Tag Archives: children

The Legend of Hooper’s Hollow

Nationality: American
Age: 57
Occupation: Dance Studio Owner
Residence: Downers Grove, IL
Language: English

Legend:

“There’s a beautiful park in between where my neighborhood was and the school that I went to, so, a lot of kids would like to cut through the park. Well, in 1979, there was a boy coming home from hanging out with friends one night, and he was a nice kid, 15 years old, a happy kid, and nobody to this day knows what happened, but he was murdered by being hung from that bridge over the creek [in the park]. So, he wasn’t found for almost a day, and when he was found, he had a huge, angry look on his face, but obviously, he was dead. So, the legend goes that this boy was so happy [in general] and so upset about being murdered that his spirit stayed in the area and haunted any kids that tried to play in that creek or go over that bridge. So, once in awhile we would go there at night to see if we could feel his spirit or see his ghost; we never did, but we wouldn’t actually go over the bridge because we were too frightened.

Just adding on, I did have friends that used to claim that they would hear his voice or see, like, a hologram of him from time to time, especially at night. But, I’m sure they were making it up. ‘Cause anytime we went–which I only went a couple times [because] I was too scared–I never saw any kind of ghost, or spirit, or hologram of his presence. But people used to claim that they would see him or hear his voice yelling or crying from the bridge.”

Context:

My informant told me that the boy was murdered when she was around 12 years old and it had been an anomaly in her town; children being murdered was not common. She told me that that’s the reason why this legend is so popular; the parents only talked about the boy’s murder, but the children talked about his spirit haunting the creek. Many of the children believed it and steered clear of the bridge. When asked if any adults knew about the legend, my informant said that the only reason her mother found out about the legend was through her and her younger brother.

Analysis:

What I find so interesting about ghost stories/legends is what the circumstances are that causes the ghost/spirit to haunt the specific location it is haunting. In the article we read in class about Estonian legends of ghosts, it was believed that ghosts/spirits haunted ancestral homes as a way of keeping the property in the family while the Soviet Union was trying to force Communism onto Estonians. In this legend, it is believed the boy’s spirit/ghost haunts the bridge and the creek where he was murdered as a way to keep children away from the area. It seems that his ghost is keeping the children of the town away from the creek and bridge as a way of preventing another child from meeting his same fate of being murdered. There is also the element that only children/younger people know and share this legend and not the adults. This acts as a way of frightening other children.

Slender Man

Nationality: Korean- American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Language: English

Text: I watched a youtube video in the fourth grade, with some of my friends, that described the lore behind Slender Man. I didn’t really believe in his existence, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid of the possibility of him being real. I used to live in a densely forested area, and walking back from my friend’s home at night, during the peak of the distribution of Slender Man information, I would always run to avoid any possible encounters with this entity. Its not even that I saw him, or a figure resembling it at all, I was just worried at the possibility. When the trend of talking about slender man died down, though, I found myself not being fearful.

Context: Informant first became exposed to the idea of Slender Man in the fourth grade. They describe that it was a sort of “trend” to be knowledgable or discuss the figure at school and amongst friends. The informant believes that The Slender Man’s ability to scare the younger populations is what lead to its prevalence in the community. Informant believes that The Slender Man legend had the ability to create unity within younger populations through a collective fear.

Analysis: I find the contemporary legend of Slender Man to be very critical to understanding the interaction between folklore and the internet. It is undeniable that the propagation of his lore was attributed to social media, and many agree that his origin point was the web. Though he originated on a digital platform, he quickly took on the qualities of traditional folklore. He began to spread by means of oral tradition, and his stable presence proves that, even with technology, folklore continues to prosper.

Black Eyed Children

Nationality: American
Age: 20
Occupation: Boat Mechanic
Residence: Glendale, AZ
Language: English

Story:

“I believe they’re called the black eyed children. Its a set of two or three kids or however many. One of them will walk up to you and they’ll as you for like food or to play with them. If you oblige, they’ll be happy, but the second day another set will show up and be really mean to you, super nasty. If you don’t be nice to them still, they’ll mess with you and be angry and stuff” 

Context: The informant heard this legend from high school friends around the age 15-16. He assumed this was a Native American legend because he heard it from his Native friends while travelling to the reservation in New Mexico.

Analysis: The black eyed children are a common urban legend in America. They signify an innocence that has been twisted for evil intentions. They are often described to be children or teenagers with black eyes and an older sounding voice. For my informant, this legend seems to be a warning against the children. A little different from the most popular legend, this one suggests for the informant to always be nice to the black eyed children. The general fear of the children comes from not knowing their intentions. 

In regards to the origins of this legend, the story of the black eyed children stems from an account of them written by a journalist in 1996. As this post spread, more and more stories popped up, claiming to have encountered the children. Because the informant heard this story from his Native American friends on the way to the reservation in New Mexico, he assumed it to be their local folklore. His friends were likely sharing spooky stories on the drive for entertainment purposes, and this story was big at the time since Creepypasta was still very popular. This story had also been big on Creepypasta since that’s where I heard this legend from myself. Notably, Irish changelings and Native American groups around California’s Lake Tahoe and Nevada’s Pyramid Lake with legends of evil water baby spirits are the most similar examples of traditional folklore to the contemporary legend of the black eyed children. All of these legends stay consistent with taking advantage of people’s desire to care for or help someone smaller or younger than themselves, regardless of their intentions. 

leaving food for your guardian angel

fields:
AGE: mom 40 me 10 grandma 70
Date_of_performance: 2001-2015
Language: english
Nationality: Canadian
Occupation: Artist/ retail
Primary Language: English
Residence: Toronto, Canada

Quote: “don’t finish your plate, remember to leave some for your guardian angle.”

Since I was young my mother taught me to leave a little bit on your plate at meals for your guardian angel. this was information and a tradition past down from her mother and grandmother. the act of leaving food for your guardian angle is meant to remind you that someone is watching over you, but it also acts as a test of gratitude and piaty to leave perfectly good food for an invisible being.

Now as an adult i am am aware that i was a chubby child and my mother was often trying to get me to slow down on my meals, this combined with her pius nature mahy explain the guardian angels that would appear around meal times. we were never shunned for not leaving food for the angle, but we would be celebrated by my mother and grandmother if we did. in hindsight i do believe it is a nice concept to give thanks to the one looking after you though it was only truly encouraged amongst the female cousins so i also fear it was a tactic to get us to already edit and alter our eating habits to maintain the idea of a godly woman.

A Ghost Friend in the New House

Nationality: American
Age: 51
Occupation: Investment Company Employee
Residence: Blue Bell, Pennsylvania
Performance Date: November 28, 2024
Primary Language: English

CONTEXT:

The informant, my aunt, has one daughter and she and my uncle raised her in the same house for years. Their daughter became close with the neighbors and their daughter who was about five years younger than her. The couple next door also had a little boy a few years later. Eventually, the neighbors and their two kids decided to move, and the various ghost encounters occurred at their new house. The parents stayed in touch and told the informant all about the creepy events that were occurring. The informant provided me with the details of the story and I recorded it.

STORY:

“When the two of them moved out with both of the kids, some of the first things we heard from them afterward were about how they think the new house is haunted. Creepy things started to happen in the backyard, and the kids both started mentioning stuff about a woman. After looking into it more, they discovered that a previous owner had committed suicide in the house. The pieces started to make sense and creep them out even more.”

“…There were so many different instances where the mom noticed the ghost or something about it. First, the kids would act strange when they were outside playing in the yard. The two of them would tell her that they were talking to ‘the woman’ and it confused her. She was concerned, but it wasn’t anything conclusive yet. Then, she would notice the swings or other things in the yard moving with nobody there, and their dog would just sit and stare or bark occasionally. She started to conclude that the house must be haunted.”

“After she kept noticing little things, the kids would again tell her that they were talking to ‘the woman.” Their mom remained freaked out about the ghost of the woman who was most likely roaming around outside. I’m not exactly sure what else happened after that, if they ever saw the ghost directly, or if anything else came of it. It must have been a harmless ghost who was finding ways to stay in the house.”

INFORMANT’S OPINION:

“The new house was definitely haunted. The previous owner committed suicide and was most likely haunting the house. Since the kids were still pretty young at the time, it’s also possible that the ghost was making herself known to them and even communicating with them. It was so interesting to hear about from the mom after they moved. She always joked about us coming over and seeing the ghost.”

PERSONAL TAKEAWAY:

This is a very straightforward ghost story that was very interesting to hear about since it was so connected to me personally. It embodies so many traditional motifs of ghosts. The haunted house is a classic and is one of the most common instances of ghost sightings or supernatural experiences. The ghost connecting with the children and alarming the dog is also common and makes the story a lot more eerie. It may just be a case of overthinking or disorientation due to them having just moved, but I think all of this coming together and knowing the previous owner died tragically, there has to be some supernatural elements present. I wonder if anything else happened or if the ghost is still there today!