St. Albans Lady in Black

Bridge over the Coal River St. Albans, WV 1870

During the summer of 1871, the little river town recently renamed ‘St. Albans,’ located in what is now Kanawha County, WV was plagued by a ghost. This wasn’t just any ghost; it was an infamous Lady in Black. An anonymous correspondent was quoted in a Wheeling Daily Intelligencer column from July 7th that a mysteriously lady in black had been spotted around town beginning in late June.

The first witness was a St. Albans resident named Mr. S—–. Mr. S—– was returning home late one evening from ‘business’ when he encountered the apparition. However, it didn’t occur to him that she was anything other than a flesh and blood woman, except for maybe the fact that when he approached her, she disappeared into the bushes. 

He saw her several times over the next week, always between the hours of 11pm and midnight. He mentioned the weird behavior of this strange woman and shortly after a group of gentlemen out for a nightly stroll encountered her for themselves. One of the men was determined to discover who the mysterious woman was and began to go after her. However, the faster he went, she went, until both were at a run. He never did catch up with her. 

Others came forward and claimed that they, too, had seen the mysterious woman between 11pm and 12am, always on the same path. She was seen as if coming from the home of Colonel Cunningham and heading towards the old bridge. No one ever claimed to have known her true identity. 

Theresa’s Note: Over the years, I’ve come across quite a few ‘woman in black’ tales from various towns across West Virginia and beyond. These tales all seem to have very similar elements; an unknown woman in black is seen very late at night by gentleman out doing, well, whatever. When she is approached, she speeds up and cannot be caught. These tales tend to be morality tales, or warnings to the men of town that they shouldn’t be out and about so late at night. But I wonder if this ghostly woman was in fact, a real woman who perhaps was up to no good herself. It’s odd that the correspondent made sure to note that she was seen coming from the area of Colonel Cunningham’s residence (a Union soldier who had acquired much of Philip Thompson’s land after the Civil War) but failed to give the full name of the main witness. Personally, I’d like to believe that the mysterious woman was simply a ghost, perhaps mourning the loss of a lover or son lost in the War, making her evening stroll down to the Coal River. If you’re in the area, keep your eyes open. Even if you don’t see the Woman in Black, chances are that in THAT area, you’re bound to see something strange and unusual!

Guyandotte’s Lady in Black

The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer 07 July 1871