Joplin Spooklight
by Fred Larucci
Original - Not For Sale
Price
Not Specified
Dimensions
10.000 x 14.000 inches
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Title
Joplin Spooklight
Artist
Fred Larucci
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
(2015) "Joplin Spooklight" - Photography
The Spooklight, also called the Hornet Spooklight, Hollis Light and Joplin Spook Light, is a ghost light reported to appear in a small area known locally as the "Devil's Promenade" on the border between southwestern Missouri and northeastern Oklahoma, west of the small town of Hornet, Missouri.
Even though it is named after a small, unincorporated community in Missouri, and is most easily reached from there, the light is most commonly described as being visible from inside the Oklahoma border looking to the west. The Spooklight is usually described as a single ball of light or a tight grouping of lights that is said to appear in the area regularly, usually at night. Although the description of the light is similar to that of other visual phenomena witnessed throughout the world, the term "Spooklight", when standing alone, generally refers to this specific case. Numerous legends exist explaining the origin of the Spooklight, one of which involves the ghosts of two young Native American lovers looking for each other.
According to most accounts, it has appeared continually since the late 19th century, although it was generally not well known to anyone but locals until after World War II. Some date the first encounters with the light back to the Trail of Tears in the 1830s. The first documented sighting is generally accepted to have occurred in 1881, although some report sightings as far back as 1866. The earliest published report dates to 1936 in the Kansas City Star.
In 1946, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers studied the "Hornet Light", but could not find a cause for it. In their words, it was a "mysterious light of unknown origin". Early residents of the area reported seeing lights in the woods, over their land, or even in their yards.
During the 1960s, a general store in Hornet gave out information about the light to sightseers. It included a "Spooklight Museum". Various establishments along the Missouri–Oklahoma state line have served a similar function, but have since closed. During the 1960s and 1970s, the roads where the Spooklight usually appears were often packed with parked vehicles and people hoping to get a glimpse of the mysterious light.
Uploaded
December 15th, 2020
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