The Devil Comes to Orange County

The Town of Mount Hope is to be found just west of Middletown in Orange County, New York State - and was established in 1825 when I imagine that the residents of the little community would've lived fairly peaceful lives. However, one night in 1866 would mark a stark departure from this pleasant norm for one family. A creature that can only be described as a denizen of the depths of hell was about to pay them a visit...

## An Infernal Intruder

It was March of 1866, and the residents of a nice little farmhouse in the Town of Mount Hope were woken from their peaceful slumber by the terrifying sound of '*a multitude of voices*' seemingly singing a funeral dirge. This weird chorus lasted for half an hour before being abruptly replaced by a ghastly cacophany of '*frightful groans and shrieks*' - which roused not only all the humans on the farm, but also the animals, into a fervent state of terror. Whatever was causing this hellish phenomenon was just getting started, however. A sudden flash of light meant that the house was momentarily bathed in bright light, turning the blackness of the night around them into '*a brightness like that of midday*' before every door in the house was violently thrown open by an unseen force. Fire and brimstone had come to Orange County.

Coming stalking in through the main entrance, a monstrous mystery beast plodded onto the floorboards of the besieged farmstead. Its motion was one of '*swaying from side to side in frightful contortions*', and it was described as being neither man nor beast. It had - albeit in '*huge and distorted proportions*' - a human-like torso and a head with a single eye. Its hindquarters were '*terribly elongated and reeking with mire and filth*', and were said to resemble those of a monstrous animal. The heady smell of phosphorus seemed to emanate from the cyclopean spectre's body.

As if on cue, the final burning candle in the house suddenly blew out, plunging the house into darkness. Billowing forth from the darkness came a large volume of foul smoke, apparently from the eye and nostrils of the hellish fiend, which soon completely filled the room and made breathing almost impossible. On the verge of suffocation, the hounded homeowners would only sink further into their waking nightmare as the monster - still exhaling yet more toxic smoke - let out a deep, guttural groan and proceeded to run its allegedly-scaly fingers over the faces of every single terrified personage in the room with '*provoking deliberation*'.

With a ferocious screech which shook the entire house '*from the foundation to the rafters*', the monster suddenly darted out through the open back door and ran out towards the forest, where it was quickly lost to the inky blackness of the ebony night outside. There would be no sleep in the house that night.

When morning finally came, there was very little evidence left behind of the ostensibly-infernal visitation - save for '*some small particles resembling crushed lava*' found along the path that the monster had taken into the forest. The pervading smell of sulphur and phosphorus hung thickly in the air, and this was enough to demonstrate to the inhabitants of the hectored household that they had not, indeed, been dreaming.

## Source

New Albany Daily Commercial - May 4th, 1866