These tales are obviously old, as the bridge has been closed to vehicle traffic since 2001. In a panic, the mob fled from the bridge. Before he got involved with Heeter, he had been seeing a younger woman. There have also been reports of inhuman screams coming from the nearby woods, or maniacal laughter sounding. A rash of mysterious disappearances are becoming alarmingly routine on a chilling stretch of road that is known by locals as "the Goatman's bridge." Constructed in 1884, the bridge connected Lewisville to Alton. We discuss the high amount of suicides that have happened at the bridge and more! Also, heres a weird synchronicity. When she found out, she threw herself from the bridge, and her spirit has haunted it ever since. After his second marriage, Harrod asked to be repaid. He may have done that before 8/6, but thats just when I noticed it, while finalizing the script for this episode. Others report seeing a ghostly man herding goats over the bridge, while others say they have seen an apparition staring at them, holding a goat head under each arm. Some folks believe that Satanists have performed dark rituals on the bridge and opened a portal to another dimension. He had no known medical conditions when he disappeared, although he did have some short-term memory problems like being unable to remember phone numbers. As of 8/6/22, he had deleted his account completely. After securing it around Oscars neck, they tossed him over the side. Ghost Adventures anchors Travel Channels Ghostober event with all-new frightening specials. Washburn was gone and was never seen again. You wont find the names of Oscar Washburn or Jack Kendall in any historical records. It is under surveillance by the Paranormal Investigators of North Texas and the Denton County Paranormal Investigators.\r\rOscar Washburn was never seen again and has been presumed dead since his attempted murder.\r\rhttp://www.asup-inc.org/oldaltonbridgecase.htm The video makes a number of claims, including this bit, which appears in the viedo as well as the first line of the video description, which has a transcript of the voiceover: November 15th 1967: police discover an abandoned car beside Old Alton Bridge, five miles south of Denton, Texas. All rights reserved. | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Return Policy, It didnt earn the Goatman title until half a century. Townsite lots began to be auctioned in January 1857. Join the Observer community and help support The Denton County location is notoriously haunted by the spirit of Oscar Washburn, or "Goatman," who was believed to be a former goat farmer. In 2014, after Harrod's family had him declared legally dead and inherited his home, Heeter was evicted. And, yeah, I mentioned this in the beginning, but I suspect that theres some mental health stuff surrounding some of Bobs posts and stuff. If you park outside the bridge at night and honk your horn three times a goatman will appear. "For the last several years I've given ghost tours on the Square, usually on the weekends. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. When Denton County was formed in 1846, the first pioneers chose a place along Pecan Creek for the first county seat and named it Pinckneyville in honor of Texas first governor, James Pinckney Henderson. of all manners. Put to a vote in November 1856; the county seat was moved again to Denton. That road is known by locals as "The Goatman's Bridge." In an account that may go back as far as the 1860s Texas Troubles, some Copper Canyon cowboys lynched a Creole slave goat-herder named Jack Kendall from a tall creekside tree near where the bridge now stands, but ineptitude separated the runaway slaves head from his body. Along with hikers, bikers, and horseback riders, the Old Alton Bridge and surrounding wooded areas have become a popular destination for bird watchers and nature photographers. Copyright 2008 - Travelers to the Old Alton Bridge, built in 1884 as a busy thoroughfare, have long reported frightening encounters and ghostly experiences with supernatural creatures that have made it a legendary spot for Texas ghost hunters and a topic for numerous books. In the meantime, Alton began to die as many of its businesses moved to the new county seat. They returned to his home and slaughtered his family, according to the legend. The main highway bypasses it now, but the 135-year-old structure is still visible from the main road. There's the bridge, and then there's . No Goatmans Bridge legend ever existed or was ever mentioned in any of your Texas legend/myth or ghost story books (even those published as late as the early 2010s.). Join the discussion on our new social platform Texjas.com! Oh also, when I originally wrote a lot of this, Bob had deleted his YouTube channel, but as of today, August 6, 2022, he seems to have reactivated his YouTube channel. Harrod was last seen at his residence in the 500 block of Carnation Drive Placentia, California sometime between 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. on July 27, 2009. Nothing has been posted, there are no playlists, etc. Some reports describe the Goatman's fur as a deep, fiery red, while others describe his coloring as black as night, so black you can hardly see him as he moves through the edges of the trees. There is little remaining of the old townsite today, except for the Hickory Creek Baptist Church and the old Alton Cemetery, which contains graves that date back to 1852. More tales of strange noises have also been described, including the sounds of horses hoof beats on the bridge, splashing in the creek below, maniacal laughter, and inhuman like growling coming from the surrounding woods. and help keep the future of the Observer, Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our. The bridge was built in 1884, by the King Iron Manufacturing Bridge Company. They have also recorded the sound of horses hooves crossing the bridge, when there were no horses present and one investigator, walking with her German shepherd dog, has seen a horseman, dressed in dark clothing, galloping toward them, then disappearing, without leaving tracks on the path. \r\rSince the disappearance of the Goatman there have been many strange sightings on and near Old Alton Bridge. Alton, now Cooper City, has long been abandoned. The Ghost Adventures crew is in Denton, Texas, investigating Goatman's Bridge. Then he talks about his videos that he posted in 2009: I take issue with his claim that no legend at all existed, but I have been able to confirm that it seemed to be a much lesser known urban legend (for example, I lived there for years and had never heard of it), and the stories of hauntings seemed more scattershot. THE HISTORY of goatman's bridge: November 15th 1967: police discover an abandoned car beside Old Alton Bridge, five miles south of Denton, Texas. [1][3], As well, Goatman was rumored to reside in a makeshift shelter in the wooded region of northwestern Prince George's County near the vicinity of Bowie. Halloween is upon But the success of a black man was still unwelcome, and Klansmen in the local government turned to violence after he displayed a sign on Alton Bridge: \"this way to the Goatman's\"\r\rOne night in August 1938, with their headlights off, Klansmen crossed the bridge, dragged the Goatman from his family, and lynched him over the side. The site also tells this story about a possible historical Goat Man: In some research we found that in the late 1800s there was a man that reportedly lived out near the bridge, who owned several goats. The bridge is located about seven miles south of Denton. (Especially because I use dictation software for a lot of my script writing!) A vicious and hateful group of Klansmen working in the local government began to conspire against him, waiting for Oscar to slip and give them some excuse to be rid of him. Built by the King Bridge Company of Cleveland, Ohio, the 145-foot long . His wallet and keys disappeared with him, but he left behind his gold 1997 Toyota Camry and his eyeglasses. It didnt earn the Goatman title until half a century later, when an African-American named Oscar Washburn settled in the area. When they looked down to see if he had died, the noose was empty. However, when they looked over to make sure he was dead, they could see only the rope. Signs found around the area clearly denote the special place the bridge and surrounding woods have in the communitys hearts, including one which reads I have many memories of the Old Alton Bridge and I love every one of them, a quote attributed to Wayne Stuart Ryan. Despite the warmth the community displays toward the bridge, another feeling altogether permeates the hot summer air when wandering down the Old Goatmans Bridge at dusk; a feeling of deep, almost primordial terror of what lurks beneath. Before the new bridge was built, motorists were required to honk their horns on the one-lane bridge to let other travelers know they were coming. When approached, the woman is said to vanish. The Hickory Creek Baptist Church, which continues to stand, was organized in 1855. So whether the Old Alton is named after a terrifying demon or a particularly resilient goat farmer, the bridge is certainly worth the trip. Unaware of the plot against him, Oscar had rather harmlessly installed a sign on the Old Alton Bridge reading This way to the Goatmans. In response, the members of the Klan employed at the local police station drafted a law making it illegal to solicit anything at the bridge, and dually arrested Oscar in August of 1938. The new bridge straightened out a sharp curve on both sides of the creek and provided additional travel lanes. Due to the great number of unexplained happenings at the Old Alton, the bridge has been the subject of a number of investigative paranormal shows. Wow, what a cliffhanger! Ghost Adventures fans are in for a spooky treat Thursday night. Authorities don't believe Harrod was harmed by a . The newly improved bridge solved this problem as well as straightened out a sharp curve on both sides of the creek. Other strange happenings recorded at the bridge include strange lights appearing in the surrounding woods, along with reports of visitors feeling hands grab at them in the dark, o a rain of rocks pelting them as they cross the bridge. A fan-favorite episode in which the crew took on Goatman Bridge will be featured on Ghost Adventures: Screaming Room. So, just to be clear: If you google this and find people mention the person who supposedly uploaded the video, that information is incorrect. Road 2181), Denton, Texas. Bagans, Goodwin, Billy Tolley and Jay Wasley watch the subject episode and add candid commentary about behind-the-scenes moments. If you think youre brave enough to cross the haunted Goatmans Bridge, read on. Goatman's Bridge is the common nickname for what's formally called Old Alton Bridge, an iron-truss span that once connected Denton, Texas, to Copper Canyon. If history is the self-congratulatory narrative of a community written by its victorious elite, then our ghosts will often problematize and haunt such tidy romanticisms of back in the day. But its wild that those details have congealed into this almost monolithic urban legend nowadays. Lermont Stowers-Jones' body was found in a Denton County creek in 2018. Ironically, if you search Bobs username on youtube, the cached metadata on Duckduckgo says USERNAME is resurrected from the digital grave. which is really ironic. The Old Alton Bridge is a historic iron bridge that spans over the muddy waters of Hickory Creek and connects the city of Denton to the city of Copper Canyon, a little less than an hours drive from Dallas. [2] This bridge is the subject of several ghostlore stories featuring a vengeful ghost. Some of the posts he commented on were about the Old Alton Bridge, Texas Hauntings, or similar topics. Apparently, in order to drum up business, Washburn hung a sign on the bridge reading: "This Way to the Goatman." The local KKK was not at all pleased. Earning his living raising goats, he was soon called the Goatman by the locals. The person said: There have been several disappearances on and around Old Alton Bridge. Donations are accepted but not expected; the site remains free-access to all. Goatman stories originated in the early 1970s but some of its legends are set in the 50s, within Prince George's County, following the disappearances and/or deaths of multiple dogs, which were later attributed to the creature. Oscars neck, they tossed him over the side may have done that before 8/6 but! Began to be repaid there have been several disappearances on and near Old Alton bridge but thats just I. 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