New letterbox in Southeastern PA
1 messages in this thread |
Started on 2002-10-13
New letterbox in Southeastern PA
From: (sezrodriguez@aol.com) |
Date: 2002-10-13 20:41:51 UTC-04:00
THE HAUNTED CANAL LETTERBOX
I lived on the canal all my life. My great granddaddy came over from the old country to help build it. Brought my granddaddy with him. See, my granddaddy's ma died birthin' him. So it were just him and his da. Then my great granddaddy got sick with the canal fever and died. Left my granddaddy here all alone when he was just a boy. But the people round here were pretty nice and let him stay on as a stableboy. That's what I was too. And my da before me. Yea, my great-granddaddy is buried up the canal a piece near Wertz's bridge in the old Deppen cemetery. Used to be up futher, but when they built that new lake up there, they moved the whole dang cemetery. Guess it was better'n leavin' em all floatin in the water.
It sure has changed a piece round here. I been hangin round here since bout the turn of the century. Do get plenty lonely sometimes. I sometimes see Old Mrs. Bissinger and her young'uns wanderin round, but never do say much to her. See, she kinda went cuckoo, so I stays clear of her most a the time. And sometimes I hear some real pretty music comin from up round Gring's mill when the weather gets pretty, but I never go's much off the towpath. Here's where I spect to see my sweet Betsy.
They drained the canal back in around 1885 when the railroad come into town. Weren't useful no more. That's when Betsy's pa decided they was to move. See, he was a locktender, and they had no use for him there no more. I was real sweet on Betsy from the get go, but her daddy, he didn't much cotton to me. See, I was just a poor Irish stableboy and Betsy, well, she was real fine. I was gonna marry that girl.
When Betsy's ma and pa would go out and leave Betsy home sometime, I would go and ask Betsy to come out walkin' with me. Just up the canal a peice. Well, that's what I did that night. And Betsy, well she said she'd like that just fine. So we went a walkin' down toward Gring's mill. Didn't go far and Betsy ran ahead a piece. See, she was real playful. Figgered she'd be jumpin out at me tryin to scare me half to death. So I just walked on. After I walked about fifteen minutes and still didn't see her, I got kinda scared for her. So I started to walk faster. Then run. It was gettin kinda dark, but I could still see the old Gring's mill they built back in '11 on the other side of the creek. I called out to Betsy, but got no answer. So I kept on runnin down to the old Fisher's place and still didn't see hide nor hair of my dear Betsy. So I turned round and headed back up toward Betsy's house. I passed the mill and the garden that was there on the right with the pretty purple flowers Betsy loved. That's when I started to hear the noises. There down in the old dried up canal. First I thought maybe it was Betsy, but then I knowed it weren't. Sounded like some critter draggin his evenin meal home. I gotta say, I was plenty scared by then.
I passed by the place on the path where the trees don't like to grow, and then came near lock #49. That's where old Mrs. Bissinger drowned herself and her four youn'uns back in '75, and they was knowed to be out hauntin when the moon was out so I ran specially fast past there. Up past the old dam. Course the dam is mostly gone now. Just some ripples in the water now. Anyhow, it was then that I heared the door slam and the screamin start. Betsy's house was just the other side of the canal up the dirt path. I runned fast as my legs would take me, but I guess it weren't fast enough. I tried to open the door, but it was locked. I knowed Betsy's daddy kept a key under a rock near the soutwest corner of the house, so I run over to get it and when I got back, the door was wide open. So I went inside. It was the most horrible sight I ever did see. My sweet Betsy and her ma and pa, they was all bloody. The house looked like a slaughter house. I don't mind tellin ya, I cried like a baby. I went and held my Betsy close to me and just cried and cried. I didn't know what to do, so I picked my Betsy up and carried her out of the house to the towpath. I knowed that whoever did this was still out there, so I wanted to get out a there. I headed up the towpath toward Wertz's bridge. When I got to the bridge, I seen one of the Van Reed boys crossin over the bridge. Guess he was headin home. So I went and set a spell under the bridge.
To be continued.....
I lived on the canal all my life. My great granddaddy came over from the old country to help build it. Brought my granddaddy with him. See, my granddaddy's ma died birthin' him. So it were just him and his da. Then my great granddaddy got sick with the canal fever and died. Left my granddaddy here all alone when he was just a boy. But the people round here were pretty nice and let him stay on as a stableboy. That's what I was too. And my da before me. Yea, my great-granddaddy is buried up the canal a piece near Wertz's bridge in the old Deppen cemetery. Used to be up futher, but when they built that new lake up there, they moved the whole dang cemetery. Guess it was better'n leavin' em all floatin in the water.
It sure has changed a piece round here. I been hangin round here since bout the turn of the century. Do get plenty lonely sometimes. I sometimes see Old Mrs. Bissinger and her young'uns wanderin round, but never do say much to her. See, she kinda went cuckoo, so I stays clear of her most a the time. And sometimes I hear some real pretty music comin from up round Gring's mill when the weather gets pretty, but I never go's much off the towpath. Here's where I spect to see my sweet Betsy.
They drained the canal back in around 1885 when the railroad come into town. Weren't useful no more. That's when Betsy's pa decided they was to move. See, he was a locktender, and they had no use for him there no more. I was real sweet on Betsy from the get go, but her daddy, he didn't much cotton to me. See, I was just a poor Irish stableboy and Betsy, well, she was real fine. I was gonna marry that girl.
When Betsy's ma and pa would go out and leave Betsy home sometime, I would go and ask Betsy to come out walkin' with me. Just up the canal a peice. Well, that's what I did that night. And Betsy, well she said she'd like that just fine. So we went a walkin' down toward Gring's mill. Didn't go far and Betsy ran ahead a piece. See, she was real playful. Figgered she'd be jumpin out at me tryin to scare me half to death. So I just walked on. After I walked about fifteen minutes and still didn't see her, I got kinda scared for her. So I started to walk faster. Then run. It was gettin kinda dark, but I could still see the old Gring's mill they built back in '11 on the other side of the creek. I called out to Betsy, but got no answer. So I kept on runnin down to the old Fisher's place and still didn't see hide nor hair of my dear Betsy. So I turned round and headed back up toward Betsy's house. I passed the mill and the garden that was there on the right with the pretty purple flowers Betsy loved. That's when I started to hear the noises. There down in the old dried up canal. First I thought maybe it was Betsy, but then I knowed it weren't. Sounded like some critter draggin his evenin meal home. I gotta say, I was plenty scared by then.
I passed by the place on the path where the trees don't like to grow, and then came near lock #49. That's where old Mrs. Bissinger drowned herself and her four youn'uns back in '75, and they was knowed to be out hauntin when the moon was out so I ran specially fast past there. Up past the old dam. Course the dam is mostly gone now. Just some ripples in the water now. Anyhow, it was then that I heared the door slam and the screamin start. Betsy's house was just the other side of the canal up the dirt path. I runned fast as my legs would take me, but I guess it weren't fast enough. I tried to open the door, but it was locked. I knowed Betsy's daddy kept a key under a rock near the soutwest corner of the house, so I run over to get it and when I got back, the door was wide open. So I went inside. It was the most horrible sight I ever did see. My sweet Betsy and her ma and pa, they was all bloody. The house looked like a slaughter house. I don't mind tellin ya, I cried like a baby. I went and held my Betsy close to me and just cried and cried. I didn't know what to do, so I picked my Betsy up and carried her out of the house to the towpath. I knowed that whoever did this was still out there, so I wanted to get out a there. I headed up the towpath toward Wertz's bridge. When I got to the bridge, I seen one of the Van Reed boys crossin over the bridge. Guess he was headin home. So I went and set a spell under the bridge.
To be continued.....