11/6/2022 0 Comments Lovers leapWhen exploring the area surrounding Chickies Rock, people report seeing a ghostly Indian figure silently moving through the night on a revengeful mission. Wanunga too has remained forever cursed to haunt the area. Regardless of the version, persistent tales circulate of a Colonial-era dressed white man standing at the summit of Chickies Rock or near the water’s edge below.Įven more frightening are the phantom screams of Wanhuita often heard still today late at night. When she reached the edge of the cliff, rather than be captured, she jumped to her death. In yet another variation of the story, a nameless Indian maiden is being pursued by a group of Indians. Wanunga killed the man and threw his body from the cliff and then grabbed Wanhuita by the arm and dragged her over the edge. The white man who had been watching from the shadows ran to the aid of his love. Flying into a rage, Wanunga attacked Wahuita. Much to his surprise, Wanhuita rejects him confessing her love for a white man from the nearby village. In this telling, Wanunga takes Wanhuita-who he secretly loves-to the top of Chickies Rock to profess his love after a string of recent victories in battle. In another telling of the story, it’s not an affair but unrequited love that brings on the tragic ending. As they plummeted to their deaths on the jagged rocks 200 feet below, Wanhuita’s screams filled the cold night. He grabbed Wanhuita attempting to throw her over the cliff too but in the struggle, they both tumbled off. After slitting the man’s throat, Wanunga cast the rival’s lifeless body off the cliff’s edge.Īs Wanhuita watched her lover tumble into the dark oblivion, she screamed a heartbreaking, “No!” Furious over this final betrayal, Wanunga lunged at his wife. Wanunga flew into a rage, pulled his tomahawk, and ran at the man, catching the white man off guard, Wanunga repeatedly hacked at him. Adding insult to injury, it was a white man. There in the moonlight, Wanuge’s worse fear was realized as he saw his wife in the arms of another man. Staying in the shadows, he followed Wanhuita up the hill to Chickies Rock. One night he observed Wanhuita sneaking out of the longhouse and decided to follow her. He immediately noticed the lack of interest from Wanhuita and became suspicious. Īfter several weeks, Wanuge returned home. The two would sneak off under the cover of darkness to Chickies Rock for secret rendezvouses. One autumn, several men including Wanunga left on an extended trading expedition with far-off tribes. While he was away, Wanunga’s wife became friendly and eventually fell in love with a nearby white settler. In one version of the story, a young Susquehannock Indian named Wanunga lived there with his beautiful wife named Wanhuita. Lover’s LeapĪrguably the most popular myth involving Chickie Rock is the story of Lover’s Leap. Looking up from the bottom of Chickies Rock. The earliest legends involve the Susquehannocks that once lived in the area. The area is filled with century-plus old stories of ghosts, monsters, and even a curse. Today, the park attracts dog walkers, hikers, and picnickers. The name changed from Chickies Creek in 2002. Technically, it is now called Chiques Creek. In fact, the name Chickies Rock comes from the Lenape word Chiquesalunga meaning “place of the crayfish.” There is a nearby stream with the same name. Hundreds of years ago, it attracted Native Americans. The rock and surrounding land seem to possess a certain magnetism. Remnants of furnaces, canal walls, and trolley-line grades are still visible today. The area once boasted seven iron furnaces and rolling mills, a canal, and a trolley line. The vista offers impressive views of York County, the borough of Marietta, and farmlands of northwestern Lancaster County. Its most notable feature is the massive outcropping of quartzite rock towering 200 feet above the river. Located between the boroughs of Columbia and Marietta is Chickies Rock. At over 422 acres, it is the county’s second-largest regional park.
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