Near Smoot in Greenbrier County, West Virginia — The American South (Appalachia)

Greenbrier Ghost

Photographed By Forest McDermott, July 20, 2008

1. Greenbrier Ghost Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

Interred in nearby cemetery is Zona Heaster Shue. Her death in 1897 was presumed natural until her spirit appeared to her mother to describe how she was killed by her husband Edward. Autopsy on the exhumed body verified the apparition's account. Edward, found guilty of murder, was sentenced to the state prison. Only known case in which testimony from ghost helped convict a murderer.

Erected 1991 by West Virginia Department of Culture and History.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Anthropology & Archaeology • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Law Enforcement • Women. In addition, it is included in the Believe It or Not, and the West Virginia Archives and History series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1897.

Location. 37° 54.104′ N, 80° 37.962′ W. Marker is near Smoot, West Virginia, in Greenbrier County. Marker is on Midland Trail W Road (U.S. 60) 0.1 miles south of Exit 156 - Sam Black Church exit (Interstate 64), on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Smoot WV 24977, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers

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are within 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Sam Black Church (approx. ¼ mile away); Maxon Sand (approx. 3.8 miles away); Rupert (approx. 4.1 miles away); Blue Sulphur Springs Confederate Burial Ground (approx. 4.9 miles away); The Pavilion (approx. 5.1 miles away); Blue Sulphur Springs, WV (approx. 5.1 miles away); Andrew & Charles Lewis March (approx. 5.4 miles away); Unknown Soldiers/ Gen. Lewis' Trace (approx. 7 miles away).

Also see . . . The full tale of West Virginia’s remarkable Greenbrier Ghost. Excerpt:

Musty reports, yellow with age, are on file in the ancient, historic courthouse at Lewisburg to prove it. This remarkable woman, the records reveal, had four separate and distinct dreams. In each of them, her daughter arose from the grave to tell and actually describe how she had been murdered. "Fantastic" is a poor description, but those dreams convicted Edward S. Shue of murder in the first degree.

(Submitted on May 6, 2022.)

Additional keywords. Ghosts

Photographed By Forest McDermott, July 20, 2008

2. Greenbrier Ghost Marker

Photo taken looking east on U.S. Route 60 toward Sam Black Church.

Photographed By Forest McDermott, May 26, 2012

3. Greenbrier Ghost Marker

Looking west on U.S. Route 60 with the entrance ramps for Interstate 64 in the background at the Sam Black Church exit.

Elva Zona Heaster (1873–1897) image. Click for full size.

By unknown photographer, (Public Domain) via Wikimedia Commons

4. Elva Zona Heaster (1873–1897)

The murder victim.

Credits. This page was last revised on May 8, 2022. It was originally submitted on December 10, 2011, by Forest McDermott of Masontown, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 1,875 times since then and 366 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 10, 2011, by Forest McDermott of Masontown, Pennsylvania. 3. submitted on May 28, 2012, by Forest McDermott of Masontown, Pennsylvania. 4. submitted on May 6, 2022, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.