A lifelong interest in DeKalb County history and true crime leading a Smithville attorney to research some of the community’s best-known paranormal stories.
Attorney Sarah Cripps said she studied history before attending law school and heard stories about crimes and tragedies that had occurred around DeKalb County.
“Growing up here you always know about infamous murders, I mean just like any town has them, we have them,” Cripps said. “And they run the gamut from the lynching of a young white man, to people, there’s a house here that had two murders in it.”
Cripps said that interest eventually led her to conduct haunted history tours. What began as tours for family and friends later became a way to raise money for the DeKalb Coalition for Humane Treatment of Animals.
Cripps said one of the stories that interests her most centers on a West Main Street home where two mysterious deaths occurred within four years. Cannie Smith was found murdered there in 1929, while the wife of Smith’s grandson died in 1933 from what was believed to be arsenic poisoning.
“I’ve heard from people who lived in the home that tell me that odd things would happen to them,” Cripps said. “Doors would slam for no reason or radio would turn on or turn off without anybody touching it. I just find that interesting that one of the suspects in the original murder is also thought to be the person who committed the second murder.”
Cripps said neither death was ever solved. Her research combines the stories passed down locally with historical records, including old case files, newspaper archives and information collected by longtime DeKalb County historian Thomas Gray Webb.
Cripps said even her own historic home has given her one experience she cannot completely explain. Her great-great-grandparents built the Atwell house, where she has lived since 1998. Shortly after moving in, Cripps said a heavy cover plate from an old-style doorbell unexpectedly crashed to the floor.
Cripps said the plate had been attached to two metal hooks. She put it back in place, and it has not fallen again in the 28 years since. Cripps said she cannot attribute what happened to anything paranormal, but considers it an unusual experience she cannot explain.
“I’m a historian and I almost read exclusively history,” Cripps said. “I love to tell stories. Especially stories about true events. They’re the best stories of all. No amount of fiction can compare to a true story.”
Cripps said researching the stories gives her an opportunity to combine her interest in history with the true events that have shaped DeKalb County.