|
|
5 miles S of Mission
13 miles SW of McAllen
Photos courtesy Ken Rudine
|
The
old chapel at La
Lomita
was repaired and furnished in 1928 "as a precious relic of the past
and a Shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe." A hurricane in 1933 caused
damage which was repaired in 1939.
The chapel is also the site of frequent reported sightings of a ghost.
Usually seen as a woman suspended in air while praying, she is believed
to be the spirit of a nun. |
 |
Photographer's
Note:
We arrived at the
Chapel about 11am and spent most of an hour there. My wife Yvonne
parked us near the restroom area. In anticipation, I turned on my
camera as I walked about 30 yards to my first photo. Now facing the
building about 40 feet away, I composed a frontal shot in the ground
glass, I didn’t like this angle but suddenly I noticed a figure in
the doorway. I looked up, directly at my subject to see a pale object.
Instinctively, I tripped the shutter.
A standard drawback to digital cameras, there is that split second
time-lapse between pressing the shutter release and the exposure.
I examined my frame and found nothing unusual. I began to doubt my
eyes and felt whether I had seen the well publicized chapel entity
or not, my photo could not prove it. That being accepted for now,
I proceeded to make many more exposures inside and outside the 108
year old building.
Still lamenting over what I should say about my visit, I closely re-examined
that first exposure which was now on my laptop. Low and behold, there
was an image in the darkness of the doorway. This was the vindication
I sought. My photo proved that I saw and photographed something. Less
than 3 minutes later, I was inside the Chapel and alone. But what
I saw in the doorway was a transparent ectoplasm I illustrated. |
 |
 |
 |
But this is
not the entire story. The outside of the building is old, weathered
and stained. The grounds of about ten acres are chain-link fenced
and open only during daylight hours. Through the fence, during twilight
it is possible to see these stains as figures, which seem to float
in the air. – Ken Rudine, February 11, 2007
For more ghost sightings: see Forum:
Haunted Chapel of La Lomita |
La
Lomita Chapel Historical Markers
|
|
|
