Dave Tabler, Author at Appalachian History

Death, witches and superstitions

Every holler in Appalachia, in every state, has its very own Halloween superstitions.

In early versions, the farmer makes a pact with the Devil and hands over his shrewish wife in return for a pair of plough oxen.

This was the place, so legend has it, where sheets gently floated from the beds of no longer sleeping travelers.

Joseph Ozanic discusses the conflict between his Progressive Miners of America and John L. Lewis’ United Mine Workers of America.

The only cause for alarm was that a black cat had come down the chimney with a cap on its head. This was accepted as a case of witchcraft.