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Authors: Ruth Ann Musick
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received the money, he set out again, planning to return to his troops by evening.
That night Charles Murphy was awakened by a violent flapping of his tent. It sounded as if a gale were coming, but when he arose to make sure that the pegs and poles of his tent were secure, the noise ceased, and he was surprised to find that the air was calm. When he returned to bed, the flapping began again, and this time he dressed himself and went outside to make a better examination.
In the shadow of a nearby tree, a man stood beckoning. It was his brother. In a low, grave voice he told Charles to follow him. The lieutenant walked swiftly through the woods for some time with his brother until they descended a slope to the edge of a swamp, where he stumbled against something. Looking down at the object on which he had tripped, he saw it was his brotherâs corpse â not newly dead, but cold and rigid. The pockets had been rifled and the clothing was soaked with mire and blood.
Dazed and terrified, he returned to camp where he roused some of his men. At daybreak they secured the body.
It was not long before evidence turned up that brought about the arrest of Jim Brown. There was a hint that his responsibility for the crime was revealed through the same supernatural being that had warned Lieutenant Murphy. Brown was an ignorant farmer who hated Yankee soldiers and who had been excited by learning the officer was carrying money.
He had offered to take his victim by a shortcut to his camp, but took him into the swamp instead, where he shot him and robbed him.
27: Darkish Knob
Near the town of Parsons, West Virginia, there is a tall, steep hill covered almost entirely with loose rock. Only one path leads over this hill, and it is almost impassable. The hill is called Darkish Knob.
During the Civil War the underground railroad was bringing as many Negro slaves as possible to the North where they would be free. These slaves had to travel by night so they wouldnât be seen, and they would hide at different houses during the day. They could not travel the same routes many times because the authorities would wait there to capture them.
One of the most favored areas to travel through was the mountainous region of West Virginia. There were many hiding places, but traveling by night was extremely dangerous. The few trails that the Negroes dared to travel were so perilous that few people would attempt them by day.
One of the resting places for these fugitives was a house in a valley at the foot of Darkish Knob. It was well hidden by mountains on all four sides. In fact, the valley was so very well hidden that the Negroes themselves often could not find it.
A young Negro girl was trying to locate this place one dark night. She was being chased by men her owner had hired to catch his runaway slaves. She missed the valley and started up the path over Darkish Knob. Her horse was very tired, but she pushed him on harder. The top of this hill drops straight down to Cheat River. As she reached the top, she turned to look back. Her horse lost his footing, and both horse and rider rolled down the hill and hit the sharp rocks in the river. As the girl dropped, her scream was heard for miles. This hill has been known as Darkish Knob since that time.
The girlâs ghost is said to have returned to the top of this hill every year on the eve of the date of her death. It chants and moans over the death just as the Negro people once did when one of their people died. At exactly the instant of the fatal plunge the ghost screams, loud and long.
The young people in this area say that the chanting and moaning is only the wind in the trees. They also say that the scream is that of a wildcat. But the older generation know that this is the ghost of the young Negro girl.
28: A Slave Boyâs Revenge
It was very late at night as young Curt, a slave boy, slipped through the fence surrounding the small, dirt-floored shack he was forced to call his
That night Charles Murphy was awakened by a violent flapping of his tent. It sounded as if a gale were coming, but when he arose to make sure that the pegs and poles of his tent were secure, the noise ceased, and he was surprised to find that the air was calm. When he returned to bed, the flapping began again, and this time he dressed himself and went outside to make a better examination.
In the shadow of a nearby tree, a man stood beckoning. It was his brother. In a low, grave voice he told Charles to follow him. The lieutenant walked swiftly through the woods for some time with his brother until they descended a slope to the edge of a swamp, where he stumbled against something. Looking down at the object on which he had tripped, he saw it was his brotherâs corpse â not newly dead, but cold and rigid. The pockets had been rifled and the clothing was soaked with mire and blood.
Dazed and terrified, he returned to camp where he roused some of his men. At daybreak they secured the body.
It was not long before evidence turned up that brought about the arrest of Jim Brown. There was a hint that his responsibility for the crime was revealed through the same supernatural being that had warned Lieutenant Murphy. Brown was an ignorant farmer who hated Yankee soldiers and who had been excited by learning the officer was carrying money.
He had offered to take his victim by a shortcut to his camp, but took him into the swamp instead, where he shot him and robbed him.
27: Darkish Knob
Near the town of Parsons, West Virginia, there is a tall, steep hill covered almost entirely with loose rock. Only one path leads over this hill, and it is almost impassable. The hill is called Darkish Knob.
During the Civil War the underground railroad was bringing as many Negro slaves as possible to the North where they would be free. These slaves had to travel by night so they wouldnât be seen, and they would hide at different houses during the day. They could not travel the same routes many times because the authorities would wait there to capture them.
One of the most favored areas to travel through was the mountainous region of West Virginia. There were many hiding places, but traveling by night was extremely dangerous. The few trails that the Negroes dared to travel were so perilous that few people would attempt them by day.
One of the resting places for these fugitives was a house in a valley at the foot of Darkish Knob. It was well hidden by mountains on all four sides. In fact, the valley was so very well hidden that the Negroes themselves often could not find it.
A young Negro girl was trying to locate this place one dark night. She was being chased by men her owner had hired to catch his runaway slaves. She missed the valley and started up the path over Darkish Knob. Her horse was very tired, but she pushed him on harder. The top of this hill drops straight down to Cheat River. As she reached the top, she turned to look back. Her horse lost his footing, and both horse and rider rolled down the hill and hit the sharp rocks in the river. As the girl dropped, her scream was heard for miles. This hill has been known as Darkish Knob since that time.
The girlâs ghost is said to have returned to the top of this hill every year on the eve of the date of her death. It chants and moans over the death just as the Negro people once did when one of their people died. At exactly the instant of the fatal plunge the ghost screams, loud and long.
The young people in this area say that the chanting and moaning is only the wind in the trees. They also say that the scream is that of a wildcat. But the older generation know that this is the ghost of the young Negro girl.
28: A Slave Boyâs Revenge
It was very late at night as young Curt, a slave boy, slipped through the fence surrounding the small, dirt-floored shack he was forced to call his
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