These South Texas urban legends will send chills down your spine (2024)

Mark Young,Meagan Falcon|Corpus Christi Caller Times

Editor's note: This article was first published in August 2018.

Growing up in South Texas, you've probably heard your fair share of ghost stories that kept you up at night.

From el cucuy to la llorona, these creatures of the night were probably the real reason you behaved when your mother was upset with you.

But have you ever wondered where their stories began?

Myths and monsters have existed since the beginning of timeand have morphed into urban legends that are passed down from generation to generation.

In South Texas, many of the common urban legends wereinspired byHispanic folklore.

These are some of the most famous ones.

More: Here's how you can take a tour of some of the most haunted places in Corpus Christi

Chipita Rodriguez haunts Texas

Chipita Rodriguez, hanged in 1863 unjustly, is said to haunt the banks of the Nueces River. The Texas Legislature declared her not guilty in 1985.

Texas A&M University-Kingsville

El Chupacabra

This mythical creaturehas been known to drain the blood of farm animals and hauntthe southern United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico and South America.

Referred to as the "Bigfootof Latino culture" byCNN, the chupacabra folklore had a resurgencein the '90s when farm animals began turning up dead with their blood drained.

While descriptions of the creature vary, it is commonly described as a reptilian or dog-like creature with a row of spines on its back.

In 2007, a woman gained global attention when she discovered a supposed carcass of a chupacabrain Cuero two hours north of Corpus Christi.

Texas State University conducted a DNA test of the animal and discovered the creature to be a hairless Texas coyote, according to the university's website.

La Llorona

The story of la llorona is definitely one of the darker legends parents tell their children.

Known as"the weeping woman," la lloronais often presented as a banshee-type apparition of a woman dressed in white, often found by lakes or rivers.

She cansometimes be found at crossroads, cryinginto the night for her lost children, whom she killed.

There are various stories of how she killed her children, but the most common story is she committed her crimein a fit of madness after having found out about an unfaithful lover or husband who lefther to marry a woman of higher status.

After realizing what she hasdone, she kills herself and forever roams the afterlife searching for a replacement.

The Mexican folklore tale goes back hundreds of years and is commonly told in areaslike the Rio Grande Valley or even our local Ropes Park.

In 2019, New Line Cinema will release a Hollywood adaptation called "The Curse of La Llorona," which will feature starsLinda Cardellini, Patricia Velasquez, Raymond Cruz and Madeleine McGraw.

Lechuza

Originating from Hispanic folklore, a lechuza is a witch who sold her soul to the devil for magical powers, or by some accounts is the spirit of a woman who has been murdered.

When la lechuza hunts at night, itlooks like a harpy from Greek mythology, having a bird-human body and a woman's face.

The legend of lechuza vastly differs depending on who you ask, but evenjust hearing the shape-shifting witch issaid to be an omen that someone in yourfamily will die.

El Cucuy

He is the ultimate threat that keeps children from misbehaving.

And the bogeyman, well he doesn't even come close to the hideous creature of the night known asel cucuy.

The beast is known by different names to people throughout Latin America.

Some of the names include cucuy, coco, cocu, camucho and others.

Popular legend describes cucuy as a small humanoid with glowing red eyes that hides in closets or under the bed.

He's childlikeand somewhere between life and death.

Tony Zavaleta, an anthropology professor from Texas Southmost College, saidthe shadow figure is a common myth passed between parent and child, according to a 2005 article from the Brownsville Herald.

Zavaleta said fathers traditionally tell children that there's nothing under the bed or in the closet, while mothers tell the child to fear cucuy.

"Pre-industrial societies create a conceptual fear creature to keep children away from dangerous places," he said. "These legends often continue as civilization develops, and new names are assigned to it. The cucuy is ours."

There have been reports of cucuy sightings in places such asDickens, San Benito, Brownsville and San Antonio.

San Patricio County's Road to Hell

If you've ever found yourself driving along Farm-to-Market Road 666, you probably felt chills rolling down your spine as you traveled the dark country road at night.

There's a reason why.

The highway is located in one of the most famous haunted areas in South Texas.

Along the country road sits theOld San Patricio Courthouse, where Chipita Rodriguez, the first womanever to be hung inTexas, was sentenced for a crime she did not commit.

Chipita was taken to a grove of trees along the Nueces River, a few miles behind the courthouse and the present-day highway, and hanged from the tallest oak tree.

She was buried in a coffin along the banks of the river under the tree from which she was hanged.

Chipita's ghost reportedly glides on the river banks where her cries echo into the mesquite.

South Texas headless horseman

You've heard of the headless horseman from Washington Irving's short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," but what if we told you there was a similar story in South Texas.

According to urban legend, a wealthy Kentuckian who had come to Texas for a land purchase in the early 1800sfound the quaint town of San Patricio to be his last stop.

It is said that the wealthy man lost his gold to thieves — and also his head.

He reportedly roams the night along Headless Horseman Hill which flows from Mathis to San Patricio.

More: Finding Bigfoot has become Corpus Christi man's ambition

And Bigfoot?

The most well-known urban legend and myth in America, Bigfoothas been known to make a couple of visits to Texas.

A quick google search shows many supposed sightings of the large ape-like cryptid all over Texas.

In Beeville, there is even a group called theBee County Bigfoot Research Group that is dedicated to searching for it.