The Story Behind This Historic Landmark In West Virginia Is Beyond Eerie

A West Virginia small town road was haunted by mysterious sounds for generations. Then one day, the sounds stopped. Read on to find out more about this strange legend and the connection to a well known landmark.

In the early 1900s, a young boy was walking down the road in Codger Town in Mingo County, when he heard a horse-drawn wagon approaching behind him.

He stepped aside to let the wagon pass, only to see that there was no wagon... but the sound continued down the road and across a bridge.

For many years to follow, people walking down that road would occasionally hear the sound of invisible horses passing by.

Many people thought that they were hearing the sounds of a pioneer family who died trying to cross the river. But in 1967, the sounds suddenly stopped, and were never heard again.

1967 was the year that work began to build the R. D. Bailey Dam.

It was discovered that the dam had redirected an ancient underground river that had flowed under Codger Town. The ghostly horse and carriage sounds were probably rocks and sticks being swept away underground.

The R. D. Bailey Dam protects the areas of Justice, Gilbert, Man and Logan from flooding.

The lake provides great fishing and recreational activities. The area which was once the community of Codger Town is now part of the R.D. Bailey Lake Wildlife Management Area. You can still visit, but you're unlikely to hear any ghosts today.

If you'd like to find some ghosts in West Virginia that may still be hanging around, try our haunted places road trip.