George Washington's Giant Skeletons


During the height of the French and Indian War, a fort was built in the frontier town of Winchester, Virginia to protect the local citizenry from attack. Named Fort Loudoun, after the Governor General of Virginia and Commander-in-Chief John Campbell, the fourth Earl of Loudoun, construction began in 1756.

The fort was designed by the commander of the Virginia Regiment, Colonel George Washington, who supervised its construction. During the excavation of the fort’s foundation, Washington’s men dug up a couple of large skeletons. According to Washington, they were seven feet long.

Today, the property is owned by the French and Indian War Foundation and is listed in the National Registry of Historic Places.

If you guessed that the George Washington giant skeletons are not housed in the museum on the property, then you are correct. What happened to them? My guess is that they were lost—possibly never even stored. A war was going on, and Washington and his men were not out to prove to the world that an ancient race of giants walked the Shenandoah Valley in the past.

For what it’s worth, there have been a number of reports of apparitions of giant Indians walking around old town Winchester. This is especially true around the intersection of Indian Alley and Piccadilly Street. Whether the large ghosts are related to the skeletons found at Fort Loudoun is unclear. In the immediate area, stands the Piccadilly mansion—well-known for paranormal activity. But, that is a topic for another day…

Further reading, check out Historic Haunts of Winchester: A Ghostly Trip Through the Past by Mac Rutherford.

I briefly recount this story in my book Strange Tale's From Virginia's Mountains. In my book, Giants: Men of Renown, I take an in-depth look at the ancient giants that once walked the land.

 



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