Urban Legends are modern stories associated with cryptids, ghosts, superstitions, beliefs and extraterrestrials. Often, they become intertwined in local culture with many believing the story or at least believing there is some truth to it while others completely dismissing the legend. For example, a well-known urban legend is that if you look in the mirror and say “Bloody Mary” five times, the Bloody Mary will appear behind you. Some people would be terrified to do this, while others would without hesitating.
While every town has local legends, the Ojai Valley in California is no different with perhaps the most popular urban legend in the state. It is known as the Char Man.
The Char Man is said to be an individual, who was burnt beyond recognition, and his spirit roams attacking people. He is rumored to be covered in black burnt peeling skin, wearing little more than charred bandages, with a foul burnt smell. Many say the spirit emerges out of the woods and attacks motorists traveling through Camp Comfort County Park, especially the one bridge going through the park which has been dubbed “Char-Man Bridge”. It is said motorists who get out of the car at night and yell “help me” will be greeted by the hideous monster.
Despite no evidence of his existence, and skeptics quickly dismissing Char Man as folklore, there is actually some coincidental evidence surrounding the claims from believers. To understand this, we need to dive into the origins of the story.
Although there is not one consensus view around how this story began, several versions exist.
The first story which occurs in 1948 talks about a father and son caught in the fire and are burned beyond recognition. Sadly, the father died before help could arrive, and the son went insane from his injuries. By the time help arrived, the son had skinned all the burnt flesh from his father and hung him from a nearby tree. Then, the son escaped into the woods and became the Char Man.
In the second legend, a husband and wife are trapped in a fire and the husband, horribly burned and hurt, kept hearing his wife trapped in the fire yelling “Help me” “Help Me”. The husband, badly hurt, was unable to save his wife and listened to her crying for help as she slowly died. From there, filled with rage, the husband eventually became the Char Man.
One final theory on the Char Man took place in the early 1950’s. There was a horrific automobile accident that resulted in a fire on Char Man Bridge. The driver was burned beyond recognition, but managed to just survive, and escaped into the woods to become the Char Man.
One other origin story has to do with a version that states the Char Man was a fire fighter who lost his life fighting in the fire. Still, this tends to be one of the less popular theories.
Although most of these stories seem to be no more than folklore, interestingly some coincidental evidence exists. The Ventura County Historical Museum claims a fire did occur in 1948, although they state there were no victims. The first two origin stories occurred in 1948, and some speculate that the record keeping wasn’t that accurate back then and someone could have died and slipped under the radar.
Despite most saying that the Char Man is nothing more than an Urban Legend, if you’re ever in Camp Comfort County Park and go over the Char Man Bridge, it may be best to avoid yelling “Help Me”.
