Susan Fair (Books)

Susan Fair Books

Susan Fair is most at home exploring the intersections of the weird and the historical. Her writing stems from a background in public library work and adventures that have included stints at peculiar museums and encounters with ghost hunters and monster trackers. She is drawn to the exploration of the unexplained and the peculiar, weaving narratives that often balance fact with folklore. Fair excels at unearthing fascinating stories from the less-traveled corners of history and local lore.

Mysteries and Lore of Western Maryland: Snallygasters, Dogmen and Other Mountain Tales

128 pages
5 hours of reading

3.9(29)Add rating

In the shadows of the quiet mountain towns of Western Maryland, strange creatures are said to lurk in the woods while phantoms wander the foothills. The Hagerstown clock tower is reportedly haunted by the ghost of a young artist killed during the Civil War, while the low summit of South Mountain was once host to a mysterious spell-caster, the Wizard Zittle. Farther west, tales of legendary hunter Meshach Browning echo among the Allegany Mountains while visitors to Deep Creek Lake may feel the chilling presence of monks who never left their former monastery. From the 1909 hoax of the monstrous Snallygaster that terrorized the Middletown Valley to the doglike Dwayyo that was spotted near Frederick in 1965, local historian Susan Fair rounds up the bizarre beasts, odd characters and unsolved mysteries that color the legends and lore of Western Maryland.