For centuries, the Chimney Rock region has been the site of strange apparitions. To my knowledge, no other part of the Southern Appalachians has been the locate for as many unexplained phenomena. One of the earliest documented accounts, in the summer of 1806, told of a multitude of ghostly figures appearing on the cliffs overlooking the gorge.
An 1808 issue of The Wonderful Magazine* reprinted the story of Patsy Reaves and corroboration from other observers. Her description of the spectral forms is remarkably detailed. And in the second section of the reprint, a respondent provides a thorough compendium of similar phenomena seen around the world.
[I]
EXTRAORDINARY PHENOMENON.
THE following account of an extraordinary phenomenon, that appeared to a number of people in the county of Rutherford, state of North Carolina, was made, the 7th of August 1806, in presence of David Dickle, Esq, of county and state aforesaid, Jesse Anderson, and the Rev. George Newton, of the county of Buncombe, and Miss Betsey Newton of the state of Georgia, who unanimously agreed, with the relators, that Mr. Newton, should communicate it to Mr. J. Gales, Editor of the Raleigh Register and State Gazette.
Patsey Reaves, a widow woman, who lives near the Apalachian mountain, declares, that on the 31st of July last about, 6 o'clock P. M. her daughter Elizabeth, about eight years old, was, in the cotton-field, about ten poles from the dwelling house, which stands by computation, six furlongs, from the Chimney mountain, and that Elizabeth told her brother Morgan, aged eleven years that there was a man on the mountain. Morgan was incredulous at first; but the little girl affirmed it, and said she saw him rolling rocks or picking up sticks, adding that she saw a heap of people. Morgan then went to the place where she was, and calling out, said that he saw a thousand or ten thousand things flying in the air. On which Polly, daughter of Mrs. Reaves aged fourteen years, and a negro woman, ran to the children, and called to Mrs. Reaves to come and see what a sight yonder was:-
Mrs. Reaves says, she went about three poles towards them, and, without any sensible alarm or fright, she turned towards the Chimney mountain, and discovered a very numerous crowd of beings resembling the human species; but could not discern any particular members of the human body, nor distinction of sex: that they were every size, from the tallest men down to the least infants; that there were more of the small than of the full grown, that they were all clad with brilliant white raiment, but could not describe any form of their raiment; that they appeared to rise off the side of the mountain, south of said rock, and about as high; that a considerable part of the mountain's top was visible above this shining host, that they moved in a northern direction, and collected about the Chimney rock.
When all but a few had reached said rock, two seemed to rise together, and behind them about two feet a third rose. three moved with great agility towards the crowd, and had the nearest resemblance to men of any before seen. While beholding these three, her eyes were attracted by three more rising nearly from the same place, and moving swiftly in the same order and direction. After these, several others rose and went towards the rock.
During this view, which all the spectators thought lasted upwards of an hour, she sent for Mr. Robert Siercy, who did not come at first; on a second message, sent about fifteen minutes after the first, Mr. Siercy came, and being now before us, he gives the following relation to the substance of which Mrs. Reaves agrees.
Mr. Siercy said, when he was coming, he expected to see nothing extraordinary, and when come, being asked if he saw those people on the mountain, he answered, no; but on looking a second time, he saw more glittering white appearances of human kind than ever he had seen of men at any general review; that they were of all sizes from that of men to infants; that they moved in the Chimney rock; they were about the height of the Chimney rock and moved in a semicircular course, between him and the rock, and so passed along in a southern course between him and the mountain, to the place where Mrs. Reaves said they rose; and that two of a full size went before the general crowd about the space of twenty yards; and as they respectively came to this place, they vanished out of sight, leaving a solemn and pleasing impression, on the mind, accompanied with a diminution of bodily strength.
Whether the above be accountable on philosophical principles, or whether it be a prelude to the descent of the Holy City, I leave to the impartially curious to judge. GEORGE NEWTON.
P. S. The above subscriber has been informed, that on the same evening, and about the same time in which the above phenomenon appeared, there was seen, by a gentleman of character, who was several miles distant from the place, a bright rain-bow, apparently near the then in the west, where there was no appearance of either clouds or rain; but a haze in the atmosphere. The public are therefore at liberty to judge, whether the phenomenon had any thing supernatural in it, or whether it was some unusual exhalation or moist vapor from the side of the mountain, which exhibited such an unusual rain-bow.
G. N.
[II]
Remarks on an extraordinary Phenomenon seen in the County of Rutherford, State of North Carolina, on the 7th of August, 1806.
MR. EDITOR,
Having observed in your paper of September 23d, an account of a phenomenon seen in North Carolina in July last, and which has no doubt, excited the attention of many persons as an extraordinary circumstance, I have taken the liberty of making some remarks upon it. Mankind in general are fond of whatever appears to be of the marvellous, and many good people who are unacquainted with the various phenomena of nature are apt to ascribe, whatever they cannot account for, to supernatural causes. The writer of the account alluded to, seems to entertain an idea that it may be something more than the simple operation of the laws of Nature, where he says, "whether the above be accountable on "philosophical principles, or whether it be a prelude "to the descent of the Holy City, I leave to the impartially curious to judge."
Some will not give credit to the truth of the relation at all: some will ascribe it to a supernatural cause, and some to a cause purely natural. For my part I do not hesitate to give full credit to the account, and at the same time to ascribe it to the refraction, or reflection of light from the vapour arising out of the side of the mountain. In this opinion I am the more confirmed from well authenticated accounts, heretofore published, of such kinds of optical illusion, seen in divers places at different periods. See Tilloch's Philosophical Magazine.
Though these curious and elegant phenomena are not peculiar to any age or country, they are now frequently seen on sea-coasts; and though in some respects common in such situations, they have hitherto been so little noticed by the intelligent part of mankind as to be scarce known to exist. Those which seem lately, to have more particularly attracted the attention of the curious, are those frequently seen during the summer season, on the southern coasts of Italy, near the ancient city of Rhegieum, which the peasants, in their native tongue, call Fata-Morgana; an account of which may be seen in Swinburn's Travels.
They are, however, frequently noticed by the English, Erse, and Irish peasants, and denominated Sea-Faries, and FairyCastles. The Erse fishermen among the western isles of Scotland, frequently see represented in barren heaths and on naked rocks, beautiful fields, woods and castles, with numerous flocks and herds grazing, and multitudes of people of both sexes, in various attitudes and Occupations. These, as they know no such objects really exist, they constantly attribute to enchantment and fairies.
They are also frequently seen on the coasts of Norway, Iceland and Greenland; on the eastern and western coast of South America, and even on the highest summit of the Andes. Some of these phenomena were seen near the town of Youghal in the county of Cork in Ireland, in the years 1796, 1797, and 1801. The first was seen on the 21st of October 1796, about four o'clock in the afternoon, the sun clear: it appeared on a hill on the county of Waterford side of the river, to a number of spectators; and seemed a walled town with a round tower, and a church with a spire, the houses perfect and the windows distinct.
Behind the houses appeared the mast of a ship, and in front a single tree, near which was a cow grazing; whilst the Waterford hills appeared distinctly behind. In the space of about half an hour the spire and round tower, became a broken turret. Soon after this change, all the houses became ruins, and their fragments seemed scattered in the fields near the walls: the whole in about an hour disappeared, and the hill on which it stood sunk to the level of a real field. The hill and the trees appeared of a bright green; the houses and towers of a clear brown, with their roofs blue.
That the phenomenon seen in North Carolina, on the Chimney Mountain, was one of those Fata-Morgana, and occasioned by reflection in a dense vapour strongly illuminated by the sun, I have no doubt. This seems to be confirmed, by the circumstance of a rainbow having appeared in the same place to another person at a distance, their being a haze in the atmosphere.
We may conclude, from the whole, that the little girl who first imagined she saw a man on the mountain, saw her own image indistinctly reflected, and when her brother came, they not only saw both their images, but probably, the vapor forming different angles, upon the principle of the Polyhedion, exhibited their images so multiplied as to appear like an army, which was proportionably increased by each accession of new spectators.
That the images should appear of different sizes, might arise from the surfaces of certain portions of the reflecting vapour assuming a convex form, more or less and the confused indistinct appearances from some irregularity in the same. Their shining appearance might arise from the quality of the reflecting medium, and the strong illuminating rays of the sun falling on it in a particular manner: and the apparent motion of the images, for a change of position in those natural specula.
Whether my hypothesis is just or not, I will not positively affirm; but think it much more rational than to ascribe it to a supernatural agency. Although the author of our existence and creator of all worlds, can work, should it seem meet to him, by supernatural means, and even render visible the celestial vehicle of spiritual existences to our natural organs of vision, yet it is safest never to recur to miracles where phenomena can be accounted for upon natural principles. Whilst, therefore, I would devoutly wish that the enlightened citizens may embrace; without one sceptical doubt, the sublime mysteries of the Gospel; I would desire them to be free from those superstitious notions which influence the ignorant and illiterate of the old world, to ascribe all uncommon or apparently mysterious occurrence to miracle, magic or witchcraft.
B. A.
*[For the record, here is the complete title page for the magazine that published these stories; a wonderful magazine indeed!]
THE WONDERFUL MAGAZINE, AND Extraordinary Museum, BEING A COMPLETE REPOSITORY OF THE WONDERS, CURIOSITIES, AND RARITIES OF NATURE AND ART, COMPREHENDING A VALUABLE COLLECTION, (ALL WELL ATTESTED, AND FROM RESPECTABLE AUTHORITIES) Of Authentic and Entertaining Descriptions of the most Wonderful, Remarkable, and Surprising Volcanos, Cataracts, Caverns, Waterfalls, Whirlpools, and other Stupendous Phenomena of the Earth, resulting from Earthquakes and the general Deluge; strange Customs, peculiar Manners of remote countries, wonderful occurrences, singular Events, heroic Adventures, absurd Characters, remarkable for eating, drinking, fasting, walking &c. memorable exploits, amazing Deliverances from Death, and various other Dangers, strange Accidents, extraordinary Memoirs, astonishing Revolutions, &c. MEMOIRS OF THE MOST SINGULAR AND REMARKABLE PERSONS OF BOTH SEXES, IN EVERY WALK OF HUMAN LIFE. Consisting of a great Variety of very eccentric Characters famous for long Life, Courage, Cowardice, extraordinary Strength, Avarice, astonishing Fortitude, as well as genuine Narrations of Giants, Dwarfs, Misers, Impostors; singular Vices and Virtues; uncommon Eclipses, Storms, remarkable Providences, heroic Atchievements, supernatural Occurrences, strange Discoveries of long-concealed Murders, &c. &c. FORMING ALTOGETHER A NEW AND MOST COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE EXTRAORDINARIES AND WONDERS OF THE WORLD. The whole selected from the most approved and celebrated Historians, Voyagers, Travellers, Philosophers, Physicians and other eminent and distinguished Persons of every Age and Country, and from the most expensive Works and Manuscripts….
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