The End of an Unsuccessful Journey

    Death, war, and a dark history all the things necessary to make a good ghost story.  The setting for this tale as I mentioned in prior posts is a public park with an eerie landmarks.  There are swamps, spooky noises, abandoned shacks and there is one thing missing from all of this evidence of a 'ghost'.
   Despite all my efforts and attempts to collect paranormal evidence I have been left with zip.  There are not EVP recordings, no 'real' eyewitnesses willing to come forward, and not one photo of a Confederate General spectre.  I am at a loss for words.  I felt with the long history of haunting in Texas that I would be able to find something to support the stories.  I must admit defeat and apologize to you the reader.
   I led you down a rabbit hole full of intrigue and allusions of historical significance.  I am a better man now to admit I was wrong to do so.  Supernatural events may be possible and can have evidence to support it, but when it comes to the story of the "Hell's Gate" this is false.  There is nothing outside of too much imagination or whiskey to support this legend.  I would encourage you all to tell everyone to not bother checking out this site and rather spend a night at Count Dracula's Castle in Romania.  At least the decor there will freak you out more than what I experienced in this investigation.
  I am now officially dying of boredom due to lack of genuine spectral horror.

Facts are Stubborn Things aka Don't let the Truth ruin a Good Story.

    This is the fourth post I have made concerning the "Hell's Gate" at River Legacy Park, Arlington.  I am disappointed to inform everyone that my efforts to discover the truth of this site has proven problematic at best.  I interviewed several individuals at the park and have not as yet found anyone able to find the gate, let alone state if they saw a ghost or heard voices.  I walked along the trail myself during the day and have so far only heard insect, animal, and gas noises common to most swamp like areas.  I would like to at first apologize to you the reader and let you know I am still not giving up on discovering an apparition or something else other worldly.
    I however was able to interview a contributor and Civil War Historian Carl Simms at the Texas Civil War Museum (http://www.texascivilwarmuseum.com/).  Mr. Simms stated that there is no validity to the rumor that a Confederate Unit was in the area of River Legacy Park and most lynchings and hangings at the time were done by civilians not the military.  I inquired about the identity of the supposed Red Haired Confederate General seen at the site and Mr. Simms just laughed at me.  "The only red haired General in the entire Confederate army was J.E.B Stuart and he was stationed at the east coast no where near Texas."
    Despite this man's condescending demeanor I was not deterred.  I asked about the civilians possible committing atrocities like lynchings and hangings in the area.  Mr. Simms said, "Well there was a group of German immigrants trying to flee to Mexico during the Civil War and were rounded up and killed due to the belief they were defecting to the Union in the North.  I believe most of those lynch mobs were towards Gainsville and maybe Brydsville."
    I asked again if he thought it was possible a Confederate unit did not report the incidents of hanging spies or maybe civilians did it on there own at the Hell's Gate site.  Once again I was met with cynicism and condescension.  "No way, the Confederates were more concerned about getting away from Union Cavalry instead of hunting spies.  The locals also were more concerned with family feuds at the time due to the economic impact of the war."  I thanked Mr. Simms for his time and left with less than what I started out with.

    There you have it, more questions in stead of answers.  There is no evidence to support Civil War era spectres.  No one has been able to record voices or photograph spectral anomalies.  This investigator is now forced to do all the major scientific methodical analysis on his own to form an honest conclusion.


(Renenactment of J.E.B Stuart, Note Red hair)


References:
Texas Civil War Museum."Texas Civil War Museum, Fort Worth."  21 October 2010. Web.<http://www.texascivilwarmuseum.com>

The Happenings at Hell's Gate

    The Hell's Gate so far has not revealed its supernatural spunk to me as of yet.  Perhaps it would be best if I relate to you some eyewitness accounts.  Keep in mind this will be narrate by me, but it is the original storytellers own words.
    One dark and mysterious evening a man returned home terrified. His family asked what happened.  The terrified soul began relaying the tale.  He said with exasperated breath that he visited River Legacy Park and was walking over a hill at the park. He saw something moving across the hill and then he and his friends started running. The 'thing' screamed so loud and unearthly that he thought that the thing was getting nearer despite the fact they were running.When he and his friends turned around they saw a shadowy figure staring at them. ('River Legacy Park Haunting" Comment Post).
   A man two of his friends got back from River Legacy Park and we may have seen something. All they could make out was a fast moving white figure in the distance. It seemed to disappear and reappear a couple of feet away. After everyone in the group confirmed it, they all came to the conclusion it must be some sort of spectre. (Hell's Gate 8/19/2008 Post).
   This tale is all too common for this area.  I have unfortunately have not found anyone willing to relate more tales about the area.  On the web I have only heard rumors of hearing sobbing and seeing the figure of a red haired Confederate General walking away from you.  The Hell's Gate has been physically found, but is yet to be truly investigated by a paranormal researcher.  Next time when I post I plan on trying to record the sobs or crying said to be heard and have a video camera ready to film.


Source:
Hell's Gate."StrangeUSA.COM The Ultimate Collection of the Strange." 

19 September 2008. Web.< http://www.strangeusa.com/ViewLocation.aspx?locationid=9398>

River Legacy Park Haunting. "StrangeUSA.COM The Ultimate Collection of the Strange." 

14 September 2009. Web. http://www.strangeusa.com/ViewLocation.aspx?locationid=9398

River Legacy Park

    River Legacy Park is located at 703 N.W. Green Oaks Blvd, Arlington, Texas.  This park opened as a public park in 1990 due to local contributions and a donation of 376 acres of land.  Over the years a science center was opened for children and many wildlife refuge's were established within the River Legacy Park area.  Rather suspicious activity for an area famous for its supernatural activity?

    According to StrangeUSA.com there is a plethora of Civil War artifacts to be found in the area to include: shrapnel, musket balls, trinkets, etc.  A few eyewitnesses on the site have stated they have been to Hell's Gate before, but did not see any paranormal activity.  "My wife and I have been to the Hell gate trail a couple of times. It does exist...We took pics, emfs, evps, did not get anything though. You do feel like somebody is following you though. Heard some strange noises but it could have been wildlife. Will try again at a later time. Fun hike. Bring a flashlight, pitch black in the middle of the bike trail."

         I went to the park myself and did not discover any artifacts, but I did find some unusual activity.  Apparently the Chesapeake Gas Company is drilling around the supposed site of the Hell's Gate.  Why are they there?  I intend to investigate further and found out exactly what the River Legacy Parks Society and the Chesapeake Gas Company is hiding from the public.  If there is a red bearded ethereal maniac on the loose the public has a right to know.  This investigator will continue to keep you informed and give you the necessary references to keep you the public safe.

Reference Sites

"StrangeUSA.COM The Ultimate Collection of the Strange." 

14 September 2009. Web. <http://www.strangeusa.com/ViewLocation.aspx?locationid=9398>
"River Legacy Foundation" 2010. Web.

<http://www.riverlegacy.org/>

What lurks within Hell's Gate?

    This Research Blog is dedicated to researching the validity of the Legend of the "Hell's Gate" located within River Legacy Park, Arlington.  According to legend spies for the Union during the American Civil War were escorted to gallows through a gate now within River Legacy Park.  Individuals that have walked the trail at night reportedly have heard sobbing and weeping believed to be the ghosts of the victims of Confederate justice.  There is also rumored to be a red haired Confederate General that walks away from you once you reach the gates the victims walked through.  Preliminary research has not confirmed any Confederate Units actually operating in the area during the Civil War.  I have also not been able to find any witnesses outside of the world wide web to confirm this story.

    However, this investigator is not deterred and will not rest until the truth is found out!  I believe supernatural events are possible, but I have yet to find any veracity to this story.  I am also an avid history researcher in my free time and if I can confirm there were hangings in the area during the Civil War it is important that the site be preserved for arcahelogical studies.