Rehmeyer's Hollow
Encyclopedia
Rehmeyer's Hollow, also known as Hex Hollow, is located in Central Pennsylvania
(York County
) near the Maryland
border. The area was brought to national attention by a murder that occurred there in 1928. The name of the hollow was later changed to Spring Valley County Park.
doctor—or Pennsylvania Dutch
witch -- had, for years, been suffering from illness and bad luck. When another pow-wow doctor, Nellie Noll (the River Witch of Marietta), told him he had come under the hex of witch doctor Nelson D. Rehmeyer, Blymire decided to retaliate by breaking into Rehmeyer's home in search of a book of spells. Noll also informed Blymire that burning the book or burying a lock of Rehmeyer's hair would remove the Hex. Upon arrival to his farm house in North Hopewell Township, they encountered Rehmeyer himself.
Blymire and his two young accomplices (John Curry and Wilbert Hess) murdered, mutilated, and then burned Rehmeyer's body. The murder took place exactly one minute past midnight on November 28, 1928. They were unsuccessful in locating his copy of Long Lost Friend, however, Blymire felt the hex lifted when Rehmeyer died. In the trial that followed, the country was shocked to learn of the existence of 20th-century witchcraft, especially in quiet York County, Pennsylvania
.
Rehmeyer's house where he was murdered still stands on Rehmeyer's Hollow Road. Many locals believe it to be haunted
. Teenagers can usually be found down in the hollow legend tripping
.
The property is currently undergoing approval for "National Historical Monument".
It is currently owned and maintained by his great grandson, Ricky Ebaugh.
wrote two novels loosely-based on Rehmeyer's Hollow and the region's powwow magic: Dark Hollow (2007) and Ghost Walk (2008).
Horrorcore rapper Hex of the group L.U.Cipha/1134 Productions recorded an E.P. called "Hex Hollow" based on the events.
Power metal band Walküre wrote a song titled "Fire and Smoke" about the Nelson Rehmeyer story.
Apprentice to Murder, a film starring Donald Sutherland, was based on the events.
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
(York County
York County, Pennsylvania
York County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2010, the population was 434,972. It is in the Susquehanna Valley, a large fertile agricultural region in South Central Pennsylvania....
) near the Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
border. The area was brought to national attention by a murder that occurred there in 1928. The name of the hollow was later changed to Spring Valley County Park.
The Murder of Nelson Rehmeyer
John H. Blymire, a pow-wowPow-wow (folk magic)
Pow-wow is a system of American folk religion and magic associated with the Pennsylvania Dutch.-Origin of the name and practices:Its name comes from the book Pow-wows, or, The Long Lost Friend, written by John George Hohman and first published in German as Der Lange Verborgene Freund in 1820...
doctor—or Pennsylvania Dutch
Pennsylvania Dutch
Pennsylvania Dutch refers to immigrants and their descendants from southwestern Germany and Switzerland who settled in Pennsylvania in the 17th and 18th centuries...
witch -- had, for years, been suffering from illness and bad luck. When another pow-wow doctor, Nellie Noll (the River Witch of Marietta), told him he had come under the hex of witch doctor Nelson D. Rehmeyer, Blymire decided to retaliate by breaking into Rehmeyer's home in search of a book of spells. Noll also informed Blymire that burning the book or burying a lock of Rehmeyer's hair would remove the Hex. Upon arrival to his farm house in North Hopewell Township, they encountered Rehmeyer himself.
Blymire and his two young accomplices (John Curry and Wilbert Hess) murdered, mutilated, and then burned Rehmeyer's body. The murder took place exactly one minute past midnight on November 28, 1928. They were unsuccessful in locating his copy of Long Lost Friend, however, Blymire felt the hex lifted when Rehmeyer died. In the trial that followed, the country was shocked to learn of the existence of 20th-century witchcraft, especially in quiet York County, Pennsylvania
York County, Pennsylvania
York County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2010, the population was 434,972. It is in the Susquehanna Valley, a large fertile agricultural region in South Central Pennsylvania....
.
Rehmeyer's house where he was murdered still stands on Rehmeyer's Hollow Road. Many locals believe it to be haunted
Haunted house
A haunted house is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were familiar with the property...
. Teenagers can usually be found down in the hollow legend tripping
Legend tripping
Legend tripping, also known as ostension, is a name recently bestowed by folklorists and anthropologists on an adolescent practice in which a usually furtive nocturnal pilgrimage is made to a site which is alleged to have been the scene of some tragic, horrific, and possibly supernatural event or...
.
The property is currently undergoing approval for "National Historical Monument".
It is currently owned and maintained by his great grandson, Ricky Ebaugh.
Cultural references
Central Pennsylvania-based novelist Brian KeeneBrian Keene
Brian Keene is an American author, primarily of horror, crime fiction, and comic books. He has won two Bram Stoker Awards.- Background :Keene was born in 1967. He grew up in both Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and many of his books take place in these locales. After graduating high school, he...
wrote two novels loosely-based on Rehmeyer's Hollow and the region's powwow magic: Dark Hollow (2007) and Ghost Walk (2008).
Horrorcore rapper Hex of the group L.U.Cipha/1134 Productions recorded an E.P. called "Hex Hollow" based on the events.
Power metal band Walküre wrote a song titled "Fire and Smoke" about the Nelson Rehmeyer story.
Apprentice to Murder, a film starring Donald Sutherland, was based on the events.