This image is the cover for the book Legends, Lore and Secrets of Western New York, American Legends

Legends, Lore and Secrets of Western New York, American Legends

Listen to the whispered legends of spirits, heroes and traitors hidden in one of New York's most captivating regions.


Like the region's first inhabitants, the "Cat People," who made clothing from the mountain lions and panthers that they hunted, Western New Yorkers still savor the tradition of storytelling. Tales such as the "Mail-Riding Mamma" of Chautauqua County, who carried both the post and her infant child above her head as she journeyed across perilously-flooded creeks, and the Ossian Giant, who at age 19 stood 7 feet, 6 inches tall and weighed 385 pounds, are vividly narrated by Buffalo storyteller Lorna MacDonald Czarnota.

Lorna MacDonald Czarnota

Lorna Czarnota is the author of "Medieval Tales the Kids Can Read and Tell, " "Legends, Lore and Secrets of Western New York" and "Wicked Niagara." She is an award-winning storyteller, author and recipient of the 2006 Oracle Award from the National Storytelling Network. She holds advanced degrees in special education and creative studies for young children, and certification in trauma counseling.

The History Press