It's impossible to say how many generations have been enchanted by the beauty of Wildcat Falls in York County, but it is known that hundreds of years ago the Susquehannock tribe had a village here, where Wildcat Run cuts a magnificent gorge through the rocky hills before taking a 150-foot plunge on its short course to the Susquehanna at a point across the river upstream from Marietta. It was here, on the site of the old Indian village, where a hotel was erected in the late 19th century.

Though largely forgotten today, the Wildcat Falls Hotel was a local landmark. During the early 20th century, cottages and cabins were erected  along River Road, and the locale became a popular weekend getaway for many York and Lancaster County residents. But even after the last traces of the once-prestigious hotel had disappeared, there were still a few locals who kept a close watch on the grounds. One of them was George Wilson, who, for decades, upheld a little-known  local tradition-- decorating the grave of an unknown Confederate soldier who was hastily buried at Wildcat Falls after a scouting mission gone horribly wrong.