McChesney's Ghost

The story of “McChesney’s Ghost” is one of the best ghost stories in all the Shenandoah Valley. It began in Augusta County’s unincorporated community of Newport in 1825 in the home of Dr. John McChesney—a man of unquestioned honesty and integrity in his day. McChesney, his wife and four children were gathered for their evening dinner when one of his slaves, an eight-year-old girl named Maria, burst in from the kitchen. Maria was frightened to the core and said an old woman “with her head tied up chased her.” Unsurprisingly, McChesney ignored the girl’s story, attributing the tale to childhood imagination.

For days after the event, Maria complained of being frightened, and shortly thereafter, “vollies of stones began to fall on the dwelling house, and continued to fall at intervals, in daytime and also at night.” Most of the rocks were fist-sized, but some were “too large to be thrown by a person of ordinary strength.” Even weirder, some of the stones were so hot they burned the grass when they landed. According to Annals of Augusta County, Virginia:

"Accounts of stone throwing circulated throughout the country, and hundreds of people from miles around came to witness the spectacle. On some days, the yard was full of people, on all sides of the house, eagerly watching to see where the stones came from; but all retired without making any discovery. The descent of stones did not occur every day, and visitors on the off-days generally went away incredulous about the whole matter. During the whole time, Maria complained of being chased and frightened."

Dr. McChesney came to believe that Maria was “at the center of the disturbance” and sent her to stay at the residence of his brother-in-law, Thomas Steele. Unfortunately, whatever it was that had been tormenting Maria followed her there. Upon her arrival, thundering noises rang out in the house and when the family investigated, they found their furniture overturned. Then, stones began pelting their house. As with McChesney’s weird encounters, Maria was in the vicinity of the event and complained of an old woman chasing her.

Thomas Steele sent poor Maria home, but the poltergeist that followed Maria to the Steele residence did not let up. The obnoxious entity continued to damage the Steele home, busting cupboard doors and breaking glass. Meanwhile at the McChesney house, the invisible rock-thrower also ran amok. In fact, a female visitor was stuck in the head by a rock, splitting her scalp down to the bone!

Thomas Steele and Dr. John McChesney feared for the safety of their children and sent them to the home of their grandmother, Mrs. Steele, in Rockbridge County, a couple of miles west of present-day Steele’s Tavern. McChesney sent Maria along with the other children, and the strange occurrences followed her here, too. Mrs. Steele’s furniture moved on its own and stones fell from the sky upon her home. Maybe the strangest occurrence of all was a bronco-busting tale for the ages recorded in Annals of Augusta County, Virginia:

"One day, a large kitchen bench pranced over the floor like a horse. The children present were at first amused, as the Wesley children had been with their ghost; and young John M. Steele (afterwards Dr. Steele, now dead,) proposed to bridle the steed and ride him. They did so, but became so much alarmed at the antics of the bench that young Steele fainted."

Poor Maria! That is all I can think when I read this story. Things got even worse for her, and while she was staying with Mrs. Steele, she started complaining of something beating her. Mrs. Steele used a stick to try and fight off the invisible entity tormenting Maria, but it only got worse. Maria later said she felt as if she were being pricked with stickpins! This physical distress continued for weeks. Mrs. Steele said that the slaps Maria suffered were audible, but no one could see the perpetrator.

The strange story reached its conclusion when an exasperated Dr. McChesney sold Maria (an act which has earned him much criticism by modern-day commentators) and her new owner “took her south.” Whether one has contempt or understanding for McChesney for selling Maria, the move seemed to work. There are no reports of the poltergeist following her south and the disturbances in Augusta and Rockbridge counties came to an end. The Annals of Augusta County, Virginia went on to infer that an elderly black woman who lived in Dr. McChesney’s neighborhood, “reputed to be a witch,” had been responsible for harassing Maria. The woman carried a walking stick and chewed tobacco, and as a young man, McChesney was careful to defer to her, always yielding the right of way when they passed on the road. Somewhere along the line, Maria insulted the lady, and she threatened to punish the child who “had an evil tongue.” The Annals of Augusta County, Virginia wrapped up the tale saying: “Similar occurrences have taken place in Rockingham, Albemarle and Culpeper counties, the last in September 1889.”

This tale and many others is included in my book Haunted Shenandoah Valley.

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