The Last One | Project Fear

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐕𝐄

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Dakota brings us back to West Virginia for the next location.

Tanner and I get to have some fun in a pedal boat on the lake while Dakota acts all broody and dramatic, talking to his camera about the location that, at this point, we still didn't know anything about. For a pit stop, Dakota thought it would be fun to bring us to Grand Vue Park, where they had a gigantic swing that went one hundred feet in the air. We had to wear harnesses and helmets and I wasn't exactly sure about it. The swing drew back super high and I was in charge of pulling the cord that would swing us down.

I have to admit, it was fun, but also extremely terrifying. I made a mental note not to let Mom know that I had done that until the episode aired.

When we read the packet, we learn that he's bringing us to West Virginia State Penitentiary. I give Dakota a deadpan stare.

"I nearly tapped out at the last prison!" I remind him.

"I know!" he responds with a stupid smile.

The prison housed the most notorious and dangerous criminals. It opened in 1866 and in operation for 129 years. It sits directly across the street from one of America's largest and oldest Native American burial mounds. Violence, torture, and death were the norm. The inmates knew that they wouldn't get out of the prison alive and most had to become animalistic to survive. There were 998 documented deaths between 1932 and 1995. In total, 94 men were hung or electrocuted on-site, as all of the executions were carried out there.

The superintendent, John E. Peck, tortured the inmates using something called the Kicking Jenny—the inmate would be stripped, chained down, and the officer would take a leather strap soaked in vinegar and salt water, and whip the inmate until he was too tired to continue. It seemed to me that most of the violence came from the administration abusing the inmates, not the inmates hurting each other.

Over the course of 14 months, two inmates were murdered every month. The documentation of deaths also wasn't entirely accurate, as they didn't start documenting until much later on, so there were some lives and names lost for eternity. The conditions weren't wonderful either—overrun with rats, roaches, and lice. Three prisoners were held inside a single 5x7 cell. The prison was shut down because it was deemed a cruel and unusual punishment.

Haunted accounts include cell doors slamming, footsteps running down the hallways, and screams. A common belief among the prisoners was that if they died in the prison, their soul stayed there. The boiler room doubled as the Hole, where uncontrollable prisoners were sent for 30 days at a time. Inmate RD Wall was murdered down there by three prisoners after he snitched. The Sugar Shack, a recreation room, was where the inmates were unsupervised by guards. People have reported seeing shadow figures, apparitions, voices, and light anomalies. North Hall housed the most ruthless inmates, and said to have witnessed more murders than any other cellblock in all of America. It was the home of Red Snyder, leader of the Aryan Brotherhood, until 1992.