'Dark Ozarks' podcast hosts release book on popular regional mystery, Joplin Spooklight

"Sometimes there are no easy answers," is a motto Joshua Heston and Lisa Martin have come to live by. For nearly three years, the two researchers and storytellers have been exploring the dark history, legends, folklore and hauntings of the Ozarks through their video series and podcast, "Dark Ozarks." Now, Heston and Martin are preparing for the release of their first book, which highlights one of the Ozarks' biggest mysteries: the Joplin Spooklight.

"The Spooklight" will be the first book published under the "Dark Ozarks" franchise. While an exact release date has not been set, Martin said the book will be available by March 31.

The book will cover centuries of Spooklight lore and investigations that have been conducted over the years, attempting to explain the mystery. "The Spooklight" will also feature personal experiences from those in the area, along with Heston and Martin themselves.

What is the Spooklight?

Spoiler alert: No one knows what the Spooklight actually is, but its description has remained consistent through the years.

The Spooklight has been described as an "incandescent ball of light" that usually appears at night but sometimes during the day, Heston said. Sometimes, the ball moves, changes colors and even divides. Some have reported the Spooklight approaching their vehicles, sitting on the hood of their cars. Others say the ball is sensitive to sound, vanishing when someone screams in surprise or fright.

The Spooklight lore dates back centuries, with initial sightings by Native Americans along the Trail of Tears in the 1830s. Although the Spooklight has "moved" throughout the years, it has remained within the Joplin area.

Up until the 1920s, the Spooklight was observed around Hornet, Missouri, about 20 minutes south of Joplin. Between 1920-1940, the Spooklight moved, often observed along County Road 40 in southwest Missouri.

It was during this time that investigations began, conducted by the University of Missouri, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Popular Science magazine and others, Martin said. The default finding was "swamp gas," a mixture of methane, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide and trace phosphine, which often appears as an orb above a swamp or marsh. But there are no swamps or marshes in the areas where the Spooklight has been spotted, Heston and Martin said, laughing in unison.

After World War II, with the increase of car culture, viewing the Spooklight became a communal experience.

"People would take their kids out, teenagers would go out, kids would go out on dates," Martin said. "From then until they paved the road 15 years ago, you could go out virtually any night and maybe find dozens of cars out there looking for it."

Then, around 1950, the Spooklight moved again, more often observed around County Road 50, which became known as "Spooklight Road." Between the '60s and the '80s, a man who lived in the area, known as "Spooky" set up a sort of museum in a building at the end of County Road 50, Martin said. The man decorated the building's interior with news articles and photos of the Spooklight and sold candy and soda to children out trying to spot it. Since, then "Spooky" has died and the building that once housed his shop is gone.

Martin said she has heard reports lately that the Spooklight has returned to County Road 40.

Passions for storytelling, the unexplained

Heston and Martin have been working together, expanding the "Dark Ozarks" franchise, for nearly three years. The two began hosting livestreams on the "Dark Ozarks" Facebook and Instagram profiles in spring 2020, before evolving into a podcast format.

How Heston and Martin met, however, was utterly coincidental (or was it?).

Heston is the editor-in-chief of State of the Ozarks, an online magazine highlighting Ozarks culture. In October 2016, Heston was working on a story about Billy Cook, known as the "spree killer," who murdered six people over the course of 22 days between Missouri and California in the 1950s. A colleague recommended that he visit Peach Church Cemetery, the cemetery where Cook is buried in Joplin.

"I happened to arrive at the same moment that Lisa and her son were shooting an interview (with a television station)," Heston said. "We had no clue each other even existed prior to that moment."

During the day, Martin is an attorney but on the side she operates Paranormal Science Lab, an organization that conducts research and investigations into the paranormal for individuals and businesses. She was at the cemetery that day with her son, answering questions about the science lab. Heston interviewed Martin, the two exchanged contact information and went their separate ways.

Two years later, after many invitations, Heston joined Martin and her team on an investigation at Ye Olde English Inn in Hollister. That night, he experienced some things his rational mind couldn't explain, so he joined another investigation and then another. After awhile, Heston and Martin were spending so much time together, they began to discuss the possibility of bridging their interests, the love for storytelling and the unexplained, into one project. Thus, "Darks Ozarks" was born.

Aiming to create accurate, respectful content

Pop culture, whether it be books, podcasts, television shows or movies on the paranormal, has shaped how folks interacts with the unexplained.

For decades, movies like "The Exorcist" (1973), "Poltergeist" (1982) and "The Conjuring" (2013), have portrayed the paranormal in a negative light, Heston and Martin said.

Through their research and storytelling, Heston and Martin don't pick a side when it comes to how they discuss the paranormal.

"Something that permeates our work from book to podcast to live events if how important it is to treat this information respectfully," Heston said. "These processes are not about howling thrills. It's not about scaring people. It's not about exploitation of content. It is about respecting and honoring these spaces and the people who came before and considering the possibility that some of those people may still be here."

Heston added that there is a lot of "thin" information online about the paranormal, written by folks who have never set foot in the locations they are writing about.

"That's one of the things we take very seriously," Heston said. "We're both embedded. We live in the Ozarks, we care about the Ozarks, these are our stories, as well. It's very important to us that if we are in a story, we represent it appropriately from the perspective of the people in that area."

Ultimately, Heston and Martin hope to encourage folks to explore the unexplained, rather than be wary of it.

"In our very logical, empirical world that I'm immersed in five days a week ... it's always easy to say that everything has to fit in a box, it has to be easily explained," Martin said. "In our post-modern world, when something doesn't fit in a box, it often makes people uncomfortable. That's not necessarily a bad thing and the book ('The Spooklight') is a reminder of that."

Where to find 'Dark Ozarks' content

Season one of the "Dark Ozarks" podcast contains 25 episodes, covering topics like Hoodoo (sympathetic magic practices), murder and mobs, and vampires in the Ozarks. Season two is still being released, with four episodes available, as of Tuesday.

The "Dark Ozarks" can be streamed on major podcast platforms, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud and RSS, along with local platforms like the Branson Podcast Network, accessible online at bransonpodcastnetwork.com/shows/dark-ozarks/. New episodes are released each Thursday.

Heston and Martin also remain active on the "Dark Ozarks" Facebook at facebook.com/darkozarks and Instagram at instagram.com/dark_ozarks/.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: First book from 'Dark Ozarks' franchise explores Joplin 'Spooklight'