Myths and Legends
Tall Tales of Lake Koronis
From the beginning of time, people have sat around the fire and told of tales of ghosts and beasts that haunt the hills; Paynesville is no exception. Â Though they may be tall tales, no history is complete without a few legends thrown in.
The Legend of Lake Koronis
The "Koronis" Maiden
Long ago, at a time we know as ancient, a woman, learning of the death of her husband by a warring neighbor, leapt to her death from the tallest point of "First Island" and drown in the lake.  According to the tale, her name was Koronis, and late at night on a calm summer evening when the loons began to call, you can still hear her wail among them, still mourning for her lost love.
Giants in the Valley of the Crow
The Alegewi
Many legends exist of a race of giants that once competed with ancient Americans. Â Around the turn of the century, an area farmer reported finding massive stone tools in his field, and later, a skeleton of massive proportion was unearthed while excavating a highway south of Lake Koronis.
The Creature of Koronis
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Koronis Man
A little known tall tale once surfaced of a group of settlers disappearing near the Cape of Bad Luck: a portion of Lake Koronis named for the unfortunate events that have happened there. Â As Legend has it, the group of settlers became lost at the spot. Â When a search part went out to find them, they found only their belongings and a set of strange tracks leading from the site. Â In years to come, other settlers would tell of being chased through the woods, or spotting something that was not fully human peering from the woods.
