In the shadows of the French Quarter, where history and legend often blur, one of New Orleans' most enduring mysteries still lingers behind bright red doors on Royal Street.

It begins in 1728, with the arrival of pale, fragile young women sent by the French crown to populate the colony—women who came with heavy wooden trunks and left behind whispers of vampirism. Known in local lore as the Casket Girls, their legacy set the stage for the city’s enduring obsession with the undead.

But nearly two centuries later, a new figure stepped into the city’s night: Jacque St. Germain, a wealthy, elegant man with a love for lavish parties and a peculiar habit—he never touched the food. When a woman leapt from his balcony in terror, claiming he tried to drink her blood, the legend took root.

In this episode, we explore the haunting tale of Jacque St. Germain, the mysterious aristocrat believed by some to be a vampire—and by others to be the immortal Comte St. Germain, a real-life 18th-century alchemist rumored to have conquered death itself.

From the lore of the Ursuline Convent to the bricked-up windows of 1041 Royal Street, join us as we unravel the chilling origins of New Orleans’ vampire mythology—and ask: what truth might lie behind the legends?

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