Come and Take It

A special Halloween episode, exploring some of the best known ghost stories tied directly to Texas History.

Before we begin… What’s your favorite Texas horror movie?

Folklore—-and ghost stories in particular—-are part of the oral tradition of storytelling that’s as old as human culture. We can’t think of a better way to get a sense of a place than to learn its local ghost stories.

Sources

• Ghost Stories of Texas (1981) by Ed Syers

  This book is fantastic, and really goes out of its way to emphasize the cultural significance of the stories Ed recounts. The author doesn’t get into whether or not the stories are true; he just tells it like it is.

• Texas Ghost Stories (1987) and Texas Ghost Stories II (1992) by Zinita Fowler

  These books are written for children, but do a good job of summarizing the most well-known versions of these stories.

• Ghosts Along the Brazos (1977) by Catherine Munson Foster

  This is the book that was the genesis of this episode. Full of stories specific to the Brazoria County area, it’s written by a native of the area who had been telling the stories in libraries and schools for years.

El Muerte, The Headless Horseman

• Wikipedia entry on the novel by Mayne Reid
• Read the novel for free in various formats at Project Gutenberg

The Lady of White Rock Lake

• Ghost in My Suitcase

The Ghost of Bailey’s Prairie

• Wikipedia entry on Bailey’s Prairie
• “Whiskey-loving Ghost Reportedly Roams Fields”—-A local news account
• An historical account of James “Brit” Bailey and Bailey’s Prairie

The Face in Galveston

• South Texas Paranormal Society

Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells

• “Haunted Baker Hotel Looms Over Mineral Wells, Texas”
• Baker Hotel—-Castle of Spirits
• Texas Escapes describes several stories from the Baker Hotel and an investigation into their veracity.

Yorktown Memorial Hospital

• A summary on HubPages
• The Russell Rush Haunted Tour account which mentions the story of Dr. Leon Nowiersky.