Some of the spookiest ghost stories from Texas come straight out of San Antonio. Every nook and cranny of the world has its own local ghost stories and creepy urban legends. With a state as big as Texas, it’s no wonder some of the craziest supernatural tales originated there.
Austin and Houston have quite a few doozies, as does Dallas, but there are scary tales from San Antonio that would give even seasoned ghost hunters the chills.
The spirits of San Antonio are some of the strangest by far: a dancing diablo, a weeping woman, and vigilante reapers, to name a few. Collected here are some of the creepiest San Antonio ghost stories out there. Feel free to pass them on.
Remember The Alamo & Its Ghosts
Arguably the most haunted place in San Antonio is the Alamo. Even guests staying at the Menger Hotel next door have looked out their windows and seen apparitions defending the Alamo. There is a ghostly monk that several witnesses have seen in the courtyard, and an unknown man is often spotted on the roof. Those exploring the Alamo have reported cold spots, disembodied voices, a mysterious light in the tower at night, and the sound of a woman crying.
According to legend, after the battle of San Jacinto, Mexican troops planned to tear down the Alamo. Before they could, they were accosted by angry spirits with flaming swords, screaming, “Do not touch these walls!”
A Headless Nun Wanders Santa Rosa Hospital
Deep within the basement of the Santa Rosa Hospital lurks the restless spirit of a headless nun. On October 30, 1912, there was a terrible fire that tore through the hospital’s neighboring building, St. John’s Orphan Asylum. The nuns frantically ushered the orphans out to safety. Sadly, one woman was still inside searching when the flames became too much, and she was consumed along with the remaining structure. How she became headless is anyone’s guess, but now her spirit is said to wander that whole area, seeking refuge in the hospital’s basement.
The Macabre Tale Of Midget Mansion
This legend has got to be one of the weirdest in all of San Antonio. So, here it goes… In the 1920s, the Gillespie family moved into this house, which they had modified to meet their unique demands.
The husband and wife were both midgets, but their children were of average size, and so was the hired help. Even still, they had everything inside the main house, and the housekeeper’s quarters were miniaturized to meet Mr. and Mrs. Gillespie’s needs. Low walls and ceilings, tiny doorknobs, and even tiny toilets filled the mansion.
The staff was treated horribly in addition to being given extremely confined living space. So after the entire family was murdered, some believed it was a staff member who snapped, axed the family to death, and then lit the house on fire.
Others say it was the crazed Mr. Gillespie who butchered his entire family and killed himself. One by one, he slit their throats, dragged their bodies to a closet, and stuffed them inside. The atrocities that took place went on to haunt the mansion. Locals claimed to have heard scratching inside the walls by the closet where the bodies were found. Even those who didn’t dare enter the house have heard screams and witnessed ghostly silhouettes moving past the windows of the long, vacant mansion. The house has since been torn down.
The Ghosts Of The Menger Hotel
The Menger Hotel has quite a few spirits wandering its halls. Being located so close to the Alamo, accounts for the hostile, “fresh from the battlefield” vibe and poltergeist activity many have experienced.
A spirit known as “the Lady in Blue,” is draped in a blue, knitted, World War II-era dress and is often seen at the hotel bar. There is also a former chambermaid named Sallie White, who hasn’t been able to move on since the day her husband accused her of cheating and shot her back in the 1870s.
Capt. Richard King, the founder of the famed King Ranch, died in the “Menger’s King Suite. His bolo tie and black hat-wearing ghost has been spotted throughout the building ever since.
A Dancing Diablo Woos Local Ladies
Oh yes, it appears there was a dancing diablo sighting at the El Camaroncito Nite Club. The rumors all started back in the 1970s when one man decided to dance the night away with every pretty lady in the room. One of them happened to notice he wasn’t quite as debonair as everyone thought. She looked down to find the claws of a chicken instead of her dancing partner’s feet. That’s’ right, no hooves this time, just long, gnarled chicken feet!
With this being a sign of the devil and all (apparently), the woman was thoroughly freaked out and ran off screaming like a banshee. El Chicken-Foot Diablo waddled out too, but over the years, he’s been spotted at other clubs. The story has evolved to hoofed feet in some areas (because that makes more sense with a name like El Diablo) but some still report good ol’ chicken toes trying to woo them in the club.
The Guardian Reapers of Milam Square
The space between Santa Rosa Hospital and El Mercado, now known as Milam Square, was originally a cemetery for the Canary Islanders and was considered a sacred space.
Not only have muggings and fights occurred here, but those involved have admitted to participating in these acts when having a paranormal encounter. They claimed to be interrupted by a large, dark figure, with red eyes glowing out from its skull-like head. Naturally, they stopped what they were doing and ran off.
These entities, often described as grim reapers, are clearly out for some vigilante justice. They only rise from behind the victim(s) and scare the hell out of the attacker(s). Residents say spirits appear when people are at their weakest and acts of violence are going on. It seems they want to keep the area pure and sacred. They only chase away those who pass through the square with evil intentions.
A Werewolf Stalks Skull Creek
This legend starts with a teenage boy whose father ordered him to go out near Skull Creek and gun down a deer. Though he was more fond of books than hunting, the boy obeyed. But when he returned, he was terrified and empty-handed. He claimed he saw something likened to a werewolf out there and didn’t want to continue his deer hunt. His father didn’t believe him. He accused him of lying and making excuses. He sent the boy off again and told him not to come home without an animal carcass. The boy didn’t come home.
The father organized a search party, but when they found the boy, he was already dead. What can only be described as a wolf-man was still hunched over, feasting on his body. The beast got away and is said to still return to the creek when the moon is full. And when he does, the creek runs red with blood.
La Llorona Haunts The Waters Of San Antonio
La Llorona has been seen all throughout Texas and Mexico. There are numerous stories of this weeping woman. She is always seen near a body of water and tries to lure children to her. Once she has them, she drowns them. Depending on the story version, she drowned her children as an act of revenge against her cheating husband. Others say it was because she was too poor to keep them. Either way, she is now forced to wander between the worlds for all eternity.
It is said she is always found crying near the water’s edge and will kidnap children that resemble her own to take their place. She then calls to the spirits of her children, begging for forgiveness, and offers the lives of the living children up as some kind of penance.
The Donkey Lady Waits At A Local Bridge
How the Donkey Lady came to be varies by storyteller, but the way most people tell it is that she was badly disfigured and lost her children in a fire set by her husband.
Some say she’s a ghost. Others say she’s a supernatural creature that doesn’t age. Her fingers and toes fused, creating the appearance of hooves. Hence, the nickname “Donkey Lady.”
She can be found on the bridge that crosses Elm Creek via Applewhite Road, which is now known as “Donkey Lady Bridge.” Anyone who approaches her is fair game; she waits in the dark and then pounces on her victims, viciously ripping them apart.
Paranormal Activity Plagues The Navarro House
What was once the home of José Antonio Navarro, signer of the Republic of Texas’ Declaration of Independence, is now a hotbed of paranormal activity. This historic landmark has also been a bar where a bartender was murdered and a bordello, where a prostitute was killed in bed.
There are numerous reports of random hot and cold spots. Furniture moves on its own, footsteps are heard when no one is there, and full-bodied apparitions have been seen. Most prominent is Navarro himself, who is reportedly friendly. Others include a Confederate deserter and two murder victims, the bartender and the prostitute, who are, according to all accounts, rather menacing.
A Bearded Lady & 7-Foot Chinese Woman Haunt Stinson Cemetery
This rather awkward haunting at the old Stinson Field Cemetery has a strange legend attached to it. As the story goes, there was a seven-foot-tall Asian woman who was constantly ridiculed for her height. She committed suicide over it because she was so depressed about being an outcast. Now her spirit just lingers around the cemetery, but she isn’t alone. People also claim to have seen the ghost of a bearded lady haunting the area as well.
Ghostly Children Haunt The Tracks On Shane Road
The urban legend of the Shane Road ghost tracks originated with a tragic accident where they intersected with the South Pacific Rail Line. According to locals, a school bus full of children stalled out on these tracks and a train plowed through them, killing everyone except one teacher. Overcome with grief, she came back out to the spot the next day to wait for another train to take her life as well.
But her students weren’t having any of that. As the woman sat in her parked car on the tracks, a mysterious force began pushing it (uphill) to safety. Once the movement stopped, she got out of the car and found tiny children’s handprints on her dusty back bumper and trunk. The children came back to save her. It’s said anyone who drives out there, cuts the engine, and sits will also be pushed uphill, off the tracks.
The Suicide Oak
At the corner of Patterson Avenue and Torcido Drive sat an old oak with morbid folklore surrounding it. According to legend, a young girl hung herself from the oak’s branches after a fight with her boyfriend and haunted the grounds ever since. The oak continued to flourish until 1941, when a windstorm rolled in. A “freak gust” uprooted it right out of the ground.
Victoria’s Black Swan Inn
Named after William Shakespeare’s favorite pub, Victoria’s Black Swan Inn has become a popular spot amongst paranormal investigators from all over. Home to Fort Sam Houston’s hanging tree and the site of the 1842 Battle of Salado Creek, it’s no wonder this location is so famous for paranormal activity.
It was also once an Indian encampment, and witnesses claim to still see the Indian spirits in the woods along the perimeter of the property. Former occupants, Jolene Woods and Park Street, both died here. Park committed suicide. Jolene died rather young from cancer and can still be seen roaming around the front yard and in the gazebo. Also, the spirit of a girl named Sarah is said to haunt the inn and has communicated with the living through the Ouija board.
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