Looking for Local Folklore

[Coír Draoi Ceítien]

Practically every place in the world has a story, ever nook and cranny having some dark shadow behind it. Manly Wade Wellman, one of the most respected writers in fantasy and horror, told tales based on the collective folklore of the Appalachian region. I'll bet that somewhere where you are right now has some good fantastic story to tell.

Anyone have any bits of folklore about their native region that they'd like to share? Any strange/creepy tales or pieces of myth that have caught your ears over time? What fantastic stories can be told about the good old American land?

[Raven]

My local area has lots of folklore -- lots. I'm actually going to be releasing a book shortly that features some of it. Probably the most freaky tale of my region is the tale of Marrow Road (which will be a give away to what region I'm from). There are others, such as the story of Puttygut Bridge. That's another ghost story. Which reminds me of the Ghost with the Bloody Fingers.  Of course, there are many other supernatural type stories I could relate, but I'm uncomfortable doing so because of the nature of the stories and that I'm not comfortable saying that they're strictly legends/folklore and devoid of truth. Then there are the legends about the bootlegging days along the river.


The greater region as a whole (The Great Lakes) contains huge amounts of folklore in all varieties, from Native American to European transplants to Seafaring to lumberjacking, etc. I've done a lot of research and reading into that stuff, but I'll stick to very local in this thread.

[Coír Draoi Ceítien]

I'd love to hear them. Is there any particular place where I can find them? Such as for the ones you're uncomfortable with? I understand your hesitation, but I'd still like to see them for myself, as, however truthful or not they are, they could lend themselves to germination of story ideas. And I love me a good supernatural story. Caution is advised, of course, and I'll be careful.

As for the greater region, I'd be perfectly fine with you sharing them here, as the term "local" can have a broad meaning, referring to either "from Michigan" (where I am now) or simply "from America in general as opposed to Europe and the Old World." I'm eager to find out more of the Great Lakes folklore as a whole. Where do you suggest I do research if I want to find it? I want to start getting story ideas. Any reference material available, such as books or online sites, will do.

[Raven]

If you're wanting to delve into Michigan's folklore, I'd recommend starting with Richard Dorson's book Bloodstoppers and Bearwalkers: Folk Traditions of Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
https://www.amazon.com/Bloodstoppers-Bearwalkers-Traditions-Michigans-Peninsula/dp/0299227146

As for some other stuff, lots of resources on the Michigan Dogman, Marrow Road, and even the Puttygut Bridge ghost can be found online. The The stuff I didn't want to get into is based on the experiences of people I actually know and I won't disclose.
There are lots of Native American beliefs, as well, that are fascinating from the angle of stories but also not things I'd mess around with due to the spiritual nature of the stories (including Bearwalks and Wendigo, which are very serious topics among Native People to this day).
You can also check out Weird Michigan: http://www.weirdmichigan.com/
There's a book that I have of the same name.

Of course in Detroit there is the legend of the Nain Rouge: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nain_Rouge

There are lots of collections of Native American traditional stories. I have at least one good collection in my pile of folklore books. Don't know which box all that's in at the moment.
And like I said, the lumberjacks and Great Lakes sailors had plenty of their own stories, and some big figures in American folklore include Paul Bunyan and Johnny Appleseed (the later being a real historical figure).

[Coír Draoi Ceítien]

Thanks for that! It's great for stories. I can't make any promises that I'd do anything with it, but if I ever wanted to write stories, that's the stuff I'd use for inspiration and reference.

I didn't know the uncomfortable stuff was privately and personally related. Sorry. I won't bug you any further about it.

Native American beliefs are so anthropologically fascinating to me. I don't want to dabble in the occult, of course, but I'd love to know more of their spiritual sides, if only to try to understand them more fully. I know a bit about the Wendigo, which has made numerous appearances in fiction - it's a great story subject.

I can only hope that I can get as much information as you have. I know I haven't traveled like you have, and I never will, but I would just love knowing all those stories. I don't want to dictate how you should write, but maybe you could make it a full project someday, collecting and sharing all the folklore that you've acquired in your experiences. Just a thought.

[Raven]

Most of the actual folklore fieldwork I have done is in the realm of music, not so much storytelling. I have been thinking about one day writing a fantasy series set in Port Huron, Lake St. Clair, Detroit, etc. I think it would be quite interesting to set a story there and incorporate some of the old legends.

The thing about Native American stories is that they still have a lot of real influence on the lives of native people, and it is important to be very respectful. Remember, some of these things aren't just campfire tales to the native people.