Talk:Elakala Falls

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A fact from Elakala Falls appeared on Wikipedia's Main Page in the Did you know column on 1 July 2010 (check views). The text of the entry was as follows:

Did you know... that Elakala Falls (pictured) may derive its name from the legend of Elakala, the story of a Native American princess who threw herself over the edge of the first waterfall when her lover scorned her?

A record of the entry may be seen at Wikipedia:Recent additions/2010/July.

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History of Tucker County, Page 598

A legend connected with the Falls of Elakala is that a Massawomee Indian warrior, named Elakala, was so girl shy it was an overpowering obsession, and in trying to escape from two Indian maidens who were pursuing him he ran too near the brink of the falls on Shays Run and fell to his death on the rocks below. As punishment for their rash act, the two maidens were banished from the tribe, went north and were acepted in the Seneca Tribe, where they married and reared families. Their sons, learning of their mothers' banishment, sought revenge on the Massawomees. They organized a war party of Senecas, marched south, annihilated the entire Massawomee Tribe, and returned with their scalps. According to the legend this conquest accounts for the extinction of the Massawomees, and the naming of the route of the march The Seneca Trail. (Related to this writer by Beatrice Mildred (Curry) Spitzer, wife of the Superintendent of Blackwater Falls State Park.)

Fansler, Homer (1962). History of Tucker County, West Virginia. McClain Print. Co., page 598

This quote from the book does not match the other source for this legend. Should we take this quote (which is a footnote for the name of the falls) in the book, over the website? Fansler was considered an expert of the county, but this seems to be a second-hand story hes putting into a footnote. — raeky ^{(talk | edits)} 17:12, 25 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Mention both in the article. E.g., "Various explanations have been provided for the name of the waterfall series. XXX says....On the other hand, YYY says...." cmadler (talk) 17:25, 25 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Should we use this as the DYK hook? It is fairly interesting, although the whole idea of the Massawomees tribe being wiped out because of it is quite far fetched, maybe an encampment but both tribes was quite large.. — raeky ^{(talk | edits)} 17:27, 25 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

I added the account, not sure on the wording, I didn't mention anything about the sons and slaughter part, since that seems a bit more far fetched and not directly related to the naming of the falls... — raeky ^{(talk | edits)} 17:35, 25 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

The figure of the "lovelorn princess" securely identified this tale as European and 19th century. The earliest mention of Elakala Falls or its first appearance on a map might be identified.--Wetman (talk) 21:00, 1 July 2010 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not sure where to look up something like that? I don't live very far from Tucker County, just not sure if any libraries around here would have references like that. — raeky ^{(talk | edits)} 21:23, 1 July 2010 (UTC)[reply]

File:Elakala Waterfalls Swirling Pool Mossy Rocks.jpg to appear as POTD soon

Hello! This is a note to let the editors of this article know that File:Elakala Waterfalls Swirling Pool Mossy Rocks.jpg will be appearing as picture of the day on January 29, 2012. You can view and edit the POTD blurb at Template:POTD/2012-01-29. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page so Wikipedia doesn't look bad. :) Thanks! —howcheng {chat} 07:40, 26 January 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Picture of the day

The first and most-visited of the four Elakala Falls located in Blackwater Falls State Park, West Virginia, US. The Blackwater River, named for its tannic acid-darkened water, flows over the falls as it makes its way into the rugged Blackwater Canyon.Photo: ForestWander Nature Photography

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A well-worn topos

"According to one account it involves a princess named Elakala who threw herself over the edge of the first waterfall when her lover scorned her" This is threadbare and White American in origin: "princess" of course is the give-away here. Too bad to see this stuff in Wikipedia.--Wetman (talk) 03:57, 29 January 2012 (UTC)[reply]

That's what the source says... obviously it's a made-up story, and I think the article makes a good point that it's unlikely to be true. What would you suggest the article say? — raeky t 23:20, 16 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

@Raeky White mans legend has it....... 132.147.5.182 (talk) 22:45, 28 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]