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Thursday, April 18, 2024

Lore and Legend

Welcome to the Lore and Legend news category at West Virginia Explorer, where you'll find news of the paranormal, supernatural, and uncanny in West Virginia.

Did a lunatic first discover what would become West Virginia?

The unnamed eccentric who first saw West Virginia soon inspired others to follow.
Improbable as it might seem, one enduring West Virginia legend posits that the first European to visit the land now within the boundaries of...

Bigfoot sightings have clustered in New River Gorge region

New River at Grandview, Raleigh County, New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, New River Gorge Region
BECKLEY, W.Va. — While recent bigfoot sightings in southern West Virginia have gained national attention, one investigator says it's no surprise, given the number...

West Virginia mountains provided refuge for Indian fighter

Sibray visits the remote grave of Captain Ralph Stewart near Oceana, West Virginia.
How did the grave of a soldier from the Shenandoah Valley wind up in one of the most remote and rugged mountain regions in...

Prehistoric mystery underlies ancient "Egypt" in Mount Hope, W.Va.

David Sibray points toward the possible site of a prehistoric ruin in the old Mount Hope Cemetery.
MOUNT HOPE, W.Va. — Due to its remarkable fertility, the valley of Dunloup Creek in south-central West Virginia was once called by settlers "Egypt."...

Lost silver lode in Jackson County, W.Va., may be more than...

Could this piece of silver found near Ripley, West Virginia, point to a larger lode?
Legends of a lost silver lode in Jackson County, in western West Virginia, may be more than a rumor, according to a former resident...

The horrific origin of the W.Va. city name "Wheeling" explained

The origin of the name "Wheeling" is more terrifying than any association it might otherwise be expected to have with "wheels."
WHEELING, W.Va. — To the average motorist hurtling through the City of Wheeling on Interstate 70, nothing about the place might seem particularly nefarious. An...

Could this pirate's treasure on the Ohio River be lost for...

Frontier boatman ply the Ohio River in western West Virginia.
Until just after the Civil War, large parts of the valley of the Ohio River in what's now West Virginia were controlled by pirates....

"Graveyard of the Ohio" now a favorite water recreation hub

A kayaker plies the gentle Ohio River near Parkersburg, West Virginia, once the site of the infamous Graveyard of the Ohio.
To see it now, a visitor might hardly guess the Ohio River at Parkersburg was a stretch of river that many boat captains feared....

Ominous "McKinley Rock" attracts sightseers in New River Gorge

David Sibray points to the profile of President William McKinley, blasted into a cliff near Thurmond in 1901.
NEWLYN, W.Va. — High above the ghost town of Thurmond, West Virginia, the frowning stone profile of a man silently watches over the New...

Revisiting the tale of West Virginia's lost Branch Mountain Treasure

Helmick Rock on South Branch Mountain
MOOREFIELD, W.Va. — Tales of hidden treasure appear throughout the annals of West Virginia history. The legends of hoards buried by prehistoric peoples, retreating...

Old legend of Strange Creek might never be confirmed

STRANGE CREEK, W.Va. — Too much time may have passed to confirm anything of the indomitable legend of Strange Creek, long among the most...

The horrors of Skull Run recounted by late West Virginia historian

SKULL RUN, W.Va. — A traveler motoring through the pastures in this wooded section off the Ohio River might have little idea of the...

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