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Abere: The Marsh Demoness of Melanesia

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Waiting in the swamps of the Melanesian Islands in the Pacific Ocean, the cannibalistic Abere demon lures men to their death by posing as a seductive woman. 

Across the scattered islands and lush, humid marshlands of Melanesia, ancient legends tell of creatures both beautiful and unspeakably cruel. Among the most unsettling is the story of Abere, a beguiling demoness who dwells in the swamps and wetlands, preying upon the foolish and the lovestruck. 

To those unfamiliar with her legend, she appears as a wild and stunning woman, but to the elders of Melanesia, she is a flesh eating monster older than memory — a cunning predator who devours those seduced by her beauty.

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The Allure of the Marsh

Abere is said to reside deep within the marshes and stagnant waterways, in places where the reeds grow tall and the mist clings low to the water’s surface. It’s said that the mimia reed grows around her to hide her from her victims.

Melanesia is a region in Oceania, a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean, west of New Guinea to Fiji Islands and include Vanuatu and Solomon Islands as well. Although the Melanesians are a group of people with different cultures, mythologies and languages, they share a long history of cultural exchanges. 

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She is not alone, for countless tales describe her surrounded by a group of young, beautiful female attendants — women who themselves may be victims turned thralls, or spirits bound to Abere’s service.

Those who wander too close to her domain often find themselves inexplicably drawn to the otherworldly beauty of these figures, unaware of the mortal danger awaiting them.

Reeds sprout and twist unnaturally, growing rapidly around the victim until they are trapped, ensnared in a living prison of marsh grass. The more they struggle, the tighter the reeds wind themselves. Once the unfortunate soul is bound and helpless, Abere reveals her monstrous nature — shedding her illusion of beauty and devouring her captive alive.

An Ancient Warning from the Swamps

Like many demoness figures in regional folklore, Abere serves as both a supernatural terror and a cautionary figure. What is she really? A vampire, a particularly vicious mermaid species? Something demonic? In the isolated, waterlogged regions of Melanesia where survival depended upon sharp instincts and respect for nature’s hazards, Abere personified the unseen dangers of straying too far into the unknown.

Melanesian Mythology: A common theme in Melanesian tales is the risk for humans to be eaten alive by non-humans: either ghosts, spirits, or dangerous animals. Mentions of human cannibalism – where humans are eaten by other humans – are much rarer, but they exist in some stories. // source

Whether interpreted as a metaphor for the treacherous marshes themselves or as a caution against reckless desire, her legend endures, whispered by elders to warn children against wandering alone, and to remind them that not all beauty should be trusted.

Though Abere may not be as widely known outside of Melanesia, she remains a potent figure within the folklore of the islands. Her story survives in oral traditions and regional myths, a chilling reminder of the shapeshifting, hungry spirits that populate the world’s forgotten places.

In the modern age, tales of encounters with ghostly women along misty waterways still surface now and then. And for those who walk the marsh paths of Melanesia under the cover of night — there’s always the chance that the rustle in the reeds isn’t the wind, but Abere, waiting.

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References:

Rose, Carol (1998). “A”. Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns and Goblin. The Abere is a particularly vicious mermaid species. Norton. p. 1. ISBN 978-0-393-31792-3. 

Coulter, Charles Russell; Turner, Patricia (4 July 2013). Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities. Routledge. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-135-96397-2.

ABERE – the Melanesian Demoness (Melanesian mythology)

Melanesian mythology – Wikipedia

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The Marshy Mysteries of Aleya Ghost Lights in West Bengal

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In the marshy lands in Bangladesh you can often spot the Aleya Ghost Lights in the dark, thought to be the spirits of Bengali fishermen lost in the dark depths of the water. 

Bengal’s mystique extends far beyond its vibrant culture and rich history; it delves deep into the supernatural with tales of the Aleya Ghost Lights, a phenomenon that has captivated both locals and paranormal enthusiasts alike. These ethereal lights can be found all over the world throughout time, and go under different names like will-o-the-wisp or ghost lights. 

Read more: Check out all of the ghost stories from India

When out in the marshes, the lights look like a flickering ball of light in the dark. They cast an enigmatic glow over the marshes of West Bengal, particularly in the vicinity of Bangladesh, and have left many entranced by their spectral dance.

The Enigmatic Aleya Ghost Lights

Aleya, also known as the “marsh ghost-light,” is a name associated with a perplexing luminous phenomenon witnessed predominantly by the Bengali community, especially the fishermen of West Bengal and Bangladesh in the bog lands, swamps and marshes. They are found in more swampy places like the Sunderbans Mangroves for example.  

These marsh lights are often attributed to the presence of marsh gas apparitions, casting a captivating yet eerie glow that hovers over the marshlands.

What are the Aleya Ghost Lights Really?

But what is the light really? There are several theories like an ionization of methane gas produced close to marshes, or some sort of geological faulting. 

In recent research, the Aleya ghost lights, also known as ignis fatuus. “Ignis fatuus” is a Latin term that translates to “foolish fire” or “will-o’-the-wisp” in English. It refers to a natural phenomenon where mysterious, flickering lights or flames appear over swamps, marshes, and other damp, marshy areas. 

These lights are often bluish or greenish in color and seem to hover or dance above the ground. Ignis fatuus is caused by the combustion of gasses, typically methane, produced by the decomposition of organic matter in wet, swampy environments. These lights have been the source of various folklore and legends, often associated with ghostly or supernatural elements.

A lot of places around the world have similar lights. Like the St. Louis Light in Saskatchewan, The Spook light in Southwestern Missouri, the Marfia lights of Texas, the Naga fireballs on the Mekong in Thailand, the Paulding Light in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and the Hessdalen light in Norway.

A Haunting Legacy

The Aleya lights have become an integral part of local folklore, entwined with the lives of fishermen who dwell near the marshes. According to their beliefs, these ghostly lights are the ghostly remnants of fishermen who met their untimely demise while out fishing in the marshes.

They see these lights as guiding spirits, sometimes leading them away from danger. Other times the lights have a more sinister goal where they try to lead the living fishermen to their watery graves and there are many stories that end with the dead bodies of the fishermen being washed up to shore with a strange pall to their body after having seen and followed the lights. 

In the Heart of Bengal

The marshes of West Bengal and Bangladesh come alive with the mysterious Aleya Ghost Lights, flickering and dancing, leaving behind an aura of enchantment and fear. While these lights have perplexed many, they have also led to the unfortunate demise of fishermen who dared to chase their luminous trails. 

The Aleya Ghost Lights serve as a constant reminder that the boundary between the living and the supernatural can sometimes blur, creating an enduring enigma that beckons all who dare to explore the unknown. Would you follow one if you ever saw a ghost light?  

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References:

“Aleya Ghost lights” in Sundarban Swamp-The eerie Story of India’s Most Haunted Place – Geotourism 

India’s Most Haunted: Aleya ghost lights in Bengal swamps | India.com

https://www.nativeplanet.com/travel-guide/most-haunted-places-in-west-bengal-aleya-ghost-lights-002570.html?story=4

The Eerie Story Of The Aleya Ghost Lights, The Creepy Water Creature That Drowns You In Darkness 

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The Ghost Ship of the Everglades of Cursed Pirates

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A pirate ship once got lost in the mangroves and swamps of the Everglades in Florida. They were cursed by the crew they made to walk the plank and are now The Ghost Ship of the Everglades are doomed to sail the murky waters forever. 

Everglades National Park, with its mysterious labyrinth of bald cypress trees, shadowy hammock forests, and winding rivers, takes on an eerie ambiance after the sun dips below the horizon. 

Centuries ago, pirates plagued the seas from the Gulf of Mexico to the Caribbean. They attacked merchant ships to steal the goods and it could be a very lucrative business. The pirates also sometimes ended up on the Florida coastline as well. 

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In 1901 one of these stories were printed in the national newspaper, the New York Daily People and the Chicago Tribune, about a 300 year old curse about a pirate ghost ship cursed to sail the narrow rivers in the Everglades forever. 

The Ghost Ship of the Everglades: It is said that a pirate ship was cursed to sail the narrow Everglades for eternity after they made the crew of an entire ship walk the plank.

The Ghost Pirate Ship

The story goes that a merchant vessel was sailing through the waters near Cape Florida in the 1700s, just beyond the bounds of Miami. Pirate lore in Florida are initially from the Florida Key area after Spanish vessels came and many pirates took hold around St. Augustine. But did they ever sail to the swampy waters of the Everglades?

The Ghost Ship of the Everglades: The story of the cursed pirate ships made the news in 1901. Read the full story here.

Read Also: The Paranormal Activity At The St. Augustine Lighthouse 

According to this story, seizing the opportunity for a lucrative plunder, the pirate ship set forth in pursuit. However, the resourceful crew aboard the merchant ship, well-acquainted with the treacherous waters, hatched a plan to elude their pursuers by navigating through the intricate channels of the Everglades.

The pirate ship finally caught up with the merchant ship in the end though and looted the goods of the merchant ship. The pirate captain was furious about how long it took to chase them, that he made the whole crew walk the plank and made the skipper’s wife watch before she herself had to walk the plank and end up in the boggy water. 

The wife prayed to God to curse the pirates, and he did and pushed them deep into the Everglades, making them haunt the Everglades for all eternity, a place they would never escape from. 

The tidal wave brought the pirates stuck in the swamp, making them die of starvation and fever one by one.

The Ghost Ship of the Everglades of Cursed Pirates

The Ghost Ship of the Everglades has been haunting Florida’s south coast since the days of pirating marauders. The ship’s phantom crew is cursed to sail the seas for all eternity, after giving chase to a merchant ship and getting lost in the twisting channels of the Everglades’ swamp lands. 

Read Also: The Pirate Haunting Burgh Island

According to the story in 1901, the Natives that stayed in the wetland as well as hunters spending much time navigating the same rivers, came back, telling stories about having seen the The Ghost Ship of the Everglades with its rotting masts and hill. The crew are now all skeletons, still trying to find their way out of the Everglades. 

Was it ever a pirate ship sailing the fresh water sea of the Everglades? Although we don’t have much documentation, we have a long tradition of tales instead. And perhaps, the dim lights of the skeleton crew working ever since the golden age of piracy speaks for itself as it glides through the river of mangroves and alligators.

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References:

Creepy Stories in the Everglades 

Ghost-ship of the Everglades Story Chicago Tribune, 1901 – Newspapers.com™

https://www.timotis.com/news-1/the-history-of-pirates-in-florida

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The Ghost of Edgar Watson and the Shadows of the Swamp

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For years the notorious outlaw Edgar Watson lived in the Everglades where his workers had a habit of ending up dead or disappearing around payday. When the authorities ignored their plea, the villagers took law into their own hands, and are now forever haunted by the man they took out. 

In the year 1910, the humid air of Chokoloskee witnessed a chilling event—the demise of Edgar Watson, a plantation owner with a sinister reputation. Watson, a man known for his malevolent deeds, was not only a ruthless serial killer but also a plantation owner who showed no mercy to his own servants, most of whom were black, Native American or some form of vulnerable migrant with no place to go. His blood-stained legacy extended to anyone who dared trespass on his property.

The Everglades in Florida is a 1.5 million acres of marshy swampland of alligators and crocodiles and other deadly things, like people. Like a last frontier you find the small town of Chokoloskee at the edge of the chain of islands and mangroves called The Ten Thousand Islands. 

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Since 1965, there have been 175 unsolved murders around these parts and that is only those bodies that were found.  Who knows how many missing bodies are just waiting to be discovered or have already been taken by the alligators and sharks? 

Ever since settlers came to this place, it has been known for being a place for outlaws far from the long arms of the authorities and the Everglades has been a place where people disappear and some never return from. 

Chokoloskee Island: Looking like a picturesque place with its lush and sunny beaches, this part of the Everglades are so remote and a place that attracted people on the run from authorities and those living a life that didn’t do well in the light of day. // Source: William “Patrick” Ma…/Wikimedia

The History of “Bloody” Edgar Watson

Edgar Watson was born in 1855 in South Carolina and seemed to be violent from his early years, thought to him by his abusive father. After he murdered two people he went on the run from Florida to Oklahoma, renting a place from Belle Starr, another well known outlaw known as the Bandit Queen of the Old West. 

Edgar Watson: Notorious outlaw from the Old West and fugitive in Florida, Watson is thought to haunt the town that took law and order into their own hands.

According to legend, he shot Belle in the back as she was riding her horse, killing her as well. He feared that she was about to turn him into the authorities for a murder he did in Lake City. And although he was tried for her murder, he was not convicted. 

Even though he was a wanted man in Florida, he returned in 1891 and murdered another man in what he claimed was self defense. This is also when he went into the Florida Everglades as a fugitive, a perfect place to hide and dispose of dead bodies that seemed to pile up around him.

On his land by the Chatham Bend area he started up a sugar cane syrup business that was quite successful and he started to hire people. He hired a lot of African-Americans and Native Americans as well as vagabonds, migrants or other fugitives to work for him at his farm. When they wanted to get paid, however, legend is he murdered them instead and threw their bodies into the river. 

This is said to have gone on for 15 years and rumors started to be told about what really happened there, but there was no definitive proof. Bodies started to wash ashore close to the small town of Chokoloskee. When a runaway worker told them what was going on they also found the body of a woman named Hannah Smith whose foot was revealed in the swamp after a hurricane blew through the Everglades. The worker claimed that there were plenty more. 

They all knew about Edgar “Bloody” Watson and knew he was carrying a gun under his black trench coat and some of his runaway workers told horrible tales. The authorities didn’t want to get involved because they didn’t think it was their jurisdiction. So the people of Chokoloskee were left to their own devices. 

In 1910 he was attacked by the townspeople at the Smallwood Store, the last frontiers of Florida. This was both a trading post, post office and a market for all things people could need in this remote part of the world. Everyone was armed and they shot and killed him when he tried to pull the gun at them back. This is said to have taken place on the sandbar right below the store. 30 rounds of bullets went into his body, although the first shot went right between the eyes. 

The Ghost of Chokoloskee

Ever since then the Everglades have gotten another haunted legend to go with all the others and today Edgar Watson is remember as a notorious outlaw and murderer. The place is still remote and the town has around 300 people living in Chokoloskee. Some say that there are more ghosts than living people in the town. 

The legends claim that Edgar Watson is still haunting the area. Around 50 skeletons have since been found around his old property according to the local legends, although not verified at all. How many that were murdered or if there were any at all is not known for sure.

The Smallwood Store closed in 1982 but is still open as a history museum and especially around this building people swear to have seen him, and according to legend, there is still blood splatter on the walls from the shoot out. 

The people working in the museum have been called up in the middle of the night by people claiming to have seen movement inside of the building. But when investigating, there is nothing. Could it have been the ghost of Edgar Watson? Or perhaps one of the other ghosts rumored to roam the island?

The Haunted Shop: The Smallwood store has stood in isolation on the southern tip of Chokoloskee Island for more than 100 years. This was the place where the villagers finally took the life of Edgar Watson and where he is thought to haunt in his afterlife. // Source: Wikimedia

Other Ghosts Haunting the Smallwood Store

Another ghost said to linger in the store is the ghost of C.G McKinney who started the first post office as well as the first school on the island. He moved to this place after he abandoned his wife and his five children and ran off with the nanny. They settled on Chokoloskee Island and had five more children, naming them the same as his previous set of children. 

The last ghost said to haunt the place is a boy that is said to have once been a pirate. He is said to have died when he got trapped in his fishing net at the age of 120. He is said to come to the market in search for a new net in the middle of the night. 

So if you see the lights switched on out in the remote parts of the Everglades, perhaps it is just a nightly walk of the outlaw Edgar Watson.

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References:

Ted Smallwood Store – Wikipedia 

Smallwood Store 

History – and ghosts – at Smallwood’s Store in Chokoloskee 

Edgar J. Watson’s Island Graveyard of Horror – Chokoloskee, Florida 

Creepy Stories in the Everglades 

Chokoloskee, Florida – Wikipedia 

The town that killed an outlaw | Florida Originals Chokoloskee – Ghost Town

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Hauntings and Legends from the Pocomoke State Forest

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Ghosts of locals from the Pocomoke State forest as well as mysterious balls of light and impossible dark legends, the countless tales from this haunted forest in Maryland keep piling on, making this perhaps one of the most busy as well as haunted forests in America. 

Between Snow Hill and Pocomoke City in Maryland, the Pocomoke State Forest harbors more than just the natural beauty of the landscape on the Eastern Shore. The over 18 000 acre big forest comes with a chilling reputation that locals often share in hushed whispers, this forest is deemed off-limits after sundown, as tales of eerie encounters and ghostly apparitions weave through the trees.

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The forest is often called the true Blair Witch Project forest, as it is perhaps the most well known haunted forest in Maryland where the iconic horror movie also took place. Pocomoke State Forest is shrouded in unsettling stories, with reports of women’s screams and infants’ cries echoing in the night. When people get out of the forest, they find strange marks on their cars, like the mark of a hand and at night, the forest closes. 

Its reputation is further steeped in creepy urban legends, including accounts of mysterious fireballs illuminating the darkened woods. However, it’s the tales of ominous disappearances and untimely deaths that send shivers down the spines of those who dare to explore.

The Drowned Ghosts of Pocomoke State Forest

The very word, Pocomoke comes from the Agonquian language to mean broken ground. Historically though it was thought to mean Black Water and it is said that the water is totally dark thanks to the light not passing through the bald cypress trees. 

Many tales of the ghosts haunting the forest are said to be the souls of those that drowned in the river or the swampy waters. Like the case with Joby Emmons and his son who were getting on their boat, but the son fell into the water and couldn’t get out. The father jumped in after him to rescue him, but they both got trapped under the boat and drowned. 

Read More: Check out all ghost stories from Haunted Forests around the world

People claim that they have seen the spirit of Joby Emmons and his son walking along the river of Pocomoke State Forest. 

Source: Flickr

Another group of people haunting the swamp areas are the children between the slaves and slave owners. There are countless of stories where the slave owners raped their slaves and if there was a child born, they took the children out into the swampy forest and drowned them. Many hikers claim to have felt the touch of something small or seen little shadows gliding through the trees. 

The Sea-Captain and his Family Haunting the Forest

Many hikers and campers claim that they leave Pocomoke State Forest with mysterious handprints on their cars. What is strange is that the handprints look like it got six fingers, something a vicious Sea Captain who lived around these parts was said to have. It is believed to be him haunting the forest after his death after he murdered his family.

The place of the haunting is said to be centered around Cellar House Plantation that are still standing. It was built in 1666 and was said to have been built by a French Sea Captain for his wife, or at least bride to be. 

He came back from the sea once though and found her pregnant, or having a child already, one that wasn’t his. It was a local man from Pocomoke City. He threw her out of the house and told her to never return. 

She did though, as she had no place to go, trying to beg him for forgiveness. She had her baby with her and came down on a raft in the water. It tipped close to the house though and her baby drowned. She managed to swim to shore though, but was not saved.

In some versions of the story, the Captain was even the one drowning the child by throwing the baby into the river. Her estranged husband dragged her to the bedroom where he stabbed her to death and fled the scene of the crime into Pocomoke State Forest, never to return and be seen ever again. 

As mentioned, one of the recurring things that people report they hear in the haunted forest is the sound of a woman screaming as well as a baby crying, reliving their final moments. What happened to the Captain after he murdered his family is uncertain, but he is rumored to be haunting the forest still. 

The Heavy and Cursed Bible

Deep in the Pocomoke State Forest there once was an old church called Nazarene Church at the entrance to the Pusey Branch Nature Trail in the forest. It was a Methodist Church at the end of the 19th century. Today there is only an abandoned cemetery left as the building of the church was moved to Furnace Town in 1980. 

According to the legends, there was perhaps a cursed Bible found inside of the old church, or perhaps just a little bit haunted. Many people tried to steal this hidden Bible when they found it and ran through the forest with it, but they never got far. 

Apparently the Bible got heavier and heavier with each step you took until you dropped it and it ended up where it originally was. Whether the Bible even existed is uncertain as well if it came with the building to Furnace Town, or were left someplace at the old site. 

The Haunted Furnace Town

But what is really Furnace Town? This part of the Pocomoke State Forest has many spirits lingering where people come back with tales of seeing ghostly figures, hearing disembodied voices and other paranormal things. 

The ghost town that now is turned into a museum, and was built around the Maryland Iron Companies Nassawango Iron Furnaces in 1832. At its height Furnace Town used to employ hundreds of people. They also used slaves to do the hard labor and most ghosts seen are said to be the spirit of the slaves. 

Most known ghost said to haunt this place is the former slave, Sampson Hat, or Sampson Harmon. It is said that he was one of the slaves that worked in the mines and smelting ore in the big furnaces. By 1847 the furnaces closed down and people started to move away and the town started to be a ghost town. 

The only one who didn’t move was Sampson Hat who lived in the abandoned Furnace Town alone. The civil war came and passed, freeing him, but he still didn’t leave. According to some historical accounts he was born in 1790  at Nassawango Hills and was a free man working at Furnace Town to take care of his wife and children. 

He came to think of Furnace Town as his true home and it is said he stayed at the same place, even when his family left. He lived there until his death at 107 or 104, depending on who is telling the story.

Before he died he spent a year at the Alms House in Snow Hill. Before passing he said he had to be buried at Furnace Town, but after his death, his wishes were not heard and his body was buried elsewhere. But according to the local legends, his spirit remains and is still haunting the old town as well as Pocomoke State Forest. 

It is also said he is followed by his cats he collects and brings with him as his companions. You can hear him wandering around, calling out for Stormy which he calls the cats.

Reports about him were told a lot during construction of the former ghost town when they started to restore the town and turned it into a museum from the 1960s.

The Ball of Fire

Another strange thing reported in Pocomoke State Forest is the sighting of different elementals and no human spirits haunting the forest, taking different shapes and forms. One version told is the haunting of a big fiery ball. One version talks about the priest Paul Walker holding a revival in the forest around Pine Ridge in 1921. Some husbands were unhappy about their wives’ conversion and gathered to get the priest. They went to the church to burn it down and beat the priest up, but when the leader of the group opened the door to the church he stopped. 

A ball of fire came from the rood and split in two and went down on each side of the church. This sight scared the men and they ran off. 

The story about a fiery ball is also recounted in a legend about a man driving through Pocomoke State Forest going to Snow Hill. Ahead of him was a bright object that came close until it was around 30-35 yards from him. 

The car stopped suddenly and he was too afraid to say anything or do anything as the object looked like a bright yellow box. He was trapped in this standstill for around 15 minutes before the object drifted into the woods and off the road. As soon as the object was gone, the car started again and he managed to drive away. 

The Goat Man

Any haunted forest needs its monster stories. Like the Bigfoot or The Jersey Devil Pocomoke State Forest has the Goat Man of the Pocomoke River. It is said to be a creature with a mans body, but the head of a goat with horn.

The creature runs through the forest, eating the fishes in the river and the small animals in the forest. Not many sightings have been done of the Goat Man, but it is said you can hear him stepping on twigs and bushes in places that no man can walk. 

The legend about the Goat Man is told throughout Maryland and also thought to live in Pocomoke State Forest around Prince George’s County in Maryland. The story about the Goat Man has been told for decades, perhaps even longer. In the 1970s, a student did a project about the lore behind the creature where they also discussed that the origin of the Goat Man could be traced back to the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center.

According to this version of the legend, the Goat Man was once a scientist working there called Dr. Stephen Fletcher.. During an experiment it mutated the scientist into the creature. It is said that he was attacking cars around Beltsville, around two hours drive from Pocomoke State Forest.  

The Classic Urban Legend of the Boyfriend’s Death

Another thing with Pocomoke State Forest is that it is said to be the place of many famous urban legends from modern day America. 

One unsettling narrative involves a couple stranded with an empty gas tank in the heart of the forest at night. As the boyfriend ventured out to fix it, the girlfriend dozed off in the locked car, oblivious to the scratching noises on the car roof that started sometime during the night. 

When she awoke it was the next morning and her boyfriend had still not returned. She finally heard the sound of the scraping on the roof. She got out of the car and a harrowing sight awaited her – her boyfriend hanging by his feet over the car, his feet scraping the roof. His head was placed on the trunk of the car.

This urban legend is a pretty worldwide phenomenon by now, and has been so for decades now. According to Snopes, the earliest documented version of this legend was in 1964 by a student studying at the University of Kansas. It still is an all time favorite to tell in Pocomoke State Forest

Hook Man of the Pocomoke State Forest

This urban legend has also been told with the story of the Hook Man that has been told as far back as the 1950s, possibly being even older. In this legend, they were driving or parked somewhere in the woods as a news bulletin comes on the radio and warns them about a mental asylum patient having escaped and can be recognized with a hook as a hand. In this version it is from the Cambridge State Hospital. 

In this version of the urban legend, he is mad at those who disturb the Pocomoke State Forest. The girlfriend gets scared and makes her boyfriend drive her home. As they are in the forest they hear strange things in the bushes and when they get home, they find a hook wedged into their car door handle.

The Bus Driver

Another urban legend told is coming from Pocomoke State Forest is the haunted bus. A school bus was taking a shortcut through the forest once when they experienced engine troubles and the bus had to stop. The bus driver went outside and tried to fix it, but strange things started to happen to the bus. 

The sound of something walking on the roof of the bus started to scare the children and they saw ghostly and monstrous faces in the windows. The teacher accompanying them told them all to close the windows and went to the front of the bus to find the bus driver and get them out of there. The only thing the teacher found was a skeleton by the front of the bus. 

The teacher slammed the door shut and got into the driver seat and drove them all back to the school when the bus started working again. 

This story is a little bit more difficult to pinpoint where it comes from though.

A Stay at the Haunted Pocomoke State Forest

The trees seem to reclaim the old legends and places, but the spirit and ghosts remain. Pocomoke State Forest becomes a realm where the line between the living and the supernatural blurs, beckoning both the curious and the cautious to delve into its haunted mysteries.

Urban legends coexists with old ghost stories and both human spirit as well as something inhuman are said to roam around the trees. 

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References:

The Haunted Pocomoke Forest and its Urban Legends – Chesapeake Ghost Tours 

https://www.cellarhousefarm.com/

Haunted Delmarva: Pocomoke Forest – 47abc

GHOSTS OF FURNACE TOWN — American Hauntings  

Sampson Harmon: Furnace Town’s Resident Cat-Collecting Ghost | Shorebread 

14 Myths and Legends Surrounding Maryland’s Haunted Pocomoke Forest 

Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center – Wikipedia 

Goatman (urban legend) – Wikipedia 

The Hook | Snopes.com 

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Manchac Swamp and the Haunted Louisiana’s Mysterious Waters

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In the haunted swamps of Louisiana, Manchac Swamp is said to be the home of the ghost of a voodoo priestess that once destroyed her town with her curses. It is also said that you can hear the howling cries of the Rougarou werewolf at night among the trees.

Beyond the vibrant streets and enchanting mystique of New Orleans lies a realm of shadow and intrigue—the Manchac Swamp and is also known as Ghost Swamp. Less than an hour from the bustling heart of the city, this labyrinthine wetland has become the canvas for chilling tales of curses, ghostly apparitions, and Cajun legends all while the alligator’s eyes light up red in the night. 

Read More: Check of all stories from Haunted Forests

As the Spanish moss hangs low and the murky waters ripple with secrets by the bald cypresses, the haunting aura of Manchac Swamp beckons those brave enough to delve into its enigmatic depths.

The Voodoo Princess and her Curses

One of the most haunting legends surrounding Manchac Swamp revolves around the voodoo princess Julia Brown, also called Julie White or Black by some. Her real name though seems to have been Julia Bernard and seems to have been born in Louisiana in 1845, and she certainly had an eerie end. 

As the tale goes, this supposed  once dwelled within the swamp’s shadows, wielding mystical powers to cast curses upon those who crossed her. 

She was said to have lived in the small town of Frenier in the midst of the swamp in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The town on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain grew out from German immigrants that farmed mostly. 

It was said that the little village had no doctors, and the locals would turn to her for help and she was the local traiteuse, or a faith healer. But in her later years she started to change and sat on her porch in her rocking chair as she played her guitar and sang:

When I die,
I take the whole town with me.
When I die,
I take the whole town.
— Julia Brown 

Why she changed to this ominous person is unknown. Were the villagers starting to take her for granted? Didn’t they treat her as well as she should have? Is this when they changed and called her a voodoo priestess and not a healer? She continued to foretell about the coming misfortunes of them all, until the greatest misfortune hit them all. 

Eventually she did and most of the village gathered for her funeral on September 29 in 1915. Around 4 there was a hurricane that came and nearly destroyed the town around Manchac Swamp. After the 13 feet hurricane howling at 125 miles per hour passed, it was estimated that it killed over 50 in Frenier alone and 275 people in Louisiana.

Today, it is said that Julie White’s ghost lingers among the cypress trees, forever haunting the green and murky Manchac Swamp that was once her domain. But one can wonder if it really was a curse she put on the village, or if it was meant to be warning of oncoming danger. Some even claim to hear the screams of those that died in the swamp during the hurricane.

Voodoo: also known as Vodou, is a spiritual and cultural practice that originated in West Africa and evolved in the Caribbean, particularly in Haiti. Combining elements of African folk religions with Catholicism, Voodoo is a belief system that encompasses a diverse array of rituals, ceremonies, and traditions. Contrary to popular misconceptions, Voodoo is not inherently associated with malevolent practices, as depicted in popular culture. Instead, it serves as a source of cultural identity, community, and spiritual expression for those who practice it.

The official writings doesn’t really mention her work as a voodoo priestess, but there are writings about one Julia Brown working in New Orleans in the 1860s before moving to Frenier according to a Mental Floss Article. The New Orleans Times-Picayune wrote this on October 2nd in 1915:

“Many pranks were played by wind and tide. Negroes had gathered for miles around to attend the funeral of ‘Aunt’ Julia Brown, an old negress who was well known in that section, and was a big property owner. The funeral was scheduled … and ‘Aunt’ Julia had been placed in her casket and the casket in turn had been placed in the customary wooden box and sealed. At 4 o’clock, however, the storm had become so violent that the negroes left the house in a stampede, abandoning the corpse. The corpse was found Thursday and so was the wooden box, but the casket never has been found.”

The Rougarou’s Howl in Manchac Swamp

In addition to the voodoo princess’s spectral presence, Manchac Swamp is also said to be home to the Rougarou, a creature akin to the Cajun werewolf. It comes from French communities in America and is said to be connected to the French loup-garou werewolf.

Tales of this mythical being prowling the Manchac Swamp add an extra layer of supernatural intrigue to the already haunted landscape. The Rougarou’s howls are said to pierce the stillness of the night, echoing through the ancient trees and instilling fear in those who dare to venture into the darkness.

It is said to be a creature with a human body and the head of a wolf or dog. Common legends say that the Rougarou is cursed for 101 days, often by a witch, and after this the curse is given to another person that the Rougarou draws blood from. 

Mostly it is used as a cautionary tale toward Cajun children, but like the French counterpart, the Rougarous has also said to haunt down Catholics that don’t follow Lent rules of fasting for seven consecutive years. 

Dangers and Hauntings in the Swampy Shadows

As if curses and Cajun legends weren’t enough, the very real presence of alligators in the swamp waters adds a tangible element of danger to the mystique of Manchac Swamp. The slithering reptiles, eyes glinting in the moonlight, serve as a reminder that, in this haunted realm, nature itself can be as formidable as the supernatural.

Or perhaps the red eyes in the swampy waters at night is not a gator, but a blood sucking Rougarou, or a vindictive voodoo priestess? 

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References:

Frenier, Louisiana – Wikipedia 

The Legend (and Truth) of the Voodoo Priestess Who Haunts a Louisiana Swamp 

Haunting of Manchac Swamp in Louisiana | Into Horror History | J.A. Hernandez

Rougarou – Wikipedia  

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The Haunting in Pasir Ris Park

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On the foundation of old land with a lot of history, a new park was built called Pasir Ris Park. But the haunted legends of ghost and vampiric creatures surrounding the mangrove forest followed into the modern day busy Singapore. 

The park of Pasir Ris is a fairly new park, built first in the late 80s the reports of strange occurrences started trickling in. And in the following year the park expanded as well as the legends surrounding it. 

The surrounding area that connects the entrances to the popular jogging routes of Pasir Ris Park is Sungei Api Api, a river known to be a place filled with murders and suicides from old times. It was also believed this was the place black magic was practiced in the olden days because of the thick forest. 

The Bird Tower in Pasir Ris Park

There are many spots the local deems as haunted. One of these hot spots, or cold spots if you will, is the Bird Tower in Pasir Ris Park. Located a bit away from the beach in the mangrove forest, it is not necessarily something that you see at once. During the day it looks like a cute and peaceful tower that was built for peaceful birdwatching in the area. But at night the atmosphere changes and the experiences people have seen or experienced themselves have made it so that it is known as the ‘suicide tower’, and apparently it is haunted. 

The Pasir Ris Park: Beautiful in the day, the park turns into something more sinister according to legend at night. //Photo: Cattan2011:Flickr

One of these urban legends that is the most told, and perhaps that started the rumours is the one about the boy with the third eye that died from falling down the tower. The third eye is something that in some lores makes you able to see ghosts according to folklore. The story goes that decades ago he was hanging out in the Pasir Ris Park with his friends and played around.

He spotted something at the tower that was not of this world and told his friends about it. Was it a ghost? The boy along with his friends agreed to come back at night on their bike for further explorations about the strange things he saw. 

They were all resting at the bottom of the tower, but suddenly, the boy with the third eye stood up and ran up the stairs, climbing to the top of the tower and — jumped. The fall turned out to be deadly.

Some of the friends ran to get help while the rest stayed back and watched over their friend as he was slowly dying. Right before he died of the fall, he told them about a feeling of being pushed from the tower. According to him it was an entity that forcefully made him fall. And according to the story he died on his way to the hospital. 

From then on it has been known as the suicide tower, as there have actually been several incidents of people taking their life there. 

The Vampiric Pontianak

In recent times there have also been more reports on two women standing at the top of the tower. According to some, it is possible pontianaks, a malayan and indonesian folklore vampiric ghost of a female who is a deadly creature, which is also been rumoured to roam the area in Pasir Ris Park. 

They are also the ones rumoured to haunt the areas around the beach, where the trees grow tall and thick. The Pontianak (Malayan), or the Kuntilanak (Indonesian), shows up in mythology and folklore in different shapes. Both in the form of a pregnant woman unable to give birth or as a vengeful female spirit with a vampiric touch. Signs like a baby crying or a scent of the plumeria flower or a decaying corpse warns she is around. She is using her appearance as a beautiful woman to lure men, killing them with her long fingernails by removing their organs. 

Check out more stories about the Pontianak here:

The Ghost on the Bench

The fear of ghosts and pontianaks was the thing locals and visitors alike have when hearing stories like a female runner told of when she herself experienced something she could only explain as paranormal. She went for a jog along the place where sightings of the paranormal sort has been reported and came back a believer.

The Viral Ghost: A female jogger took this photo in Pasir Ris Park on a nightly run, experiencing strange and seemingly paranormal things. This went viral when she published it on her facebook back in June 2021. Could this be an example of what haunts the park at night? // Photo: Source

On one of her runs in Pasir Ris Park, she encountered something that looked like a woman sitting on one of the benches in the park. There was something off about her, just sitting there by herself at night in the dark. The strangest thing about her was that it looked like she had no legs when the runner looked more closely.

A lot could explain this strange sight she managed to take a picture of in Pasir Ris Park that night. It might have just been a woman resting on a bench with her legs pulled up. But this was only one of the things she experienced that night in the park.

As the jogger ran past the strange looking woman, she later heard someone or something calling out her name. Problem was there was no one there, especially not one that knew her name.

However the woman managed to snap a photo and the picture fueled the fire about and many had their own theories and experiences about what lived inside of Pasir Ris Park.

These are just some of the occurrences that have been reported in this brand new and modern park. And even in a modernised place like Singapore, the old legends and lores of old times keep on having its place in this country.

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References

https://www.wegonative.com/article/4685/most-haunted-places-singapore

https://goodyfeed.com/spooky-reason-why-the-pasir-ris-tower-is-known-as-the-suicide-tower/

https://www.timeout.com/singapore/things-to-do/the-most-creepiest-and-haunted-places-in-singapore

https://mothership.sg/2021/06/pasir-ris-park-ghost/

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Bunyip in the Billabongs

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G’day mates! The Bunyip in the Billabongs of the wild from Australia is a mythical creature rumored to be living in the lakes and swamps in the untamed Australian wilderness. What was the swamp creature that scared them all? Or rather, what is it?

As the white settlers started to take land in the 1840 and 1850 in Australia, they started to observe something they didn’t think they would. Particularly near the southeast colonies like Victoria, New South Wales they heard unknown cries in the night, found strange bones and started taking notes of the new surroundings. But what was this newly discovered animal? This is something modern day cryptozoologists still debates, even to this day and age.’

Read Also: Check out all of the ghost stories from Australia on the Moonmausoleum.

Most written down sightings we know of from the creature comes from 1840 and 1850, when there were a collective hysteria almost and hunt for this strange creature in this strange country. Perhaps this strange creature that the white settlers saw wasn’t as “newly discovered” as the settlers claimed it to be as there were many local stories from the native Aboriginal Australians.

Proof of the Monster: The much debated skull from the alleged Bunyip that is said to roam in the Australian swamps or Billabongs. Back in the early days of European settlement, the creature was thought of a native animal of Australia. Photo: Henry Dowling, John Murray January 1847 /wikimedia

As the European settlers found skulls they didn’t know the origin off and displayed them in museums for people to behold the strange creatures of the new world, writing sensationalist news articles about the animal and the dangers it posed for humans wandering in the wild, the native aboriginals had a different story to tell about the Bunyip that had haunted the Billabongs long before any Europeans set foot on the ground.

The Evil Spirit in Aboriginal Mythology

The creature is part of traditional Aboriginal beliefs and stories throughout Australia, while its name varies according to tribal nomenclature, it sometimes comes up in their mythology and stories.

The mere word, Bunyip, is today most often translated as devil or evil spirit in the “Down Under”. The stories of the Bunyip varies widely from region to region. The tales of this strange and mythical swamp creature was told before the white settlers came, but what happened to the mythology and folklore of the native aboriginals is an atrocity, and they got their whole culture and way of life wiped away for centuries, at some times, forever.

So who really knows the true origins of the Bunyip today? When the white settlers came they mixed their own folklore into the mix, especially of the Irish mythological monster, Púca. Still, the ones keeping the tales of the Bunyip alive today is the local legends that have been passed down for a long time.

A monster from the lakes: Drawing of the Australian Bunyip coming up from the swamps, rivers and lakes in hunt for food. The creature has been a part of the aboriginal mythology long before the European settlers arrived in the country. The illustration is from 1935/Wikimedia.

One of the origin stories of the legend claims that the monster was once a man whose name was Bunyip. He was banished by the good spirit Biami. This is what drove the man to become an evil spirit that lured his fellow tribesmen into the waters to eat them.

Other stories of the creatures think that it is the remembrance of some sort of extinct animal that used to live on the land, but now only exists in myths and legends. Perhaps it could even be seals that lost their way and ended up in the inland rivers. There are many theories today, but no one has really managed to claimed to have cracked the code.

The Roaring Screams of the Bunyip from the Billabongs

Most of the accounts describes the creature like a sea spirit, river monster or something of a dog or a seal. However, descriptions varies and it also described with feathers, or like a starfish.

What most agree on though is its amphibious traits, swimming in lakes, billabongs, rivers and other forms of inland waters. The creature it is described as highly dangerous if a human gets in its way. While most aboriginal myths claims they are a nocturnal being, feeding on crayfish, there are also so many legends, claiming it to pray on humans as well, especially small children and women.

Read Also: check out the story about The Jersey Devil in the Pine Barrens New Jersey or The Legend of the Mothman for more haunting stories about monsters in the wild.

Although sightings of the creature are said to be rare, the sound of the monster is the most told about legend and how many have claimed to recognize its existence. The Bunyip supposedly makes a booming and roaring scream from the billabongs and swamps, sending shivers to everyone that are unfortunate enough to hear it. Children was told to never go swimming so not to be taken by the Bunyip and the creature has now become a part of the cautionary tale for them.

The Case of the Burrawang Bunyip

It is not like the tales of the Bunyip disappeared as the aboriginal myths were silenced and the white settlers got a better understanding for the wild and foreign country they found themselves in. So far up to modern times, accounts of the Bunyip has been reported across the country. Even in the 1960s, there was tales about the swamp monster, lurking in the deep south murky swamps.

A Hunger for Humans: In many on the reconts of the creature, the monster can be dangerous for humans. Macfarlane, J. 1 October 1890/wikimedia

This is the case of Burrawang, a highland village south-west from Sydney in the southern highland in New South Wales. With a permanent population of around 300 today, Burrawang is truly a quaint Aussie village from an older time. A number of the cottages and churches in the area date back to colonial times and hints at how it would had been back when the European settlers first arrived.

Below the village of Burrawang there is a large swamp that is the home of many rare creatures, and locals claim they’ve heard the sounds from the Bunyip.

There are also a tale of railway workers running away from the monstrous sounds coming from the swamps when they were working there in the 1930s, breathing new life into the legend.

The Burrawang locals heard the roaring sounds from their local Bunyip, all up until they built a dam in 1974, and the sounds disappeared. Why? Did they push the wildlife away and in that, the Bunyip as well? Perhaps it was only something else making the sounds. But what? That is something the modern world perhaps is too late to figure out.

Even today, the monster enthusiast comes to Burrawang in search for the strange creature no one really know exists, but many claims to have heard, bellowing from the depths of the swamps.

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References:

– https://www.britannica.com/topic/bunyip,

– https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/blogs/tim-the-yowie-man/2020/03/the-case-of-the-roaring-bunyip/

Bunyips: Australia’s Folklore of Fear by Robert Holden, Nicholas Holden