jetsilverHutto, TX is known state-wide for having adopted the hippo as a town mascot and being the self-proclaimed "Hippo Capital of Texas". Various stories exist regarding the origin of the town's association with hippos. The most popular local legend would have it that an escaped circus hippo decided to take a dip in a nearby creek one day in 1915, thereby causing stopped trains and something of a general ruckus.
More Texas folklore for #FolkloreFriday: "The Crying Mermaid of Salado"
This story concerns a young woman who is magically granted the man of her dreams. Of course, there is a catch.
"The story of Sirena the Tonkawa maiden has been passed down through generations in the town of Salado. Every year there is a festival and parade dedicated to the Crying Mermaid, and one can pay homage to her story at the bronze statue in Salado Creek."
#TexasFolklore #Folklore #Mermaid
https://talesoftexas.com/2021/09/12/the-crying-mermaid-of-salado/
The Crying Mermaid of Salado | Tales of Texas
Once upon a time, there was a maiden named Sirena. Every day after finishing her village chores, she would wander from her tribe into the forest and visit the shallows of Salado Creek. She would gaze at her reflection in the water and wish to marry a young brave that would pay her no attention.
More folklore from Texas- this one coming again from South Texas. La Lechuza is a huge owl who preys on drunk pedestrians and cars driving on lonely roadways. In some accounts they also have a woman's head. Lechuza are often said to be brujas (witches) who have transformed themselves into owls (sometimes eagles) but others say that some Lechuza are also the spirits of women angry at faithless husbands or remarried widowers.
Everyone who has lived in Denton, TX for awhile knows about Goatman's bridge, but there are also stories about a PigMan haunting the Bonnie Brae Bridge.
Intriguingly, two very different origin stories exist, one fairly traditional (an unlucky drifter is transformed into a monster after an attack by a wild boar) and a more haunting tale of a doomed criminal with a cut-off nose and "Glasgow smile" courtesy of the "Cowboy Mafia".
#Denton #TexasFolklore #UrbanLegends
https://dentonhaunts.wordpress.com/2011/10/01/the-pigman-of-bonnie-brae-bridge/
Some folklore from my native Texas. I find this story particularly interesting because it's a local variant of an old tale and in the version told around the Rio Grande Valley, the devil has a hoof and a chicken foot (or two chicken feet).
"Though variations of the story change, it was discovered that, as the couple danced, the handsome stranger, assumed to be the devil, had one hoof and one chicken’s talon in place of feet."
#TexasFolklore #Folklore #UrbanLegends
https://www.utrgv.edu/newsroom/2019/10/31-the-devil-still-dances.htm
