The Hermit of Indian Echo Caverns

The legend begins in Chester County, PA in the late 1700’s.  John and Elizabeth Wilson, along with their 2 children, William and Elizabeth, lived on a family farm in East or West Bradford Township in Chester County.  They had modest means, but were known to be a reputable family.  When the children were still young, their mother died and their father remarried.  But the new wife did not care for her stepchildren and urged the father to send them away as soon as they were of age.

At 16, William left the farm to become a stone carver in Lancaster County and Elizabeth went to Philadelphia and either became an employee or a patron of the Indian Queen Tavern.  In early 1784, Elizabeth was seduced by a tavern guest (who soon afterward disappeared) and became pregnant.  When her pregnancy became an embarrassment, she was made to leave the tavern.  She returned to her parents’ home where she gave birth to twin sons.  Later that year Elizabeth disappeared while traveling to meet her lover in Newton Square.  While she reappeared several days later, her twin sons were nowhere to be seen. Their bodies were soon found hidden in the woods nearby and Elizabeth was arrested.  She was found guilty of murder in the first degree and was sentenced to hang.  The execution date was set for December 7, 1785.

William was unaware of his sister’s predicament but one day he mysteriously claimed he was needed in Chester and returned home.  When he arrived at the jail, Elizabeth was finally willing to tell the story of what happened to her sons. William assembled respected officials to listen to her story.  She said that her seducer agreed to meet her at Newton Square but unexpectedly met her in the woods about 2 miles west of town.  He killed the children and swore Elizabeth to secrecy.

On December 6, William presented the confession signed by all the witnesses to the Supreme Executive Council.  The president of the Council was Benjamin Franklin, and its vice president was Charles Biddle. Biddle’s journal includes a brief discussion of the Wilson case and, in addition to court and Council records, is one of the more reputable sources regarding the matter. The Council ordered that the execution be postponed until January 3rd, 1786, in order to allow them more time in which to consider the case.

In the meantime, William went in search of his sister’s lover, but when he found him on a New Jersey farm he denied ever having known Elizabeth. William then began to seek out witnesses who could link the man with the city of Philadelphia and with his sister. He was successful in compiling a list of several people, but he became ill around Christmas and spent some time recuperating at a friend’s home in Philadelphia.

Upon his next visit to the Chester jail, he was horrified to learn that Elizabeth’s execution was scheduled for the following day. He rode to Franklin’s home to request another postponement of Elizabeth’s sentence but had to wait several hours to see him. Franklin felt that it was improper for him to act and referred William to Vice President Biddle. William found Biddle at the State House. Biddle wrote the order, “Do not execute Wilson until you hear further from Council,” knowing that the members of the Executive Council were sympathetic towards Elizabeth and intended to grant a full pardon.

With Biddle’s pardon in hand, William began the 15-mile ride to Chester. He rode down Market Street and approached the Middle Ferry to cross the Schuykill River. Because of heavy rain, the river was dangerously high and choked with ice and debris; the ferry was not in operation. William pleaded with the ferryman for several hours but could not persuade him to operate the ferry. Finally, in desperation, he drove his horse into the icy water. The animal struggled against the current but was struck in the head by a chunk of ice or driftwood just fifty feet from the opposite shore. William swam the rest of the way, and by the time he reached dry land he was approximately 2 miles downstream from where he’d entered the water.

Meanwhile, officials in Chester began preparations for Elizabeth’s execution. The sheriff of Chester was one of the many who had come to believe that Elizabeth was innocent and who, following her confession, suspected that she might be pardoned. He stationed flagmen at intervals along the Queens Highway (4th Street), leading from Philadelphia, who could signal if William were coming with a pardon. Those assembled watched expectantly for a signal but none was seen. Noon arrived, and by law the sheriff could wait no longer. The order was given and the cart was pulled from beneath Elizabeth Wilson’s feet. She did not die outright but showed little sign of struggle. Several long moments passed before the crowd noticed white flags waving along the road from Philadelphia.

William rode to Hangman’s Lot calling, “A pardon! A pardon!” His horse reared at the sight of Elizabeth’s body, throwing him to the muddy ground beneath his sister. The sheriff quickly cut the rope and tried frantically to revive Elizabeth, but it was too late to save her.

After several months in a state of delirium, William returned to work as a stone carver. However, he had lost all interest in society and eventually abandoned it. He began to roam westward across southeastern Pennsylvania, interacting with others only when he needed to negotiate for provisions. In 1802, William came to the place that would be his home for the last nineteen years of his life. The cave (today known as Indian Echo Caverns) where William set up residence is located at the foot of a high bluff, or “palisades,” at the head of a horseshoe bend on the Swatara Creek.

There are many caves in that area, but the Hermit’s cave is particularly large and accessible. The natural entrance is approximately 26 feet wide and was well known to local residents from the earliest times. The “room” that became William’s primary living quarters was over 98 feet inside the cave and around a “corner.” Although natural daylight often reaches that area, particularly late in the day, it is not directly visible from outside. The cave provided shelter and maintained a constant 52 °F temperature. There is a natural ledge, reputed to have been William’s bed, beside which stands a stalagmite that bears marks attributed to the rope ladder used to reach the ledge. William’s possessions were few: a straw mattress, a table and stool, some cooking implements, a Bible and other religious books.

On October 13, 1821, the Harrisburg Intelligencer ran the following notice:

Died lately at his lonely hovel among the hills, twelve miles southeast from Harrisburg, Pa., ——– Wilson, who for many years endeavored to be a solitary recluse from the society of men… His retirement was principally occasioned by the melancholy manner of the death of his sister, by which his reason was partially affected… (He) was observed frequently to be estranged, and one morning was found dead by a few of his neighbors, who had left him the evening previously in good health.

As was the case with his sister, the details and location of William’s burial remain unknown, although it is often assumed that he was buried somewhere on his friend’s farm in Lower Swatara Township.