This month I celebrated my 43rd birthday. In the 4+ decades that I've been alive on this earth, I have witnessed so many "end of the world" predictions...literally too many to count. In fact, I think it was twice just in 2025 that I managed to survive the Rapture! And of course, the Y2K panic is still as fresh in my mind today as it was twenty-six years ago. 

As we all waited out the end of 1999, waiting for the ball to drop (followed by the planes to start falling from the sky, computers to crash, and everything resetting itself to 1900), we were all wondering just what our fate would be. I thought New Year's Eve 2025 would be a fun time to share another, much older prediction of destruction, going all the way back to the summer of 1920. 

The awesome Facebook page, Historic Wayne County WV, recently shared this newspaper article from the Wayne County News, dated June 17, 1920. 

On a warm, Tuesday morning in June, a "holy roller preacher" had predicted that Louisa, Kentucky would be destroyed by a fire a Biblical proportions. This unnamed preacher persuaded his followers to cross over the Big Sandy River into West Virginia and take refuge in the hills overlooking Fort Gay. There, they could safely observe the town of Louisa and all of its sinners go up in smoke. 

But, like so many predictions of this type, this one failed to materialize and the people of Louisa and surrounding areas were spared. I honestly don't know enough about the history of the area to even make an educated guess as to why Louisa, Kentucky was slated for destruction, while the towns all around it, including those across the river in West Virginia, were totally safe. 

So, speaking of predictions....what predictions do YOU have for 2026? Please share them in the comments below or find me on social media and let me know! 

Wayne County News 17 June 1920