The Phantom Barber of Pascagoula: The Nighttime Hair Snipper

Imagine waking up and realizing someone had been inches from your face while you slept—just to cut your

hair.

That’s exactly what happened in Pascagoula, Mississippi, in 1942.

Residents were terrified as news spread of a shadowy figure sneaking into bedrooms at night.

The intruder, soon called the Phantom Barber, left behind only scattered hair and shaken victims.

But who was this person, and what did they want?

The Phantom Barber’s first known attack targeted two young girls, who awoke to find their braids mysteriously snipped.

Over the next weeks, more victims—mostly women and children—reported similar encounters.

The town was thrown into chaos.

People nailed their windows shut, set up makeshift alarms, and even formed neighborhood patrols.

The fear wasn’t just about hair; it was the violation of safety in their own homes that truly

haunted Pascagoula.

Police were baffled.

There were no signs of forced entry, and the Phantom Barber never stole anything—just hair.

Theories ran wild: Was it a deranged prankster, a jealous lover, or even a Nazi spy trying to

spread panic during wartime?

Newspapers sensationalized the story, and the town’s anxiety only grew.

Despite increased patrols and desperate measures, the Phantom Barber always seemed one step ahead, vanishing without a trace

after each bizarre visit.

Eventually, police arrested a local man named William Dolan, a chemist with a grudge against the town.

He was convicted on unrelated charges, but many doubted he was the real Phantom Barber.

The hair-snipping attacks stopped, but the mystery lingered.

Was Dolan truly guilty, or did the real intruder simply vanish into the night?

The case remains unsolved, fueling speculation and ghost stories in Pascagoula to this day.

The Phantom Barber’s legacy is more than just a creepy local legend—it’s a reminder of how fear can

grip a community and turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.

To this day, no one knows for sure who crept through those windows or why.

Was it a twisted prank, a psychological experiment, or something even stranger?

The mystery endures, and Pascagoula’s residents still lock their windows a little tighter when the night falls.