The summit of the rock offers views of the northern section of Shenandoah National Park and Page Valley.

One story claims that Francis Thornton wed Mary Savage and brought her up the mountain to show her the lands they would own together.

In 2017, the song Mary's Rock, written by Will Hopkins, was recorded by Terry Baucom's Dukes of Drive.

The popular bluegrass group had chart success with a version of this story, suggesting Francis Thornton pushed Mary, or Mary slipped and fell off the rock to her untimely death, allowing Thornton to inherit the land.

Another legend claims that Thornton had a daughter named Mary, who climbed up the mountain when she was young and came back with a bear cub under her arm.