On a dark night in August 1938, these hateful men crossed the bridge without their headlights, then burst into Washburns home and drug him from his family to the bridge. Its just a bizarre synchronicity, because Im only still in touch with two people who I went to high school with, and both of them grew up on the same street as this person. There's the bridge, and then there's . Ghost Adventures first premiered in 2008 and has aired over 250 episodes, including specials. Running across the bridge back to the car and then on that gravel is damn scary. But when the Night Riders stumbled down to the dark rivers edge to confirm their murderous handiwork, they were shocked to find only an inexplicably empty noose dangling over undisturbed waters. I had saved direct links as well as screen grabs of his comments, so I was able to test that and it said that the comments were deleted and then when I searched his user name, it said that his account had been deleted as well. According to the most circulated version, an African-American entrepreneur named Oscar Washburn and his family tended a farmstead goat herd near the bridge that was renowned for quality meat, milk, cheeses and hides. Old Alton Bridge, also known as Goatman's Bridge, is a historic iron truss bridge connecting the Texas cities of Denton and Copper Canyon. Now, this person said that he didnt upload the video. According to legend, a successful goat breeder named Oscar Washburn began to call himself the Goatman. In this version, an experiment on goats backfires and the scientist mutates into a half man, half goat creature who begins aggressively attacking cars in the vicinity of Beltsville, Maryland. The person said: There have been several disappearances on and around Old Alton Bridge. [1][2], 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. By 1856, the small town boasted several homes, a blacksmith shop, three stores, a school, a saloon, a hotel, two doctors, and several lawyers. 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. And what you guess it, both videos were posted on July 17 and there have been no new videos since then, which seems to be a pattern for Bob. But for this particular bridge, those feelings may be more grounded than not. Well, thats it. But be warned, the creature is said to appear whenever someone mentions its name. The legend goes that they then fitted a noose over his head and threw him over the side of the bridge but when they looked to see whether he was dead, his body had disappeared. Throughout the years multiple origins for the Goatman have spread but the one that remains consistent is the feeling that the demon is watching.<br /><br />Listen to all the origins and find . Most of the film was shot at the Pope Lick Trestle, but scenes showing the characters up on the trestle were shot at another, safer . To this day no one knows exactly how Oscar was able to evade the mobs wrath, but legend holds that the name Goatmans Bridge came about to honor him. His channel has also been deleted, and he hasnt posted on reddit under that account since March 4. A few years later, Washburn, having become known as a dependable and honest businessman and dubbed the "Goatman" by locals, displayed a sign on Alton Bridge reading "This way to the Goatman". STOP..GOINGTHERE..PEOPLE! 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. But, Pinckneyville would hold the title only two years and never develop into a town. Most notably, one that occurred November 15th 1967. I tried to PM him on reddit on 4/4/22, but he doesnt accept private messages. Most who were brave enough to even make the 30 second journey to the bridge, would stand on it (and im dead serious) for a minute or two and would immediately leave, not even bothering with the well-traversed-in-the-daytime hiking trail to either side along the river. A similar tale to Washburns predates the building of the bridge, in which a group of cowboys lynched a goatherder called Jack Kendall. Some say that the bridge was once the site of an execution, another of a lynching; others say that an old goat herder was murdered on this spot, while still others believe it is the earthbound spirits of those killed in the Sam Bass Texas Rangers shootout nearby. Texas Hill Country Facebook page is growing by over 1,000 fans per The bridge is located about seven miles south of Denton. However, this changed in 2001 when vehicle traffic was redirected to an adjacent, more contemporary concrete-and-steel bridge. Years later, in 1884, long after Alton had died, an iron through-truss bridge was built over Hickory Creek on Copper Canyon Road, south of the old townsite. The Old Alton Bridge, or more famously known as The Goatman's Bridge, is an old iron-truss bridge just Northeast of Dallas, Texas, near the now uninhabited town of Alton. It might have just been a racoon or somethingbut it was moving in our direction, and we all bolted out of there! However, not everyone was pleased with Oscars newfound success and acceptance within the North Texas community. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. And, yeah, I mentioned this in the beginning, but I suspect that theres some mental health stuff surrounding some of Bobs posts and stuff. They returned to his home and slaughtered his family, according to the legend. This change was enacted to correct a glaring problem that had arisen when the bridge transitioned from carrying horses to carrying cars. Nothing has been posted, there are no playlists, etc. In a panic, they returned to his family home and slaughtered his wife and children.[4]. The monster was the subject of a 1988 film by Louisville filmmaker Ron Schildknecht called The Legend of the Pope Lick Monster. \r\rSince the disappearance of the Goatman there have been many strange sightings on and near Old Alton Bridge. independent local journalism in Dallas. Old Alton Bridge, AKA Goatman's Bridge, in the daylight. According to locals, Washburn's story is likely an urban legend. Harrod got married on June 29, a month before his disappearance, and his new wife, Fontelle Heeter, was about to move in with him, but he vanished before she arrived. The couple had met and become engaged in 1950, but they were separated when Harrod joined the military and eventually both of them married other people. Denton County itself was formed in 1846, and the first attempt at settling the county seat was Pinckneyville (named for the Texas governor). A fan-favorite episode in which the crew took on Goatman Bridge will be featured on Ghost Adventures: Screaming Room. He never answered. My paranormal experiences became a local sensation in Denton, TX and remained the most viewed videos for awhile , even after others began to upload their own experiences. Most of the time, county business was held at the Baines residence under the shade trees in his yard. In July of 1988 at just over 100, the Old Alton Bridge landed a coveted spot on the National Register of Historic Places, as well as recognition as a Texas Historic Landmark. North Texans endearingly began to call him the Goatman. You wont find the names of Oscar Washburn or Jack Kendall in any historical records. And sure enough, my friend was like, oh yeah, that person was my next-door neighbor when we were growing up, and were friends. I have since been able to independently confirm that the youtube channel belongs to someone who he knew, but that it wasnt him who uploaded the video. 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. Heeter was packing up her belongings at her home in Missouri in order to move in with Harrod in California, and he was preparing for her arrival and looking forward to it. Its original purpose was to carry horses and automobiles across the river. This was completely opposite of what the area is like in the daytime. Our My sense is that this was the moment when one version of the story was codified into something resembling the truth, at least as far as the internet was concerned. Oh I guess there is one other thing about his YouTube channel, which is that he added a header that has a picture of a goat man. When Washburn posted a sign on the bridge that advertised this way to the Goatman, it angered local Klansman. In August 1938, masked Klansmen abducted Washburn and hung him from the bridge. Built in 1884 by the King Iron Bridge Manufacturing Company, it originally carried horses and later automobiles over Hickory Creek at a location that once was a popular ford for crossing cattle. In a time predating cars, massive cargo carriages drawn by hefty workhorses became the bridges most frequent users. There is also another variation that predates the bridge itself. The bridge was built twenty-five years later and dubbed the Old Alton Bridge.. The Old Alton Bridge's nickname, Goatman's Bridge, originated from at least two eerie local legends. Also, heres a weird synchronicity. All rights reserved. After securing it around Oscars neck, they tossed him over the side. Locally, the bridge is known as Goatman's Bridge, as it is said to be haunted by a half-man half-goat figure called Goatman. Local legend says if you knock on the steel bridge three times at midnight, or perhaps- turn off your car lights and honk three times in summons, then you dare a visitation from the vengeful Goatman thats preceded by the stench of decaying flesh. I dont know whether that has anything to do with my series here, since Bob had deleted his YouTube video impulsively as well, but if youre listening to this, Bob, hello! And, the Goatman is evidently not alone. Haunted Texas: Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Lone Star State by Alan Brown, published in 2008, has no mention of the Old Alton Bridge, even though it does mention another Denton haunting, the haunting of the University of North Texas Bruce Hall. His son-in-law went to the store and when he returned at 1:00 p.m., he found the housekeeper locked out and waiting on the porch, and Harrod missing. From tragic and riveting tales of murder to the somewhat vague stories of a ghostly goatherder, its sure to give you the chills if you ever visit heading out there after dark probably isnt advisable, in any case! Some of the posts he commented on were about the Old Alton Bridge, Texas Hauntings, or similar topics. There is a Plano Goat Man legend dating to at least the 70s or 80s which she mentions in the book, but in the subsection about the Old Alton Bridge Goatman, theres no date given for when that legend began. For years, there was only 1 video on YouTube that even referenced this location or the local Legend until I started posting videos with my evidence of this mysterious places anomalies starting in 2011. Shortly afterwards, so the stories go, a family was passing over the bridge at night and encountered the old man, or at least his apparition, standing in front of them, a goats head tucked under each arm. Updated 3 times since October 12, 2004. If I can just summarize the research I did, which I talked about in ep 1 of this series: the Old Alton Bridge and the Goatman werent mentioned in the older books that I have access to about the paranormal or urban legends in Texas: I have two books by folklorist J. Frank Dobie, Legends of Texas Volume II: Pirates Gold and Other Tales, and Tales of Old-Time Texas, and the only stories they have about the area are about Sam Bass. Washburn was never seen or heard from again or was he? Visitors sometimes tell of seeing mysterious lights in the area, car doors locking and unlocking of their own accord, and numerous vehicle breakdowns while near the old viaduct. However, the location of the second county seat also proved to be unfavorable due to a lack of potable water, and the state legislature soon directed that the site be moved again. 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. Other legends circulating about the demon focus on his name. The original video was called The First Goatmans Bridge Video Ever Uploaded on Youtube 2011 YouTube.. We are born and bred in The The first few years I spent out there it was mostly barren at night, void of all life or cars driving by or people coming to visit. 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