The Gurdon Spook Light of Gurdon, Arkansas

If you travel to the small town of Gurdon, Arkansas, about 85 miles south of Little Rock, and look out towards a certain stretch of railroad tracks surrounded by wooded area, you might see a strange ghostly light hovering above the tracks.

Ask any local about the Gurdon spook light and they'll know. It’s one of Arkansas’ most well known legends.

Depending on witnesses, the eerie light glows in either a blue, orange, green, or white color.

No matter the color, the strangest and perhaps eeriest thing about Arkansas’ Gurdon light is that no one can explain the source of it.

Possible Explanations

First let’s look into the more rational explanations:

Car headlights

One of the most common and first thought logical explanations is that they’re only head lights from cars traveling the highway. That would make sense and would ease any unsettling uncertainty but there are a few problems with this.

The stretch of railroad tracks that this strange ghostly light is seen is more than two miles from the closest highway. No reflection from car head lights would be seen from that distance.

Another problem with the car head light explanation is that this light has been witnessed long before the highway (Interstate 30) was built.

Swamp gas

The Gurdon light might be a phenomena created by swamp gas. A problem with this theory is that the light is seen in all sorts of weather. Even when swamp gas is not present.

When it comes to witnessing strange phenomena, many of us search for a rational explanation.

Oh so it’s not ghosts. It’s just the house settling. It’s mice or squirrels in the attic.

When we are going through a dark forest or an old abandoned house, these rational explanations might help ease the mind.

But when these explanations can’t be debunked, it might be time to look into the paranormal aspect or at least consider it unexplained if you’re a hard core skeptic of the paranormal.

It’s just car head lights. It’s swamp gas. There's no ghost.

There are, however, a few much more disturbing theories that make the unexplained Gurdon light even more chilling.

A murder on the railroad

Local legend says that the Gurdon light is the lantern carried by the ghost of a railroad foreman that was killed by a disgruntled railroad worker.

During the time of the depression, a railroad worker, Louis McBride got into an argument with the foreman, William McClain, over how many hours he was allowed to work. Times for rough during the depression. Everyone, if not most, were looking for a good paying job to support their family.

Unfortunately the option to give McBride more hours was not possible. Infuriated, McBride hit the foreman over the head with a shovel and brutally murdered him with a spike maul.

Maybe it is just a coincidence but the Gurdon light was seen not long after the foreman was murdered.

Death by Train

Another but just as horrifying ghostly explanation is that the Gurdon light is from the lantern carried by a railroad worker that was struck and beheaded by a train. The railroad worker carries the lantern walking along the railroad tracks as he eternally searches for his head.

So what do you think? Is it really the ghost of a murdered railroad foreman or something far more rational?

If you love a good ghost story and exploring haunted locations, if you're lucky, you can actually see this ghostly light for yourself. Just be sure to be respectful and follow any safety precautions posted.

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