Devil's Promenade: Mysterious light haunts town

DEEP inside the woods of Missouri, a ghostly 'floating orb' of light has been baffling and dazzling locals for more than a century. Now photographers are trying to shine light on the phenomenon.

The unexplained light at the Devil's Promenade. Picture: Antone Dolezal and Lara Shipley

FOR those who have caught a glimpse of the ghostly light, it is as baffling as it is dazzling.

Deep in the backwoods of America's Ozark hills in Missouri, locals have been bewitched by the mysterious 'Spook Light' for more than a century.

It can only be seen on chance evenings as a floating orb, hovering on a remote country road in an area known as the Devil's Promenade.

Some witnesses say it's a brilliant blue, others insist it is red. Guesses about its origins range from everyday expulsions of natural gas to UFOs or the haunting spectre of a headless indigenous inhabitant of the area.

Nothing is known for sure about the Spook Light. Not even a 1950s investigation by the United States Army Corps of Engineers could figure out the cause of the chilling apparition.

The locals are baffled. Picture: Antone Dolezal

Photographers Lara Shipley and Antone Dolezal have travelled to the region to tell the stories of the residents living amongst the myth - people whose lives have invariably been touched in some way by the Spook Light's baffling presence in their town.

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It's a significant issue in the community. Picture: Antone Dolezal

"Folkloric stories can shed symbolic light on very real issues in a community," the pair says of their project.

"In the Ozarks, many live in isolated poverty and drug addiction is high.

Some of the locals are struggling. Picture: Antone Dolezal

"This region is in the heart of the Bible Belt, and the struggle between heaven and hell factors into everyday conversation. We feel the frequent and mysterious appearance of the Spook Light has come to represent, for the people we meet, a desire for redemption and the fear of slipping into darkness."

The light can only be seen on chance nights. Picture: Antone Dolezal

Some locals believe it's the ghost of a soldier. Picture: Antone Dolezal

Some witnesses say it's a brilliant blue, others insist it is red. Picture: Antone Dolezal

Even an investigation by the US Army Corps of Engineers couldn't figure it out. Picture: Antone Dolezal

Photographers Lara Shipley and Antone Dolezal detailed the locals' stories. Picture: Antone Dolezal

In the Ozarks, many live in isolated poverty and drug addiction is high. Picture: Antone Dolezal