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! 

A Barboursville UFO?

It's Day 4 of the official blog challenge and okay...I'm TECHNICALLY a little late since its actually 2:30am of Day 5.  You'll forgive me, right?  Anyway, today's challenge is to write about something I did that didn't have the desired results...and what I would do differently, given the chance.  Well, there's a LOT of things I've done (or rather, didn't do in some cases) both in my personal life and with my paranormal studies that didn't work out.  Many times, its because I let fear, laziness, or some other character flaw stand in my way.

You might remember sometime last year when I had my mind made up that I was going to undertake the study of UFOs to satisfy my own curiosity and add another dimension (no pun intended) to my work in the paranormal field.  My ultimate goal was to even become a MUFON representative!  Well, I didn't get too far past reading a couple of books on the subject and taking half a course on UFOlogy.  And now, I REALLY wish I had because for two straight days, I have witnessed something I seriously cannot explain!

It all started Sunday night.

I couldn't sleep so I went for a drive and ended up in Nitro.  I was driving back home to Winfield via Route 2 through Poca, Bancroft, etc.  I love this windy river road because it takes the driver past all these tiny little towns that have such a colorful coal camp history that one really doesn't expect to find in this area of the state.  It's a beautiful drive and I often find myself staring up at the sky.

Off in the distance I had noticed a very big, very bright blinking white light which from my perspective, seemed to be right over the Kanawha River.  I assumed it was one of those lights they mount atop poles to alert aircraft that there's a huge mountain right there, lol...which seemed to make sense because there are several in the area.  At one point, the light seemed to be joined by ANOTHER smaller light, and it looked like they were blinking at each other, as if communicating.  I passed by an area that has a lot of deer, so I took my eyes off the road for awhile, and when I went to look back, I couldn't find the light.  I was interested, but the skeptic in me said that it was nothing to note.

And then came Monday evening...

Several members of HPIR were invited to give a short lecture to the LeSage Lions' Club.  On my way into Huntington, I noticed a really neat advertising balloon in the shape of a zeppelin, tethered to a string near Milton.  Therefore, when I was coming BACK down I-64 eastbound, I really tried to rationalize that perhaps my little balloon was lighted.  Here's why:

About 8:45pm or so, I was just coming through the area between the 29th St. exit and Barboursville.  The sun was setting fast, but it was still fairly light out.  I was once again looking up at the wide open sky when a huge, bright white light seemingly blinked on.  Its not like this like came out from behind a cloud or behind a tree in my line of sight; it literally just blinked on in the middle of a wide open area.  And it was BRIGHT.  It didn't appear to be moving, or if it did, it was going super slow.  I kept getting closer and closer to it, yet I couldn't really make out anything other than it LOOKED fairly low in the sky and it looked like there were possibly two large lights, almost in a binocular pattern.  This thing didn't blink, it made no noise, and it seemed too far away to be from the airport in Ona or my little advertising balloon.  I nearly wrecked as I tried to stare up at this thing and get any information possible.  I ended up driving right underneath and past it, and soon after lost sight of it in my rearview mirror.

As soon as I got home, I popped on the computer and instant messaged another member who was driving behind me on her way home to Milton.  I asked if she had seen the light, which much to my delight, she had!  Not only that, she described it the exact same way I did and was as stumped as I was as to what exactly it was.

I honestly don't know what it is I saw.  Was it an aircraft, military or civilian?  Was it a hang glider turning on the lights to his craft?  Was it Venus?  Or was it something out of this world?  I don't have the answer, but I wish I did and luckily its not too late to go back and make some changes to that plan that just didn't work out the way I wanted it to!

I'm not sure what I will or can do differently other than making myself do the reading, contacting the proper people, and finding some classes/training, both in UFOlogy and in astronomy and related fields.  I feel like these two back to back sightings were a sign that I need to make an effort into finding the truth, not just for myself, but for anyone else who might need help seeking answers.  I also think a big step I'd do differently is to try another venue other than the exclusive (and expensive) MUFON.  There's actually a local group of UFO researchers that I will definitely be contacting.  Advice is most welcome!

Want to read about more of Theresa's UFO experiences?
A Milton UFO
Lights and Lizards Over Beckley

The Pink Pachyderm of Barboursville

Welcome to 2013 everyone!  It's been a wild ride, but we made it through another year at Theresa's Haunted History.  After the celebrations of the holiday season, I thought today's post would be a perfect way to start the new year.  Pink elephants.  If you've seen one, you might have partied a little too hearty over New Year's.  Or...you live in the tri-state area and have driven past Barboursville's most iconic art piece, wondering just what in the heck is the deal with it?

The Pink Elephant of Barboursville has many legends surrounding its existence.  A legendary tall tale allegedly passed around city hall is that President Ronald Reagan purchased the beast at a Washington, D.C. area flea market.  After sneaking it back under the cover of darkeness, it made its home on the White House lawns until it showed up on eBay during the Clinton administration, and bid upon by an anonymous West Virginia buyer. I remember the elephant being there WAY before the Clinton administration, as do most citizens, so I'm guessing this tale is a silly story told to newbies to the area.

Another, more believeable, tale has the elephant simply being a present (or memorial) to a little girl from her grandparents.  This theory is evidenced by the fact that in the concrete holding the massive giant in place there are a pair of tiny footprints and the name "Nikki."

Nikki's Foot Prints?

In reality, the Pink Elephant of Barboursville is simply a marketing device.  It was probably constructed and sold by the company "Sculptured Advertising," based in Sparta, WI who installed its first pink elephant in 1963 at an Iowa restaurant called the Pink Elephant Supper Club.  Similar pink elephants can be found throughout the United States, most notably at a Tennesse car dealership and a mini golf course in NY.

Our elephant was purchased in Michigan by local businessman David L. Taylor and installed in front of his gift shop in the summer of 1970.  The 15-20ft. fiberglass pachyderm had the facetious additional advantage of helping the local drunks find their way home...but probably also giving some psychedelic drug users quite the scare over the years, as well!

Now home to L.L. Roe Insurance

David Taylor's wife, Hazel, has stated that the elephant immediately became a success upon its installation, and a community icon.  It was said that David loved the publicity of the elephant, and before his death in 1986, would decorate the statue seasonally, even celebrating the Christmas holidays by donning a Santa suit, climbing aboard the pink pachyderm, and waving to the children.

After David's death, Taylor Gift Shop was rented out to other businesses, and Hazel toyed with the idea of moving the imposing statue to her backyard and painting it gray.  The public rallied against the move, and even the business housed in the Taylor Building threatened to move out if the elephant wasn't part of the deal.  Since that time, the elephant's popularity and mystique has continued to grow.

Many local citizens use the elephant as a landmark when giving directions.  Republican groups have flocked from all over to have their photo taken with the statue.  In 2005, when the elephant was vandalized by college kids who thought it looked better painted Marshall green, the community fought for it to be returned to its pink color.

Today, the Taylor Building houses the L.L. Roe Insurance Agency, and the elephant is still there, front and center, with a fresh coat of pink paint.  But who is the Nikki mentioned above?  That, I'm not sure about.  I thought that researching David Taylor's obituary, I'd find the answer...that Nikki was simply the Taylors' grand-daughter.  Unfortunately, the obituary only lists two daughters, Tootie St. Clair of Atlanta and Susan Sheets of Barboursville.  It's possible that Nikki is the daughter of one of these ladies, but I haven't found her yet...Nikki, are you out there????

Update June 2013:  About a month or so ago, we took my three year old son, Luke, to the Barboursville Dollar Tree, taking Route 60 from Hurricane.  I hadn't realized it, but we had NEVER driven him past the pink elephant!  He noticed it immediately and started yelling from the backseat, "Mom, mom!  Me see PINK elephant!  Did you see it?  See it, Mom??"  I am so happy that he is now experiencing the same excitement and wonder that I, and many others, have experienced!

Update July 2015:  I found Nicole (Nikki) and she's written an article about this iconic piece of Cabell County History! You Are Here Stories