It’s October and autumn is in the air. The leaves on the trees will soon be falling everywhere, the time will change and something eerie is coming ... so beware.
Yes, it is that frightful time of year — the time for tricks and treats that delight our children. So why not start off the month of Halloween with a local legend.
I’m sure many of you have traveled along Highway 17 on the east end of the county and have seen the historic Midway Cemetery. But have you stopped by to see the “crack in the wall?
The crack can be found in the north wall of the cemetery. The alleged reason for the crack, I must say, is fairly scary.
The wall was built by slaves, as many were in those days, and its construction led to an argument between two of them. The pair had not finished their work for the day, so the overseer, wanting the work complete, left them to complete their task.
After everyone was gone, the two began to quarrel. It was a disagreement that soon became a fight since no one else was in sight. Eventually, one of the slaves picked up a brick and, in the heat of the moment, struck the other in the head - adding another body to the cemetery’s dead.
“What should I do? What will happen to me if they find you,” he thought.
Then an epiphany came to him on that very night.
I know how to keep this body out of sight,” he thought.
He dragged the body over to where the wall was going to be, and he continued on with his chore of laying the bricks for the wall as was meant to be. Once buried under the foundation, the slave told his master his coworker ran away.
Later the wall was completed, separating the living from the departed.
It was a beautiful enclosure and a sturdy wall, everyone was sure. Yet, no sooner had everyone admired the glorious wall, when it started to shift, crack, and crumble.
Years later, after the runaway slave had never again been seen or heard, the bones of this poor soul were discovered. After the bones were taken out, the wall was repaired. But wouldn’t you know, it cracked again – and again.
So the crack in the wall remains, a legend for all in Midway and any who want to see it ... if they dare.
Yes, it is that frightful time of year — the time for tricks and treats that delight our children. So why not start off the month of Halloween with a local legend.
I’m sure many of you have traveled along Highway 17 on the east end of the county and have seen the historic Midway Cemetery. But have you stopped by to see the “crack in the wall?
The crack can be found in the north wall of the cemetery. The alleged reason for the crack, I must say, is fairly scary.
The wall was built by slaves, as many were in those days, and its construction led to an argument between two of them. The pair had not finished their work for the day, so the overseer, wanting the work complete, left them to complete their task.
After everyone was gone, the two began to quarrel. It was a disagreement that soon became a fight since no one else was in sight. Eventually, one of the slaves picked up a brick and, in the heat of the moment, struck the other in the head - adding another body to the cemetery’s dead.
“What should I do? What will happen to me if they find you,” he thought.
Then an epiphany came to him on that very night.
I know how to keep this body out of sight,” he thought.
He dragged the body over to where the wall was going to be, and he continued on with his chore of laying the bricks for the wall as was meant to be. Once buried under the foundation, the slave told his master his coworker ran away.
Later the wall was completed, separating the living from the departed.
It was a beautiful enclosure and a sturdy wall, everyone was sure. Yet, no sooner had everyone admired the glorious wall, when it started to shift, crack, and crumble.
Years later, after the runaway slave had never again been seen or heard, the bones of this poor soul were discovered. After the bones were taken out, the wall was repaired. But wouldn’t you know, it cracked again – and again.
So the crack in the wall remains, a legend for all in Midway and any who want to see it ... if they dare.