How Far Chief Cornstalk's Curse REALLY Goes

When conducting some research for a blog on Chief Cornstalk's curse on Pt. Pleasant, WV and how that curse may tie in with Mothman and/or the fall of the Silver Bridge on December 15, 1967, I came across an interesting little article from the Weekly Register, dated December 4, 1873. 

"A singular fate, which is said to issue from "Cornstalk's Curse" of Point Pleasant! seems to hang over our fair daughters in the city.  No sooner is one engaged (and that is not often enough considering the great number of marriageable girls) to marry than something intervenes to break off the match.  An instance of this kind happened a few evenings since, when a young man was parting from his adored at the gate, slipped on the pavement, and cut himself quite badly on a tin-type of his love, on which he hit in a sitting posture.  When the "love" discovered where he carried her picture, she was so enraged that she spoke her mind and abruptly said she would not wed him.  They parted---she to her room to cry, and he to Dr. Barbee, to have the pieces picked out."

So yeah.  It appears that this dude cut his butt cheeks (at least I hope that's where the area of the body they were hinting at) and had to go to the doctor to get pieces of a tin-type photograph plucked out of him because he kept his love's visage in his pants pocket as opposed to the breast pocket of his coat.  I think that's what they're getting at, right?  I would think if the Curse of Chief Cornstalk was really affecting the ability of eligible young ladies to find a husband, this girl might want to go ahead and overlook where her beau carries her photo.  Although...I'm not sure if I could personally overlook this whole debacle being published in the local newspaper!  I guess that would be a fun story to tell the grandchildren one day!

Just a quick bit of background information---Chief Cornstalk was a Shawnee leader in the area around what is today the Kanawha and the Ohio River Valleys.  In the 1770s, white settlers began reaching the area, and area tribes formed a coalition to keep them out.  Unfortunately, a battle for the land that took place in 1774 led to a number of colonists being killed, but twice as many Native peoples being wiped out.  Those who were left moved westward into Ohio to avoid further confrontation, and a fort was built at Pt. Pleasant, near the confluence of the Ohio and Kanawha Rivers.  Eventually, however, Chief Cornstalk attempted to make peace with the white settlers in the area, and relations were going well until 1777.  Late that year, the British were coaxing Native Americans to side with them in the American Revolution, and local tribes began making plans to attack the American colonists in the area.  Chief Cornstalk went to the fort to warn the colonists that an attack was imminent and that he would not stop his own men from joining in.

Cornstalk, as well as two other Natives were 'taken hostage' and kept in the fort. It is believed that this arrangement was voluntary, at least at first, as Chief Cornstalk's presence at the fort might cause the other tribes not to attack.  And when Cornstalk's son, Ellinipisco came to visit, he was also detained.  Unfortunately, just a few days later, two soldiers stationed at the fort were ambushed by Indians while out hunting.  In retaliation for the deaths of these two soldiers, fellow colonists at the fort massacred Cornstalk and the others in a brutal attack.  It is legend that with his dying breath, Chief Cornstalk cursed the people who settled the area for 100 years.

Throughout the 1800s, many people in Pt. Pleasant DID believe in the curse, at least to some extent.  The curse was quoted multiple times in area newspapers any time something actually bad happened, but also in a more tongue-in-cheek manner, as you can see in the article, transcribed above! And although the curse was only supposed to last 100 years, there are some who tie in both the appearance of Mothman and the fall of the Silver Bridge with the curse...both far cries from slicing open a young man's cheeks with a metal photograph!

Stop Shooting at Spirits: A Vintage Ghost Story from Pt. Pleasant

Mr. Devaux-Source

Back on July 26, 2018 a young man from Connecticut named Christain Devaux was charged for firing his gun at what he told law enforcement officers was a ghost.  He claimed to be a paranormal investigator, and originally stated that he had fired the shots at what he thought was an intruder breaking into his home.  After he changed his story (and put two bullet holes through his own wall) he was charged with several infractions resulting from his 'lying' to the police.  When this news broke, we in the paranormal community had mixed emotions.  Some thought it was funny.  Others thought it was sad---this guy was obviously mentally ill.  ALL agreed, though, that it made the paranormal investigation community as a whole look bad.

However, Devaux was NOT the first person claiming to be a ghost hunter to actually fire a weapon at a ghost.  In fact, since the mid 1800's, that trope pops up quite a bit in ghost lore, including being a staple in plenty of stories from around the tri-state area.  I'm not sure why, but for nearly 200 years people have thought that a bullet could stop a ghost.  And so, they continuing firing at them...just like another young man from Point Pleasant, WV did back in 1886.

In an article from the Weekly Register, dated 24 November 1886, the story of Richard Edwards versus his neighbor and a bag of flour is told.

Apparently, Richard Edwards was living with his father David on what was then known as Front Street. (From census records, it appears Richard would have been in his early 20s at the time.) The family was living in the historic Roseberry Estate, a home built by Thomas Lewis, Jr. in 1815 and which is still standing today. Also living in another section of the home was a family by the name of Anguish.

Roseberry Plantation.  Source: Pt. Pleasant Register

As the story goes, Richard was out one Friday evening watching for ghosts.  It was said he believed that the nearby property of the late Dr. Samuel G. Shaw was haunted and apparently he needed his revolver to help prove it.  Unfortunately, as Richard was making his vigil, Old Man Anguish was coming home from town carrying a sack of flour.  As he crossed the street and approached the side gate to gain entry to his side of the home, Richard shot him in the abdomen.  The bullet didn't make direct contact, but instead left a painful, albeit non-deadly wound.  Richard claimed that the white flour sack resembled a ghost coming up the dark street, and that's why he fired.  Mr. Anguish claimed that when he realized the boy had a gun, he called out to him not to shoot him, and then actually grappled with him after he was shot.  When Mr. Anguish asked Richard why he had shot him, the boy stuck to his assertion that he was a ghost.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find any follow-up articles for this story.  Was Richard ever arrested...or perhaps even committed?  He does show up in later genealogical records and appears he died fairly young, never having been married.  And what of Old Man Anguish?  Did he fully recover from his wounds?  But what I REALLY want to know is...why was the Dr. Shaw property thought to be haunted?  Was this a locally accepted fact, or simply all in the head of a mentally unstable young man?  Dr. Shaw, who had died the previous year, was a highly respected early citizen and medical doctor of the Pt. Pleasant area.  Did his ghost (or that of someone else) haunt the old property back in 1886, and if so, could the area still be haunted??

This article can be read in full from the free newspaper archive site, Chronicling America.