Creepy Old West Ghost Stories And Legends
'El Muerto' Of South Texas
Photo: Soren Lünd / Wellcome Images / CC BY 4.0In the early 1800s, South Texas and Mexico weren't really sure about where the border should lie. It was either the Nueces River or the Rio Grande River, but because no agreement could be reached, the area in-between became a no man's land. Local cattle rustlers took advantage of this. One specific outlaw named Vidal was particularly nasty, and the local rangers decided to make an example of him in the worst way imaginable.
When he was caught, they slew him, cut off his head, then lashed his body to a mustang in an upright position as if he was riding. Then, they let the horse loose to wander as a symbol of the form of justice that would befall any outlaw who dared step out of line. Quite similar to the legend of Sleepy Hollow or the Headless Horseman, many cowboys over the years have seen a headless bandit called "El Muerto" riding through the Rio Grande area, even into the 21st century.
Jesse James Still Haunts His Family Farm
Photo: Unknown / Wikimedia Commons / Public DomainJesse Woodson James was an outlaw, train robber, bank robber, and gang leader between the 1860s and the 1880s, and he was finally slain on April 3, 1882, by Robert Ford. While rumors of his survival floated around, his ghost has purportedly been spotted around his family farm in Kearney, MO, for over 100 years.
Additionally, lights come on at random times, mysterious movements are caught on security cameras, and mysterious voices can be heard in rooms that are supposed to be empty. Legend has it that this is evidence of the ghostly gunslinger having returned home, never to leave again.
The Cry Of The Death Bird
Photo: National Park Service / Public DomainThe Native Americans of the Old West often passed on several of their legends and beliefs to frontiersmen, and from that, often spawned legends. One particularly ghostly tale has to do with a small bird, appropriately titled the Death Bird. Native Americans believed that before death, the bird would appear to either warn people and save their lives, or to tell them that it was too late and they might as well pick out a coffin.
In the late 1800s, cowboys began to see this ghostly spirit bird as well, sometimes signifying that someone nearby was dying and needed help or that the cowboy himself was on a final roundup. Even if you didn't see it, supposedly, you could hear its unearthly, piercing call.
The Ghost Of Silver Heels
Photo: Rennett Stowe / Flickr / CC BY 2.0Not all ghosts are necessarily scary, and Silver Heels is a legend that's more sad than frightening. In 1861, there was a dance hall girl in Buckskin Joe mining camp who was nicknamed Silver Heels. The miners loved her, showered her with gifts, and she was considered beautiful by all. But as with most beautiful things, her joyful dancing was not to last.
One winter, smallpox spread through the camp with force. Silver Heels stopped dancing and set to work helping the sick and tending to the dying. She even helped with burials. But after the worst of the sickness had passed, Silver Heels was nowhere to be found. Legend says that she, at last, fell sick with smallpox, and her once beautiful face became scarred beyond recognition, so she hid from everyone until her passing. No one knows when this was.
Some say that you can still see a ghostly veiled figure wandering the cemetery, putting flowers by gravestones. Even in the afterlife, Silver Heels still seeks to bring comfort to her miners.
Is Bigfoot Really A Spirit?
Photo: Gnashes30 / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0Nowadays, we mostly think of Bigfoot as a big ape-like creature, part man and part beast. But many legends paint him more as a spirit warrior. In 1868, a group of travelers on a stage road were beset by Cherokees. They reported that one was absurdly large and animal-like, and that they had slain him during the skirmish. The man's name was Big Foot, due to the fact that his feet were supposedly 18 inches long.
A Native American warrior by that name did exist according to some historians. Did he perish in that fight after all, or did he escape to roam the trails? More often, stage drivers and natives said that his ghost haunts the trail, still a massive and ghostly warrior, covered in hair and brush. So by that logic, Bigfoot may well be an ancient Cherokee spirit rather than a missing link.
Beware The Tears Of La Llorona
Photo: Alyosn / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0While this might be a Mexican tale in origin, its haunting and terrifying story spread throughout the Old West. Depending on the story, Maria was either the wife of a wealthy husband who eventually began to neglect her, or a lady of the evening who loved to go out partying. Either way, she became angry and resentful of her two young sons and flew into a fit of madness and rage. She took them to a river and drowned both of them. When she came to her senses, she realized the horrible thing she had done and tried to save them from their watery graves, but it was too late. She wailed in grief and ended her own life shortly after.
Legend has it that late at night, by rivers in the Southwest, you can sometimes hear the crying of a woman. "Where are my children?" Children are told not to go outside for fear they'll be taken away by her or drowned in the river like her sons.
The Hell Dogs Of Eldorado Canyon
Back in the mining days, prospectors often kept dogs for companionship, protection, and as an alarm system from potential thieves. These dogs were trained to be vicious, aggressive, and completely unstoppable should anyone cross their path. Some even turned on their owners. Because of this, most were shot or left to perish rather than brought back to civilization.
If you venture to the mines near Eldorado Canyon, you had better be ready to run. There are reports of growling, snapping, strange canine shapes, and even attacks from unknown beasts. These ghostly demon dogs still guard the claims of the area, even beyond the grave.
Marshal White Continues To Keep The Peace
Photo: Marine 69-71 / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0Marshal Fred White is a Wild West legend. He was the first marshal of Tombstone, AZ, a locale mostly known for gunslinging and lawlessness during the mid to late 1800s. Any man willing to walk into that hornet's nest and try to bring order and law was either mad or a genius, and Fred White was probably a bit of both.
For a time, he managed to calm down the violence and keep citizens a lot safer than they were before. Ironically, he didn't perish in some explosive shootout like the famous gunfight at O.K. Corral (which happened at Tombstone), but rather by an accidental gunshot to the groin.
While the area is supposedly haunted by numerous ghosts, one spirit still reigns supreme. Even in the afterlife, Fred White is still the ghostly law in Tombstone.
The Ghost Town Of Bodie Isn't Abandoned
Photo: Mike McBey / Flickr / CC BY 2.0If you ever have the chance to stop by the ghost town of Bodie, you're in for a rich glimpse into the past. The gold mining town acts as an eerily silent and abandoned museum, with many intact buildings you can walk into and explore at your leisure. Just watch your step, because Bodie is filled to the brim with ghosts.
Moreover, the many ghosts there - possibly in the hundreds - display numerous different types of personalities. There are spirits who don't like adults but enjoy playing with children, cooks still working hard to feed their customers, and angry lawmen who are said to patrol the streets. If they catch you taking anything from the town, they will haunt you. You will have bad luck, misfortune, and misery in your life until the item is returned. The visitor center even keeps a rather sizable scrapbook of letters from people who have returned items they've taken.
Bullock Still Lives In Deadwood
Photo: Carol M. Highsmith / Wikimedia Commons / Public DomainIn 1876, a man named Seth Bullock arrived in Deadwood, SD, from Montana, and the little city would never be the same. He opened a hardware store,and really brought the place to life with business and hospitality. Still, he had a foreboding presence, and he was both respected and feared by locals. When his store burned down, he decided to build a a luxurious hotel. He succeeded, and was well-known by the time of his passing in 1919 from cancer.
But after working so hard against the odds, Bullock wasn't going to watch his hotel's standards slip. Legend has it that he still acts as host in the hotel, bothering lazy staff members, inspecting rooms, and even turning off lights when no one is in the room. Even to the end, Bullock is a perfectionist who demands only the best.
Do NOT Mess With The Skinwalkers
Photo: Dsdugan / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0The Navajo believe that Skinwalkers were medicine people or witches, not quite human and not fully alive, who dislike outsiders and have aggressive tendencies. They could imitate any sound, become any shape, and had no qualms about slaying people, animals, and children - basically, anyone who crossed them was fair game. Many natives still don't tell tales about Skinwalkers for fear of retribution on themselves and those they care about.
In the Old West, specifically in California, Arizona, and New Mexico, cowboys talked of these spirit creatures in hushed voices, and when someone went mysteriously missing in the desert, these ghostly creatures were often blamed. So, if you ever hear a story from someone about their experiences with a Skinwalker, tell them to keep their voices down. You never know who might be listening.
The Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine
Photo: Waqcku / Good Free Photos / Public DomainOne of the holy grails of the Old West is the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine. Somewhere near Superstition Mountain in Arizona in the late 1800s, the body of a German man named Waltz was supposedly discovered weighted down with bags of gold. It was believed Waltz perished from exhaustion carrying the heavy bags. From there, the hunt for his clearly plentiful goldmine began.
But here's where it gets creepy. People who went looking for the treasure began to mysteriously perish: gunshot wounds, completely vanishing, only some body parts found, etc.. People still search today, but it's said that the ghosts of those who have tried before and even Waltz himself guard the location, keeping it hidden and killing any who dare to get too close.
