Just South of San Antonio, Texas, is the site of Texas’ most famous ghost story. Not far from the San Juan Mission is an intersection where a roadway crosses railroad tracks. Whether this is an urban legend or a ghostly tale has long been forgotten. Reportedly, this is the site of a fatal accident in which a train collided with a school bus full of children in the 1930s or 1940s.

According to legend, on a rainy Texas morning, the train moved swiftly down the tracks when the engineer spotted a school bus stalled in its path. Frantically pulling his brake and tugging on the train whistle, the hulking engine quickly advanced toward the bus, unable to stop. Ten children reportedly lost their lives that day and continue to haunt the area, protecting others from a similar fate.

As the story goes, if you park your car directly over the tracks and shift into neutral, the children’s ghosts will push it uphill, out of the way of an oncoming train. And if you have the foresight to cover your bumper with baby powder or flour, you can reportedly see the children’s fingerprints upon your car.

This story has been featured on the popular television shows Sightings and Unsolved Mysteries, as well as numerous Texas Magazines and newspapers.

Despite the much-publicized story, its truth has been hotly debated in San Antonio, and both area residents and local law enforcement are weary of the legend. Numerous accounts report that cars do, in fact, inexplicably move on their own, and mysterious prints appear on vehicles. Others allege they have heard children’s voices and laughter at the site.

However, in support of the San Antonio residents, there are no records of any such accident in the newspaper archives anywhere in Texas. It seems that an accident of such magnitude would have been reported somewhere.

Furthermore, official investigations have determined that, despite the illusory appearance of a level or even slightly inclined road, the street surface is actually at a two-degree declination. This would cause a car parked in neutral to roll naturally. As for the fingerprints, these could easily be those that were already there. Even after washing, forensic studies have concluded that fingerprints can still occur.

As curious visitors from across the country come to witness the paranormal phenomena, law enforcement is constantly forced to deal with traffic problems at the site, especially around Halloween. Area residents have grown extremely weary of the congestion and the drugs and alcohol that seemingly accompany many of the visitors. Unfortunately, a criminal element has also entered the scene, as reports of carjackings, purse snatchings, and worse are perpetrated on the many curious and unsuspecting ghost hunters.

San Antonio is reportedly the most haunted city in Texas, with dozens of ghostly sites not debated. Perhaps it is time to give this legend a rest, along with local law enforcement and area residents.

Readers’ Tales and Comments:

I used to live in Seguin, Texas. I know many dispute the legend of the railroad track ghosts. However, I witnessed one very indisputable event there in my late teens and early 20s. Personally, I don’t think a two-degree declination is enough to push a 3600-pound car (2 tons with passengers) over those tracks with no starting momentum… But…

One afternoon, I had gone to the railroad tracks with a few friends. After having driven over the tracks a couple of times, we chatted with some visitors who had already taken a Lincoln Continental (2.5 tons +) over the tracks once. They were a husband and wife and a visitor from Mexico who didn’t believe the event, accusing the husband, who was driving, of making the car roll. So the husband and wife got out and let their Mexican visitor take the wheel.

They staged the Lincoln about five yards from the tracks with the engine shut off. With their visitor in the driver’s seat, the car suddenly began to scream and slam on the brakes. However, he could not stop the car until it completed its crossing of the tracks! He had also tried putting the transmission in park, but it still sped forward! I’ve never seen anyone so terrified. Once the car finally stopped, he jumped out, still screaming and shouting in Spanish, then demanded that his hosts take him back to his hotel, adding that he was leaving and never coming back!

I once drove over in my 1968 Firebird convertible with a new parakeet in the car. The bird had been chirping happily until we staged the vehicle for the tracks when suddenly, his chirping was completely silenced. It wasn’t until we left the area that he started chirping again.

Once, when I used the baby powder on my car, I had multiple small handprints and one set of adult-sized handprints. But these handprints didn’t belong to me—they were larger than mine but smaller than my husband’s. I had no children anywhere near my car and was extremely meticulous about its appearance. Also, all the prints were either on the bumper (small prints) or the ridge of the trunk (adult & smaller). The bumper is too low for most people to place their hands on for anything other than pushing, and all prints had fingertips pointed up, unlike when someone touches the back of a car (usually when they’re sitting on the trunk or opening the trunk lid). When you wash a car with dish soap, oils from your hands are removed, so no prints remain.

Personally, I think the “experts” are “debunking” the myth so that people stop coming to the ghost tracks. The area has developed considerably since my visits, with several nearby residences. When I went, it was the “countryside” near an industrial area. Also, the criminals they’re targeting probably live nearby: kids/teens. If their debunking helps divert unwelcome visitors, more power to them. However, I know the tracks’ myth is real!

Incidentally, unlike most who try this, I never went over the tracks with the engine running. My experiences there lasted from the mid-1970s to 1981.

Whether or not a bus gets struck by a train there, something psychic lingers in the area. I think the spirits there go much farther back in history than using buses. Was there an orphanage there once? Did someone once stall there in a vehicle after the tracks were laid and get killed? Those are the questions the debunkers should be researching. — Myrene, Hawaii, May 2008

Reader’s Comments: Someone has probably thought of this, but here’s an idea for the tiny handprints that come on the trunks of the cars. Put a camcorder or 8mm camera on the car, aimed at the baby powder (applied earlier), to see whether the handprints appear while the car is being pushed over the tracks. I’ve seen different stories about this (on Discovery Channel, etc, but no one has tried putting a camera on the car when this occurs. – Rich, October 2005

 

©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated September 2026.