The "Haunted Hag Of The Strand" in Galveston, Texas is bringer of the most haunted experience you could ever have. Many believe that she is a lost soul who had died in The Great Storm of 1900. Those who dare walk the Strand late at night see her strange apparition roaming the streets and peering around corners She is said to scream obscenities if you try to catch her or speak to her. And if she does not like you look out!

Over the years some locals have called her a ghoul. Still others say she is a vampire queen of the night that will haunt you until you die. But finding out the truth is reserved only for the very brave of heart. And so far only one team of Texas Paranormal Investigators have ventured out to try in recent times. Stories often tell that she sucks the life out of men and slits the throats of woman with her bare teeth and long nails. So be wary If you seek out for yourself.

The story of this Hag does go back well before the great storm. Magdalena was her name and a supposed spurned lover of the pirate King Jean Lafitte. The story goes that this beautiful Creole woman sold her soul to the Devil to get Laffite to fall in love wit her. But Laffite wore a very old powerful Voodoo Charm from a New Orleans exiled slave Voodoo Queen that protected him from all magical spells that could be put on him.

The voodoo hoodoo charm was given to him for the actual trade of her freedom, that which Lafitte granted.

Magdalena tried to seduce the great Pirate King but his charm saved him from her. By turning her into a creature forever to roam the night.

The Pirate King Of Galveston Island

Anonymous oil on canvas portrait of Jean Lafitte, early 19th century, Rosenberg Library, Galveston, Texas

After being run out of New Orleans around 1817, Lafitte relocated to the island of Galveston, Texas establishing another "kingdom" he named "Campeche". In Galveston, Lafitte either purchased or set his claim to a lavishly furnished mansion used by French pirate Louis-Michel Aury, which he named "Maison Rouge". The building's upper level was converted into a fortress where a cannon commanding Galveston harbor was placed. Around 1820, Lafitte reportedly married Madeline Regaud, possibly the widow or daughter of a French colonist who had died during an ill-fated expedition to Galveston. In 1821, the schooner USS Enterprise was sent to Galveston to remove Lafitte from the Gulf after one of the pirate's captains attacked an American merchant ship. Lafitte agreed to leave the island without a fight, and in 1821 or 1822 departed on his flagship, the Pride, burning his fortress and settlements and reportedly taking immense amounts of treasure with him. All that remains of Maison Rouge is the foundation, located at 1417 Avenue A near the Galveston wharf. When Laffite left Galveston Island in 1820 he made Jao de la Porta, a Jewish Texan merchant, a full-time trader.

While the Lafitte brothers were engaged in running the Galveston operation, one client they worked with considerably in the slave smuggling trade was James Bowie. The Lafittes were selling slaves at a dollar a pound, and Bowie would buy them at the Lafittes' rate, then get around the American laws against slave trading by reporting his purchased slaves as having been found in the possession of smugglers. The law at the time allowed Bowie to collect a fee on the "recovered" slaves, and he would then re-buy the slaves (essentially a "slave laundering" act) and then resell them to prospective buyers. And many Voodoo Hoodoo believers were so transported to Texas because of this.

The Lafittes were also engaged in espionage, and were, in effect, double agents. The notion of their loyalty to the United States, while much evoked by their own publicity, was highly dubious. The Lafittes (Pierre, in particular) spied for Spain through agents in Cuba and in Louisiana. While often providing solid material, the Lafittes in fact played both sides, American and Spanish, and always with an eye to securing their own interests. No doubt the charm of Pierre and his reputation as a man in the know figured heavily in the weight he was given by his immediate handlers, although he was never trusted by the higher-up of the Spanish interests. Of particular interest it should be noted that while running the island of Galveston for personal benefit, Pierre Lafitte tried to induce Spain to assault the island. This would have enhanced his standing with Spain while causing minimal real losses to the Lafitte operations.

Herbert Asbury recounts his death in The French Quarter: An Informal History of the New Orleans Underworld. In 1826, Lafitte entered the little Indian village of Teljas, on the mainland, and died of fever after a few days' illness in a native hut. He was 47. All the Voodoo Hoodoo Magic and riches he had Could not save is life.

Tales Of Black Magic And The Devil On Galveston Island

I questioned the Local ghost guide's a well respected psychic partner the beautiful lady back in 2004. She told me that The Galveston Hag was a evil witch that wanted immortal life and beauty. But in her love tryst with the Pirate Lafitte she became pregnant with child. The baby in her womb is said to possess the powers that the Devil had given her. Not the hag. You see the devil had tricked her because he knew she was trying to trick him into giving her all she wanted with no strings attached. Amy also said she had seen the old Hag on several occasions and sometimes she followed her late night ghost tours looking to capture a straggler or two.

I asked why and she said, "To capture the youth she long ago lost." You see when her infernal Devil Baby was born she immediately dried up and aged to the figure of a 80 year old woman. Her child, a girl was said to be very alert an had all the abilities of an adult at birth. And at once ran off into the night with umbilical cord still wrapped around her neck from where the hag tried to strangle it at birth. The child is said to have run to Laffites home on the Island and nearly killed him stealing the charm bag from around his neck as it fled.

In early 1821, the U.S. Navy ran Lafitte out of Galveston, according to French Quarter: An Informal History of the New Orleans Underworld. While leaving, Lafitte burned his compound and the ruins that were left is where the Devil Child is said to hide from the Hag at.

Lafitte's spirit walks the the homes ruins on nights of full moons it is said waiting for his Magdalena to be whole again.

Thus, despite the great heights to which Lafitte rose, began his decline. He left with three vessels, and left the once beautiful creole, now wretched Magdalena behind.

The beastly evil child is said to have lived in the ruins of Laffite's mansion until it grew to womanhood.

Amy would tell me no more then this. She said to speak of it means the old Hag or worse the devil's child will seek you out and kill you.

I pushed her for a few more details.

The Hag was transformed into a living Vampire she said until she died and was buried in the Old City Cemetery which is in the group of 7 on Broadway between "Broadway, or Ave J as it is also known" and Ave L, and 40th to 43rd St. She is buried or was in an unmarked grave. But she did not stay their long. The Great Storm is said to have set her free and since then she roams the streets seducing men and killing woman until she finds her Devil child. Once she can kill the child her offspring from Satan it is said she will regain her beauty and be whole again to live out her life as a normal woman.

"If Seeing The Old Galveston Hag Is Believing?" "Then I want to keep my eyes closed." Said Amy.

I just went back to Galveston Island this spring of this year. Sadly the beautiful young lady is no longer with the tour company, So I asked the nights ghost tour Host. What could he tell of the Galveston Hag? His face seemed to turn a shade or two paler then his normal color. He said " Who Told you about that?" I told him I heard on his tour in 2004. " Well that explains it he said." "Some stories only need to be told once." I wanted to know more about it I asked. He then asked me to tell him the story I knew, so I told him.He then said "I wouldn't go looking for no Hag if I was you." Case Closed he said I can give you no more then what you already know." He also said that that story is not part of his tour for obvious reasons."

So I set out with my camera and equipment to question the locals about the Hag and what they knew. Many of those that I talked to said they knew of the many ghosts that haunted the little Island. But as far as stories go they could give me no more then what I already knew.

I was told about the ghostly woman who sucked blood. And that she preyed on the many homeless people that frequented the Island in the summer months. Also about the old woman ghost that frequented the homes of new born's and watched over them to protect them from the Devil's child.

But it wasn't until 3:00 AM one night when I saw a shadowy figure roaming the strand dressed in black with long gray blond hair, that I realized the Old Hag of Galveston might just be real! I followed her to one of the many large service alleys where she disappeared into the darkness. I still wonder was I lucky to have seen her? Or just "Lucky" she did not see me?

About Leslie Danielle Ferrymen

Ferryman is a Paranormal Investigator from Franklin, Tennessee. She heads up The Franklin Ghost and Paranormal Investigation Team. Ferryman is very active in pursuing real Urban Legends and finding out what truth lies hidden in the stories told.

Her 15 member group has investigated many haunted locations all over the United States since it's founding in 2006.

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