- Nothing makes for a good story like a nice curse.
Curses are a staple of stories worldwide. From the curse of King Tut’s tomb to the 27 Club, many of these legends are famous all over the globe.
That said, local stories always tend to hit harder than those from exotic and strange places. That’s probably because we can easily imagine ourselves being on the receiving end of the curse — or we might even be able to visit the supposedly cursed site.
American folklore is full of stories of curses laid down by Native Americans, Louisiana’s voodoo priests, and slighted white pioneers alike. Here are six examples of American curses.
1. The Curse of Brunswick Springs
Brunswick Springs is a unique site in Vermont, where eight streams of different mineral-laden waters flow out from a single spring. The local Abenaki People hold the spring sacred, stating its waters have healing powers — or at least they used to.
According to the story, the Abenaki brought a soldier wounded in the French and Indian War to Brunswick Springs, where the water mystically healed his injuries. Thinking he could make a fortune with the magic waters, the soldier later returned to bottle the water.
The Abenaki objected, and things turned violent. In the ensuing fight, the soldier killed an Abenaki man and child.
Struck with grief, the wife and mother of the dead man and child cursed the springs to bring misfortune to anyone trying to profit from them. The curse seems to work — three resort hotels built around the springs have been destroyed in fires and other incidents.
2. Marie Laveau’s Cursed Tomb
Marie Laveau was a famous voodoo queen in 19th-century New Orleans, rumored to be capable of healing, clairvoyance, and many other things. No one knows for certain where she was buried after she died in 1881, but the common belief is that she rests in the Glapion family crypt in Saint Louis Cemetery No. 1.
Well, “rest” is a relative term. After all, you can’t expect a mere grave to hold a voodoo queen, can you?
Laveau is said to still bestow her blessings and curses from within the mausoleum if you manage to earn her favor. You should follow certain rituals when asking Laveau for something, and you’d better not forget to bring a gift if your request is granted.
Otherwise, the dead voodoo queen and her black pet snake Zombi might drop by for a visit.
3. Dudleytown
Dudleytown is an abandoned, ruined village in Connecticut. It’s no wonder no one lives at the site anymore, considering it’s nicknamed the Village of the Damned.
It’s all due to the curse hanging over the Dudley family. The legend says British nobleman Edmund Dudley was beheaded for treason during the reign of Henry VII, and the family has been cursed ever since.
After the Dudleys settled in Connecticut, nothing but misery befell their village. Their crops died, villagers went insane, and people simply dropped dead for seemingly no reason.
Eventually, the last member of the Dudley family died, but the curse still lingered in the village. Dudleytown finally became a ghost town by the 20th century.
4. Clawson’s Curse
In 1661, a Native American man called Waumaion attacked John Clawson, a settler in Providence, Rhode Island. Waumaion’s ax split Clawson’s chin and chest open, leaving him to die in barberry bush.
Unlike what you might expect, Clawson didn’t blame Waumaion for his oncoming death. Instead, he believed his rival, Benjamin Herendeen, had hired the Native American to kill him.
With his last strength, Clawson is said to have placed a curse on the Herendeen family. He wished for their children to be born with cleft chins and their lands to be overgrown with barberry.
We can’t say whether the barberry part of the curse came true. But Herendeen family histories do reveal a disturbing prevalence of cleft chins in their lineage.
5. The Curse of Chocorua
Chocorua is said to have been a chief of a band of Pequawket Native Americans. In 1772, he became such good friends with a settler called Cornelius Campbell that he allowed the man to look after his child when Chocorua was traveling.
Unfortunately, the child drank poison Campbell kept for foxes, which prompted a declaration of vengeance from Chocorua. When Campbell later found his wife and children killed, well, he of course blamed the chieftain.
The story states Campbell chased Chocorua up a mountain (known today as Mount Chocorua) before wounding him with a rifle shot. Realizing he was going to die, Chocorua jumped off a cliff, but not before cursing Campbell.
“May the Great Spirit curse you when he speaks in the clouds and his words are fire! Lightning blast your crops! Wind and fire destroy your homes! The Evil One breathe death on your cattle!” he supposedly yelled before throwing himself down the mountain.
6. The Thrice-Cursed Charles Island
Charles Island in Connecticut just might be the most cursed place in all of the U.S. After all, how many other locations can boast about having three curses on them?
The first curse is once again rumored to have been placed by Native Americans who held the island sacred. Their curse brings misfortune to anyone settling on Charles Island and—sure enough—the place has never been successfully settled.
The second curse comes from the famous pirate William Kidd, who is said to have buried treasure on Charles Island before getting caught and executed. If anyone tries to find his booty, horrible things will happen to them.
Finally, we have a legend of gold stolen Aztecs that five sailors buried on the island. The gold carries with it Emperor Guatmozin’s curse, though, so trying to find it is probably not a good idea either.