The Devil Comes to Clay County: A Demonic December Story

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*Updated May 2026*

Recently, researcher and author, Tony Breeden (you can find his work on multiple platforms including the websites Tony Breeden Books and Exotheology) shared a pretty interesting article with me. The article, which comes from The Martinsburg Weekly Independent dated 14 November 1874, tells the tale of a young pedagogue returning home from what I believe is implied to be the home of a girl he is courting, when he runs into a terrible creature. 

It was November 1st, and rather late at night when the young man was headed home in an area of Clay County near Oakton known as Back Creek. He was at a crossroads between the properties of Samuel Murphy and the widow Woods when an 8-10 foot creature suddenly appeared before him. 

The creature had large feet, and long arms that ended in huge, dreadful claws. A long, flaming tale whipped around the devilish form. A long, flickering tongue added to the fear the young man felt, as the creature stood in front of him, menacingly for approximately three minutes. Then, with a terrible sound, it ran off into the woods, leaving the terrified young man dumbfounded. The newspaper surmises that this was the devil himself, out looking for a victim to devour. 

But WHY would the devil, or one of his many minions, be out in rural Clay County, stalking young teachers out courting? Was this a liquor-fueled hallucination, or a young man's psychosis manifesting in a most demonic way? Does the proximity to Halloween play a part in the sighting...or is this just simply a fun story designed to pull in readership to a small West Virginian newspaper during the dark, cool days of late fall?

Martinsburg Weekly Independent
14 November 1874
Read online at Chronicling America

Since the publication of this article back in December of 2025, I've come across some conflicting information. While looking over some of my old newspaper clippings, I realized that I had also clipped this exact same story via Newspapers.com...with some minor differences. 

In the article I found in the 23 November 1874 edition of the Weston Democrat, there is NO mention of a location called Oakton. The two names of people involved are the same, but this article seems to imply that the events did not take place in Clay County, WV, but in BERKELEY COUNTY, WV! This article also throws in a personal jab at the former governor of West Virginia, William Erskine Stevenson. Stevenson had served as the third governor of West Virginia from 1869 to 1871 and was not well-liked by the Democrats of the day, due to his progressive stances on infrastructure and his anti-slavery viewpoints. 

Is there any kernel of truth to this devilish story, or is this simply another example of yellow journalism? I'll let you decide. Stay spooky, fam! 

23 November 1874
Weston Democrat