The Mystery of Silver Heels

Mount Silver Heels

Located off Highway 9 near Alma, Colorado once stood a thriving mountain mining camp called Buckskin Joe.

Buckskin Joe
Courtesy of Historical Society
of Colorado.

In 1859, Joseph Higgenbottom *, an eccentric prospector established Buckskin Joe. Word spread fast about the discovery of gold in this camp and by 1861 it hosted 2,000 residents with several saloons, gambling halls, and even a traveling minstrel show.

One bright and sunny day the stagecoach brought a beautiful dance hall girl who became the talk of the camp.

Her real name is long lost, but the miners who showered her with admiration and gifts called her “Silver Heels” for the fancy heeled shoes she wore during her nightly dance performances.

After a few performances word got out that Silver Heels planned to move on. A desperate contingent of men approached her and begged her to stay, and to their relief, she agreed.

But little did she know her happy dancing days were about to end. In the Winter of 1861, an outbreak of smallpox hit the camp. The town leaders sent to Denver for nurses, but they never arrived.

The town was overwhelmed with the sick and dying. Silver Heels could be found traveling from cabin to cabin tending to the sick and caring for their families. She even helped bury the dead.

By the spring of 1862, the worst of this disease was over.

Those miners who remained wanted to show their gratitude to the merciful dancehall girl, but she seemed to have vanished. A group of miners searched the surrounding mountains when it was established she had not left Buckskin Joe by either horse or stage.

As the months passed the mystery of her disappearance deepened. The rumors began to fly. Had she contracted smallpox herself and died? Or maybe she had survived but now found herself with a pox-scarred face, so she was too ashamed to be seen.

As it turned out these rumors were not far from the truth for in the summer of 1862, a ghostly female figure began to appear in the camp’s cemetery.

Buckskin Joe Cemetery

She was seen wandering among the tombstones wearing a heavy black veil. The figure always carried flowers, which she would place on several graves. Was she still comforting those whom she had lost?

The old cemetery is the only part of the Buckskin Joe camp that still remains today. Silver Heels’ ghost has been seen for well over a century and a half in this cemetery. When witnesses approach her, they report her figure seems to just blow away on the wind.

Mount Silver Heels

After her disappearance the miners named one of the surrounding mountains-- Silver Heels, to honor her.

* Higgenbottom traded his claim, which later produced most of the 16 million in gold mined in the camp, for a revolver and a few other items and left the area.

Ghost Ship: Kaz ll

Kaz ll

A modern ghost ship mystery involves the disappearance of the 3-man crew aboard the Kaz ll. This mystery is often compared to the mystery that surrounds the ghost ship the Mary Celeste, which I write about here.

On April 20 in 2007 the sea was a bit choppy in northern Australia near the Great Barrier Reef but this was not something the 3-man experienced crew aboard the catamaran Kaz ll would have found challenging.

The owner of this sailing vessel Derek Batten had 25 years of nautical experience. Two of his neighbors, brothers—Peter and James Tunstead accompanied him. These two men had been sailing since their teen years and were savvy when it came to boat navigation and safety.

When the police boarded the drifting Kaz ll on the 20^th they felt as if they had walked into an episode of The Twilight Zone. The vessel was unmanned.

The ship’s engines were running, there was food on the table and drying dishes at the sink and a laptop was on.

A videotape camera found onboard was used just 90 minutes before the crew inexplicitly vanished into thin air. It shows two of the men just before sunrise on deck, the sea was calm and the men’s behavior was casual.

When the authorities went onboard there was no sign of an impending disaster or any signs of violence—the only thing found amiss was a torn sail--so the police concluded there was no foul play. So why was the Kaz ll abandoned and where were the crew?

Police boat approaching the adrift
Kaz ll

The answers to these two questions remain unsolved. At the time some speculated that a freak wave might have swept the crew overboard or maybe one man fell in by accident and the other two met the same tragic fate while trying to rescue the first.

Some even speculated that drug runners or pirates forced the 3-man crew to abandon the ship. Others stated it was an insurance scam the 3 men cooked up. But all of this is just speculation and the fates of Batten and the Tunstead brothers remain an intriguing mystery.

Ghost Ship: Carroll A. Deering

Carroll A. Deering

The curious fate of the Carroll A. Deering has put it at the top of the list of maritime mysteries.

The Deering is considered a ghost ship for it was found abandoned by the Coast Guard on the Outer Shoals of Cape Hatteras in North Carolina in 1921.

In August of 1920, the Deering a five-masted commercial schooner, prepared to sail from Norfolk, Virginia to Rio de Janeiro. It carried a cargo of coal.

The original captain was William H. Merritt--he fell ill soon into the journey and was left off in a port in Delaware. Hastily the Deering Company found a replacement. W. B. Wornell was a 66-year old retired sea captain.

A young Captain Wornell

The Deering made it to Rio de Janeiro without further incident. Captain Wornell gave his Danish crew shore leave and spent his time with an old friend--Captain Goodwin. He talked about the crew on the Deering with distain and stated all save the ship’s engineer were untrustworthy.

The Deering left Rio in early December and then stopped for supplies in Barbados. The ship’s first mate, Charles B. McLellan who came aboard the Deering at the same time as Wornell got drunk and complained about having to work with the old captain.

He stated to whomever would listen that Wornell would not let him discipline the crew and that he was an interfering old man. He stated it was left to him to do all the navigation because of Wornell’s poor eyesight.

While in the Continental Café McLellan bragged, “I’ll get the Captain before we get to Norfolk, I will.” Another captain, Hugh Norton overheard this threat and had him arrested.

In an odd twist Wornell forgave McLellan and bailed him out of jail. On January 9^th the Deering set sail for Hampton Roads.

The last time the Deering was spotted with her crew onboard was when she hailed the Cape Lookout Lighthouse in North Carolina. The keeper, a Captain Jacobson reported that a thin man with reddish hair and a foreign accent told him the Deering had lost her anchors--he did not look like any of the known officers aboard.

2nd Cape Lookout Lighthouse in 1913

Jacobson could not report this because his radio was out. He noted the crews’ presence on the ship was odd--for they were “milling around” on the fore deck of the ship, an area onboard where crews were not allowed normally. He then watched as the Deering set a peculiar course.

Soon after this, the Coast Guard spotted the Carroll A. Deering run aground on Cape Hatteras. After a series of storms let up, on February 4^th the cutter Manning reached the Deering and managed to board her.

There was no sign of the crew and their belongings and the lifeboats were missing. The ships log, navigation equipment, papers and most of the valuable items on the ship were also gone.

It looked like the crew had abandoned the ship just as a meal was being laid out.

The U.S. government conducted an extensive search and an investigation--this task was given to then Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover-- but the crew was never located. 

The reason for why the ship was abandoned remains a mystery. The government has never offered an official explanation.

The Deering stayed ahead of a storm that hit the area at the time so this was ruled out as a possible cause.

A variety of reasons were put forth at the time. Was it foul play by rumrunners? Or was it a communist pirate ship that was set on capturing an America ship?

Could it be the crew mutinied--did they run the ship aground on purpose taking everything of value with them before they did this?

A more outlandish but persistent theory is that the paranormal forces at work in the Bermuda Triangle robbed the Deering of its crew. But the Deering wasn’t near the Triangle when she ran aground.

By March of 1921 the only thing left of the wreaked and battered Deering was her hull. The ship was towed away and dynamited. In 1922, the investigation was closed.

An Extra Wedding Guest

Last month, newlyweds Kevin and Christina D., who live in Virginia were going through their wedding photographs when they noticed something creepy in one of their favorite photos taken that day.

They had posted this photo on their Facebook page to share with friends and family.

They had viewed it several times but had not initially noticed anything odd. That is until they viewed it online.

It appears no one initially noticed anything peculiar. Comments below the photo on Facebook mentioned how cute or beautiful the couple looks. Others mention how happy people are for them, yet other commentors mention they are missed.

The image shows the couple happily leaning in and touching brow to brow. But what they later saw was an extra face--close behind them.

The face appears to be peering ominously.

At first Christina thought this must be her sister but when the couple inspected the photo closer they realized the face did not resemble anyone they knew.

They asked friends and family if anyone had “photo bombed” them. No one had and no one recognized the odd face.

What the couple found even more disturbing is they did not remember anyone being that close behind them during the time this photo was taken.

The face remains a mysterious. Needless to say, this photo is no longer their favorite wedding picture.

Here is the photo they placed on their Facebook page. At first I didn’t see the face but then I spotted it. It is looking downward, the nose and eyes are between the couple’s mouths and chins.

Click to enlarge

Kuldara India: Cursed and Haunted Village

In India, if one is in search of ghosts the village of Kuldara is always mentioned. This picturesque village is 9 miles from Jaisalmer and sits on the edge of a desert.

Kuldara

Well-planned temples, streets and large houses remain but they all are empty.

Five hundred years ago Kuldara was a prosperous community with businessmen-farmers called Paliwal Brahmins. Overnight this entire village of 1500 people left.

No one saw them leave or ever discovered where they went. Adding to this mystery was the fact they left behind all their belongings.

Local lore states that when the Paliwal abandoned Kuldara they cursed the village. It is believed that if anyone tries to stay overnight or inhabit the village they will meet a brutal death.

Even today why these villagers left remains a mystery.

One popular legend told is the Paliwal left because of Salim Singh, the minister of the state of Jaisalmer. He fell in love with a beautiful girl in Kuldara while he visited the village.

He demanded to marry her--threatening any who stood in his way.

The girl’s father, the chief of the village, then abandoned Kuldara along with people from 84 adjoining villages.

A more practical reason put forth for the abandonment states when a war erupted this forced the villagers to evacuate.

Besides the curse, Kuldara is also believed to have active ghosts. In 2013, Delhi’s Paranormal Society, led by Gaurav Tiwari sent 30 investigators to determine whether the rumors about Kuldara’s ghosts were true.

This group stayed overnight in this eerie village. They were not disappointed.

They picked up sudden rises and drops of temperature on their Kll meters--at one point within a few steps one meter went from 105 degrees to 87 degrees. They spotted moving shadow figures and picked up disembodied voices on their recorders.

The group used a Ghost Box and several spirits gave their names.

One investigator while alone felt someone touching his shoulder from behind.

When this team went to leave the village they discovered children’s handprints on several of their cars. There were no children with them or in the village.

Arjun Sachdeva, a tour guide believes Kudara is haunted. He states every time he visits the village something unusual happens.

He like the paranormal team above has discovered mysterious small handprints on his vehicles. Another time while visiting the village with a film crew he states a generator caught on fire for no apparent reason.

The Ghost of Ambrose Small

Ambrose Small, a millionaire Canadian theatre producer, disappeared in 1919 without a trace. This crime at the time was touted in international newspapers as the “Crime of the Century.” 

His disappearance is considered one of Canada’s great mysteries for this case has never been solved.

Just the day after Small sold his theatre chain for 1.7 million dollars, he was seen leaving--The Grand Opera House in downtown Toronto, Ontario after a night performance. He was then seen buying a newspaper and was never seen again.

Toronto Grand Opera House
Last place, Small was seen.

A $50,000 reward was offered, and the police conducted an extensive search--literally for years afterward-- but no valuable leads were ever discovered. Small was declared legally dead in 1923 but the case was not officially closed until 1960.

People are still fascinated by this case, and several books have been written about it.  

Yet another mystery is connected to Ambrose Small for it is said he still watches over--haunts-- his favorite theatre, The New Grand Opera House located in London, Ontario that he opened in 1901. 

Today this theatre is called The Grand Theatre.

Just a month after his disappearance a night watchman at the New Grand Opera House reported seeing a ghost that looked like Mr. Small.

Ever since there have been countless sightings of Ambrose Small in this theatre. Small’s apparition has been seen by cast, crew, and theatre patrons. He is often seen in his favorite balcony box sitting in his favorite seat.

Even when his ghost is not seen, the seat on this chair is observed going down when he arrives and popping back up when he leaves. It is said he never misses an opening night.

He is also often spotted walking the theatre's catwalks. Phantom footsteps have been heard for years around the theatre.

A ladies man in life--Small is said to still be partial to the ladies. Several actresses that have performed at the theatre over the years state that they heard their name whispered in their ear and have felt something messing with the hem of their gowns.

Actors have even reported seeing him floating above the heads of the audience during performances.

The following are two famous sightings of Ambrose Small's ghost:

In 1927, comedian Beatrice Lillie saw Small's ghost beckon to her during a performance. It is said as she moved toward him, a prop chandelier crashed down, almost hitting her.

In the summer of 1957, a teenager Jay Campbell who later was to become a local television meteorologist and his girlfriend, saw a figure climbing a ladder off stage. "It really didn't look like a person, but from the waist up, it had the form of a person."

The theatre's electrical equipment often malfunctions. These occurrences are always blamed on Small. 

But Small is considered a benevolent ghost, and he performed an excellent service for the theatre in 1977, which many appreciate. At this time, the theatre was undergoing an extensive renovation.

A backhoe that was being used to knock down a wall came to close to the theatre’s historic west wall arch mural. This painting, if destroyed, could not be replaced. 

It is said this machine stalled without cause just seconds before this wall came crashing down. It is felt Small stopped this machine. To this day, the theatre displays the two remaining bricks that kept this arch in place.

The Grand Theatre Arch

Recently, people in various parts of the theatre have heard an unexplained “hissing sound.” The source of this sound has yet to be discovered. Some feel it must be Ambrose Small just making his presence known.

This link is to an interesting 7-8 minute video on youtube that has witness descriptions of many of the encounters with Ambrose Small’s ghost at The Grand Theatre.

The SS Ourang Medan Fact or Fiction?

This is the strange and chilling tale of a Dutch freighter ship, the Ourang Medan, which sent out a SOS distress signal in June of 1947 while crossing the Straits of Malacca between Sumatra and Malaysia. 

Some state this tale is just an old sailor’s yarn told to amuse. But this explanation is too simplistic if the following is taken into consideration. Many ships heard this distress call and reported it. The incident was written about in 1952 in a U.S. Coast Guard publication. The result -- more than one person has tried to investigate it but it remains a mystery to this day.

Several Dutch, English and American ships heard this eerie distress call:

“An officer including captain are dead, lying in chartroom and bridge. Possibly whole crew is dead.” A burst of indecipherable Morse code was heard and then these final words: “I die.” After this last grim message all was silent.

The two American as well as the English and Dutch ships that heard this disturbing message where able to “triangulate” or determine the location from where this message was sent. An American merchant ship, the Silver Star was the closest to this location so they quickly changed course. 

Within hours they spotted the Ourang Medan across the straits’ choppy waters. At first they tried to hail her by whistle and hand signals but when they received no response the Silver Star’s captain arranged for a group to board her.

What these Silver Star crewmembers discovered aboard the Ourang Medan is described as “a living nightmare.” The deck, wheelhouse and bridge where covered with dead bodies. 

Horrified this crew saw that each decaying face was frozen into an expression of terror. Each dead seaman was staring their eyes wide-open and their mouths agape. Each corpse was positioned with arms outstretched as if they were still locked in battle with some unseen assailant.

When the crew explored further they found more bodies below deck in the ship’s charthouse and boiler room. Each of these dead men also had a look of grim terror on their face. 

The ship’s communication officer was found dead sitting with his fingertips still on the telegraph. The crew quickly returned to the deck finding the chartroom and boiler room below were both extremely cold--this despite the temperature outside that day was a sizzling 110 degrees.

Their captain determined that they should attach a line to the Ourang Medan and tow her ashore but as his crew was doing this they saw the Ourang was on fire, smoke was billowing from below her decks. These men barely had time to cut the towline and make their way back to the Silver Star before the Ourang Medan exploded. It is said the Ourang rose with a tremendous force out of the water and then sank swiftly.

One statement from the Coast Guard’s testimony report entitled,  “Proceedings of the Merchant Marine Court” described the condition and alarming state these Dutch crewmen were found in:

“Their frozen faces were upturned to the sun…staring, as if in fear…the mouths were gaping open and the eyes staring.”

In the years before and since the Coast Guard account was written rumors swirled about this strange incident. Besides the positions and expressions on these corpses, which pointed to the fact these sailors must have “suffered profoundly at their deaths” was the fact that no injuries or wounds were found on any of them. 

Plus the ship was not damaged in any way until it exploded. So the reason for their demise resulted in much speculation.

Researchers that have tried to determine what actually happened to the crew on the Ourang Medan have all hit brick walls. 

One reason this tale is considered a legend is that fact that there are no official records that this ship ever existed. But as I mentioned above, this does not mesh with the fact many ships heard the Ourang’s distress call, and it is believed by many that the Silver Star did change course and it did discover this ship. 

In contrast, an article published in the Fortean Times entitled A Cargo of Death states the Silver Star didn’t exist. It did.

Of course many have speculated what exactly caused these men’s deaths--which I find fascinating since in the same breath it is mentioned that this incident didn’t actually happen. Many theories have been suggested, some more far-fetched than others. 

One mentioned often is since this ship sank right after the Second World War it’s relative obscurity was used to transport chemicals used to make poisonous gas--it is stated if salt water hit these chemicals it would have killed the crew and then eventually caused the explosion. 

An interesting note about this theory is some believe that the real name of this ship was changed to disguise the fact that it was transporting these chemicals. Regardless, if this theory is believed one still has to wonder why this mixture of gases plus the salt water didn’t cause the ship to explode immediately.

Another theory states that the ship’s boiler must have malfunctioned causing a carbon monoxide leak. The crew then inhaled these fumes and died. But why did the seaman on deck not survive. Wouldn’t the fresh sea air have saved them? 

A third theory presented involves “methane bubbles” surfacing in clouds from a hole or fissure in the sea floor which then asphyxiated the crew. This theory is at fault because these bubbles could not have caused the ship to explode. One has to wonder if these bubbles could kill the entire ship’s crew?

Others speculated that pirates boarded the ship and attacked the crew but this was immediately ruled out because there were no marks found on any of the bodies. 

An article in Fate magazine in 1953 stated that since none of the mainstream reasons purposed were solid it could have been something paranormal that caused these deaths.

One rumor stated after this in 1965 involved a UFO. It was put forth that aliens must have attacked the ship. 

Another reason given is based upon the fact that the Silver Star crew experienced a feeling of immense cold in the Ourang Medan’s lower decks. This caused speculation that “ghosts” had something to do with the crew’s demise.

What really happened remains a mystery--that’s if this incident really occurred. This story is a good example of how tales regardless of whether they are based in fact of fiction take on a life of their own and become legendary.

Update: Here is a link to the Skittish Library with an interesting take on this story.

New Mexico Legend: The Miraculous Staircase

In 1610 the Spanish founded Santa Fe, today the capital of New Mexico. Santa Fe was originally called the “Royal City of the Holy Faith of St. Francis of Assisi,” in Spanish-- La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Assisi. 

Santa Fe remained under the control of the New Republic of Mexico for 25 years. In 1848 with the U.S. victory in the Mexican War the southwest was ceded to the United States.

Loretto Chapel

At the end of the Old Santa Fe Trail in the capital stands the Loretto Chapel. In 1850 Bishop Jean Baptiste Lamy was appointed by the Catholic Church to New Mexico territory. 

Seeking to spread the faith and bring an educational system to the territory he sent out a plea for priests, brothers, and nuns to come preach and teach.

In 1852 the Sisters of Loretto founded in 1812 in Kentucky responded to Lamy’s plea. They sent seven sisters but only five arrived in 1852, their journey to Santa Fe was very difficult. 

Their Mother Superior died in a cholera epidemic as they traveled by wagon and another sister became too ill to continue and returned to Kentucky. 

These sisters opened the “Academy of Our Lady of Light (Loretto) in 1853. In 1855 several more sisters joined them. Their school grew to over 300 students with a campus that covered a square block with ten buildings.

Despite the challenges of the new territory, which included: smallpox, tuberculosis, leaky mud roofs, and a brush with rowdy Confederate Texas soldiers during the Civil War the Loretta Sister’s school thrived. Their student’s tuitions were paid through donations, and from the sister’s own inheritances from their families.

Bishop Lamy brought architect Antoine Mouly and his son from Paris, France to Santa Fe to build what is now St. Francis Cathedral. It took them ten years to complete the construction. 

During this time Lamy encouraged the Loretta Sisters to have the Mouly’s design and build their dream chapel as well. The sisters again pooled their own inheritances to raise the $30,000 required to build the chapel.

Work began on the Loretto in 1873. The Mouly’s fashioned the chapel after the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris. The stain glass used was purchased from the DuBois Studio in Paris. It traveled to Santa Fe by sailing ship, paddleboat, and wagon. Construction on the chapel was completed in 1878.

During the time the Loretto Chapel was completed it was standard practice to use a ladder to get to the choir loft in churches. The Loretto Sisters found their long habits prevented them from climbing this ladder. 

Carpenters were called in to address the problem, these craftsmen all stated that a staircase would take up too much floor space in the small chapel.

Legend states the sister’s in an attempt to find a solution to the seating problem, made a novena to St. Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters. On the ninth and final day of prayer, a man appeared at the chapel with a donkey and a toolbox looking for work. 

He used a square, saw, hammer, and water and worked in privacy. Six months later, the elegant circular staircase was completed, and the carpenter who built it by himself disappeared without thanks or collecting his pay.

The sisters searched for this carpenter, they even put an ad in the local newspaper. When they found no trace of him the sisters concluded that he was St. Joseph himself, having come to answer their prayers. 

Many still believe in this legend. In recent years several people have tried to debunk it but the more recent Sisters of Loretto have not accepted any of the new explanations for the mysterious carpenter.

When I was little the staircase was still open for visitors to walk up and down—it was originally built without the handrails that adorn it today and it is extremely steep. 

The staircase design was not only innovative for the time but this structure also enhances the aesthetic appeal of the entire chapel. The Gothic Loretto Chapel as a whole is a very beautiful place.

“It has been surmised that the central spiral of the staircase is narrow enough to serve as a central beam. Nonetheless there was no attachment unto any wall or pole in the original staircase.”

Some of the design elements of the Loretto Chapel’s staircase still perplex architects, engineers, and master craftsmen today. The staircase makes over two complete 360-degree turns, stands 20 feet tall and has no center support. It rests solely on its base and against the choir loft. 

The risers of the 33 steps are all the same height. It was made from a wood that was not found anywhere in the region. Where this lumber came from is a part of the mystery for no one saw any deliveries. Glue and nails were not used in its construction just wooden square pegs.

Hundreds of thousands of people have visited the Loretto Chapel over the years to view The Miraculous Staircase. The Loretto Academy was closed in 1968—the chapel was put up for sale. In 1971, the chapel was informally deconsecrated as a Catholic chapel. Today it is run as a private museum.