Amanda Larch Hinchman

Amanda Larch is a freelance writer and editor and a 2020 graduate of Marshall University. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, antique shopping, reading, and baking. She resides in Hurricane.

The legend of the Vegetable Man: How a bloodsucking alien left its mark on West Virginia

Lore and Legend Amanda Larch Hinchman - October 22, 2025

FAIRMONT, W.Va. — A lesser-known encounter with an extraordinary Mountain State cryptid is still capturing the imagination of West...

How an obscure, mysterious writer in West Virginia invented UFO lore as we know it

Lore and Legend Amanda Larch Hinchman - October 8, 2025

RIFFLE, W.Va.— The blockbuster Men in Black film franchise might seem a world away from the hills of West...

This scenic parkway explores some of West Virginia's very highest peaks

Travel / Transportation Amanda Larch Hinchman - September 20, 2025

MARLINTON, W.Va. — Traveling through a remote, windswept landscape of spruce and cranberry, a scenic parkway that explores some...

The eastern panhandle of West Virginia: how it came to be

History / Prehistory Amanda Larch Hinchman - August 3, 2025

SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. — The eastern panhandle of West Virginia reaches more than 100 miles across the eastern U.S. from...

Unique northern panhandle of West Virginia created by historic dispute

History / Prehistory Amanda Larch Hinchman - August 1, 2025

WEIRTON, W.Va — West Virginia's remarkable shape is partly defined by its odd northern panhandle, a finger of land...

Fading memories of a wartime powerhouse: South Charleston’s ordnance plant

Landmarks / Museums Amanda Larch Hinchman - June 20, 2025

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Rising behind a series of pleasant neighborhoods, one of the largest manufacturing complexes in West...

Weird W.Va. wonder "Ice Mountain" open to tours by arrangement

Natural Wonders Amanda Larch Hinchman - May 24, 2025

NORTH RIVER MILLS, W.Va.— One of West Virginia's most fascinating natural wonders, Ice Mountain, where winter ice lingers in...

Prehistoric burial mound in West Virginia contains remarkable secret

History / Prehistory Amanda Larch Hinchman - April 11, 2025

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Rising above the end of this city’s central avenue, the prehistoric Criel Mound—one of the...

First documented poltergeist in U.S. haunted this historic W.Va. town

Lore and Legend Amanda Larch Hinchman - February 20, 2025

MIDDLEWAY, W.Va. — The Wizard Clip haunting, the first documented poltergeist in America, occurred in the late 1700s in...

Historian reclassifies Civil War "skirmish" in W.Va. as all-out battle

History / Prehistory Amanda Larch Hinchman - December 7, 2024

HURRICANE, W.Va. — Early research on a Civil War engagement in West Virginia at Hurricane Bridge underestimated the number...

Islands in the Ohio River in West Virginia are a Noah's Ark for wildlife

Wildlife Refuges, Management Areas Amanda Larch Hinchman - July 31, 2024

WILLIAMSTOWN, W.Va. — Hidden in plain sight, the islands in the Ohio River in West Virginia are a Noah's...

Perhaps surprisingly, W.Va. is ideally suited to residential solar energy use

Wildlife / Conservancy Amanda Larch Hinchman - June 28, 2024

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Much of West Virginia enjoys about 85 percent as much sunlight as Miami, Florida, which means...

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