Barboursville Haunted House Has Something Spookier Than Ghosts!

 

I love me some oddities, especially historical oddities documented in old newspapers. Last month, while researching a completely different topic, I kept coming across the 'News Oddities' article. This particular clipping comes from the November 18, 1916 edition of the Daily Arkansas Gazette, but I came across the same thing, word for word, in a bunch of different newspapers from all over the United States. If you haven't already guessed...I'm only mildly interested in the legless kid in Kansas or the unwilling hobo of Indiana. What I'm REALLY interested in is the haunted house in West Virginia!

Not much information is given in this little snippet. "Ghosts that had long haunted West Virginia house were a dozen black snakes that had taken possession of the attic." Hmm...okay. I had to learn more! After a bit of digging, I found the following newspaper article, which gives quite a bit more information. 

According to this article, found in August 30, 1916 edition of The West Virginian, a Logan County miner named Green Simpkins moved his wife and six children to an area of Cabell County near Barboursville known as 'N-Word Gap.' This area picked up this unfortunate nickname after the Civil War, and it was still be referred to by that name WELL into the 20th century, although the preferred name for the area is Ousley's Gap. (The Doors to the Past website has a really great article on the history of this area, and some lore as to why it got called what it did.)

Anyway, the family rented an old home that had been vacant for quite some time. Whenever you have an old home that has been empty for any length of time, it's bound to pick up a haunted reputation. This house was no different, as it was said that strange, phantom noises came from the attic area of the home at all hours of the day and night. At first, Mrs. Simpkins was terrified of these noises, but she was apparently quite the brave woman. One day she took her gun upstairs to investigate the ghostly noises. But, instead of ghosts, she found a dozen black snakes! She called for help, and together with two young men, she battled the snakes for an hour, finally killing them all, and putting the rumors of a haunting to rest for good.

I'm not necessarily scared of snakes, especially black snakes, but I think I'd rather take the attic full of ghosts over an attic full of slithering reptiles any day! Also, just what kind of noises were these snakes making to be misidentified as ghosts?? Major respect to Mrs. Simpkins for facing her fear and doing a lil' ghost-busting...er, snake busting. 

Keep it weird, keep it creepy, keep it odd, and let me know in the comments below what you'd rather have: an attic full of ghosts, or an attic full of snakes!