Tales of witchcraft across the northern and southern states are not new, with most dating to the late 1700s through the early 1800s. It’s extremely rare to hear of tales of witchcraft into the early 1900s, but many rural areas did take the law into their own hands, especially post-Civil War.
The legend of the Witch Child of Pilot’s Knob goes that Mary Evelyn Ford and Mary Louise Ford were both accused of witchcraft in the town of Marion, Kentucky in the 1900s. Reportedly, the people of the city decided to burn them at the stake, and Mary Evelyn’s body was buried at Pilot’s Knob at Pilot Knob Cemetery. The younger victim was believed to be aged five or six at the time of death, and her mother’s body was taken to another location.
Mary Evelyn was buried in a steel-lined grave, and her casket was covered in concrete and gravel, out of fear that she would rise from the grave to take revenge on the very people who wronged her and her mother.
A wrought iron fence was placed, and today small footprints can be seen in the gravel, and many believe the child witch can pull people down into her grave.
Written By John G. Clark Jr.
