Ghost Stories

An Elm tree once stood along the Cimarron River in Ripley, Oklahoma believed to be cursed. In the 1800s, this tree served as the ideal spot for hangings. Legend goes in 1887 an innocent man was strung up on that Elm. The next day, all the bark mysteriously fell off of it. When the light of the moon shined on this bare tree, it glowed an eerie white color. Some say you could even see a body hanging from it. Another story states, three horse thieves were mysteriously hung from the tree, but was not the first death this tree has seen. Supposedly, an "Indian princess" on the site of the tree. Her crime? Falling in love with a white man. She was 17 and wanted to run away to marry him but her father intervened. He attempted to shoot her suitor but instead killed his daughter. Ever since then, the tree has been cursed, demanding a life every 17 years. Other deaths associated with the tree includes a gambler who was caught cheating, two bodies were found there in the early 1900s an...

Many cemeteries have their own "rock star" that draws in visitors and Dick Duck is no different. Dick Duck Cemetery in Catoosa, Oklahoma was already being used as a cemetery when Richard "Dick" Duck donated it in the early 1830s. However, people don't come to see Richard. It's a different "Duck" that lures them in. Bluford "Blue" Duck (no relation to Richard) was born in Cherokee Nation and an outlaw who participated in stage hold-ups and rustlings. On the long list of famous outlaws, his name didn't rank high. However, stories have circulated that Blue not only knew female outlaw Belle Starr but had an affair with her prior to her marriage to Sam Starr. Only a single photograph is proof the two knew each other which may have helped him later on in his life. Also, Larry McMurty used Blue as inspiration for his book Lonesome Dove. Blue, also known by his Cherokee name Sha-con-gah Kaw-wan-nu, got drunk on the night of June 23, 1884 ...

The Brady Theater is located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Even though it was named after "Tate Brady", an affluent oil baron, the real owner was Mr. Peter Mayo. Mayo renamed the theater to reflect the district which was also named after "Tate Brady." The Brady Theater was the largest theater west of the Mississippi River. It hosted some of the most famous actors of its time including the one that is said to haunt it til this day, the famous Italian tenor, Enrico Caruso. According to the legend, Enrico Caruso went to see an oil well in Sapulpa accompanied by two other cars. The day had been wet and rainy and all three cars ended up breaking down. Caruso had to walk 1/2 mile to the Brady Theater for his sold-out concert. Enrico Caruso died about 9 months later from abscesses on his lungs do to pleurisy in 1921. It is said that Caruso haunts the Brady in retribution of his illness from walking in the wet Tulsa weather. His manager also blamed the weather for Caruso's demi...

Located in Yale, Oklahoma, “Satan’s House” was once the old Norfolk school. Supposedly, two children found themselves trapped in the basement’s boiler room when the school burned down. Both kids died in the fire and now, allegedly, haunt the location. There are also rumors of Satan worshiping taking place in the school sometime after the fire (hence the name). This legend has its share of variations. On the Strangeusa website, it states an old man died tilling his field nearby the school (no mention of any children dying). Shadowlands reported very much the same but amended the listing in 2007. According to their sources, “Satan’s House” was an old oil refinery not a school and a 5 year old girl died trying to rescue her brother’s bike from a sludge pit. The area is or was known for its oil refineries especially during the oil boom and an Oklahoman group called Sooner Paranormal of Oklahoma did investigate an abandoned one stating it to be the actual “Satan’s House”. I’m not tot...

Teenagers worldwide experiment with the tale of "Bloody Mary". However, Ardmore, Oklahoma has Mr. Apple. According to legend, go to the cemetery and find the headstone marked Mr. Apple. If you walk around it 3 times saying "Mr. Apple are you home" or "Mr. Apple, can your daughter come out to play?", a bright light will start chasing you and your neck will start to hurt. As soon as you get to somewhere safe and you look at your neck it looks like some one has scratched you so deep that it will leave scars. There are several things inaccurate with this legend. First of all, it's often relayed for someone to go to Mr. Apple's cemetery. Well, there is no Mr. Apple's Cemetery in Ardmore. The deceased in question is buried in Rose Hill Cemetery also known as St. Mary's Cemetery which leads to the next issue. It tells you to find his headstone. Technically, he doesn't have a headstone. He was privileged enough to be buried in a mausoleum. Th...

In Weatherford, Oklahoma sits an isolated bridge of Big Deer Creek near a local university. A real death shrouded in a ghost tale. After deciding to divorce her husband on the grounds of cruelty, Katy DeWitt James and her 14-month-old daughter got on a train en route to Payne County from Custer County. She met a prostitute named Fannie Norton while on her journey and agreed to stay with Norton's brother. On July 8th, 1905, the two women and child left in a buggy declaring their return in three hours. Two hours and fifteen minutes later, Norton returned alone. Katy's father Henry, after weeks of receiving no word from her, hired a private detective to investigate her whereabouts. The detective discovered Fannie Norton took Katy and her daughter supposedly to a town called Hydro. However, their wagon disappeared in a field near Deer Creek for almost an hour. When Norton finally re-emerged, she was alone with the child. No sign of Katy anywhere. She left the child with a boy at ...

High on a huge hill sits the ruins of a 19th century Victorian mansion tainted by the blood of four people. The Labadie family traveled to the Indian Territory of Oklahoma in the mid 1800s pursuing agricultural ventures. Frank Labadie was educated at the Osage Mission, starting out in life independently. He took up the occupation of farming, devoting his attention to the further cultivation and improvement of the home place of fifteen hundred acres, situated in Osage County. He continued to operate until 1891 but shifted his attention to the lumber business, dealing in hardwood timber. Labadie retained ownership of the original homestead, receiving large royalties from oil wells located on the property, while also owning a twenty-acre truck farm near Big-heart, in Osage County. In 1884, Labadie married Miss Samantha Ellen Miller, a native of Illinois. The story goes Frank and Samantha lived with a loyal black slave named Enos Parsons. After the Civil War, Parsons refused freedom and ...

How does a house earn such a name as The Devil House? Perhaps being associated with such people as the KKK is enough to acquire such a name. There once stood a house made from concrete in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. It use to be located three miles down a gravel road and ten miles from any sign of civilization. The KKK allegedly owned the property. Considering what they are known for, there’s no telling what all may or may not have taken place in or outside house. The structure has since been torn down but the reports of unexplained activity still continue. When the house was still standing, people reported freezing cold spot even in the middle of Summer. Signs of bonfires have been seen one minute and mysteriously disappear the next. A car has been seen fifteen miles from the demolished remains. They say this car drives insanely fast around the curve at night. Then, disappears in to a nearby wife fence out in to a cornfield. Even stranger, no tire tracks of this alleged phantom car have...

An Elm tree once stood along the Cimarron River in Payne County, Oklahoma. In the 1800s, this tree served as the ideal spot for hangings. Legend goes in 1887 an innocent man was strung up on that Elm. The next day, all the bark mysteriously fell off of it. When the light of the moon shined on this bare tree, it glowed an eerie white color. Some say you could even see a body hanging from it. The Elm remained standing for many years but has since been chapped down. We'll never know if it's alleged "glowing" was due to the natural occurrence of the moonlight hitting a bare tree or something more paranormal. However, visitors still claim to get a "creepy" feeling at Ghost Hollow.

Bachelor Grove is well known as a former mob dumping ground. Brown Springs in Thackerville, Oklahoma is also known for its body dumping past. Nestled in a low area near Chickasaw Smoke Shoppe, Brown Springs flows in to a nearby lagoon. It's neighbor is a cemetery founded in the 19th Century. Over the last couple of decades, bodies have been discovered in the springs. These people met violent deaths in Dallas and then were taken to their final resting place in Brown Springs. Several were found in the 1970s. Then, one in 1989. One of the last ones found was a woman from Gainesville. In 1997, she was found in the springs on top of her car. Some visitors to Brown Springs have been pulled to particular grave sites. Trees bleed. There have been sightings of a little girl standing next to a headstone marked "Butch". For more information and photos , visit http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr.html .

Every city, town and/or state has their own quirky landmark. Here in Tulsa, Oklahoma, we have The Cave House. According to legend, the house was built in the 1920s by Joseph Koberling Sr. and James Purzer fronting a chicken restaurant by day and speakeasy by night during Prohibition. Pretty Boy Floyd was considered one of The Cave House's famous customers. It's unusual architecture and dark, musty appeal gave the place it's name and a few others by locals: The Weird House, The Flintstones House, The Hill House, etc. Some say there was a secret door and tunnels that extended throughout the hillside. Linda Collier, current owner, has yet to find the door and tunnels were sealed off long ago. Although some believe remains of Klan victims are hidden within the tunnels. A secret mass grave of the 1921 Tulsa Race Riots may also sit adjacent to the house in Newblock Park. If either are true, it may explain the reports of The Cave House being haunted. A paranormal team in Tuls...

The Brady Theater is located in Tulsa, Oklahoma and is named after "Tate Brady" who at the time was the affluent oil baron. Even though it is named after "Tate Brady" the real owner is Mr. Peter Mayo. Mayo renamed the theater to reflect the district which was also named after "Tate Brady." The Brady Theater was the largest theater west of the Mississippi River. It hosted some of the most famous actors of its time including the one that is said to haunt it til this day, the famous Italian tenor, Enrico Caruso. According to the legend, Enrico Caruso went to see an oil well in Sapulpa accompanied by two other cars. The day had been wet and rainy and all three cars ended up breaking down. Caruso had to walk 1/2 mile to the Brady Theater for his sold-out concert. Enrico Caruso died about 9 months later from abscesses on his lungs do to pleurisy in 1921. It is said that Caruso haunts the Brady in retribution of his illness from walking in the wet Tulsa weather...