The Hornet Spook Light

photographs by Ed Gibson, Grove, Oklahoma

Twelve miles southwest of Joplin, Missouri, USA, a roughly paved road runs through a narrow canyon. Nearby is the former border village of Hornet, and close to that is the site of what once was a spook light museum. The place is remote and far from civilization, so why do so many people come here?

They are searching for an unexplained enigma, a puzzle that most of them actually seem to find. It has been seen along this road since 1866 and has created such a mystery that even the Army Corps of Engineers officially concluded that it was a 'mysterious light of unknown origin.' It has gone by many names, but it's most commonly known as the Hornet Spook Light.