As one drives through the Pennsylvanian Dutch country side, people can see that the folk traditions are still alive and well. The telling tale with this is the hex signs painted on the sides of barns. These symbols are not as eerie looking as they may sound; it is really a type of folk art with either stars in circles or an array of different hexagon or octagon shapes. Inside those shapes can be hearts, tulips, trees, birds, or the commonly seen compass roses. The artwork is similar to the patterns one would see on a quilt. There is a controversy over whether or not the Pennsylvanian Dutch actually believed in any magical properties attributed to the signs or if they are for decorative purposes only to make their barns look as charming as their houses. Out of this pow-wow tradition also a rose a fear of the unknown by those who were superstitious and unaccustomed to the Pennsylvanian Dutch customs.
At a time just before the Great Depression, those fears came to fruition for one York County trio; and the target was a man by the name of Nelson Rehmeyer. Rehmeyer was considered by the locals to be a practitioner of pow-wow medicine, a healer in a way. As far as Milton J. Hess, John Curry, and John Blymire believed, Mr. Rehmeyer was dabbling in witchcraft and had hexed the three of them. So, on a cold November night, right before Thanksgiving, in 1928, the three went to Rehmeyer’s isolated farmhouse in Stewartstown, in the southern part of the county. The plan was to take a lock of his hair, which was to buried six feet under; and a copy of John George Hohman’s book, the ‘Long Lost Friend;’ a textbook for pow-wowers. It was believed by the three that by using the hair and the book, they could break the spell that had been placed upon them. At some point in time after their arrival, their plan went horribly awry and they brutally murdered Nelson Rehmeyer by beating him to death. The poor man likely suffered greatly before his death.
After he was certainly dead, the three set fire to his body; which did not burn completely. The cause of which was cited by two theories: one that involved the hounds of hell and the other said that his bladder burst. When a neighbor later found the victim’s body, a fierce investigation followed and the three perpetrators were quickly arrested and given an expedited trial. The trial became a national sensation with York County being called the, “Cockpit of witchcraft.” Blymire’s attorney, future Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice Herbert Cohen, pushed for an insanity defense. But, the final headline of the trial read, "Belief in witchcraft not insanity, judge rules ... ." Blymire and Curry were found guilty and received life sentences for first degree murder. Wilbert Hess was found guilty of second degree murder and received a ten-year prison sentence. Hess’ attorney, Harvey Gross, through a rather skillful argument, that his client never had any intention to murder the victim. He was only a pawn in the other’s more malicious intentions.
Though the men involved in the pow-wow practitioners death wanted to vilify him in court; there were plenty of other York County natives who were willing to jump to the deceased defense. They also sighted that the man had been given a Christian burial; which if he was really a witch that would not have happened. Today, Rehmeyer’s body is located in the St. John “Sadler’s” Lutheran Church in the Stewartstown/Shrewsbury area. Descendants of Nelson Rehmeyer believe that the witchcraft story that the men implored for their trial was one of fiction. They believe that the true cause of the home invasion was simply robbery. No matter what the people of the current age think; the witchcraft trial of York County is a black mark on its history.
The media made York County out to be a haven for those who wished to practice the dark arts; which is simply not true by any stretch of the imagination. However, there was a benefit to the trial and that was that justice was carried through to the end.
Is Hex Hollow haunted? A lot of the locals believe it to be. I cannot say for sure myself since I have never been there to investigate it. At one time, the owners of the property made quite an effort to keep people away from the house; although the murder victim is said to wander around the hollow itself, not just the house. The owners went as far as to have trespasses prosecuted for breaking into the property. Recently, however, the murder house has been transformed into a haunted attraction for spectators to go to the house around Halloween.
McClure, James. “Jim McClure: Hex Murder a spooky bit of York County’s past.” York Daily Record. http://www.ydr.com/ci_21862424/jim-mcclure-hex-murder-spooky-bit-york-countys# Updated: 10-26-2012. Accessed 5/31/14.
Rehmeyer’s Hollow, York County, Pa.” Pennsylvania Dutch Hex Murder. Crime Library. http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/classics/haunted_places/11.html accessed 5/31/14. Accessed 5/31/14.
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