Along a valley on the southeastern end of West Virginia, there is a mountain that was once the site of a fierce battle between the Confederacy and the Union. You might think that the blood spilled that day has long since dried and the hatred that permeated the air has long since faded. But people around the area know different. The cries of war still linger on Droop Mountain, forever lost in time.
Droop Mountain Battlefield, today a state park, was the site of the last major battle of the Civil War in West Virginia.
On the Union side, Brigadier General William W. Averell was attempting to seize military control over the region via the Virginia-Tennessee railroad. His confederate opponent was Brigadier General John Echols. Ultimately, Averell’s army pushed back Echols and his troops, forcing their retreat into Northern Virginia.
Today, Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park is open to visitors throughout the year and even has reenactments of the battle that occurred there. The park provides camping, hiking trails and even snow sports. You can find the park north of Lewisburg in the Greenbrier River Valley.
Throughout the years, visitors have discovered that Droop Mountain is a much different place after dark. People who live there know there is definitely something frightening haunting that mountain.
One woman who was raised in a house beside the mountain reported seeing a man standing on the battlefield. His body glowed in the darkness, and he had no head. Whenever a light shone on him, he disappeared. Another incident occurred when the woman was walking along the northeast side of the mountain with her husband and cousins. It was around dusk as they passed by and saw a transparent soldier on his horse. After a moment, the soldier turned away and disappeared.
Another resident of the area, who actually lives on the ridge of Droop Mountain, has taken several photographs around his property that have captured unexplained bright spots, hazy or foggy formations and even a figure of a woman standing in a window on the east side of his house.
One family had two consecutive generations witness the same thing, 50 years apart.
Self described skeptic Edgar Walton reported seeing an apparition in the 1920s. He claimed that even though he still did not believe in ghosts, he saw the figure of a headless man "drifting along." In 1977, Walton’s daughter saw the same thing. She said it was a headless soldier in a confederate uniform. She said he made moaning sounds as he floated by.
Reports of paranormal activity are par for the course on Droop Mountain.
The headless man is commonly reported on the mountain, though some say that he actually has a head - it's his face that is missing (as if it had been shot off). This lends to the speculation that he's likely a different apparition altogether. Other reports include the sound of galloping horses, disembodied voices and a soldier sleeping against a tree.
Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park is located at 683 Droop Park Road in Hillsboro, West Virginia. For more information, the park office can be reached at 304-653-4254. Do you have any stories of haunted locations in WV? If so, please share them in the comments below.
To learn more about paranormal locations in West Virginia, read the tale of this haunted island.
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