Edward L. Underwood - Haunted Springfield, Missouri

Published by Haunted America

A Division of The History Press

Charleston, SC 29403

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2014 by Edward and Karen Underwood

With John and Sherry Jones

All rights reserved

Photographs by Heather Stanley

Illustrations by John Jones

First published 2014

e-book edition 2014

ISBN 978.1.62584.575.7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Underwood, Ed (Edward)

Haunted Springfield / Edward and Karen Underwood ; with John and Sherry Jones ; photographs by Heather Marie Stanley ; special Illustrations by John Jones.

pages cm

print edition ISBN 978-1-62619-120-4 (paperback)

1. Ghosts--Missouri--Springfield. 2. Haunted places--Missouri--Springfield. 3. Parapsychology--Missouri--Springfield. 4. Springfield (Mo.)--Social life and customs. I. Underwood, Karen J. II. Title.

BF1472.U6U66 2014

133.10977878--dc23

2014015893

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

DEAD-ICATION

This book is dedicated to the lost souls of the Queen City and the unholy aftermath of the Council of Elders.

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

Greetings, my friends! As a longtime native of Springfield, I have many a local tale and urban legend tucked away just for those special dark and mildly humid nights. For instance, theres the time when MoMo (Missouris own Bigfoot) trashed my RV in a drunken stupor and refused to pay for the damages. Or the summer of 1953, when a crate of venomous cobras slithered their way into peoples yards but by winter quickly and anticlimactically died without biting anyone.

But none of these tales will be found here, for it just so happens that this book is about ghost stories, which are right up my alley! Im a TV horror host (broadcasting from the terrifying heart of the Missouri Ozarks)so Ive got some experience in the field of what scares people. In my humble opinion, the scariest stories on the market are the ghost stories. Oh, your vampires are all right, your werewolves are mildly deserving of attention and your Frankensteins are somewhat arresting. But ghost stories? Turn down the lights, close the curtains and put that flashlight under your chin, and suddenly the world of the supernatural seems very close and very eerily possible. Nobody ever scares their campfire comrades by telling mummy stories.

Every area has its own distinctive ghost stories, and the authors of this book have put together some of the most extraordinary ghost stories that float around the area in this fun little collection. If youre ready for a cold tingle to run down your spineread on! Until next time,

Bad Day, Bad Night, Bad Dreams!

UNCLE GREGORY

Check out The New Uncle Gregory Horror Hour on KOZL-27 in Springfield, Missouri, or visit facebook.com/UncleGregoryHorror.

Welcome to Haunted Springfield. Bundle up, its going to be a chilling journey.

PREFACE

This is our third book on the topic of obscure history, the second specifically devoted to the strange goings-on in places believed to be haunted. We have started two history-ghost tours in two states and personally walked hundreds of people to the locations of some of the more famous local sites where bizarre events took place and, in some cases, reportedly still take place!

Once again, we have met with some very interesting people who have graciously told us their personal ghost stories. Most of these stories flow easily and relate a supernatural event that happened to a friend, relative or someone they used to know. However, a few of them are personal, firsthand experiences that seem to have taken a toll on the storytellers.

We are always grateful to those brave souls who risk ridicule and rejection (which never come from us!) to tell us about experiences that go beyond the normal course of mortal life. We are especially grateful to two individuals, who wish to remain unnamed, for two of the most bizarre ghost stories we have ever heard and access to the physical artifacts that are directly connected to these amazing tales.

During our research for this book, we discovered a twisted little tale that filled in a gap in local history and seems consistent with some unusual turns in the citys government. Perhaps we have found a missing element to understanding part of the development of Springfield, Missouri.

We are also grateful to our co-workers and coauthors John and Sherry Jones. These two are clever people, quick thinkers and a joy to collaborate with. Johns illustrations give this book a classic spooky feel and allow us to fill in some blanks for things that could never be photographed. John and Sherry plan to continue collecting ghost stories and are currently trying to buy a haunted house.

It is our sincere hope that in these pages you will find some delightfully spine-tingling adventures, as well as some mostly forgotten history about a marvelous American city called Springfield.

EDWARD AND KAREN UNDERWOOD

This is the first book we have ever written. It is not overstating things to say that not one word of this book would have happened without our friends, co-workers and likeminded lovers of the shadowy side of life, Edward and Karen Underwood.

Sherry and I have always had a fascination with things haunted. One of our goals in life is to own a genuinely haunted house. While living in Springfield, Missouri, we saw many truly scary things and participated in many horrifying events. Some of the things we saw can never be explained, and many things we experienced should never be shared. We hope this collection of stories will give you an appreciation for our areas fascinating history and impart to you the gift of countless nightmares.

JOHN AND SHERRY JONES

A WORD ABOUT GHOSTS

Before we pull back the curtain on this collection of ghost stories that shed a strangely colored light on the darker side of the city of Springfield, Missouri, we want to take an opportunity to discuss some these famous disembodies souls that walk through history.

In our reading audience, we undoubtedly have both advocates of all things paranormal and skeptics who stand ever ready to dispute and deny the existence of anything that cannot be seen, touched and tested.

It is not the intent or purpose of this book to make anyone adopt any belief system. The tales we share are done in the interest of entertainment and history. Please do not be offended by anything you read here. Conversely, do not attempt to start a new religious sect based on anything you read here.

We always like to point out to our ghost tour audiences that ghosts are universal. From an anthropological perspective, they are historical gold. When we know your ghost stories, we know your values, your fears and how you relate the past to the future. There is no culture on the face of the earth that does not have ghost stories, and there has been no time in history when they did not flourish.

We started the Springfield Mystery Tour with a Bible verse: But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, It is a ghost! and they cried out in fear. That is Matthew 14:26, and the purpose of our Bible lesson is to show you how every culture has knowledge of the concept of ghosts. In this verse, we see the men who were raised in orthodox Jewish homes calling on their backgrounds to fill in the gaps in what they were witnessing. There was no logical explanation, so they inserted that mysterious