Regional Folktales

Northwest

• Coyote and the Columbia
  The origins of the Columbia River. (Washington)

• Coyote and Wishpoosh
  How the Northwest coastal tribes were formed.

• The Crystal Mountain
  There is an invisible mountain in Wyoming made of crystal.

• The First Tears
  Eskimo tale about the origins of tears. (Alaska)

• Fur-Bearing Trout
  Colorado Fisherman developed a new trout catching technique following the visit of a hair tonic salesman.

• The Grave
  A woman haunts her burial ground.

• Healthy Climate
  California is so healthy, its hard to die.

• Milk bottles
  Day after day, a woman comes to the store for milk and leaves without paying.

• Paul Bunyan's Kitchen
  It takes a lot of work to feed Paul Bunyan. (Oregon)

• Potatoes
  No one does potatoes like Idaho.

• The Sheep Herder's Lawsuit
  A sheep herder outwits a lawyer.

• Slide-Rock Bolters
  Tourists, beware! Deep in the mountains of Colorado lurk the slide-rock bolters.

• Teething Toy
  What would you give your baby to teeth on if you lived in Deadwood, South Dakota?

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Midwest

• Drought Buster
  Febold Feboldson busts a drought in Nebraska.

• Echoes
  A Minnesota settler longs for the echoing mountains of home.

• Frozen Flames
  What do you do when the lanterns freeze? Call Paul Bunyan. (Michigan)

• Hoosiers
  Why are Indiana folk called Hoosiers?

• Jack and the Corn Stalk
  Kansas corn grows mighty fast.

• Jesse James and the Widow
  Jesse James helps out a Missouri widow.

• Johnny Appleseed
  Johnny Appleseed rescues a town during the War of 1812.

• Kate Shelley Saves the Train
  A brave girl rescues a train when the bridge washes out. (Iowa)

• The Log Jam
  Paul Bunyan and Babe clear a log jam in Wisconsin.

• Oklahoma Weather
  OK weather ain't always o.k.

• Pecos Bill Rides a Tornado
  Pecos Bill tries to tame a tornado.

• Sangamon County
  Where is the most beautiful place in the world? (Illinois)

• Wind
  Michigan winds are a bit strong in the spring.

• Wrong-Side Up
  A settler is given advice by a Dakota man. (North Dakota)

• You can't get out
  The town drunk falls into a grave on his way home

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South

• Arkansas Traveler
  A lost traveler tries to find a place to spend the night.

• The Army of the Dead
  The ghosts of the Confederate Army still march through Charleston, South Carolina.

• Callin' the Dog
  Mississippi tall talk.

• Casey Jones
  Death of a dare devil railman. (Tennessee)

• The Christmas Gift
  Why Florida's coast is plagued by hurricanes.

• Connecticut Yankee
  A Connecticut Yankee outwits an innkeeper.

• The Crows are in the Corn
  Georgia folktale explaining an old saying.

• The Cut-off
  Louisiana ghost story.

• The Dance
  Don't ever dance with the devil. (Texas)

• Daniel's Dear
  How Daniel Boone met his wife. (North Carolina)

• Frozen Dawn
  Davy Crockett must unfreeze the dawn. (Tennessee)

• John Henry
  Man against machine!

• Mississippi Mosquitoes
  And you thought your mosquitoes were bad!

• Riverboat Racing
  An old woman is afraid of racing, until her riverboat is challenged by a rival. (Kentucky)

• The Talking Mule
  Even mules deserve a day off now and then. (South Carolina)

• Wait Until Emmet Comes
  Do you really want to wait for Emmet? (West Virginia)

• Why Dogs Chase Cats
  Its a dog chase cat kind of world. (Virginia)

• Yellowhammer
  Why Alabama folk are called Yellowhammers

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Southwest

• Arizona Weather
  We like the weather in Arizona.

• Bear Lake Monster
  Be careful swimming in Bear Lake! (Utah)

• Cowboys in Heaven
  Where would a cowboy rather be than heaven? Texas!

• Death of Pecos Bill
  Not even Pecos Bill could figure out how to live forever.

• Handprints
  Ghosts rescue a car stuck on the railroad tracks.

• Invisible hands
  A couple of Comstock miners meet a couple of bucca working the late shift.

• The King of the Sharks
  The King of the Sharks has a mischievious son. (Hawaii)

• La Llorona
  The ghost of a woman searches the river banks for her sons.

• Pecos Bill and Slue-foot Sue
  Pecos Bill gets married.

• Pecos Bill finds a Hard Outfit
  Pecos Bill seeks a hard outfit in New Mexico.

• Sinks
  Nevada rivers flow into a series of lakes with no outlets. So what happens to all that water? It sinks!

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© S.E. Schlosser 1997 - 2008.

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