Jefferson, north of Interstate 20 near the Louisiana state line, enjoys its reputation as the most haunted town in Texas.
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Ghost hunters walk through the courtyard at The Excelsior House.
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A smoky haze has been seen crossing the hallways of the Jefferson Hotel.
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Everywhere you turn, locals and tourists alike have spooky ghost stories to share; however, this tiny East Texas town offers more than scary bedtime stories. These tales are based on actual historical information, and Jodi Breckenridge, guide for the Historic Jefferson Ghost Walk, has spent many years thoroughly researching the rich history behind Jefferson?s eerie past.
"I stress to people that I'm the biggest skeptic of the bunch, but I honestly do get rattled at times," Jodi said. "It's not like some tour where guys dress up as goblins and jump out of the bushes. This is serious stuff."
The Ghost Walk is a 90-minute tour of beautifully preserved (and eerily haunted) buildings in Jefferson's downtown district. The tours are year-round, with fall and spring being the busiest seasons. During those times, as many as 50 people can be found walking with Jodi as they carry their lanterns, snapping pictures of what they hope are apparitions and shivering at the chilling tales that date back more than a century. Jodi said occasionally someone even feels a bump in the night from a taunting ghost.
"Part of the reason it is such a spooky tour is because it's all factual," Jodi said. "I'm not making things up to get a scare out of anyone. People have told these ghost stories for well over 100 years. It's not that Jefferson is so haunted, it's that anywhere there's lots of history where tragedy has occured, there will be stories."
Among the stops on the tour is the Big Cypress Coffee House, which was a saloon, a brothel, a funeral home and the site for occasional blood shed. Now, Jodi reports, it is the most active site of hauntings. Another hot spot on the tour is the Jefferson Hotel, where guests have been spooked by ghosts that stand at their bedside, hurl objects at them and lock them into one of the haunted rooms. The Excelsior House, the second oldest hotel in Texas, got its haunting fame when Steven Spielberg stayed one night about 40 years ago. He awoke terrified as he saw an apparition of a little boy standing by his bed asking him if he was ready for breakfast. The director of films such as "E.T." and "Jurassic Park" fled the hotel immediately.
There are other stops along the tour that will make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. That's what ghost stories are all about.
