ChessieWriter

It’s a rock formation on top of Buck Mountain, not far from Eckley Miners’ Village in northeastern Pennsylvania.

There are many outcroppings of rock, but this particular one is unmistakable—it’s literally a stone couch sitting near the edge of the road. Whether it’s a natural phenomenon or the creation of humans is unknown.

Five newspaper articles were found about the Stone Couch—1991, 2004, 2014, 2019, and 2021, all published in Hazleton’s Standard-Speaker newspaper, except the 2014 article which was found in the Times-News of Lehighton.

The Legend (version 1): In the newspaper articles above there are two different versions of the legend that caused the curse. In the first version, a woman is travelling along the road with her baby and sits on the couch to rest. When she looks down at her baby, she realizes that it’s dead.

In three of the articles, the grieving mother was Native American who then put a curse on the couch. In the fourth article (2019), the woman was waiting for a stagecoach with her sick baby, and when she discovered the baby was dead, killed herself.

The Legend (version/part 2): This part of the legend was found in the 2014 and 2021 articles and is said to have occurred during the 1918 flu pandemic. The following is from the 2014 article: “…a few boulders…were moved into perfect position by a man who wanted to provide a resting place for his sick family members…the man was driving his family to the nearest doctor in Weatherly [when his car broke down]…The man was forced to continue afoot, leaving his family behind…Many hours later, the man returned with a doctor. But it was too late…” The article says that “…the man’s tortured spirit wanders the woods around Buck Mountain…”

The Curse: The curse always has three parts to it and refers to sitting on the Stone Couch. Below are what was found in the different newspaper articles:

1991: “…the first time you sit on it, you’ll wreck your car. The second time, you’ll break a limb, and the third, you’ll die…”

2004: “…if someone sits on the couch once they get scratched, twice they bleed and thrice they die…”

2014: “…Legend says if you sit on the couch once, you’ll encounter bad luck or see scratches on your skin. Sit on it twice, and someone you know will die. Sit on it a third time, and you will die…”

2019: “…if you sit on the couch once, you will get scratched. If you sit on it twice, something bad will happen to someone close to you. If you sit on it a third time, you will die…”

2021: “…if you sit on it once, mysterious scratch marks appear on your body. Sit on it twice and a loved one dies. Sit on it three times, and you die…”

According to the 2014 article, glowing orbs have appeared in photos taken at the location. Locals have seen a ghostly figure walking along the road, while others have seen headlights that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. There are tales of misfortunes occurring to those who were bold enough to sit or lie on the Stone Couch.

Have I been to Buck Mountain and seen the Stone Couch, you may ask? Many times. Have I sat on it? Nope.