What Happened to Thomas Steele? A WV State Pen Story

WV State Penitentiary
Source: WV History on View

 

In April of 1959, a letter was received by the Wheeling, WV police, addressed to Sgt. Elmer Hehr. The letter was from Francis W. (Chicago Red) Brassell, written from Brassell's jail cell in El Paso, Texas. Brassell was in the county jail, currently awaiting transfer to a state facility in Huntsville. He had been sentenced to 50 years for armed robbery and decided that now was as good a time as any to confess to an earlier crime. In the letter, Chicago Red Brassell admitted that in 1952, while incarcerated at the WV State Penitentiary for (you guessed it) armed robbery, he had killed a fellow inmate and made it look like a suicide. 

Brassell had been sent to the West Virginia State Penitentiary on November 19, 1947. He had received a ten year sentence for armed robbery in Kanawha County, but had served his sentence, and was released April 17, 1957. Two years later, he found himself sitting in a Texas jail cell for the same thing. Instead of ten years, however, he was being sentenced to 50 years with the added 'benefit' of working on a prison work crew, affectionately known as a 'chain gang' in the oppressive Texas heat. 

It is theorized that Brassell wrote the letter, hoping to get transferred back to West Virginia and serve out his sentence there. So, he made up a story that in October of 1952, he had strangled fellow inmate, Thomas G. Steele, then hung his body over the cell door to make it look like a suicide. The warden at the time, Donivan E. Adams, sent the Marshall County Prosecutor, Everett Fox, and a WV State Trooper, H.E. Robinson, to Texas for an investigation.

Thomas G. Steele was from Mason County. He was sent to the penitentiary in April of 1947 to serve out a 1-10 year sentence for grand larceny. In July of 1952, he decided he had had enough of prison life. While working at a prison work camp in Gypsy (Harrison County), Steele escaped. He was missing for 12 hours before he was found six miles away in a poison ivy patch. He surrendered peaceably.  However, there were consequences to his actions. 

Steele, along with Brassell and 2-3 other 'incorrigibles' were placed in Death Row cells so that the guards could better control and monitor them. It was in this cell block where Thomas Steele was found on October 4, 1952. His death was ruled a suicide and he was buried in the prison cemetery. He was just 23 years old. 

Thomas Steele's story probably would have ended there, if Brassell hadn't had the bright idea to take credit for the death. But, this grand plan of being sent back to West Virginia would not come to fruition. The only person who believed Brassell had been responsible for Steele's death was Everett Fox. Trooper Robinson, Warden Adams, and former Warden Orel J. Skeen, all believed the story was made up. Skeen, who was warden at the time of the incident, claimed that Brassell definitely had the mental capacity to commit murder, but didn't think it was physically possible. Brassell was a small man, weighing in at only 126 pounds. It would have been difficult for him to have strangled Steele, then hoisted his body up before being found out by the guards in their more secured setting. 

Officials went on to say that it didn't really matter, either way. Even if they had believed there was sufficient evidence to suggest Steele was murdered, they wouldn't bother to extradite him from Texas. And therefore, Steele's official cause of death remains 'suicide' and Brassell presumably served his time in a Texas prison. 

From a paranormal perspective, I find this case extremely interesting in regards to its potential for producing ghosts. Both suicide and murder victims are largely believed to stick around a location after their untimely death, but what if you were falsely accused of taking your own life, and your name was never cleared? To many, that false narrative is a really big deal, and the hunt for justice that is never going to come is more than enough reason to stick around and haunt a location. 

And what about Brassell? What really prompted him to confess to murder? A popular trope in these types of stories is that he felt compelled to finally admitting his crime by being haunted, either literally or figuratively by thoughts of Steele. Or, did he really just prefer to serve out a murder sentence over an armed robbery sentence if it meant being back in West Virginia? Could that draw to West Virginia actually be enough to cause his spirit to return to the old prison, despite dying beyond its walls? As an interesting side note, he's not the only prisoner I've read about who desperately wanted to be at WV State Penitentiary! We always hear about how violent and filthy and overcrowded the prison was throughout much of its operation, but inmates such as Bill Dorsey (story HERE) purposefully tried to be re-committed, and even Charles Manson has his infamous letter to the warden begging to be transferred. 

It's undeniable that the former West Virginia State Penitentiary in Moundsville is a powerful place, with an energy that is all its own. Whether that energy draws you in, or causes you to run screaming from within its walls is a whole other mystery...

Ghosts of Cass

Cass, WV

My family and I love to take weekend trips to see some of West Virginia's most scenic and historic sites. Luckily, many of those sites tend to have a reputation for being haunted! Our latest adventure took us to the Cass Scenic Railroad. Not only did we ride the Shay #5 engine up to the town of Durbin and back, but we spent two nights in the restored company town of Cass itself.

Cass was a company town, created in 1901 by the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company, to accommodate the logging crews working the nearby sawmills. Most of the two-story employee homes were built around 1902 and were pretty nice, with lots of modern amenities (excluding bathrooms until the 1920s!) and plenty of room to raise a family. Loggers had the option to rent or purchase their homes. If they purchased the home, they were allowed plenty of free lumber to build additions onto the houses. The only catch was, if they ever sold their home, they had to sell it back to the company at the SAME PRICE they paid for it. They were ensured to not LOSE money, but if they did any improvements to the home, then they were not compensated for the added value. 

Logging operations in the area ran until about 1960. The following year, the state purchased the railroad and by 1963 was operating it as the Cass Scenic Railroad, a huge tourist attraction. The town itself wasn't made a part of the state park until 1977. 

Company House on Spruce Street

We stayed at 332 Spruce Street, a handicap accessible, 4-bedroom home up on the hill. We checked in Friday evening, got up Saturday to catch the train, then spent another night before checking out early Sunday. It was a comfortable stay with plenty of room and a great view. From our back deck, we could look down over much of the town of Cass. From our front porch, we could watch a whole herd of deer frolicking along the tree line and field.  It was relaxing, yet a little...spooky. 

To be honest, I didn't do very much research into the haunted history of the town before our trip. I knew people had said it was haunted, but I didn't look very far into the details of why they thought that beyond a story found on the WV Ghosts website. In the story (LINK HERE), the author tells of staying in one of the furbished employee homes, much like us. They visited a small craft shop and saw a strange white blur go by quickly; when asked about it, the shopkeeper informed them that a little girl had died in the home from an illness that the local doctor couldn't treat.

The story goes on further to say that they heard a woman screaming around 10pm. When they went to look outside to see where the scream was coming from, it sounded like someone was rattling the doorknob, trying to get into the house. When the author discussed the story the next day with family, their sister and dad had also heard the scream, but they had heard something the author hadn't---a man whistling INSIDE the house!

Ghost Hunting at the
Company House

That was enough for me, so I decided to pack just a few, very basic pieces of ghost hunting equipment. My son has recently expressed an interest in ghost hunting, so I thought a little investigating of the company house would be a fun activity to fill some time. We had a few interesting things happen, but nothing too crazy. At two separate times during our stay, we heard what sounded like the back doorknob jiggle. When filming a short 'reaction video' to a Dubai chocolate test-testing, my son and I both heard a voice coming from the downstairs bedroom. When we played the video back, there is a voice, but I can't prove that it wasn't actually my son saying 'okay,' despite none of us remembering him saying that. 

During our Saturday night 'ghost hunt,' we had some strange K-II hits, some hilarious things come over the spirit box, including both our names (which, my son is named Luke and the Luke family was instrumental in the creation of Cass, so that might be unrelated), a comment on Luke's dad being 'a fool,' and lots of stuff about an accident. We may have also gotten an EVP, but I'm still trying to clean it up, because I can't make out what it says. Before bed that night, I laid around and just did a simple search through the newspaper archives for Cass, just to see if anything came up that was interesting, or seemed to fit what we had heard over the spirit box.

Being a railroad and logging community, there were plenty of articles about untimely deaths from industrial accidents. I was kind of surprised at the amount of murders, though. There were quite a few angry fellas running around Cass at the turn of the last century. But there was one article that stood out; it was an article about a fire that had killed a mother and two young children. The father managed to save two additional children and himself, and the tragedy rocked the community. Little did I know that there was way more to the story...and that it would actually play a part in the haunted reputation of the town!

Company Store, Museum and Restaurant

When we got home after a long, jam-packed weekend (another blog about that coming soon!) I started delving into the research a little more in preparation for writing about Cass' haunted history. The website for Pocahontas County tourism has a page dedicated to the area's haunted locations, and I was pleased to see that Cass was on their list. The article mentions hearing the ghostly train whistle of a phantom train....but it mentions that there is one house in the restored neighborhood that is more haunted than others. The house in question is the Doyle House on Main Street. According to the article, witnesses have reported seeing a woman with two young children walking down Main Street near the house, late at night.

Unfortunately, we weren't staying in the Doyle House. Even though the house number wasn't given, we were up on Spruce, so it definitely wasn't us. But, the name caught my attention. Where had I heard Doyle before? 

You may have guessed it; Doyle was the name of the family who suffered from the tragic fire! On February 3, 1915, a fire at the Doyle residence took the lives of Mrs. George Doyle (Jessie) and two of her children---8 year old Charlotte and two year old George William Lee Doyle, Jr. George was able to save 4 year old Ethel, and George Jr.'s twin sister, Claris. In his efforts, he was burned severely, and suffered a broken arm. In addition to the house, fire was also set to the nearby Oddfellows Hall, and a picture theater owned by Mr. Doyle. Those two locations were saved through a bucket brigade. 

What makes this story all the more tragic is that the fire was no accident. It took over a year, but a man named L.H. Haroff/Harouff was finally arrested and confessed to the crime. Harouff, a restaurant owner from Marlington, was a firebug with a history of burning down the homes and businesses of his rivals. He admitted to the Doyle arson because he was in negotiations to buy the picture theater owned by Doyle and a relative, but Doyle wouldn't sell. 

Aaron and Luke in front of the
(haunted?) Shay No. 5 Engine

Harouff's defense was that he was insane. The fact that when Harouff was finally tracked down and arrested for the arson of lawyer, L.M. McClintic's home, HE ASKED MCCLINTIC TO REPRESENT HIM! It also doesn't appear as if Harouff ever really made it to the WV State Penitentiary for his crimes. It's possible that he was sent to a state hospital, such as the Weston State Hospital (Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum), but I cannot find any mention of the verdict of his trial through the archive service I use. I did, however, find what I THINK is his obituary...and at the time of this person's death, they are not incarcerated.

So yeah, I can totally understand why Jessie's ghost, along with two of her children, are seen roaming the streets of Cass after such a senseless tragedy. The scream that the visitors from the WV Ghosts story heard may also be tied in the fire. But, there are plenty of more ghosts in town apparently!

Cass Depot

On July 30, 2025 (AFTER WE HAD COME HOME) a new blog post was published on Salt Shaker Press, giving a list of haunted locations throughout Pocahontas County. I REALLY wish I had this list before our vacation, because we actually visited, saw, or drive by a lot of these places, and I would have definitely paid more attention and taken more pictures. Anyway, the post lists a ton of places throughout Pocahontas County, but specific to Cass:

1. The Phantom Train Whistle: Heard throughout the area after the last train of the night has long passed, this whistle is believed to indicate a special run for the spirits of those killed in nearby logging/train accidents.

2. Shay No. 5 Engine: This is actually the engine we were assigned on our round trip to Durbin! It is said to be haunted by a brakeman who was crushed to death in the 1930's. This ghost makes his presence known by the scent of pipe tobacco and the occasional shadowy apparition. 

3. Company Store: Witnesses have reported seeing the apparition of a woman in an early 20th century dress, peering out the second floor windows of the company store. It is believed she is a wife, watching for her husband to return. While we were in town, there was one strange thing about the store, which most likely is NOT paranormal, but I thought I'd go ahead and record it. When we arrived in town on Friday and checked in, we were told the internet was out, but they had an order in to fix it. We bought some drinks and snacks at the company store (now a museum and gift shop) and asked about paying with a card vs. cash. We were told that they could take a card, because they had a separate backup system that never went down. Later that evening, the wifi was restored. It was a little slow at times, but there were no real problems until right before we checked out Sunday morning. As we were planning our route home, the internet wifi once again went out and there was no cell service in the area. We headed down to the company store and attached restaurant for breakfast, where we were told by a panicked young waitress that the backup internet connection had also gone down and they could only accept cash. According to the staff we talked to, this had never happened before, and it had everyone a little on edge that morning! 

4. Greenbrier River Trail: We didn't really explore the Greenbrier River Trail, but apparently it's a hot spot for paranormal activity, too. Hikers and bikers have seen a lantern light swinging in the distance. The light approaches them, but as they get closer, they can see that no person is holding the light. The light then abruptly goes out. 

That's a LOT of paranormal activity for such a little town. But, it's a little town steeped in history and it is a great place to have a family adventure. Our company house was comfortable, everyone was super nice and polite, and the train ride was a lot of fun. It was a beautiful, scenic trip up there and back and I would highly recommend it for a weekend getaway. You'll see a lot of wildlife. You'll see a lot of history. And if you're lucky, you might even see a ghost! 

Sources and Further Reading:

Cass Railroad Ghosts, by Kelly Bowman. Published on WVGhosts.com 14 July 2004

The Paranormal Sites of Pocahontas County. Posted 29 October 2024 on the Pocahontas County Tourism site. 

Cass Scenic Railroad: WV State Parks Website

Ghost Stories, by Normal Alderman. Salt Shaker Press Blogspot. Published 30 July 2025

National Register of Historic Places Nomination for Town of Cass

National Register of Historic Places Nomination for Cass Scenic Railroad

Death Registry for Doyle Family

Find-a-Grave Entries for George Doyle Jr., Jessie Doyle, and Charlotte Doyle

The Charleston Daily Mail
15 July 1916