Everything OddWay knows about. Narrow it down by what you're after, or where you're going.
Stories a place tells about itself, passed down and still repeated.
Cutchogue, NY
Long Island tradition claimed Benjamin Franklin personally placed this stone mileage marker while serving as colonial postmaster in the 1750s. Later research indicates the marker was probably installed in the early nineteenth century, but the Franklin story endured for generations and is now explained by a Legends & Lore marker beside Route 25.
Chincoteague, VA
Marguerite Henry's 1947 book Misty of Chincoteague turned the island's pony culture and the real mare Misty into an enduring American children's legend. A bronze Misty statue donated in 2006 stands along Main Street, giving visitors a physical stop connected to both the famous book and Chincoteague's pony tradition.
Mobile, AL
Mobile’s museum of Carnival preserves elaborate royal costumes, floats, masks and material from the city’s long Mardi Gras tradition. Exhibits emphasize the secret societies, pageantry and ritual structure behind one of America’s oldest Carnival cultures.
Leonardtown, MD
Local legend says Moll Dyer was driven from her home on a freezing night in the late 1600s after townspeople accused her of witchcraft, and that her frozen body was later found against a large rock. The stone associated with the story was moved in 2021 to Tudor Hall, where it is displayed outside the St. Mary's County Historical Society.
North Rose, NY
During the 1830s, spirit mediums supposedly led groups into this area to dig for buried gold and jewels revealed by supernatural guidance. The legend held that everyone had to remain completely silent while digging or evil spirits would appear and the treasure would vanish; a marker now stands near Galen and Lasher roads.
Murphy, NC
The Cherokee County Historical Museum displays a small ancient soapstone figure popularly linked to the legend of the Moon-Eyed People, a mysterious group said in later folklore to have lived in the Appalachian region before Cherokee settlement. The artifact is real; its connection to the legendary people is speculative. Museum: https://www.cherokeecounty-nc.gov/183/Historical-Museum
Mooresville, IN
Stop on Gravity Hill, outside Mooresville, put the car in neutral, and it appears to roll uphill. The slope is an illusion — the surrounding land hides the true horizon, so a gentle descent reads as a climb — which has never once stopped anyone trying it with a bottle of water. A public road, so pull over sensibly and watch for traffic.
Frederica, DE
Mordington is tied to a grim local story about an enslaved girl remembered in folklore as Tom’s daughter, whose spirit was later said to haunt the property. Delaware archival materials preserve the story as part of the site’s local tradition. The historic house is private, so OddWay routing should keep visitors to public roads only.
Hampton, NH
The old Moulton property is connected to one of Hampton's most enduring legends: General Jonathan Moulton supposedly promised the Devil his soul in exchange for having his boots filled with gold, then tried to cheat the bargain by cutting holes in the boots. Later versions of the tale add a mysterious fire and the disappearance of Moulton's wife. The surviving property is private, so view only from lawful public areas. Secondary source: https://www.hampton.lib.nh.us/hampton/history/moulton/legend.htm
Mount Horeb, WI
Mount Horeb has filled its downtown with carved trolls inspired by Scandinavian folklore, earning the nickname Troll Capital of the World. The figures line the Trollway and turn an ordinary Main Street stroll into a scavenger hunt of wooden creatures.
Cripple Creek, CO
A high-elevation cemetery filled with mining-era graves overlooking Cripple Creek. Local ghost stories and dramatic headstones make it an atmospheric stop, but cemetery etiquette and daylight access should govern visits.
Mount Shasta, CA
Spring water emerging at the Sacramento River headwaters has accumulated spiritual and New Age significance around Mount Shasta, alongside the site's ordinary public-park use.
Ocotillo, CA
Stop on the Mountain Springs Road off-ramp from I-8 westbound, put the car in neutral, and it appears to roll uphill. The slope is an illusion — the surrounding land hides the true horizon, so a gentle descent reads as a climb — which has never once stopped anyone trying it with a bottle of water. A public road, so pull over sensibly and watch for traffic.
Sugar Loaf, NY
Local folklore remembers Elizabeth Dobbin, a widow who supposedly lived alone near Sugar Loaf Mountain in the late 1700s and was accused by nearby villagers of practicing witchcraft. A Legends & Lore marker now marks the area associated with the Mountain Witch story.
Hilo, HI
A large sacred stone displayed outside Hilo Public Library is tied to chiefly genealogy and to the tradition that a young Kamehameha moved the stone, fulfilling a prophecy of future power. It should be treated as a cultural object, not climbed on or handled for photographs.
North Kingstown, RI
This large inscribed boulder generated theories involving Vikings, Norse explorers and even the Knights Templar after its markings became widely known in the twentieth century. Its true origin remains unresolved, and the state recovered the stone after it was removed from Narragansett Bay in 2012. It is now displayed publicly in Wickford at 55 Brown Street. Secondary source: https://www.ri.gov/press/view/19214
Moreno Valley, CA
Stop on Nason Street, heading south just past Elder, put the car in neutral, and it appears to roll uphill. The slope is an illusion — the surrounding land hides the true horizon, so a gentle descent reads as a climb — which has never once stopped anyone trying it with a bottle of water. A public road, so pull over sensibly and watch for traffic.
Chester, NY
Local legend says Nathaniel Knapp killed a bear here around 1750 using only a knife and later asked to be buried at the site. The marker stands at Knapp's View, a public passive park with walking and picnic access, though no confirmed grave marker for Knapp survives.
New Harmony, IN
The Harmonists who founded New Harmony in the early nineteenth century used a labyrinth as a spiritual symbol of the difficult path toward enlightenment. Today's hedge labyrinth recreates that tradition around a small temple and is open to visitors year-round without admission.
New Orleans, LA
A compact French Quarter museum devoted to New Orleans Voodoo history, ritual objects, altars, art and local traditions. It is one of the city's longest-running visitor sites focused specifically on Voodoo.
Jackson, NJ
Stop on New Prospect Road, put the car in neutral, and it appears to roll uphill. The slope is an illusion — the surrounding land hides the true horizon, so a gentle descent reads as a climb — which has never once stopped anyone trying it with a bottle of water. A public road, so pull over sensibly and watch for traffic.
Newport, RI
The circular stone tower in Touro Park has inspired centuries of speculation about Vikings, medieval explorers and other pre-Columbian visitors to New England. Archaeological and historical evidence instead strongly connects it to a seventeenth-century windmill associated with Governor Benedict Arnold. The competing theories have made it one of Rhode Island's longest-running historical mysteries.
Gadsden, AL
A 90-foot waterfall is paired with the long-told legend of Noccalula, a young Cherokee woman said to have leapt from the cliff rather than accept an unwanted marriage. The story is folklore, while the waterfall and statue provide a concrete public destination.
Prosser, WA
Stop on North Crosby Road, northeast of town, put the car in neutral, and it appears to roll uphill. The slope is an illusion — the surrounding land hides the true horizon, so a gentle descent reads as a climb — which has never once stopped anyone trying it with a bottle of water. A public road, so pull over sensibly and watch for traffic.
