Theresa's Haunted History of the Tri-State

Mermaids, Giants, Mummies...BLUE People!?  You'll find all that and more in this section.  The tri-state area and beyond is FILLED with unusual history...not necessarily of a PARAnormal nature, but definitely of an ABnormal one!  Any comments, suggestions, or concerns, send 'em to me!

Have you dreamed of this man?  If so, you're not alone.  In the past four years, over 2000 people have come forward, stating they have had recurrent dreams featuring this man.  These people come from all over the globe and from all walks of life...there is no correlating factor that has been discovered as of this date.

The phenomenon began in January of 2006 when a patient of a prominent U.S. psychiatrist drew a rough sketch of a man she had been dreaming about. This man often appeared to her in her dreams, and often gave her advice on issues going on in her private life.

The psychiatrist left the portrait on his desk, where several days later, another patient happened to see it.  This man also claimed to recognize the face, and said that he had recurrent dreams of this man.  Intrigued, the doctor sent copies of the sketch to collegues who were treating patients with recurrent dreams.  Within a few months, four more patients came forward.  All claimed that "THIS MAN," as they called him, would appear to them in their dreams, often giving them advice or comfort.  And, thus...a legend was born.

Several theories have arisen as to why so many people are claiming to see the exact same man in their dreams:

Archetypal-  Fans of Jungian Psychology believe that the man could represent a visual archetype from the collective unconscious.  This man often shows up in times of change, or in times of stress.

Religious-  Some believe that the man could actually be God, or the Creator, and the image represents how the Creator chooses to manifest himself in our world.  Therefore, any advice given by the man in the dream should be followed closely.

Dream Surfer-  A smaller group of people think that this could actually be a real person who has the ability to manipulate the dreams of others.  Further conspiracy theory connected with this explanation believe there is a major corporation or government entity behind the phenomenon.

Dream Imitation- This is simply a fancy way of saying that people see the image, hear the story, and are so impressed by it that they start dreaming of the man for themselves.  This theory is further fueled by the fact that posters advertising the image and asking others to step forward are posted in major cities throughout the world.

Daytime Recognition- One last theory builds on the idea that people can't neccesarily recognize or remember specific details of the faces we dream about.  This image of a man represents an interpretation of undefined facial characteristics.  Personally, I think with the prominent brow and thin mouth, the man looks a little primitive, which could further support this theory.

For more information and additional patient sketches, please visit the official website.

Back to the Top

Shortly after the Civil War, the C&O Rail Road saw a need to build a line from Covington, Virginia, to the small, yet prosperous town of Guyandotte, WV.  However, there were a few problems...

The terrain through much of West Virginia was rough and steep.  Although the line followed the river as closely as possible, a lack of bottom land still presented the need to blast the steep cliffs into usable roadbeds.  The blasting was met by opposition by the locals.  Despite the economic advantages of having a rail line, those in the New River region claimed to experience a sinister side of the process.  It is said that after the cliffs were blasted, people would see the silhouettes of loved ones and neighbors etched into the remaining rock.  To see such an image meant that the person was surely to die.

However, the line was continued and finished.  In September of 1901, however, the superstition returned with a vengeance.  Workers for the railroad were working on a four mile long spur line between Thurmond and Minden.  After blasting a section of rock to make a roadbed, the workers were horrified to see the silhouette of President McKinley.

Within an hour, the telegraph office in Thurmond brought the official news--President McKinley had been shot by Leon F. Czolgosz while attending the Pan American Expo in Buffalo, NY.  Within three days, the president had died.

That's not where the coincidences end, though.  There is a definite link to both President McKinley AND Czolgosz to the state of West Virginia.  Czolgosz was an immigrant who lived in Kanawha City, and worked in a wire factory there.  McKinley served as a quartermaster in the 23rd Ohio Regiment, and spent a great deal of time at both nearby Camp Haskell and Camp Tompkins.  In fact, McKinley probably passed by the area of his death omen on several occasions.

Today, the rail line between Thurmond and Minden is gone, but is replaced by the Thurmond-Minden Trail.  While traveling from Thurmond to Minden (never the opposite way), the faint image of McKinley can still be seen through the brush.

History

Back to the Top

 The Osculum Infame, otherwise known as the Kiss of Shame

 The Osculum Infame is an integral part of the Witches' Sabbats of historical legend.  At each Sabbat, the Devil, who generally appeared as a Goat, would take a roll call of sorts, and record the names of those in attendance into his Red Book.  Following this task, each witch present was expected to then offer homage to her master through what is known as the Osculum Infame.

Seen as the ultimate act of submission and degradation, the witch was expected to either walk or crawl backwards toward the devil (or presiding demon), turn, bow, then kiss him directly on the anus, which was often described as being "cold as ice."

Some witches claimed that they were not actually kissing his anus, but rather, there was a second face in place of the anus.  In any event, the act was seen as the total embodiment of the witch's relationship with the Devil.  This was seen as an unnatural act, and the epitome of all that was unclean and degrading. 

A new witch was not accepted until she performed this act, and the practice was reported in each and every confession that was tortured out of suspected witches during the Inquisition.  Following the ritual, the Sabbat continued with a banquet, dancing, orgies, etc.

Back to the Top

One of the more intriguing legends of this region has its roots possibly in Welsh folklore, and has traveled West into Missouri and Indiana, and beyond...this is the "Death Crown,"  also referred to as the Feather Crown or Angel Crown.

Back when feather pillows were the norm in Appalachian households, it was not uncommon to find a hardened mass of feathers whose quills had turned inward and locked together forming a disc, or crown, in the pillow of the gravely ill, or recently deceased.  Finding such an artifact in the pillow of someone ill was a sure sign that the person would die within the next three days, but it was a comforting symbol when found in the pillow of the recently deceased.

Finding a crown in a person's pillow meant that the person has gone to Heaven.  The phenomenon was reserved for the deceased faithful, and those who had been saved before death.  Most of these tightly wound crowns measure in at about 2-3 inches in diameter by 1 to 1.5 inches thick, but some are much larger.

While it is argued that a bedridden person's head could cause the feathers to matte together, the faithful maintain that it is a sign from the angels that their loved one is now with God, and no scientific explanation has been brought forth that can sway these deep rooted beliefs.

Many families in this area still have boxes of Death Crowns pulled from their ancestors' pillows, and many of those have made their way into museums.  The world's largest collection of Death Crowns can be found at the Museum of Appalachia in Clinton, TX, but there are many smaller collections in museums all over the area, as far away as Indiana, where the Lawrence County Museum of History has several on display.

Photos and Personal Anecdotes

Back to the Top

Death by ghost...is it possible?  Some may argue that if an entity has the power to move an object, it must certainly have the ability to do harm to a living person.  Whatever your theory or belief, this is one case where an alleged entity DID cause the death of a young girl...although perhaps not in a way you expected... 

Jaboticabal is a small municipality north of Sao Paulo Brazil.  The name comes from a Tupi language, but the area is overwhelmingly Catholic, being the seat of the local Roman Catholic Diocese.

In 1965, a series of incidents would rock this small community (literally) and secure its place in the annals of ghost research.  That December, 11 year old Maria Jose Ferreira became the victim of one of the worst poltergeist attacks on record.  At first, the entity seemed playful, and Maria would enjoy having it "fetch her things."  Soon, though, it turned malicious, and after several days of bricks coming out of nowhere and being thrown through the house, the family was convinced they were dealing with an evil entity, and called upon the local priest for an exorcism.

An exorcism was performed, but the activity only got worse. In addition to the bricks, now stones, eggs, dishes, furniture, and other miscellany constantly rained down on the family on their home, but Maria continued to feel the full brunt of the attacks.

Maria was constantly under a physical battle with an unseen attacker.  She was bit, slapped, bruised, and even stuck with needles, which suddenly appeared embedded in her skin.  She was even almost set ablaze one day at school while eating lunch.  On March 14, 1966, as she sat there eating, her clothes began to smolder and smoke.

During this time, a neighbor and Spiritualist had taken Maria into his home in an attempt to help cure her of this phenomena.  Joao Volpe and his family kept Maria for about a year, but were never able to fully ease the symptoms.

Maria, the Volpe's, and her family dealt with these attacks for nearly a year before Maria was taken to a local medium, who made an outrageous claim.  Chico Xavier claimed that the spirits had told him that Maria had been a witch in a past life, and she was now being stalked by the ghosts of her victims!  This ghost had dedicated his afterlife into making Maria suffer for her past sins.

Nothing the medium or anyone else did could lessen the attacks on Maria, and at age 13 she returned home to live with her mother. She suffered for five years until one day her body was found, dead of an apparent self-inflicted poisoning by drinking a soft drink laced with pesticide.  It was rumored that she took her own life to end the suffering of the relentless attacks.  After her death, the activity immediately stopped.  Did the ghosts finally have their revenge on Maria?

Back to the Top

On June 6, 1929, the body of a black man was found in a ditch in Clinton County, Ohio, apparently dead of natural causes.  The man, who appeared to be about fifty-five years old and was found off of the 3C Highway, had no identification on him, save for a small slip of paper bearing the address "1118 Yale Avenue, Cincinnati.  

Unfortunately, the address that was found was merely a vacant lot.  Therefore, with no identification, the man was dubbed "Eugene" after Eugene Johnson, the man who lived in the lot NEXT to the vacant address.

Olin Moon of the Littleton Funeral Home prepared the body using the regular embalming techniques, but the funeral was delayed in hopes that family or friends would recognize the body and claim it.  It is said that one man did appear to recognize the corpse, but did not say anything.  

At the time, it was popular to display bodies as tourist attractions, and sadly, that is what Eugene became.  It was housed in a special addition off the funeral home, where he became a local celebrity.  The area became a popular spot for the bus between Columbus and Cincinnati to stop for a rest break, and millions stopped by for their own look at Eugene.

Eugene was also kidnapped several times as collegiate pranks, once winding up at the University of Ohio in Columbus.  Shortly after his last kidnapping, it was decided that Eugene should finally be buried.  It had been over thirty years with no one claiming him, and thus it was unlikely that anyone ever would.

On a brisk October day in 1964, Eugene was finally buried in the Sabina Cemetery.  Chairs were set up for the absent family and friends, and eight pall bearers carried the casket from the Littleton Funeral Home hearse to its final resting spot.

Picture Property of  Scott Hammond, Roadside America

More information can be found in Haunted Ohio III by Chris Woodyard 

Back to the Top

 Please click HERE to experience the tale of Samuel Cabell and his slave wife, Mary Barnes.  Mr. Cabell would eventually pay the ultimate price for his relationship with Mary, but out of their love affair came an entire town and an institution of higher learning for local minorities.

And click HERE for a cemetery transcription of this small, tucked away graveyard located between the campuses of WV State Collge and the Rehabilitation Center.

The photo to your left is from a late night visit to the cemetery I took in December of 2006.  It shows a close up of Samuel Cabble (Cabell)'s tombstone.  No paranormal activity has been reported at this site to my knowledge.

 Back to the Top

 Six generations after a French orphan named Martin Fugate settled on the banks of eastern Kentucky's Troublesome Creek with his redheaded American bride, his great-great-great great grandson was born in a modern hospital not far from where the creek still runs.

The boy inherited his father's lankiness and his mother's slightly nasal way of speaking.

What he got from Martin Fugate was dark blue skin. "It was almost purple," his father recalls.

Doctors were so astonished by the color of Benjamin "Benjy" Stacy's skin that they raced him by ambulance from the maternity ward in the hospital near Hazard to a medical clinic in Lexington.

Two days of tests produced no explanation for skin the color of a bruised plum.

A transfusion was being prepared when Benjamin's grandmother spoke up. "Have you ever heard of the blue Fugates of Troublesome Creek?" she asked the doctors.

"My grandmother Luna on my dad's side was a blue Fugate. It was real bad in her," Alva Stacy, the boy's father, explained. "The doctors finally came to the conclusion that Benjamin's color was due to blood inherited from generations back."

Benjamin lost his blue tint within a few weeks, and now he is about as normal looking a seven-year-old boy as you could hope to find. His lips and fingernails still turn a shade of purple-blue when he gets cold or angry; a quirk that so intrigued medical students after Benjamin's birth that they would crowd around the baby and try to make him cry. "Benjamin was a pretty big item in the hospital," his mother says with a grin.

Dark blue lips and fingernails are the only traces of Martin Fugate's legacy left in the boy; that, and the recessive gene that has shaded many of the Fugates and their kin blue for the past 162 years.

They're known simply as the "blue people" in the hills and hollows around Troublesome and Ball Creeks. Most lived to their 80s and 90s without serious illness associated with the skin discoloration. For some, though, there was a pain not seen in lab tests. That was the pain of being blue in a world that is mostly shades of white to black.  Click here to read the rest of this article!

Methemoglobinemia

Fugate Family History

Back to the Top

Most people interested in the paranormal come to the Birdcage for the ghosts...and rarely are they disappointed.  However, the Birdcage has another claim to fame in the paranormal realm--a crypto oddity that some claim is an actual merman.

 From THIS SITE comes the legend of the merman:

"This Merman is one of only two in the United States today. It has been at The Bird Cage Theatre, Tombstone, Arizona for many years.

A member of the family of Nerrids that inhabited the China Sea, many centuries ago. This specimen having been captured in the Gulf of Tonquin, a tributary of the China Sea, off the coast of Quihoy, about four hundred miles from Hong Kong. It belongs to the species of Herbivorous Cetacean. They occasionally wandered into the more northern seas and invariably caused great excitement among seamen.

Arab and Greek seamen years ago quite frequently saw them, but they are now an almost extinct type of animal life.

This specimen was brought to Tombstone in 1880. Chinese business man Quong Kee had this specimen on display in his famous"CAN CAN CAFE". He donated this specimen to the Bird Cage Theatre in 1934." 

This website also has photographs of the merman complete with the legend on the back for those who cannot make it to Tombstone.  So is it a Fiji merman, one of two left in the world...or is it merely a monkey sewn onto a fish?  You decide  (Photo property of Roadside America)

 Back to the Top

 In the late 1800s, local shopkeeper/undertaker Graham Hamrick became obsessed with discovering the secrets of the ancient Egyptian mummification practices.  The resulting end was a mixture of water, saltpeter, sublimed sulfur and a host of other 'secret ingredients' set afire, for which he was actually able to obtain a patent (#466,524) in 1892.  As stated in his patent application, the process was a "simple and economic way for anyone 'without special skill' to effectively preserve a body in its natural condition for a long time."

After success with various vegetables and animals, Hamrick needed human subjects to test his practice and solution on.  In 1888 he secured two unidentified female corpses from the Weston State Hospital.  In addition to the two females, it is said that Hamrick also mummified a human hand, the head of an adult male, and the body of a baby.

The Smithsonian was so impressed by Hamrick's success that they offered to put the mummies on display if he would reveal his secret ingredients.  He respectfully declined, but that didn't stop the two female mummies from becoming internationally renowned.

In 1891 the mummies went on tour with P.T. Barnum, traveling extensively throughout Europe as part of the side show attraction.  After their return to WV the mummies made sporadic public appearances...first in John Comstock's Mountaineer Hall of Fame in Richwood, and then in the mid 1960s during Phillipi's Street Fair.

After that, the mummies disappeared from the public eye.  They resurfaced in 1985 after a devastating flood which left them floating from their storage area in the house of Frank Beyer...and covered in a green mold.  A local concocted a mixture which effectively removed the mold from the mummies, but unfortunately removed all their hair as well. Frank turned over ownership of the mummies to the state, but the mummified hand still remains in possession of his daughter.  The head and the baby are as of right now missing.

Today the mummies reside in a remodeled bathroom of the Barbour County Historical Museum, where again in 1994 they received damage by flooding.  They are now kept in glass topped cases and are shrouded with sprigs of white flowers.  For $1 you can see them on display complete with jugs said to contain the secret mixture of mummification and various newspaper articles featuring the two over the years.

So what happened to Graham Hamrick?  No, he wasn't mummified, but it wasn't for a lack of trying!  Upon his death, Hamrick left explicit instructions and formula for his body to be mummified.  However, his assistants were too squeamish, and he was instead buried in Mary's Chapel Cemetery.  (Photo property of Virginia Wind).

Roadside America information

News Segment featuring the Mummies

The mummies are also featured in the book Way out in West Virginia by Jeanne Mozier

Back to the Top

The following is from THIS site.  Please click the link for the whole story.

This photograph was squeezed between the pages of a 70's cheesy paranormal book I found at a thrift store. If it's real it sure makes for an interesting idea. Did a group of civil war soldiers kill (or find) what appears to be a pterodactyl?

I'm calling it a pterodactyl and saying they are civil war soldiers because that's what it looks like to me but I don't want to jump to any hasty conclusions.

I looked at some civil war era photos and this one looks very similar to those. The guns look to be old in design and the caps most of the men wear are of the civil war era. The blue uniforms would lead me to believe that these are Union soldiers. The photograph is printed on paper photo stock but maybe this is a reproduction of the original photo.

So let's assume that this is a real photograph of Union troops from the Civil War.

The next questions should be about the giant bird they are surrounding. I can find no mention of civil war troops encountering a bird of large size. If it is a hoaxed photograph from that time period why would they fake a pterodactyl? Could it be a existing creature of large size? The biggest bird in North America is the California Condor which has had a measured wingspan of over 11 feet but this creature looks nothing like a California condor. The head is too large, not to mention the lack of feathers.

Is the bird then from the gray area of animal science known as cryptozoology? In the 1940's writer Robert Lyman said he saw a bird with at least a 20 foot wingspan fly into the Pennsylvanian woods. He believed that this was a young specimen of the thunderbird which, according to Indian legend, was responsible for causing thunder and lightning.

Western American historian Mari Sandoz wrote of a "flying serpent" that was seen over the Missouri River by passengers of a steamboat in the 1850's. And in 1976 reports of a giant bird flying over parts of the Rio Grande Valley in Texas made national news. It was described as over 4 feet tall and having black feathers, a long beak and red blazing eyes. Newspapers were quick to call it "big bird" after the Sesame Street character.

So reports of large birds have been around for many years. Maybe, just maybe it is the real thing. I'll leave it up to you, my cyberspace audience to judge.

**********************************************************************************************

 According to another article, the above-mentioned is completely fraudulent, yet based on a real newspaper account about some cowboys shooting a Thunderbird down in 1890.  If anything, I'd say the picture at the bottom looks more like it could be the missing cowboy photo, lol.  Anyway, here's the article:

April 26, 1890, the Tombstone Epitaph published an article in their newspaper: "Found in the Desert--A Strange Winged Monster Discovered And Killed On The Huachuca Desert." The creature was described as a mix of alligator and huge wings. The creature was killed between the Huachuca and Whetstone Mountains. The creature was evidently tired when it was hunted and killed. The cowboys measured the creature. It was 92 feet long, 50 inches in diameter and 160 feet from wingtip to wingtip. The head alone was 8 feet long, thick jaws and sharp teeth. Its eyes were described as the size of dinner plates. It only had 2 feet. The wings were described as membraneous, lacking fur and feather. Its entire body lacked fur or feather.

The 2 cowboys left the creature there, cutting off its wingtip as a souvenir. Supposedly a search was undertaken the next day, to bring the creature back for scientists. No follow up article was done.

One person knew the cowboys well and believed that this was real and not a hoax. No photographs accompanied the article. (The article from the Tombstone Epitaph.)

However, in 1963, in Saga Magazine, the author of an article states that the creature was photographed. Supposedly, the body was brought back to Tombstone and nailed to the side of a barn. Although many details are wrong, others claim to have seen a photograph in the hands of a naturalist (Ivan Sanderson) who gave it to 2 men from Pennsylvania. Of course the photo hasn't been seen since. Fate magazine, in 1963, claimed the photograph had been published in newspapers and magazines all over the world. Many people claim to have a similar memory of seeing the photograph, with similar details. Despite search efforts, no trace of the photo has been seen, either published or not published.

In 2000, an internet site publishes a photo of hunters with a pterodactyl. The editor of the site claimed to have found it in the pages of a thrift store book. Experts on the website testified to the authenticity of the photo. They were not cowboys. They wore civil war uniforms. Was this a second pterodactyl?

The photograph was proven to be a fake. The website was in fact a promotional site for a tv show based on weird events. The newspaper article from the Tombstone Epitaph is real. Two cowboys reported killing such a creature. Were they telling a tall tale, one they made up around a campfire one night?

This article was accompanied by yet another photo, which claims to be fake:

**********************************************************************************************

Okay, so I found this next picture on About.com's paranormal section.  The caption stated that there was no information to go with the photo.  What the heck is going on?!  Is this some sort of sideshow attraction that men could pay a fee and have their picture taken with?  If it IS legit, there is at least two of these things shot down in fairly modern times...where is the literature?  Wouldn't something like that make newspaper headlines??? Perhaps it DID make headlines and this is actually the infamous 1890 missing photo. (See above.)  Hehehe...but yeah...there ya go. If anyone has any other similar photos, please pass them along!

Back to the Top

The Ohio and Monongahela Rivers of Northern West Virginia may hold a dark secret.  It is said that this is the home to a 444 pound beast known to the Iroquois as "The Ogua."

Early settlers to the Hoult area (near Fairmont) tell tales of a monstrous beast, bigger than a bear, with a 15 foot long tail.  The monster was said to be amphibious; it would live in the waters of the Ohio and Monongahela by day, and by night, come to land in order to hunt deer.  Lashing at the deer with its massive tail, it would then pull the prey into the water to consume it.

Perhaps the first recorded incident of the monster comes from a letter sent by a young man staying at nearby Fort Hamar.  The letter, which is now housed in WVU's Manuscript Collection, tells of an incident where another man at the fort was out one day and came upon a creature resembling a turtle, but with two heads, attacking a deer.  The man rushed back to the fort, and together with a band of men, rushed back to the spot where the creature was spotted.  The creature was located, and the men clubbed it to death.

A further tale comes from two other early settlers.  The Taylor and Nichols families settled along the Monongahela River around the year 1745.  Both built adjoining cabins on what is a prehistoric stone floor.  On October 22, 1746, the twelve year old son of Nichols was fishing in the river when he was pulled in and dragged off by something described as being bigger than a bear and with the body of a turtle.

The next day, Taylor found a large curved bone wedged between two trees.  This bone was widely believed to be belonging to one of the creatures, who by this time were said to live in mud holes along the river.  Several days after that, the Nichols' teenage daughter was awakened by the sound of something rubbing up against the cabin.  As she peered through the cracks, she saw what she described as a large, hairy creature, bigger than a sow.  Both families packed up and left shortly thereafter.

According to folklore, the tale of the Hoult River Monster was borne from the nightmares of Chief Hiawatha as a way to scare off the white settlers.  However, during the chief's reign, there were very few white settlers in the area, so its believed that the monster is more likely a tale concocted by the local Delaware or Shawnee tribes to serve the same purpose.

Whatever its origins, there are striking similarities between the Ogua and other river monsters of lore.  The Japanese have the Kappa, which as one of its many forms, can show up either hairy, or as a turtle.  The Celts also have a legend of a water monster called a Kelpie, who would drag its human prey below the water and devour it.

Back to the Top

The landscapes of both West Virginia and Ohio are dotted with evidence of our prehistoric ancestors, the most fascinating perhaps being the Adena burial mounds.  Among the bodies of normal sized humans, several of these mounds have allegedly also contained the remains of humans over 7 feet tall, and with what appears to be red hair.

Much speculation abounds as to who these red-haired giants were, or even if they existed at all.  Were these early Viking explorers, or a lost tribe of Israel?  Read the following two examples and decide for yourself!

Criel Mound in South Charleston, WV

  Source

The Adena Indians "Mound Builders"

CAME to the Kanawha County area around 1000 B.C. and stayed to around 1650. Who were these mysterious people. Some say they came from Mexico, while others agree they crossed into this hemisphere from Europe. Some even say that they were the Lost Tribes of Israel, early Spanish explorers or even Vikings. They left behind several mounds in the South Charleston area. These mounds were excavated by the Smithsonian Institution in the late 1800�s. Their findings were as varied as the sizes of the different mounds. One of the best known of these mounds is the Criel Mound. Located in downtown South Charleston this mound is named after the people who once owned a farm that the mound is located on. The Criel Mound is one hundred seventy-five feet in diameter at the base, and thirty-five feet high. When the mound was examined in 1883 and 1884 the Smithsonian Institution found the following:

• Removal of a slight covering of earth disclosed a wagon load of large, rough, flat stones below theses stones was a stone vault, seven feet long and four feet deep.
• In the bottom of this vault was a large decayed human skeleton, headless and accompanied only by a single rough spearhead.
• When another six feet was dug a second skeleton was found. It looked to be that of an adult of ordinary size and was much decayed.
• At a depth of nine feet, a mass of loose dry earth was found. This earth was surrounded by the remains of a bark coffin. In this coffin a third skeleton was found, but it was better preserved.
• After another three or four feet deeper a walnut vault was found. This vault was twelve feet square and eight feet deep. This vault contained five skeletons in different positions. One was lying in the middle of the structure while the others were surrounding it. The others were lying in the corners of the vault and were in such positions and conditions as to indicate that they were the remains of persons who had been buried alive.
• It was at this depth the mound showed its richest and most informing disclosures. The skeleton in the middle of the vault was of unusual size, measuring seven feet six inches in length and nineteen inches between the shoulder sockets. The skeleton lay upon its back, head pointing east, legs together, and arms by the sides. The skeleton wore six heavy bracelets on each wrist. Four other bracelets were found under the head. Also found encased in a mass of mortar-like substance was a spearhead of black flint, which had evidently been wrapped in fabric. The breast of the skeleton had a copper gorget. In each hand were three spearheads of black flint. Spearheads were found around the head, knees and feet. Near the right hand were two hematite celts, and on the shoulders were three large and thick plates of mica. Around the shoulders, waist, and thighs were numerous perforated shells and shell beads. Some of these relics were not unlike the ornaments worn and tools used by the Cherokee Indians.

Smaller mounds excavated in the same area, at the same time revealed a great variety of content . Most mounds did have in common they were made of solid clay. Most, but not all, mounds contained a strata of ashes and charcoal. Some of the mounds contained human skeletons buried near the top surface, but most of the burials were at the bottom of the mound. The Mound Builders seem to have had no fixed practice on the how to bury their dead. Skeletons lay to all points east, west, north and south. Skeletons rested face down and face up, while others reclined on their sides. Some skeletons had both arms extended at right angles to their bodies, while others had only one arm in this position. Some mounds contained ornaments, implements, and tools, while others contained no such things.

Marion County, WV 

Giants in our Midst?
Tall Skeletons Reported Found in Marion County, WV

One of the many archaeological mysteries from this area was the reported finding of giant prehistoric human skeletons.

"On the earth there once were giants." Greek poet Homer wrote in 400 B.C.

Of the many archaeological mysteries, one of the most enigmatic has been discoveries of giant prehistoric human skeletons.

Marion County was home to part of the ancient civilization which historical accounts and artifacts indicate existed in this region - a culture with many clues and questions concerning its existence. What mysterious people constructed earthen forts, burial mounds, macadamized roadways? Who left pictographs, inscribed stones and giant skeletons lo be discovered?

In the 1850s while excavating a root cellar in Palatine (East Fairmont), workers uncovered two very large human skeletons. Measuring the bones, people were amazed to find the entombed humans had been more than 7 feet tall.

Many curious onlookers observed the skeletons which mysteriously disappeared overnight, apparently stolen for greedy purpose. A lucrative market in "Indian relics" existed in the early I9th century. Artifacts from all over Marion County were sold to travelers and purchasing agents representing Eastern museums.

It was reported that hundreds of ancient pieces of pottery, flint weapons, stone carvings and skeletons were peddled at the Valley Falls railroad station. Some of the finest specimens were purchased by visiting German royalty and taken to Europe as curios.

In 1875 workmen were constructing a bridge near the mouth of Paw Paw Creek at Rivesville. While digging through heavy clay soil they were astonished to uncover three giant skeletons strands of reddish hair clinging to the skulls. A local doctor was called to examine the remains.

Exposure to air deteriorated the bones rapidly to but the doctor was able ascertain after careful measurement, the skeletons had supported people approximately 8 feet tall.

In September 1882 amateur archaeologist F.M. Fetty and his wife were exploring along White Day Creek. As Mr. Fetty crawled back into the recesses of an over-hanging cliff shelter he noticed an unusual pattern in the rock formation.

Upon close examination a false wall was discovered in the back of the shallow cave. Removing several large stones, the Fetty's were startled by what they found. The remains of a giant human in a sitting position with artifacts of stone and flint surrounding the prehistoric cadaver.

In the summer of 1883 James A. Faulkner unearthed an unusually large human skeleton in the same area. Dr. Samuel Kramer of Smithtown measured this skeleton and found it to be 7 feet 4 inches long. Dr. Kramer deduced the living person must have been almost 8 feet tall.

There have been historical references to a mystic race of giant red-haired humans inhabiting this continent in the distant past. Respected Biblical scholars think a lost tribe from Israel once lived in North America. Evidence exists of 5th-century Irish monks exploring West Virginia. Many questions remain to be answered.

Everyone loves a mystery and these giant skeletons reported by reputable people would make Sherlock Holmes scratch his head. This is another intriguing story of Marion County's past that will forever be unexplained.

 Back to the  Top