In its early days, the fort was known as the “Post on the Clear Fork of the Brazos.” It was occupied by the U.S. Army from 1851 until 1854. Upon being abandoned by the Army, Fort Phantom Hill was the victim of a fire that destroyed most of the log walls and thatched roofs of the buildings. Visitors can explore the ruins of the fort that include three original stone buildings: a stone powder magazine, a stone guardhouse, and a commissary. The rest are more than a dozen stone chimneys foundations from the original fort. (Video was created and music acquired through CanvaPro.)

In 1938, a lake was built south of the fort and was named “Lake Fort Phantom Hill.” There were already many reports of claimed sightings of apparitions and supernatural entities. Some say that restless spirits throughout the last 150+ years wander the entire Fort Phantom anguished over their unfortunate deaths.

Another story is “The Lady in the Lake” which began sometime in the 1940’s. A young woman named Mona Bell was going to meet with her boyfriend who had just returned from the war. The tryst was to be at Lake Fort Phantom, a popular meeting place for many love-starved young people at that time. The meeting occurred as planned, but he was enraged over one of his friends telling him he had kept his girlfriend company while he was away at war. Allegedly, he strangled her and threw her into the lake. It is believed that she was not dead when her body went into the water, and that her screams were heard until she finally drowned.

The photos in the video are from a visit my friends and I made a few years ago. We spent most of the night at the fort enveloped by the darkness and the remaining energies and entities of Fort Phantom Hill.