Relic on the Lethe

Our next ghostly tale is recounted in Cooper's Clarksburg Register on November 30, 1853 . This is a second or third-hand account by this point of an event that happened in Wetzel County, West Virginia, though the newspaper editor claims it was presented as-is to make it as factual as possible. Like the Radiant Boy tale, it's on the lengthier side, so certain areas will be paraphrased (but the full tale is linked above). The original tale seems to have been printed as a letter to the editor in the Wheeling Argus, Nov. 4, 1853. The week before, there had been something of an uproar about the arrest of a man on charges of murder, based "upon a revelation from the other world." The rumor mill had begun to circulate this man was detained only on the testimony of a ghost. The letter writer wanted to set the matter straight that it was not just this ghost's word against a living man. To present the full facts, they started at the beginning of the case: Three years ago th

The Alexandria Herald of January 29, 1823 , reprints a ghostly encounter in England between Lord Londonderry and a boy over twenty years earlier. The unnamed mansion of this event is located in the north of Ireland, and the writer claimed everything from the setting to the architecture and furnishings would predispose anyone to start seeing ghosts and other wild apparitions. Here is a condensed version of the story with select quotes from the original article: After acquainting himself with the room he had been assigned, settling into bed, and turning out the lights, Lord Londonderry perceived a light gleaming on the draperies of the lofty canopy over his head. Conscious that there was no fire in the grate—that the curtains were closed—that the chamber had been in perfect darkness but a few moments before, he supposed that some intruder must have accidentally entered his apartment; and, turning hastily round to the side from which the light proceeded— saw—to his infinite astonishment—n

Happy October! It's time for spooky stories and frightening photographs, and I hope to share a selection over the next month. These will be in a slightly shorter format to allow for a few more posts during the spooky season. Here's the first in the series! From the Suffolk News-Herald, June 20, 1934 is a fine "ghost photograph" of the old courthouse in Cynthiana, Kentucky. The pioneer-era structure is where David Sheely was wrongfully sentenced to death. (Content warning for the link, as the original source includes an uncensored photograph of a lynching.) Not being familiar with this story as it's a bit outside my usual local history sphere, I looked into the case for more details. The tale begins when David was accused of murdering his wife Nancy in June of 1847. After a day of fishing, David and some friends returned to his cabin on Beaver Creek (or sometimes Crooked Creek) and demanded Nancy clean and prepare the fish they caught at 2 AM. She refused, and all

As usual, the People's Voice of May 1, 1880 starts off with a poem, titled Buried Gems: How many gems of thought beneath  The dust of toil lie buried;  How many o’er the bridge of sighs  To silent tombs are carried,  And never see the light of day—  Tho’ their’s is matchless beauty;  For hands that hold the richest gifts, Must closest cling to duty.  How many hands ne’er dare to pluck  From life the wayside flowers;  How many feet must bleed and ache  In this bright world of ours;  While others sing the gayest songs,  And pluck the brightest roses;  For them the opening of each hour,  Some new found joy discloses.  How many sweet songs well to lips  That may not pause to sing them;  And sweet bells chime in many a heart  But there’s no one to ring them.  God pity such whose rounded years  Are filled with care and trials,  Whose daily life is constantly  Made up up self-denials.   For those who toil in faith and hope  There must be rest at last;  For those who weep there

While perusing through the first issue of the Morning News-Item, there was a notice about a Mr. Dooley visiting Winchester and his thoughts on the town. Breaking news pushed the item to the following day, December 4, 1906 . Not being familiar with who this Mr. Dooley might be but curious to get his impression of the town, I read on for a snapshot of Winchester at the end of 1906. Mr. Dooley and Mr. Hennessy on Their Way to Work, 1907, The New York Times.Reprinted in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Feb. 17, 1907 . Our plucky reporter seems to have caught up with Mr. Dooley on the corner of North Loudoun and Piccadilly streets, where Mr. Dooley had spent the night at the Hotel Evans , now demolished. He was "contemplating the beauties of the Shenandoah Valley National Bank ," located across Piccadilly Street from the hotel, which still exists. The reporter quizzes Mr. Dooley on his experiences in town so far, and we can glean he "walked from me father George Washington Dooley

Some of the most interesting news tidbits are the ones, like Yellow Fever Feathers , that are presented as throwaway asides to fill out columns in a newspaper. I came across another one of these strange, out of context remarks in the Courier Record, May 6, 1932 : London—Sir Oliver Lodge, octogenarian scientist, testified in court that he had talked with his son, Raymond, after the latter had been killed in the World War. This brief sentence packs in loads of information ripe for speculation. Let's try to find some facts! Sir Oliver Lodge was a British physicist, best known for his work in radio and electromagnetic radiation. At the time of this news brief, we would have been in his early eighties, which confirms the court appearance mentioned above was a contemporary occurrence. He did have a son named Raymond, who was killed in World War I.  The first thought, given these twin streams of ideas, is that Lodge may have been continuing his work in radio on the spiritual side, perhap