Virginia Folk Legends

Thomas E. Barden

University of Virginia Press, 1991 - Fiction - 347 pages

What do devil dogs, witches, haunted houses, Daniel Boone, Railroad Bill, "Justice John" Crutchfield, and lost silver mines have in common? All are among the subjects included in the vast collection of legends gathered between 1937 and 1942 by the field workers of the Virginia Writers Project of the WPA. For decades following the end of the project, these stories lay untouched in the libraries of the University of Virginia. Now, folklorist Thomas E. Barden brings to light these delightful tales, most of which have never been in print. Virginia Folk Legends presents the first valid published collection of Virginia folk legends and is endorsed by the American Folklore Society.

Contents

• INTRODUCTION: 1
• ANIMALS: 31
• A Horn Snake Kills a Cruel Mistress: 35
• The Child and the Snake: 36
• A Black Snake Chokes an Infant: 37
• The Walking Rattlesnake: 38
• A Race with a Panther: 40
• The Bear and the Panther: 41
• The Eagle and the Baby: 43
• Daniel Boones Dog Thrasher: 44
• The Faithful Dog: 46
• The Good Watchdog: 47
• Solomon the Wise Horse: 48
• BEGINNINGS: 49
• Why Negroes Hands Have White Palms: 54
• Why Butterflies Was Made: 55
• Why Colored People Work for the Whites: 56
• The Origin of Gypsies: 57
• Disobedient Sammy: 58
• How Vote Buying Started in Wise County: 59
• Why the Buzzard Is Bald: 60
• The Legend of the Dogwood Tree: 61
• THE CIVIL WAR AND EMANCIPATION: 63
• James Bowser Emancipation Hero: 69
• Mailed to Freedom: 71
• A Confederate Spy: 72
• A Premonition of Death: 73
• The Curse of the Carbine: 74
• A Yankee Drinks from a Poisoned Well: 75
• A Young Girl Shoots a Yankee: 76
• CONJURE AND WITCHCRAFT: 79
• A Conjurors Revenge: 86
• A Slave with a Magic Hoe: 88
• A Witch Rode a Girl to Riceville Virginia: 89
• Devil Bill Boggs: 90
• The Witch Tree: 91
• Montague and Duck Moore: 93
• A Silver Bullet for a Witch: 94
• Witch Mountain: 96
• A Witchs Gun Charms the Woods: 98
• Aunt Lucys Bewitched Cow: 99
• Cooking a Witchs Shoulder: 100
• A Conjured Girl Tries to Jump into the Fire ΙΟΙ: 101
• A Witch Gets Caught in a Store: 103
• GHOSTS: 105
• The Quakers Gold ΠΙΟ: 110
• Midnight Annie: 112
• The Headless Ghost of Griffiths Wife: 114
• Nancy Lovealls Ghost Pounds Coffee: 115
• The Old Plantation Masters Ghost: 116
• Converted by a Ghost: 117
• The Old Woman of the Pies: 119
• HAUNTED HOUSES: 121
• The Ghost That Squeaked the Door: 124
• The Ghosts Little Finger Bone: 125
• The Ficklin Field Haunted House: 127
• A Civil War Haunt in an Old Log House: 128
• The Dancing Couple: 129
• Ghost Chains from a Logging Accident: 131
• A Confederate Soldier in a Haunted Room: 133
• The Haunted House of Saunders: 134
• The Praying Ghost of the Old Barlow Place: 136
• The Slave Traders Haunted House: 138
• INDIANS: 139
• The Ten Indians: 145
• The Women Who Married Indians: 146
• Disturbing Indian Graves: 148
• Indians Kill a Pioneer Family: 149
• The Indian Who Lived in a Cave: 150
• Two Indians Killed with a Boulder: 151
• The Friendly Old Hog: 153
• The Indian Boiling Pot: 154
• Cry Baby and Your Mammyll Come: 155
• Indians Come down the Chimney: 156
• Indians Capture a Bride on Her Wedding Day: 157
• LEGENDARY PEOPLE FROM THE AFRICAN AMERICAN FILBS: 159
• Henry Armstrong de Forgin Man: 163
• Bill Cabell a Badman at de Bar: 165
• Justice John: 168
• How Railroad Bill Chased Himself to His Girls House: 170
• Peacock and the Soldiers: 173
• LEGENDARY PEOPLE FROM THE ANGLOAMERICAN FILES: 177
• Daniel Boones Tricks on Indians: 181
• Ira Roberts the Strongman: 182
• Molly Mulhollun the Cabin Builder: 183
• Major Mike Wallace: 185
• Booker Mullins the Bear Fighter: 186
• Thomas Jeffersons Manners: 187
• Johnny Appleseed: 188
• Gowl James the Human Ratter: 189
• Doc Taylors Walk with Riley Mullins: 191
• How Doc Taylor Got Named The Red Fox: 192
• MURDER AND VIOLENCE: 195
• A Strange Light at a Murder Site: 199
• The Murderous Tavern Keepers: 200
• Killing an Unwanted Infant: 202
• The Robinett Death Hole: 203
• A Murder Belief Solves a Crime: 205
• A Strange Funeral: 208
• PLACENAMES: 211
• How Dragon Run Got Its Name: 216
• How Bloody Branch Got Its Name: 217
• How Champion Swamp Got Its Name: 218
• How Haddixs Branch Got Its Name: 219
• How the Bull Run Mountains Got Named: 220
• How Mother Leather Coat Mountain Was Named: 223
• Hickory Gap and the Hickory Gap Church: 224
• SIMON KENTON: 227
• How Simon Kenton Left Home: 231
• Simon Kentons Growing Tree: 232
• Simon Kentons Exploits: 233
• Simon Kentons Indian Wife and Family: 234
• Simon Kentons Indian Disguise: 235
• Simon Kenton Traps a Brandy Thief: 237
• SPIRIT DOGS: 239
• A Devil Dog Comes for a Slave Owner: 243
• Two More Devil Dogs: 244
• The Death Dog: 245
• The Warning Dog: 246
• A Spirit Dog Causes a Broken Toe: 248
• A Devil Dog in the Path: 249
• The Ghost Dog on Indian Creek: 250
• The Dog That Turned to Rags: 251
• The Ghost Dog on Chinquapin Hill: 252
• SUPERNATURAL EVENTS: 255
• Dogs Chase an Invisible Creature: 258
• The Boat That Would Not Move: 259
• A Dead Wife Returns: 260
• Lights in the Woods: 262
• The Murdered Mans Hat and the Melted Snow: 264
• The Disappearing Old Gray Horse: 265
• The Haunted Woods: 266
• The Fiddler of Peter Cave: 267
• The Shower of Stones: 268
• The Black Cat: 271
• TREASURE: 273
• OceanBorn Mary: 277
• The Two Pine Trees: 279
• The Sign That Pointed to Gold: 281
• The Beverly Diamonds: 282
• The Story of Swift and His Compass: 283
• A Spirit Dog Guards Swifts Mine: 284
• Swifts Silver Mine: 286
• UNUSUAL EVENTS: 287
• A Curse on Whites: 290
• How Coxs Snow Got Its Name: 292
• A Scar Identifies a Slave Womans Husband as Her Son: 293
• The Old Negro That Flagged the Train: 294
• Dick the Slave Boy and the Wolves: 295
• Murder at the County Line: 298
• The Woman Dressed in Black: 300
• The Boy Who Turned Wild in the Woods: 301
• The Wild Girl: 302
• The Man Who Ate Live Meat: 303
• Roast Cat for Breakfast: 304
• The Naked Bull Ride: 305
• Caught in the Graveyard: 307
• A Man Dies of Earwigs: 308
• NOTES TO THE LEGENDS: 311
• A VWP Workers: 339
• B Legend Tellers: 340
• Counties Where Legends Were Collected: 344

About the author

Thomas E. Barden, a native Virginian, is Professor of English at Toledo University. He is the author of The Travels of Peter Woodhouse: Memoir of an American Pioneer and was joint editor with Charles L. Perdue, Jr., and Robert K. Phillips of An Annotated Lsiting of Folklore Collected by the Virginia Writers Project and Weevils in the Wheat: Interviews with Virginia Ex-Slaves (Virginia).

Bibliographic information

• Title: Virginia Folk Legends; ACLS Humanities E-Book; Publications of the American Folklore Society: New series
• Editor: Thomas E. Barden
• Edition: illustrated, annotated
• Publisher: University of Virginia Press, 1991
• ISBN: 0813913357, 9780813913353
• Length: 347 pages
• Subjects: Fiction / Fairy Tales, Folk Tales, Legends & Mythology; Social Science / Archaeology; Social Science / Customs & Traditions; Social Science / Folklore & Mythology; Travel / United States / General