Judge Reddicks Tomb
Beaver County Pennsylvania may be home to one of the only men who ever bested the devil. You see, Judge Reddick had hobbies outside of work: horses. He loved his horses and often bragged about them to just about anyone around to listen. Eventually, his bragging reached the devil and that's where this story really starts.
John H. Reddick, who would eventually become Judge Reddick, and finally Old Judge Reddick was a real person. He was born in 1743, near the border of Virginia and Pennsylvania and he eventually settled in Hanover Township. His home was right on the state line between Pennsylvania and Virginia (now West Virginia), just off what is today known as Hardins Run Road.
While little is known about his life, he was a judge from 1804-1830, and he served in both the American Revolution and the War of 1812. One more interesting tidbit we know about him is he identified as a strong abolitionist, and was considered a bit of a radical.
But it’s his after life, or, well, right before his after life where things get really interesting. And that brings us to…horse racing.
Like I mentioned at the start of this blog, it was the track that eventually got Judge Reddick in trouble. On his farm, he built a racetrack where he would race his many stories. His most prized was a white stallion that had yet to be beaten by any other horse. Other horsemen came from all over the state to try their hand at beating Old Judge Reddick but it seemed he couldn't lose. With all this bragging and impressiveness...is it any surprise that the devil himself heard about Judge Reddick and his unbeatable horses? One dark night, the devil arrives at Reddick's farm and challenges him to a race. The bet? Wealth beyond his wildest dreams...or the forfeiture of his immortal soul.
Feeling confident that he would triumph, Reddick accepted the devil’s terms. If you believe any of this, the steed the devil called was quite fearsome. According to those who spoke to Reddick, the horse seemed to have been called directly from the grave. When the race began, Reddick was in the lead but the devil had a trick up his sleeve, or should we say a fire up his snout. When the devilish black horse breathed fire from his mouth it caused Reddick's horse to buck and lose. The devil tipped his hat and vowed to return once the Judge had died.
Judge Reddick wasted no time in trying to find a loophole in the deal he struck. Eventually, he came to a solution and requested that it be carried out as his last will. He requested to be buried across state lines, and that the coffin be open-ended. His grave should also be completely unmarked so that the devil would have even more trouble finding it. The only thing to call attention to was a stone wall, which he believed would keep further evil out. Despite his precautions, the devil had eternity to search and eventually found Reddick's soul. When the devil came to collect, he would roll across the state line and demand extradition papers from Pennsylvania. When the devil returned with the documents, he would roll to Virginia and would request the same. Apparently, there was a statute of limitations (which seems the most far-fetched part of this story) and after going back and forth, the judge was finally able to rest in peace.
Another, slightly different tale, shares that the devil was furious (or perhaps impressed) at the Judge’s solution and instead of truly taking his soul, transformed him into a ghostly white horse that can still be seen racing the old track on his farm.
Others say if you walk around the wall of the unmarked grave, you might just be lucky enough to hear Judge Reddick still rolling back and forth beneath your feet.
You can still find the unmarked grave. It's a short walk off the road leading west from Kendall on Pennsylvania's 168. While the grave remains unmarked, the cut sandstone wall still stands.
Thanks to Michael Kishbucher for this blogstonishing suggestion!
The image is not related to the above story directly and depicts East Hanover Township Dauphin Co PA from I81. It was taken by wikimedia commons user Smallbones.This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.
