The Devil in New Jersey

This past year, I've photographed three local places that are haunted.

An interesting story about 13 haunted places in New Jersey mentioned two, and one of my resolutions this year is to visit several of the others.

Here's one of 13 photos I posted this summer of the Devil's Tower. As NJ.com describes it:

"The Devil's Tower, located at the end of Esplanade Road in Alpine, was built in 1910 by Manuel Rionda for his wife so that she could see the view of New York City. Legend states, Manuel's wife was enjoying her view in the tower one evening when she spotted her husband with another woman. Overcome with anger and rage, she leaped to her death."

Local legend (and every schoolgirl at nearby Academy of the Holy Angels) also states that if you drive or walk backward around the tower at least three times, you see the ghost of Manuel's wife. You might also find yourself face-to-face with the devil.
 
A second haunted place I recently visited -- The Devil's Tree -- is (disturbingly) close to where I work. NJ.com writes:

"The tree, located on Mountain Road in Bernards, is a solitary oak located in a field on Mountain Road in Bernards Township. Local legend suggests the tree is cursed. The story goes that a local farmer killed his wife and children, then hanged himself from the tree. The legend continues that anyone who cuts down the tree will come to an untimely end."

The third site I visited, not in the 13 haunted places story but very close to home, was Easton Tower in Fair Lawn. Hauntedplaces.org describes it this way:

"Easton Tower is a stone and wood frame structure, once an irrigation pump, built in 1900 as part of a scenic park. It now abuts the Saddle River Bikeway. It was named after Edward D. Easton (1856-1915), founder and president of the Columbia Phonograph Company. It is sometimes mistakenly called the Red Mill because in the early 1800s a mill nearby was painted red, and many mistook it for the Easton Tower. Residents who live near the tower say strange noises come from the building at night, and at least one witness saw a white apparition at the window."

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I do not find the supernatural frightening; I find it interesting, and comforting. If we don't understand everything, there's still wonder in the world. Belief in ghosts is a belief, not just a hope, that life doesn't end with death.

Actually seeing a ghost is an empirical experience that transcends science. Even if it can be disproved, it's still possible that our understanding of life and death is unfathomable.

Only once in my life did I think I saw a ghost. But for all of my life, I've loved ghost stories and the folklore related to the Jersey Devil.

I cited the Jersey Devil in the beginning of my short story about lost love. When I posted a photo of Devil's Tower on "Found in New Jersey," my Tumblr friend acommonloon asked if I'd ever read F. Paul Wilson's books that sometimes feature the Pine Barrens and the Jersey Devil.

Books about this local legend are legion, including those by James F. McCloy and, within the past year, by Hunter Shea and co-authors Brian Regal and Frank J. Esposito.

Jersey Devil craft beer? Check. The name and logo of a professional hockey team? Check. Sightings in the wild? Here's another interesting NJ.com story about 13 times the Jersey Devil has been spotted.

I don't believe in any of those sightings.

Also, I don't believe I'll capture a photo of the Jersey Devil this year. But still -- and this is the important part -- I do believe anything's possible.