Daily New Dominion (Morgantown, W. Va.), September 17th 1903 Wild Man Seen. Residents of Fairmont Report That Uncouth Giant Inhabits Neighboring Woods. Fairmont, W. Va. Sept. 17. – The woods in the close vicinity of Fairmont contain the den of a wild man. This fact has been fully established by the tales told by responsible…
Author: Appalachian Oddity
[1891] [8/24]: “A Human Monstrosity” [OH]
The Wheeling daily intelligencer (Wheeling, W. Va.), August 24th 1891 A Human Monstrosity Loose in Ohio Killing Stock and Scaring People – What Is It? A gentlemen who came over from Ohio yesterday to attend the camp meeting at Moundsville gave an Intelligencer reporter an account of a strange wild animal that is roaming around…
[1891] [8/26]: “That Ohio ‘Wild Man'” [OH]
The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer (Wheeling, W. Va.), August 26th 1891 That Ohio “Wild Man.” The Farmers Beating the Bushes in Search of Him. The “wild man” or non-descript beast which has been frightening and annoying the residents on the Ohio side of the river opposite Moundsville, and killing and dismembering stock, as mentioned in the…
[1883] [5/9]: “Black Dog Ghost” [WV]
The Weekly Register (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]), May 9th 1883 Ghost. – The people living along the Clarksburg road, in the neighborhood of Hickory Chapel, are very much exercised by the re-appearance of a ghost in the shape of a big black dog. They all assert that it is a veritable ghost, and it…
[1887] [3/11]: “The Wild Man of Ohio” [OH]
The Midland Journal (Rising Sun, Md.), March 11th 1887 “The Wild Man of Ohio” A Curious Creature Seen Among The Hills of Holmes County. A party of hunters, who have just returned from a hunt in the hills of Holmes County, Ohio, say they encountered a curious creature on their trip. According to their description,…
[1919] [3/8]: “Return of Wild Man Revives Old Terrors” [WV]
The Lakeland Evening telegram (Lakeland, Fla.), March 8th 1919 “Return of Wild Man Revives Old Terrors” Flatwoods, W. Va., March 6. – The belief that a wild man is still lurking in this vicinity, stealing and killing chickens and young pigs, is stronger than ever just now. A story related by Luther C. Douglas…
Are There Large Mystery Cats In West Virginia?
A Large Black Feline In The Backyard: One night in the Spring of 2025, a West Virginia resident who we will call “James W.” was going to feed the family dog, guided through the dark only by a headlamp. As he approached the metal-gated fence enclosure or “dog lot,” he suddenly saw a pair of…
Spooky Stories From Jimmy
On September 18th 2023, I interviewed Jimmy of the project “Spooky Appalachia.” We discussed Appalachian folklore monsters, rural living, folk practices, the recent 2023 Mothman Festival, and our respective video and website projects. The full interview is available on the Appalachian Oddity YouTube channel and is linked below. The part of the interview that I…
Some Stories And Practices From My Mawmaw
Disclaimer: The following article discusses Appalachian folk practices which are presented for anthropological interest in folklore. None of this is intended as medical advice and it should not be viewed as such or attempted by anyone. Thank you. Enjoy. On December 26th 2022, I interviewed my Mawmaw (or grandmother) about Appalachian folk practices. We discussed…
The Spirits of Lockdown 2020
In 2020, with a global health crisis, the world went into lockdown. Even in times like this however, the human spirit persists and so do our stories, folktales and modern mythologies. Though many of the churches were rightfully closing their doors, those who had never had altars at home promptly began table shopping online. Prayers…