Bodarc Academy
Paranormal investigators inspect an abandoned college.
After meeting with the Director, I studied the Institute’s records of the phenomena that supposedly is and has been occurring at the site of Bodarc Academy near Clarkston, Texas. This site is also referred to locally as the Bodarc School and “the old Osage Orange College.” The school is called by these names because of the many Osage Orange trees that line the lane heading toward the school, as well as those that still grow on the property. In fact, the trees, a cemetery, a Mackenson County historical marker, and one building are all that remain of the old college. Those who have ventured down the lane have remarked that some of those trees stand close to an impressive 50 feet tall.
When I finished my own examination of the material, I engaged—by order of the Director—the services of the Mackenson County Paranormal Investigation Group (M.P.I.G.). I have not yet personally been on-site. The following information is compiled from my own notes and those of the M.P.I.G. I spoke directly to Morgan Burns, an M.P.I.G. investigator, in my office. Some of the data will consist of questions that I posed to Ms. Burns. The interview took place in the offices of Mackenson Institute. I typically work from my home office.
Dr. Hannah Lea Wilson, Investigator
Mackenson Institute, Clarkston, Texas.
Dr. Wilson: “Very briefly: In 1840 a new institute of higher learning came into existence in southwest Mackenson County. Bodarc Academy was an early attempt at a school which was supposed, according to its founders, to rival the nearby Mackenson Institute. Unfortunately, the school closed its doors at some point in or after 1860. The approximate date of the endeavor was about 1840-1860.”
“Ms. Burns, you’ve become familiar with the history of Bodarc Academy. I know that you study your cases in detail before you do your work. Is any of the written history substantially different from what you’ve uncovered and what I just read?”
Morgan Burns, M.P.I.G. lead investigator: “Oh yes, we’re very thorough, or we try to be. I, Nicole Sutherland, and Jonah Oliver all dig pretty deep into the history of any place we investigate. When I was a little girl, a building or two from the old campus still stood. Actually I think there were three buildings. If I remember correctly, two of the buildings were large houses—I always wondered if they were male and female dormitories. And there was a very large well, made of stone. It had a cover on it, concrete I think, and it sat right beside one of the bigger buildings. I never went near the buildings when I was a youth, of course, but you could see them from the road.”
“One of the large houses succumbed to arson in the 1990s. I don’t know about the smaller building. I think it may have been demolished or it may have collapsed. Other buildings may yet stand, but I didn’t see any of them when we were conducting our research. The property on which the school sat is very large—about 800 acres large—and there are ‘no trespassing’ signs up everywhere so normally you can’t just stop and explore. As I understand it, the land is leased to someone and whoever that is doesn’t mind calling the sheriff’s office if he sees someone roaming around out there. The only reason we were able to do our investigation is that you folks got permission for us to go onto the land. Though we had permission to be there, we didn’t wander off too far from the site we were investigating.”
“Anyway, one large building is still on the site, so that’s where we focused our efforts. Didn’t really have much of a selection of locations. Now that I think about it, it’s probably a good idea to get on the internet and check out maps for that acreage. At least you could tell if there are any other structures still on the place.”
Dr. Wilson: “That’s extremely interesting. I like hearing the personal stories. And you can call me Hannah. You mentioned Nicole and Jonah. For the record, can you tell us who they are?”
Morgan Burns: “Sure Hannah, they’re team members. Nicole Sutherland runs our cameras and Jonah Oliver is one of two hosts on our show; I’m the second host. Arnold Elliot and Brett Hansen also work with us. They run the sound and lighting, respectively. We all worked at the site every night for five days, and some of us spent many daylight hours at the library, where we learned a great deal about Bodarc Academy.”
Dr. Wilson: “Tell me some of the things you learned, for completeness.”
Morgan Burns: “Okay, Hannah. There’s quite a bit more info. The road to the site—little more than a pathway, really—is County Road 1827. It’s not navigable during wet conditions and the road is poor even in dry conditions. It would be hard to even ride a bicycle down that road. There are no homes on the lane; only the college site, a cemetery, and pasture land. The marker on the site, from the Mackenson County Historical Association, is actually not located directly at the school. It’s about 400 yards away in Bodarc Cemetery. Let me see here, I actually have the text from the marker printed out. Okay, it reads:”
“Site of Bodarc Academy
A notable school of Northeast Texas before the Civil War. It was established by the Reverend Arthur Aaron Edwards (1805-1870) who was previously a Circuit rider in Texas. The school was originally opened in a log cabin, and it expanded to eight large buildings situated on 800 acres. It enrolled 300 boarding pupils annually. Closed in 1860.
Erected by Mackenson County, 1936.”
“The cemetery is very interesting too. There are maybe 30 graves that can be seen within the boundary of the cemetery. The last burial was in the 1950s. There are burials from the 1800s, and there are some unique graves with concrete grave mound covers. What’s most odd as well as a little spooky is that some of the grave covers are located outside of the cemetery grounds.”Dr. Wilson: “That is odd, almost as if they were cut off from the rest of the buried. I’ve seen a handful of those grave covers. Whatever writing that may have been on them is often too weathered to read, and sometimes you can’t see anything at all. It’s eerie, and also sad.”
Morgan Burns: “It is. Just a little more, Doctor. Bodarc Academy seems to have been a successful school and for a few years it was indeed in competition with Mackenson Institute. It is noted in a couple of places that Reverend Edwards was called ‘Ye Ancient One’ by his students, who thought very highly of him. The school’s curriculum consisted of secular classes, Bible classes, and required chapel assemblies. Not unlike your own school, I imagine. Bodarc Academy trained many Protestant ministers and at the time they closed they were offering BA and MA degrees.”
Dr. Wilson: “Thank you. It sounds very much like the seminary division of the Institute. When I work on this report I’ll be adding the following addendum, which I would like for you to hear. First of all, I’ll tell you that the history you’ve stated is accurate and that’s what we’ll want to present to the public if it ever comes down to that. Have you ever heard the alternate story of Bodarc Academy?”
Morgan Burns: “Not in its entirety.”
Dr. Wilson: “Okay then, second thing, I have this addendum to present to you from our Director, Dr. Williamson. It should clear things up. Here are his words:”
© 2023-2025 Ren Adama
