Ghosts along the Texas Coast
Read Ghosts along the Texas Coast Online
Authors: Docia Schultz Williams
the Texas Coast
Docia Schultz Williams
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Williams, Docia Schultz.
Ghosts along the Texas coast / Docia Schultz Williams.
p.       cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-55622-377-8
1. Ghosts--Texas--Gulf Region        I. Title.
| BF1472.U6W554Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 1994 | Â |
| 133.1`09764'1--dc20 | 94-11994 |
| CIPÂ Â Â |
© 1995, Wordware Publishing, Inc.
A R
EPUBLIC OF
T
EXAS
P
RESS
B
OOK
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Chapter 1
Ghosts that Dwell in Coastal Towns
and on the Windswept Beaches
Ghostly Guardians of Buried Treasure
House Plays Host to Live-in Ghost
The Night the Karankawa Came Calling
Someone's in the Kitchen at Beulah's
Chapter 2
Ghosts of the Lower Rio Grande Valley
Fort Brown, Where Old Soldiers Never Die
Is There an Explanation for This?
Chapter 3
History and Mystery in Far South Texas
“Bright Shines Bailey's Lights”
A Strange Visitor to Reeves Thicket
Chapter 4
Corpus Christi's Resident Spirits
The Ghost at Blackbeard's on the “C.C.” Beach
The “Great Blue Ghost” Has Ghosts of Her Own!
Chapter 5
The Ghosts of Galveston
Strange Spirits at the Williams House
Miss Bettie's Still in Charge at Ashton Villa
The Boarding House on Avenue K
The Ghost of Fire Station Number Six
The Ghost Who Left His Walking Cane
Chapter 6
Houston . . . a Haunting City
The Strange Old Pagan Church House
More Spirits Than Ale at the Ale House
A Couple of “Mini” Ghost Tales
Chapter 7
Ghosts of the Golden Triangle
Spirits at the Sabine Pass Lighthouse
The Mysterious House at Browndell
Where the Ghost Car Used to Run
Chapter 8
Legends Worth Telling Again
The Romantic Story of Princess Kisselpoo
The Legend of the Indian Maidens
The Headless Rider at Dead Man's Lagoon
The Strange Legend of Bouton Lake
“Sara Jane . . . oh, Sara Jane . . .”
I am greatly indebted to many people who have assisted me in researching the material for this book. The historians, librarians, newspaper editors, and private individuals who have shared their stories with me have contributed greatly towards bringing
Ghosts Along the Texas Coast
to fruition. I am sure I will forget, and therefore omit, many who were helpful to me, but I would like to especially thank the following individuals who shared their time and their stories with me: Clouis and Marilyn Fisher, Rockport; Sue Casterline, Estes Flats; Julie Caraker, Port Aransas; Charlie Faupel and Susan Purcell of Reeves Thicket Ranch, Victoria; Wilbur Butler, Beaumont; Debbie and Jim Sandifer, Port Neches; Anne Malinowsky Blackwell, Nederland; Diane Cox, Jasper; Pat Chance, Jasper; Brenda Greene Mitchell, Spring; Mrs. Merle E. Eisenhour, Galveston; Eleanor Catlow, Galveston; Paula and Steve Bonillas, Corpus Christi; Colonel Larry Platt, Pleasanton; Mary Lou Polley Featherston, Port Arthur; Father Jim Vanderholt, pastor, St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Port Arthur; Catherine Polk, LaMarque; Nancy Polk, Houston; Mario P. Ceccaci Jr., Galveston.
Also, the librarians, museum curators, and newspaper staffs who gathered and sent so much helpful material to me, including: Casey Edward Greene, Assistant Archivist, Rosenberg Library, Galveston; Ellen Hanlon, “The Texas Room,” Houston Public Library; Yolanda Gonzalez, Librarian, Arnulfo L. Oliveria Memorial Library, University of Texas at Brownsville; Bruce Aiken, Brownsville Historical Museum; Newton Warzecha, Museum Director, La Bahia, Goliad; Kevin Young, San Antonio, formerly museum director, La Bahia, Goliad; Derek Neitzel, Resident Graphic Artist and assistant to the curator, USS
Lexington
Museum, Corpus Christi; Kathleen Hink, former director, Williams House Museum, Galveston; Kevin Ladd, Director, Wallisville Heritage Park.
Many thanks to Sam Nesmith and his wife, Nancy, who as historians and psychics contributed much advice and encouragement.
The following individuals gave me some good leads in tracking down stories, and to them I am most grateful: GiGi Starnes, San Antonio; Dr. Joe Graham, Dept. of Sociology, Texas A&M, Kingsville; Nancy Vernon, Rockport; Faye Duncan, Port Arthur; and Mrs. W.A. Ewert, Riviera. Also Dr. Juan Sauvageau, author of
Stories That Will Not Die
, for his encouragement, and the late Catherine Munson Foster of Angleton, folklorist and author of
Ghosts Along the Brazos
, for her help in my research. Also Libby Butler of Raisin; Dorothy Hirsch of Brownsville; Kitten Carter of Houston; Juanita Williams of Andrews; and Betty Boriak of Houston. Also my thanks to Greg Marshall, resident historian, Rice University; and Ann Douglass, reference librarian, Houston Public Library.
Lastly, by far the most important contributor towards the completion of this book is my husband, Roy D. Williams, whose constant encouragement and “prodding” kept me on track, as he accompanied me on trips along the coast, interviewing and taking pictures. And when the stories were all done, he spent endless hours at the computer getting the manuscript ready for the publishers. My love and heartfelt thanks, Roy.
As a small child, I shivered simultaneously with fear and delight as Halloween stories of goblins and ghosts were told to me. There's a fascination with the unknown, that other dimension wherein dwell the restive spirits of departed souls, that we all have in one degree or another. Perhaps you share with me the belief that there really are such things as “ghosts” or “spirits.” Or perhaps you remain skeptical, totally unconvinced that there could be, or are, such things at all.
Because you personally have never experienced the seeing, hearing, or feeling of the presence of a ghost, you may obviously doubt there are such things. Having interviewed many people and corresponded with countless others, I am impressed by the intelligence and honesty displayed by those who have shared their stories with me so that I might bring them to you, my readers. Believe them or not, they deserve your respect and are not to be ridiculed. I for one, do not doubt their stories. Since my first book on the subject of ghosts,
Spirits of San Antonio and South Texas
, which I co-authored with Reneta Byrne was published in December 1991 (Republic of Texas Press, an imprint of Wordware Publishing, Inc.), I have made many radio and television appearances and have given numerous programs and book reviews. It is truly amazing how many people have contacted me after hearing me speak. They must recognize a “kindred spirit.” Often I have been told, “I've never told anyone about this before; I was so afraid they would laugh at me.” These people realize that I believe that there are such things as “spirits” or “ghosts,” and they will have the ear of a sympathetic listener. I have heard some strange, yet believable stories as a consequence, and I have met many interesting people in the process.
Now, I am not a psychic. I have friends and acquaintances who are, and they have been of great help in explaining the “unexplainable” to me. And in consulting with these psychics I have learned that certain
times and certain conditions contribute greatly to the sightings of apparitions, or the hearing of “ghostly noises.” “Ghosts” or “spirits” seem to be the most common names associated with the unexplained presences that represent the restless souls of now dead human beings. They are, I believe, all around us. Some are kindly, benevolent guardians that protectively watch over someone or over a place they once loved. Others are very disturbed entities, not yet accepting that they are dead. These souls wander impatiently, often frightening us as they appear, disappear, and reappear, over and over again. You see, time means nothing to a ghost!