Exploring America State by State

Monthly Archives: November 2023

The Jeepers Creepers School

Posted on by Posted in Buildings, Haunted, Michigan Leave a comment

South of Coldwater, Michigan near the Ohio border, stands an old abandoned school built in 1908. I would like to be able to tell you the story of one of its pupils that went on to do something inspiring, but unfortunately, I do not know of such a story. I only know the tragic and sad story that took place at this school building after the death of a Coldwater High School counselor. On Easter day in 1990, Marilyn DePue and her husband Dennis got into a fight. After savagely beating her he forced her into his van and shot her in the head killing her instantly. He dumped her body behind an old church, that has since been demolished, then drove extremely fast down South Snow Prairie Road, passing a brother and sister out on an afternoon drive.

When the pair of siblings drove past the old school they noticed the van that had passed them. The two also saw a man hiding a bloody sheet behind the abandoned building. De Pue must have realized there was a blood soaked sheet in the van that he needed to hide. After the body was discovered by the police, on a tip from the siblings, Dennis became the prime suspect. He had fled the state and the police were not able to find and arrest him. Robert Stack featured the story on an episode of the popular television show Unsolved Mysteries.

After the episode aired, several tips came in saying a man by the name of Hank Queen, living in Dallas Texas, fit the description. Trying to question Dennis DePue, he led the police on a hi-speed chase and committed suicide before he could be taken into custody. The story of Marilyn DePue’s murder is thought to be the inspiration for the opening scene of the movie Jeepers Creepers.  The director and writer said it was not, but the similarities are uncanny. The old episode of Unsolved Mysteries can be seen on Youtube. The old school still stands silently among the farm fields. It is off limits to visitors, but you can still drive past it, hopefully you will not see anything nefarious taking place.

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The Cross Florida Barge Canal

Posted on by Posted in Florida, Ruins Leave a comment

A section of Highway 301 runs between Ocala and Belleview Florida. There is a spot where the highway has a large median and a sheriff’s office and behind it is a park called “The Island”. Massive concrete structures stand towering among the trees. They look like something from an ancient civilization but in fact they are rather modern.

They are the remnants of the Cross Florida Barge Canal. During the 1800s there was always a wish by some to have a canal that cut thru central Florida to the Gulf Of Mexico. During president Roosevelt’s New Deal an attempt at a canal was made but funding for it ran out after three years. After World War II and shipping being threatened by German U-boats, interest in building the canal gained in popularity.  Construction resumed in 1964, with President Lyndon B. Johnson presiding at the groundbreaking in Palatka, Florida.

Environmentalists protested the building of the canal saying it will damage the Sunshine State’s ecosystem. Activist Marjorie Harris Carr appealed to President Richard Nixon and he stopped the project in 1971 and congress officially defunded it in 1990. The concrete supports for a bridge over the canal still stand as a reminder of the ill fated project. The Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway follows the proposed path of the canal and is maintained by the Florida State Parks.

If you want to check out the old concrete bridge supports you can park at the sheriff’s office and there is a hiking path that takes you past them with signage about the canal.

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The Carlin House

Posted on by Posted in Houses, Ohio Leave a comment

There are several beautiful historic homes that stand along Main Street in Fostoria, Ohio. This massive brick Victorian Gothic style house with the tower on the front of it stands out among the rest of the homes. It was built in 1885 by William L. Carlin who was the grandson of one of the original town’s founders. Carling became the Mayor of Fostoria and later became a State Senator. The home is privately owned and the owners have done a fantastic job of maintaining this beautiful and historic house.

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The Water Tower Jail

Posted on by Posted in South Carolina, Water Tower Leave a comment

I have seen a lot of water towers in my travels but the one in Walterboro, South Carolina is one of the most unique and strangest I a have seen. Constructed in 1915 it is made from concrete and stands 133 feet tall. It holds 100 thousand gallons of water a the top.

At the base is a door made from iron bars. Inside are three jail cells and they were used as the town’s jail when the tower was constructed. It is one of the most unique features I have seen in a water tower. I guess they figured since they were building a new tower that they might as well incorporate a jail into it.

The story gets even weirder. After they were no long being used to hold inmates, Legend has it that the town allowed weary travelers passing through to stay overnight in them for free. I am not sure what they thought when offered a place for the night in an abandoned jail at the bottom of a water tower. It seems like the beginning of a horror movie.

The tower still stands in town and if you look through the bars of the door you can still see the former jail cells. It is one of the strangest things I have seen on my travels.

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Whispers Estate

Posted on by Posted in Haunted, Houses, Indiana Leave a comment

North of downtown Mitchell, Indiana on a block of modest homes is a rather unassuming two-story house. It has a wrought iron fence and a pair of stone angel statues in front of it. Looking at it from the outside, you would assume it was just another ordinary Midwestern home. Inside, the owner claims strange paranormal events happen, making it one of the most haunted locations in the Hoosier State. Known as the Whispers Estate, it was built in 1894. Dr. John Gibbons purchased the home in 1899 and used the lower floor as his office, where he saw patients. Dr. Gibbons and his wife had adopted several orphaned children and were well respected in the community. Their ten-year-old daughter Rachel was severely burned by a fire she started in the parlor. Two days later, she died in her upstairs bedroom.

The Gibbon’s ten-month-old daughter Elizabeth died in the home from a mysterious illness. Dr. Gibbon’s wife Jessie died of pneumonia in the same bedroom that Elizabeth passed away in. The house, having seen its share of tragedy over the decades, is said to be cursed by some of its former residents. Some people have claimed to see the spirit of a little girl roaming the house, possibly that of Rachel. They also have heard the sounds of heavy breathing and coughing in the master bedroom where Jessie died from pneumonia. They say the door knob on the closet door jiggles on its own and the door mysteriously opens. The home is known as Whispers Estate because guests have heard strange voices whispering in their ears.

 

If you love reading about strange an unique places in Indiana, I hope you will take a look at my Lost In Indiana book available on Amazon HERE

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Defending A Piece of Paper

Posted on by Posted in People Leave a comment

More than two centuries ago a ragtag army fought the most powerful empire in the world. It was an impossible endeavor and the king thought they were destined to fail. The desire for freedom from the British Monarchy could not be defeated. Shortly after their victory from oppression, the founding fathers wrote on a piece of paper the words that outline the new nation’s government by the people and the freedoms granted to its citizens The virtue and authority of this piece of paper does not come from the men who wrote it. Rather, from the men and women that have taken an oath to defend it with their lives.

Thank you is not a strong enough word to use for the sacrifices made by the veterans who have fought, and continue to fight, defending a piece of paper that defines our nation. Until a word is created in the English language to convey my gratitude, all I can say is Thank You and hope that they will understand how much my freedom means to me.

The Mansion in Joliet

Posted on by Posted in Houses, Illinois Leave a comment

Across the tracks from the Joliet Slammers baseball stadium is this grand stately Mansion. It was built in 1873. by wealthy railroad magnate, Jacob A. Henry. The three-story, red brick Second Empire/Italian Renaissance style structure is built on Joliet limestone. The front and side porch roofs are made with single slabs of limestone. Henry hired craftsmen from Germany to finish the interior and it has elaborate polished walnut woodwork, massive carved pocket doors, original wood mantles, and a solid walnut staircase. The home is now a public venue and a popular place for weddings and banquets.

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Mountain Mamma’s Grist Mill

Posted on by Posted in Autumn, barns and farms, West Virginia Leave a comment

There is a saying among photographer that goes ” If you want better looking pictures, then stand in front of interesting stuff”

There are few places that I have enjoyed standing in front of than the Glade Creek Grist Mill in Babcock State park in West Virginia. The mill looks centuries old but it was constructed in 1976 using parts from other grist mills in the area. I can see why John Denver wrote a song about West Virginia. The country roads are long and winding around the mountains but the views and sights are spectacular.

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