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The Dwayyo

The more you look into mythical Appalachian creatures, the more you find.

Frederick, Maryland, is where something called the Dwayyo, or Dewayo, is reported to live. The creature is said to be hairy, with a big, bushy tail and walks on two hind legs, like a human. Some describe it as being similar to a werewolf. And it gets even more interesting.

The Dwayyo is supposedly the mortal enemy of another Maryland creature, the Snallygaster, which for all intents and purposes can be described as a flying vampire dragon. The Dwayyo and the Snallygaster have been reported to have had some pretty intense encounters in the area.

The first written account of the Dwayyo was in an newspaper article in the Frederick News Post on November 27, 1965. Along about dark a man named John Becker had heard strange noises outside and had gone out into his yard to investigate. What he saw:

“was as big as a bear, had long black hair, a bushy tail, and growled like a wolf or a dog in anger.”

As he moved closer (Becker was a heck of a lot braver than I would have been), the Dwayyo reared up on its hind legs and attacked him. After a short fight, the creature took off into the woods. After that Becker filed a report with the state police.

This sighting led to a spate of news reports over the next few days. Hunters reported seeing the Dwayyo roaming the woods. A woman reported that she and her neighbors had heard something cry like a baby, then scream like a woman in the woods for several months. Another woman reported seeing a strange dog-like creature the size of a calf chasing cows on a farm near her. At one point students at the Frederick Community College actually organized a Dwayyo hunt, with between 50 and 100 students signing up to track the beast down. These students were one of the few to actually have a reasonable explanation of what the Dwayyo might be: a rabid wolfhound, or a cross between a wolf and a dog. In the end, the Dwayyo hunt fizzled, apparently because everyone was too scared to go out at night in the woods to actually find it.

In the end, the police were unable to locate anyone named “John Becker.” They also failed to confirm that the Becker incident, or any of the other incidents for that matter, had actually occurred.

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Fairy Crosses

Have you ever seen or held a fairy cross? These rocks are shaped like small crosses, and are found in many places in Appalachia.

The story of the crosses starts with fairies, naturally. You see, years and years ago the fairies were happy creatures who lived in the woods and loved to dance. And they did this year after year after year, not a care in the world. That is, until a stranger showed up.

This stranger said that he had traveled the world and seen many things, like the pyramids of Egypt or the great rivers and high mountains around the world. But the one thing that affected this man the most was a death. What he termed the saddest death ever known.

According to the stranger a man had spent his life healing people and spreading love. And this man of whom he spoke was the Son of God. The stranger told the fairies that some men feared this man so they took him and nailed his feet and hands to a cross. They then beat him, starved him and cast lots over his clothes while they waited for him to die.

This news shook the assembled fairies to the core, filling them with profound sadness. They began to cry over the death of Jesus, their tears falling to the ground where they crystallized as stones shaped like little crosses.

Now, the scientific explanation for the fairy cross, which does exist, is that they are stones of staurolite, a combination of silica, iron and aluminum that crystallizes at 90 degree angles, forming a cross. But you can believe what you wish.

(Picture by Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10122363)

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The Seneca Guns

Among the tales told in parts of Appalachia is the one about the Seneca guns.

The story goes that there was a tribe of American Indians living in Appalachia long ago who were displaced by other Indians and then European settlers. These native Americans, although long dead, are still not at all happy that they lost their homeland, so they make their ghostly presence known in a most unusual way.

Every so often, out of nowhere, there is a loud boom, followed by rattling, then another boom, then all is quiet again. A sound much like the sonic boom of an aircraft overhead. Which would be a great explanation for the sound, except for the fact that these booms have been reported as far back as the 1850’s, long before aircraft were invented. It’s said that those ancient Indians are firing ghostly shots at those who occupy their land. Folks who have heard the sound rule out thunder because many times the noise happens on perfectly clear days.

Although the story originated in the coastal areas of North Carolina, it, along with the booms themselves, has moved west to Appalachia. Those mysterious sounds have been heard as far west as East Tennessee.

Historically the booms have been heard mostly in the spring and fall of the year. Although the phenomenon has been studied over the years, there is no conclusive answer to what’s causing it.

Just another mystery from this place we call home.

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The Devil Monkey

A few days ago I told you about the Snarly Yow, the devil dog from Maryland. Another beast in Appalachian folklore is located a bit south of there, in southwestern Virginia.

Saltville, Virginia, is a town in Smyth County. Known historically as a source of salt for early settlers and later for the Confederacy, it also became known for sightings of a strange creature known as the Devil Monkey.

The story goes that in 1959 a couple was driving near the town of Saltville one night when they were suddenly attacked by a large and powerful ape-like creature that left scratch marks on the car. According to this couple’s daughter the beast had “light, taffy colored hair, with a white blaze down its neck and underbelly…it stood on two, large well-muscled back legs and had shorter front legs or arms.”

The creature was seen a few years later by two nurses in Saltville who were driving home from work early one morning. Again this beast attacked their car, ripping off the convertible top. Something about cars with this one, it seems. Oh, nobody was harmed in either attack.

The last encounter with the Devil Monkey happened in 1994, when an Ohio woman was driving on a dark country road around 2:30 in the morning. Suddenly a creature that looked like a hybrid between a monkey and a wolf jumped out in front of her car in the middle of the road. According to this woman, what she saw was “all black with very short sleek fur, pointy ears and had a long thin tail.” She also reported that it was very powerfully built. She wasn’t harmed in the incident but, oddly enough, for a few weeks after the incident livestock in that area suddenly began disappearing.

The only advice I’d give is to not be driving on any backroads near Saltville late at night if you can help it.

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The Okolona Road Exit

Interstate 26 in East Tennessee is the location of a modern Appalachian folktale.

According to this tale, many years ago there was a couple traveling along the highway that would one day become I-26. They left the highway at the exit to Okolona Road when their car broke down. Now the Okolona Road exit goes down and under the highway, so the man decided that he needed to get back up on the highway so that someone would be able to see them and give them a ride to a service station. So he gets out of the car and begins pushing it back up the exit towards the highway. And it was at this moment that tragedy struck.

As he was almost to the top a tractor-trailer came flying up out of nowhere, destroying the car and killing them both instantly. And that led to the birth of a legend.

From that point forward, anyone who takes the Okolona Road exit can experience something quite miraculous. According to folks I personally know who swear they’ve tried this and had it work, if you come down the exit you can stop, put your car in neutral (making sure nobody is behind you, of course), and it will roll backwards up the hill, as if someone or something is pushing. To see if that might be what was happening, my friend says that she put baby powder on the hood of her car and, when the pushing stopped, was able to see handprints in the powder.

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The Snarly Yow And Other Beasts Of Appalachia

Near South Mountain in western Maryland, along the old National Highway, arose an Appalachian legend.

Back in the 19th century travelers on the National Highway reported a strange apparition that would appear out of nowhere.  What those folks saw in front of them was a creature resembling a very large and angry black dog, snarling and growling.  That was enough, naturally, to cause the driver or rider to swerve to avoid the animal, which would suddenly vanish.  Stories tell that the beast, known as the Snarly Yow, could keep up with a horse at full gallop before disappearing into the Maryland mists.

A hunter who happened upon the Snarly Yow tried to shoot it, becoming surprised, then alarmed, when his bullets just passed right through the angry dog.  The last time the Snarly Yow was reported was back in the 1970’s when a motorist reported suddenly seeing the beast and then hitting it after not being able to stop in time.  The thing is, this driver didn’t feel any impact but when he finally stopped his car and got out to check the damage to his car and the dog, there was no animal there.  At least there wasn’t until he heard a low growling from behind.  Turning, he saw the Snarly Yow slowly walk toward him from behind the car with its eyes glowing a bright red.  Then the dog started getting bigger, and bigger and bigger.  He jumped into the car and, with the dog attacking his vehicle, took off down the road.  The Snarly Yow simply disappeared, not to be seen since.

Similar dog stories exist all across Appalachia, including in Carter County, Tennessee, where folks tell of the Devil Dog, a large black angry dog that will appear from time to time.  It’s said there that only those evil enough can walk with the Devil Dog, all others are at risk of being killed.