WELCOME BACK to another exhilarating and insightful iteration of The Legend Queens - your go-to queer-written newsletter for all things paranormal and cryptid. This week we’re diving in to the origin tales of two key pieces of Appalachian folklore - the Grafton Monster and the Cherokee Death Cat.
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Only one chapter left in the season, concluding Appalachian Folklore with four parts.
Shall we begin?
What’s in the Water in West Virginia?
By: Amber Brevig
Imagine you’re walking through a serene forest in the hills of Appalachia (couldn’t be me, but for the sake of imagery go along with it please and thanks), and a little ways ahead alongside the river, you notice a boulder in your path. It’s perhaps four feet wide and around eight feet tall. As you get closer, you note that it *reeks* of sulfur. You also start to hear a low whistling sound coming from its general direction. When you really take a gander at the boulder, you notice something in the middle of it move…. was that a… blink? You recognize glowing red eyes too little too late as the boulder, which you now piece together is actually a giant monster, starts to move towards you.
Grafton Monster
This creature, now dubbed the Grafton Monster, was first spotted in June of 1964 by then 18 year old Robert Cockrell. The young man, just starting his journalism career, was allegedly traveling home after work alongside the Tygart River when he spotted the massive creature in his path. He skeddadled home on another route and told two of his friends about his encounter. The men went out to where Cockrell spotted the boulder humanoid to further investigate, but all they discovered was smushed grass where the being had been and a low whistling noise in the distance.
Cockrell laid low with his discovery the next day at work, but throughout the office, and later the town, he continually heard of other peoples’ sightings of this being. On June 18th, he published the following article:
My favorite part is Cockrell saying “just join the roving bands of teenagers who are apparently convinced that a “monster” exists”… as if he didn’t also see the monster and make his friends search the river with him and as if he himself wasn’t also a teenager at this time.
The only other “sighting” that I could find was on an episode of Mountain Monsters which I’ve conveniently dropped below so that you can witness the bad video editing UHM WHOOPS I mean…. the creature… yourself:
Thoughts and Theories
As you can see, there really isn’t much to this Grafton cryptid - only one person wrote about it at the time, it was exclusively seen in Taylor County, West Virginia (the video above, too, comes from Taylor County), and there haven’t been any real sightings since.
So why are we talking about it?
Here’s the thing - for some reason the Grafton Monster is a BIG deal in the cryptozoology world. After listening to several podcasts and reading a handful of articles, I still can’t understand why.
Some theorized that the Grafton Monster exclusively appears near sources of water (hence the title of this here chapter dontchaknow). As Cockrell wrote, some theorized that the creature was actually a displaced polar bear (and allegedly Cockrell saw the creature at around 11pm so perhaps this holds more weight than *massive boulder with glowing red eyes and seal skin that whistles for funsies*).
But what do EYE (for emphasis) think?!
Do you remember how we were talking about the Flatwoods Monster of Braxton County, West Virginia in Chapter 1 of this season? The Flatwoods Monster brought a *ton* of tourism, business, and fame to the small town, so much so that they still hold festivals in honor of the Hot Tamales mascot looking creature today. Braxton gained that notoriety in 1952.
I think Cockrell, after growing up just a few county lines away from Braxton and the Flatwoods Monster, saw an opportunity to kickstart his career with a similar folk tale and he *ran* with it - maybe he saw a mysterious creature along the riverside that fated night of June 16th, but maybe he made it all up. Maybe he had a few drinks before heading home from work (West Virginia didn’t raise its drinking age to 19 until 1983) and was a little dizzy on his night walk, mistaking an actual rock for something more sinister.
Who knows? All I can say is that there are still people *obsessed* with finding the Grafton Monster today, and there are even some enthralled enough to program the creature into video games like Fallout 76 so that players can hunt the cryptid to their heart’s content.
What do you think? Is the Grafton Monster a hoax? Were you convinced by the “video evidence” from the Mountain Monsters series? Let us know in the comments below!
The Cherokee Death Cat
By: Austin Charles Bolkcom
In the historic landscapes of Cherokee County, North Carolina, the legendary Cherokee Death Cat prowls with a formidable weight of approximately five hundred pounds, its presence intertwined with the haunting echoes of The Trail of Tears. Emerging from the shadows of time, this enigmatic feline symbolizes the profound injustices inflicted upon Native Americans in the 1800s. Born from a tragic chapter when sixteen thousand souls were forcibly uprooted and marched away from their ancestral lands, the Death Cat stands as a somber reminder of a dark period etched in the annals of history.
An alternative narrative intertwines the Cherokee Death Cat into the rich tapestry of folklore, portraying it as a manifestation of rebellious women who, clad in cat skins, clandestinely roamed the night to observe forbidden ceremonies. As a dire consequence of their defiance, these women were purportedly transformed into colossal cats, reflecting the imposing skins they once wore. Similar tales in Appalachian folklore recount the punishment of women accused of practicing witchcraft, transformed into big cats to reveal their true nature.
Another variation of the tale recounts the story of a solitary witch dwelling in the mountains. Under the cover of night, she assumed the form of a cat, stealthily pilfering chickens and pigs from neighboring farms. This version refers to the creature as a Wampus, a spectral presence reportedly sighted until the 1960s. Despite local folklore attributing livestock killings to the Death Cat, a lingering air of skepticism persists. Evidence suggests the encroachment of coyotes and jaguarundis in the region during that era, complicating the mythical beast's purported culpability.
In the mythology of Running Deer, a Cherokee woman renowned for her courage, she embarks on a quest to vanquish the malevolent spirit known as Ew'ah, often referred to as the spirit of madness. Running Deer's motivation extends beyond the spirit's inherent malevolence; she seeks retribution for her husband's death, believing Ew'ah to be the cause of his descent into madness. Donning a ceremonial booger mask and harnessing the strength of a mountain cat spirit, Running Deer successfully confronts and defeats the malicious entity, avenging her husband. According to Cherokee folklore, her indomitable spirit is said to linger in the form of the wampus cat, a spectral presence that continues to roam Cherokee County in North Carolina.
Often depicted akin to a Cougar or Mountain lion, adorned with a lustrous coat of light tan or golden fur, the Cherokee Death Cat exudes an aura of primal elegance, its form evoking both awe and trepidation. Its yellow eyes gleam with an otherworldly intensity, captivating those who dare to meet its gaze. A departure from the ordinary, this mythical creature is said to possess an additional pair of legs, granting it an uncanny agility and prowess.. Local lore from Conway, AR, paints a vivid picture of this enigmatic beast—a mountain lion endowed with six limbs, four poised for swift locomotion, while the remaining two are reserved for fierce combat. Meanwhile, in the remote enclave of Clark Fork, ID, whispered tales speak of a peculiar appendage adorning the tip of its tail—a mysterious "ball-like formation" bristling with razor-sharp quills or spikes, a menacing adornment that hints at its otherworldly origins. In the annals of folklore, esteemed folklorist Vance Randolph offers a tantalizing description, likening the Wampus cat to a mythical chimera—a hybrid creature reminiscent of an amphibious panther, seamlessly navigating between the realms of land and water with the grace and fluidity of a colossal mink.
The death cat, in addition to its imposing stature and extra appendages, is endowed with a host of supernatural abilities that enhance its eerie aura. Known as the Wampus, this creature possesses a spine-chilling scream capable of paralyzing even the most resolute warriors, shattering their willpower and driving them into panicked flight. The glare from their eyes is said to start forest fires under the full moon's influence. Despite its considerable size, the death cat, as an apex predator, excels in remaining undetected and unseen while stalking its prey. Legends depict it as nearly invisible until it chooses to reveal itself, with tales attributing shape-shifting and invisibility to its arsenal of skills, rendering it the ultimate stealthy predator when necessary.
Could the Wampus embody an act of vengeance against those who perpetrated the slaughter of the native peoples of this land? Is it a woman scorned by her own people, transformed into a vile beast as retribution? Alternatively, might it symbolize a woman's strength in vanquishing evil and safeguarding her love? The Cherokee Death Cat bears numerous mythologies that enshroud it in mystery, captivating paranormal investigators eager to unveil the truth behind this spectral beast.