Seaside Spectres by Daniel W. Barefoot

Author:Daniel W. Barefoot
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Blair
Published: 2019-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

GREENE COUNTY

The Bear Creek Jack-O’-Lantern

The night has a thousand eyes.

F. W. Boudillon

What would Halloween be without the traditional jack-o’-lantern? Each fall, countless pumpkins are grown and sold throughout North Carolina for the express purpose of being carved into a decoration for the last day of October. Children of all ages revel in creating faces, whether happy or menacing, on their big, orange pumpkins. To provide an eerie effect, a candle is placed inside. Most Tar Heels consider the jack-o’-lantern synonymous with the fun and festivities of Halloween.

But throughout much of the history of North Carolina, the jack-o’-lantern was regarded as an evil entity. In the late eighteenth century, residents of the coastal plain reported sightings of bizarre lights in the dense, often impenetrable swamps. They referred to these frightening balls of light as jack-o’-lanterns—or simply as “Old Jack.”

According to tradition, the jack-o’-lantern was born of hell when an unfortunate fellow by the name of Jack had the audacity to quarrel with the devil. As a result of the argument, Jack was transformed into a frightful demon and forced to float about the North Carolina countryside. Many Tar Heels came to fear the demonic Old Jack as much as they did Satan himself.

Experienced hunters and explorers disdained nighttime excursions into the swamps for fear of encountering the dreaded jack-o’-lantern. In the not-so-distant past, it was widely held that, once spotted, Old Jack would cast his spell on a person and lure him deep into the wilderness, where death awaited. On some occasions, the jack-o’-lantern would confuse deer hunters, causing them to mistakenly shoot a horse or other domesticated animal.

For as long as anyone can remember, Bear Creek, a tributary of the Neuse River that flows along the border of Greene and Wayne Counties, has been home to the sinister jack-o’-lantern. James Creech, who authored a history of Greene County in 1979, was a witness to the Bear Creek jack-o’-lantern while a teenager in the first half of the twentieth century.

His memorable encounter began on a hot, steamy night in late July. James gathered his fishing pole and headed for the creek and its chocolate-colored water teeming with fish. Clouds partially covered the moon, which made the evening unusually dark. To light his way to the creek bank, the young fisherman carried a kerosene lantern.

On that night, James was without human companionship. His usual fishing buddies could not accompany him because they were expected to work in the tobacco fields as soon as the morning sun began to rise. As he dropped his line into Bear Creek, insects buzzed about his face. The heavy, thick air made breathing difficult. The stillness was interrupted by the occasional croaking and splashing of bullfrogs.

Just as he was reaching the conclusion that the fish were not going to bite, James noticed a light in the distance. At first, he suspected that his friends had slipped off to join him once their parents had gone to bed. After collecting his fishing gear, he walked up the stream toward the light.

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