In May 1868, Tom Dula was hanged for the murder of Laura Foster in Wilkes County, North Carolina. The ballad "Tom Dooley" made him famous. But the song leaves out the most important parts: Ann, Pauline, a pregnancy, and a jealousy that curdled into something fatal.
This episode brings the story behind the ballad into close focus. Playwright Jess Wells writes these characters as fully human — reckless, lovesick, furious, and sorry too late. Tom wasn't simply a killer, and Laura wasn't simply a victim. Ann wasn't simply a villain. They were people caught in something none of them could see clearly enough to stop.
The syphilis at the center of the story likely originated with Pauline Foster, who brought the disease into the household. Tom contracted it from Pauline and spread it to Ann and Laura — meaning Ann's accusation against Laura was almost certainly wrong. Ann ultimately directed authorities to Laura's grave, which is what sealed Tom's fate. He had already fled across the Tennessee border and was working under an assumed name when he was recognized and turned in. The ballad traveled far from those facts. Frank Proffitt performed it for folklorist Frank Warner in 1938; Alan Lomax heard Warner's version and published his own arrangement, which became the source for the Kingston Trio's recording — a number one hit in 1958. The true story stayed in Wilkes County. This episode brings it back.
Cast
Tom — Jess Mullins Fullen
Laura — Celeste Holmes
Ann — Tayler Bolling
Pauline — Ashlyn Mullins
Random Woman — Jess Mullins Fullen
Random Man — Holden Howard
Production Team
Director — Michael McNulty | Musical Guest/Narrator — William Ritter | Sound Effects Design — Rosa Bott | Audio Engineer — Samuel O'Sullivan | Poster Art — Jess Shadrick
"Tom Dula" radio play written by Jess Wells. Commentary written by Natalie Axton.
