Tucker County's Headless Apparition

Lumber Camp Near Cheat River.
Source: WV History on View

Today's vintage Throwback Thursday ghost story can be found in the January 20, 1887, edition of the West Virginia Argus, which can be accessed for FREE over at Chronicling America! That winter, the 'big slide' in one of the lumber camps located along the Cheat River became ground zero for sightings of a terrible apparition. A large, headless man with an axe on his shoulder frightened even some of the bravest of the lumber crew so bad that they quit. This apparition would show itself both day and night and was generally believed to be a real spook by those who saw it. However, almost tongue-in-cheekly, the article's author notes that quite a few people were 'losing their heads' in that day,' so it wasn't a surprise to hear that Tucker County was home to one of them.  I'll let you interpret that how you will!  Special thanks to WV Cryptids and Strange Encounters, who posted this story on Facebook back in November 2021. 

The West Virginia Argus
20 January 1887

Update June 2025: While researching another story, I came across a different newspaper article with a little more information. The Ceredo (WV) Advance reported on Thursday, January 13th, 1887, that every single worker, including the camp cook, had fled the camp due to this headless horseman wielding an axe. It was this cook who first saw the apparition early one morning before sunrise, while preparing breakfast. It "fled through the woods making no noise." The cook was ridiculed for this superstitious claim, until a party of choppers saw the same thing. After that, the apparition was a regular occurrence, day or night. Bullets fired at the apparition had no effect on it. The owners of the firm, Henry G. Davis & Bro of Keyser sent men out to find the cause of all the ruckus but could not explain away the horrifying creature that plagued the camp. As a result, they were desperately trying to find men to come work. 

Ceredo Advance
13 January 1887

I love a good headless ghost tale! If you do as well, please check out my PERSONAL experience seeing a headless shadow being along Rt. 50 between Bridgeport and Grafton! 

HEADLESS SHADOW BEING OF RT. 50