Haunted Forests: Mexico’s Creepy Island Of The Dolls
Wikimedia CommonsOne of the 4,000 dolls that hang from the branches on the Island of the Dolls, one of the world’s most terrifying haunted forests.
Of all the haunted forests around the world, Mexico’s “Island of the Dolls” is perhaps the most unique. It’s not known for its trees or even its twisting waterways, but for the thousands of dolls hanging from the branches.
The origins of this odd sight can purportedly be traced back to the 1950s, when a man named Don Julián Santana Barrera started to live on a chinampa — an artificial island — on Teshuilo Lake. One day, Barrera came across the body of a little girl who had drowned alongside her doll.
Deeply superstitious, Barrera worried that the little girl would haunt his island. So, he hung up her doll as a way to appease her spirit. Then, as he came across other discarded dolls, Barrera started to hang them up as well.
Wikimedia CommonsThe Island of the Dolls has become a macabre tourist attraction in recent years.
Some state that Barrera was haunted by the little girl’s spirit. He purportedly heard footsteps at night and someone whispering “I want my doll.” And when he died in 2001 — from a heart attack or drowning, depending on the source — he died near the site where he’d found the girl’s body.
Today, the Island of the Dolls is a macabre tourist attraction that sits just outside of Mexico City. Tourists can pay $75 for a four-hour boat ride that includes the island.
It’s estimated that this haunted forest is home to some 4,000 dolls, many of which are missing eyes, hair, or limbs. Barrera hung them up as he found them — and the elements did the rest.
