL, REGINALD (Lord Frederick A. Somerset) – Dictionary of Canadian BiographyFrederick Cornwallis Benwell (1865-1890) - Find a...John Reginald Birchall (1866-1890)Murder as a Fine Art by Alan BlythewayThe Trial of Reginald BirchallJohn Reginald Birchall | The Canadian Encyclopedia Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, Mike here. I just wanted to let you know that you can listen to Dark Poutine early and ad-free on Amazon music, included with Prime.
0:13.0	Oh, look at that. Welcome back to Dark Poutine.
0:21.2	I'm Mike Brown here in Langley, British Columbia.
0:24.2	Matthew is holding something weird up to his face.
0:26.9	What is that?
0:28.2	Oh, this is a, you know, my friend Murr sends me postcards and mail every week.
0:34.7	So my husband just dropped this on my desk.
0:37.4	Oh, that's nice. Yeah. I wish somebody would send me mail every week. So my husband just dropped this on my desk. Oh, that's nice. Yeah. I wish somebody would send me mail every week. The only mail I ever get are bills. Yeah, no, this is a postcard from the Muzé des Bozard in Montreal. Oh. A statue by Anthony Gormley. Very nice. Have you ever been to the Musei?
0:55.3	No, you haven't been to Montreal.
0:56.5	No.
0:56.9	Muse de Bozar is incredible in Montreal.
1:00.3	Wow.
1:00.8	But anyway, there's a little cultural Canadian culture plug.
1:04.1	Let's get to the show.
1:05.6	This story is a really interesting one and in my opinion should be more famous than it actually is. Some people
1:12.5	will know it. Others will not. Let's get to it. Okay. The views, information, and opinions
1:19.8	expressed during the Dark Petitin podcast are solely those of the producer and do not necessarily
1:26.3	represent those of Curiouscast, its necessarily represent those of curious cast. Its affiliate,
1:30.0	global news, nor their parent company, Chorus Entertainment. Dark Putine is not for the
1:39.0	faint of heart or squeamish. Listener discretion is strongly advised. We're not experts on the topics we present, nor are we
1:45.9	journalists. We're two ordinary Canadian schmucks chatting about crime and the dark side of history.
1:52.5	Let's get to it. Put on your toque, grab yourself a double-double end in a Nimo bar. It's
	...

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