Category: US – Texas

Old Greenhouse Road, on the outskirts of Houston (Texas), has numerous ghost stories.  Most of them repeat tropes I’ve heard before in multiple locations.

Are they urban legends? I’m not sure.

I investigated Old Greenhouse Road, anyway.

My husband and I parked our car just off the road, near the “haunted” bridge, to take photos.

Though the road is the site for the ghost stories, I felt drawn to the little path through the shrubs, just past where we parked our car.

That’s where I took several photos.

Those who know me in real life know that I’m very skeptical of anomalous photos. As often as I can, I return to the location – in daylight and at night – to see if I can debunk whatever’s in the picture.

Debunking the Ecto Photo

Initially, I couldn’t debunk this photo. Not at Old Greenhouse Road, anyway. We visited several times and none of the pictures looked like the one on the lower right, taken in 2005.

Those two photos were taken within seconds of each other using a film camera without a flash.

Digital photos might have looked the same.

It was dusk and the sun was directly behind us, highlighting the dirt path. About 50 feet ahead of us, the trees and shrubs were very dark.

Something there… it seemed very eerie. I hoped my photos would show something unusual. (In other words, I wasn’t 100% unbiased.)

Initially, I thought this might be an “ecto” (ectoplasm) photo.

At the time, that was intriguing. I rarely see convincing ectoplasm in photos. In fact, it’s usually smoke or someone’s breath.

But then…

Later experiments revealed the most likely cause of the red-orange line across the photo.

It was probably a strand of my own hair. (It’s auburn.)

Generally, I wear a scarf or otherwise pin my hair back, so it won’t get in front of the camera lens.

In this case, I’d forgotten.

Ghost Photo Tests with Hair

Though the following pictures aren’t exact matches, I think you’ll see why I’m at least 99% sure the “ecto” at the Houston site is my hair.

Here’s one photo of my hair in front of the camera lens, highlighted by the flash.

And here are a few hairs, held in front of the camera. Once again, the flash highlighted them.

Since those experiments, I’ve been very careful to keep my hair pulled back – preferably under a kerchief or scarf – when I’m taking photos at haunted sites.

Meanwhile, I can’t dismiss every story at Old Greenhouse Road in Houston. Frankly, it’s a difficult location to research. Speeding cars and sharp twists in the road increase the danger of investigating in low-light conditions. I won’t put myself – or my team – at risk, especially at a site that seems to match the “urban legend” profile.

But, for those who’d hoped my photo proved something ghostly at Old Greenhouse Road, I apologize. My initial assessment was wrong, and – even if it’s not a flash photo – hair can explain translucent streaks, when the color matches the haircolor of the photographer.

That doesn’t debunk the streak in the Gilson Road photo. I have never found an adequate explanation for that.

There are several differences. One of the main ones: I was the photographer. My hair was not purple. And, the texture in the original photo is significantly different. (Plus that, the purple streak photo was at Gilson Road Cemetery. We couldn’t debunk the majority of our photos taken at that very haunted site.)

Haunted Patterson Road in Houston, Texas, is next to Bear Creek Park between Highway 6 and Eldridge Road. [Google Maps: Patterson Road – Bear Creek Park]

It follows the route used by Civil War soldiers. The battle took place in the southeastern quadrant of Bear Creek Park.

According to folklore, those soldiers’ ghosts still march along Patterson Road at night.

If you stop on the road, they’ll tap on your car.

That’s the legend.

Of course, YOU SHOULD NOT DO THAT.

This area was once a farming community of German immigrants and their descendants.

Today, it is part of Addicks Reservoir and Bear Creek Pioneers Park, in Harris County, Houston.

There are two bridges on Patterson Road by Bear Creek Park.

One is Langham Creek Bridge, near Eldridge Road.

The other is Bear Creek Bridge, closer to Highway 6.

Are the legends true?

Bear Creek Bridge isn’t supposed to be haunted.

I disagree.

In daylight, Bear Creek Bridge feels far more eerie than the other bridge on Patterson Road.

In May 2005, using the “sparkles” camera, two of us – during an informal evening of ghost hunting –  saw visible anomalies at the Bear Creek bridge.

We saw none at Langham Creek on that same evening, though we did capture some strange mists in our photos.

This orb is probably an insect.

I took this photo at Bear Creek bridge. As you can tell from the grain in the photo, it was a very dark evening. To see anything in the picture, I lightened it considerably in Photoshop.

I’ve included the image – and some trees around it – in case anyone else captures a clear anomaly in a ghost photo at that same location.

 

After, we paused on that bridge, testing the “tapping Civil War soldiers” legend.

This is important: We only paused.

You should not stop there. You probably shouldn’t even pause on that bridge.

Definitely do NOT turn off your engine or your car’s headlights.

Tapping on my car

With my car windows open, I heard three rapid, distinct and clear taps on the car, immediately below my outside mirror.

The tapping sounds was like metal on metal, similar to my car antenna tapping my car roof when I’m driving on a very bumpy road.

It didn’t sound unearthly.

I have no explanation for the tapping, since the car window was fully open and I could see the side of the car easily.

In fact, I looked out of the car right away, to see what caused the noise. I saw nothing unusual at all: No insects, no animals, and nothing brushing against the car.

It was too loud to be the car or the bridge settling.

I was in the driver’s seat, so my door was towards the center of the bridge.

There was no likelihood of shrubbery, vines, or branches hitting the car.

I had no explanation.

In my experience, most paranormal encounters are very different from anything “normal.”

That’s why it took me awhile to accept that something so loud (and apparently mundane) could have been ghostly.

The taps sounded entirely real, normal, and I wanted to know who’d tapped on my car with something like a metal baton.

It probably took me close to five minutes to realize that there was no normal explanation for what had happened.

I did exactly what I’m telling you NOT to do: I stopped on a road at night.

It was a spooky experience, but incredibly stupid as well.

Don’t be another “weird” statistic.

Since writing this, I’ve learned that there are an unusual number of car accidents in that area, and not just among ghost enthusiasts.

Some people speculate that there’s “bad energy” around Bear Creek Park.

I’m not sure about that, but I can confirm that something taps on cars on Patterson Road.

Don’t try this yourself. Please, just take my word for it.

Or, park farther up the street.

Hike to a point where you can safely observe the bridge. And then, pay attention to cars passing over it, and any anomalies you notice.

Patterson Road in Houston, Texas may be haunted. This road borders Bear Creek Park and runs between Highway 6 and Eldridge Road. [Google Maps]

It’s a lovely location.  Arrive in the afternoon and plan a picnic or barbecue in the park. Visit the zoo, read the historical markers, and get a sense of the landscape and its heritage.

Some of Bear Creek Park’s ghost stories are related to Civil War activity.

Others are from 1900, when the infamous hurricane  displaced an entire community. After that, county workers literally changed the landscape to prevent future disasters.

Homes were lost. Landmarks and memorials vanished. The area was safer from future floods, but at a terrible cost.

After a heavy rainstorm, this location still floods before other areas. Always check road conditions before driving to Bear Creek Park.

Marching in the woods

Much of Bear Creek Park is overgrown with dense foliage. At night, frogs make noise too loud to ignore.

You’ll hear other sounds in the woods, too. They’re probably woodland animals, but they are very odd noises.

To some, they sound like people marching or trudging. Lots of people, and heavy steps. Soldiers…? People fleeing the hurricane that came in from Galveston?

No one knows.

That’s why, one evening in early May 2005, two of us investigated Patterson Road.

First, we visited it during the day, to check it for EMF, and so we’d be familiar with anything odd – but easily debunked – after dark.

Compass anomalies at Langham Creek bridge

Right away, we saw anomalous needle swings in excess of 30 degrees on the right side of the Langham Creek bridge as you’re facing Eldridge Road.

That’s significant. The most likely explanation was EMF, but we couldn’t find a logical source. That area is very rural.

Most of our daytime photos were normal, except at this location:

The sun was quickly setting when I took this photo with a digital camera.

There was no light to create that “misty” effect at the upper left corner of the photo. There was no fog, no rain… nothing to account for that mist.

Could it have been breath? Possibly, except that others have captured a similar white mist at that same stand of trees. 

So, we have no reliable explanation.

I have no idea if any “hanging tree” legends exist at that location.

One friend – more familiar with the area – said he’d heard that kind of legend, related to a soldier who wanted to desert his military group. But he wasn’t certain of the exact location.

Langham Creek soldiers?

Langham Creek bridge has the  most haunted reputation.

According to local legends,  ghosts of Civil War soldiers tap on your car if you park on the bridge with your lights out.

I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS!

Patterson Road is busy at night with sporting events at nearby Bear Creek Park. Traffic is intermittent, and some people drive faster than they should.

In other words, it’s a dangerous place to stop your car.

But, yes… on that evening, we did pause on the bridge after dark. (Our headlights remained on.)

At that bridge, we heard tapping noises.

All of it could be explained by the car settling and the bridge shifting slightly under the weight of the car.

So, please do NOT pause your car on Langham Creek bridge, or on any road, with your lights off.

Our next stop was Bear Creek bridge and that’s where things got weird…