Leonardtown in St. Mary's County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
The Legend of Moll Dyer
Photographed by Sean C Bath, November 28, 2021
1. The Legend of Moll Dyer Marker
An elderly, single, migrant to St. Mary's County, Moll Dyer lived alone in a small cabin just south of Leonardtown. Known to practice strange customs, concoct herbal medicines, and suspected of casting spells, Dyer was viewed with suspicion and often fear by County residents. Whenever disease, a bad harvest, or an unexpected death happened, fingers pointed at Moll Dyer. Considered a witch, no one in the county could muster the courage to confront her, fearful of her anger, wrath, and her sorceress's evil eye.
It was during the harsh winter of 1697/1698 that disease (probably influenza) tore through the county leaving a path of sickness and death. Townsfolk again pointed at Moll Dyer as the cause of their wretchedness. In desperation, on an extremely cold February night, an angry mob marched to her hut and set it ablaze. Escaping both fire and mob, Dyer fled into the nearby woods. Days later she was found dead, frozen tightly to the rock that rests before you here. Prying loose her body, impressions of her hand and knee were sunken into the stone's surface. They are seen as a lasting curse on all who had persecuted
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Approach the Moll Dyer Rock with caution!
Its curse is whispered to linger, causing injury, illness and even camera failure if touched by any mortal. all because of Moll Dyer's vengeance on that cold night in February 1698.
In 1968, newspaperman Philip Cove found the Rock, In October, 1972, the National Guard moved the 875-pound boulder from the woods placing it next to the Old Jail in Leonardtown. There it remained for nearly fifty years until it was cautiously moved to the grounds of Tudor Hall, home of the St. Mary's County Historical Society, in February of 2021.
Moll Dyer Image By Maria Breidenbach Holmes Text By Lynn J. Buonviri, author, "Moll Dyer and Other Witch Tales of Southern Maryland" www.stmaryshistory.org
Erected 2021 by St. Mary's County Historical Society.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Colonial Era • Law Enforcement • Women. A significant historical month for this entry is February 1698.
Location. 38° 17.303′ N,
Regionally, this marker is in Southern Maryland. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, in the Mid-Atlantic, in the Tidewater, in the Chesapeake Bay Region, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies and also the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Tudor Hall (a few steps from this marker); War Comes to Breton Bay (within shouting distance of this marker); "O! say can you see " (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); A Town Spared (about 300 feet away); War in the Chesapeake (about 300 feet away); This Cannon (about 600 feet away); Lynching in America / Lynching of Benjamin Hance (about 700 feet away); Leonardtown (about 700 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Leonardtown.
Additional keywords. haunted
Credits. This page was last revised on April 17, 2026. It was originally submitted on December 2, 2021, by Sean C Bath of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 1,963 times since then and 94 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on December 2, 2021, by Sean C Bath of Silver Spring, Maryland. 2. submitted on April 17, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
