The Hornet Spook Light (NE Oklahoma / SW Missouri)

[Anonymous]

willow the wisp

We have something like Will O' the Wisp where I live. It's between the Oklahoma and Missouri state lines. We call it the Spooklight, or the Hornet Spooklight. It's even been photographed. My family has about 40 acres where it plays. The area is known as "Devils Promenade". The best time to see it is October and November, between 10pm-12am.
I have walked out on the porch and looked across the marshy pasture toward the treeline and have seen it dance. It gives off a golden glow like an old lantern bobbing along , then it will streak quickly and go out, just like that. Everyone who lives in the area is use to it....but It'll have to grow on me. I'm supposed to move out there soon.

 

[EnolaGaia]

The Hornet Spook Light is also known as:

- Joplin Spook Light (owing to its proximity to Joplin, Missouri)
- Tri-State Spook Light

This Joplin municipal info webpage provides an extensive introduction to the phenomenon.

The Spook Light

History
Bobbing and bouncing along a dirt road in northeast Oklahoma is the Hornet Spook Light, a paranormal enigma for more than a century. Described most often as an orange ball of light, the orb travels from east to west along a four-mile gravel road, long called the Devil's Promenade by area locals.

The Spook Light, often referred to as the Joplin Spook Light or the Tri-State Spook Light, is actually in Oklahoma near the small town of Quapaw. However, it is most often seen from the east, which is why it has been "attached” to the tiny hamlet of Hornet, Missouri, and the larger, better-known town of Joplin.

According to the legend, the spook light was first seen by Indians along the infamous Trail of Tears in 1836; however, the first "official” report occurred in 1881 in a publication called the Ozark Spook Light.

The ball of fire, described as varying from the size of a baseball to a basketball, dances and spins down the center of the road at high speeds, rising and hovering above the treetops, before it retreats and disappears. Others have said it sways from side to side, like a lantern being carried by some invisible force. In any event, the orange fire-like ball has reportedly been appearing nightly for well over 100 years. According to locals, the best time to view the spook light is between the hours of 10:00 pm and midnight and tends to shy away from large groups and loud sounds.

Though many paranormal and scientific investigators have studied the light, including the Army Corps of Engineers, no one has been able to provide a conclusive answer as to the origin of the light.


Explanations
Many explanations have been presented over the years, including escaping natural gas, reflecting car lights and billboards, and will-o’-the-wisps, a luminescence created by rotting organic matter. However, all of these explanations fall short of being conclusive. ...


Legends & Lore
Other interesting legends also abound about the light that provide a more ghostly explanation. ...

Sightings of the Spook Light are common, sometimes even reported to be seen inside vehicles. A few people who have been walking along the road at night have even claimed to have felt the heat of the ball as it passed near them.

The webpage includes directions for visiting the site of the spook light sightings ...

Directions to the Spook Light
From I-44, take exit 4 - HWY 86 South. Follow approx six miles to junction Route BB. Turn right on BB Highway and follow the road until it ends. Turn right again, go one mile, turn left on E50 Road (also known as Spooklight Road). Approx 1 1/2 - 2 miles is the darkest and best place to wait.

FULL STORY: https://www.joplinmo.org/575/The-Spook-Light

 

[EnolaGaia]

Additional links to web articles and resources (some archived ... ) related to the Joplin / Hornet Spook Light:

THE HORNET SPOOK LIGHT
The History & Mystery of One of America's Greatest Mysteries
by Troy Taylor
https://web.archive.org/web/20060613061247/http://prairieghosts.com/devprom.html

SPOOKLIGHT
by Suzanne J. Wilson
A nocturnal light with a 100-year history glows along the Missouri Oklahoma border. ...
https://www.qsl.net/w5www/spooklight.html

The Hornet Light
Astronomy Cafe
http://www.astronomycafe.net/weird/lights/hornet.htm

Route 66's glowing mystery orb
By Amy Bizzarri
7th October 2022
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20221006-route-66s-glowing-mystery-orb