Dossier: Southern Illinois hauntings and legends

Hoppy Rebstock, the heartbeat in the tombstone and the joys of school picnics

Thumbnail image for Hoppy Rebstock, the heartbeat in the tombstone and the joys of school picnics

Growing up in a small town in the midwest gives one a treasure trove of urban legends and ghost stories. Here’s one of the tell-tale heart and the tombstone that walks in the night, from the Gothic Cabinet of Curiosities and Mysteries

Read the full article →

Urban legend Black Annis makes the trip from England to the midwest

Creepy House in north Carmi, Illinois

Following Black Annie from England to the midwest, where she still frightens little children in this installment from the Gothic Cabinet of Curiosities and Mysteries.

Read the full article →

Growing up gothic; Of devil worshippers, Satanists and the Dark Secret of Harvest Home

Thumbnail image for Growing up gothic; Of devil worshippers, Satanists and the Dark Secret of Harvest Home

Urban legends often have very rural roots. Read of devil worshippers, Satanists and rock and roll in this drawer of the Gothic Cabinet of Curiosities and Mysteries

Read the full article →

To believe or not to believe, the power of myth and childhood

Thumbnail image for To believe or not to believe, the power of myth and childhood

The Ghost of Christmas Past is alive and well, and making his usual rounds this Christmas. My own Yes Virginia moment in the Gothic Cabinet of Curiosities and Mysteries

Read the full article →