Ijzeren Veulen

It was said the Ijzeren Veulen (Translation: Iron Foal) was a ghost that appeared during the witching hour in the Utrecht town of Cabouw. Used by parents to scare their children into obedience, the iron foal was more than just a child terror with both adults and children being afraid of the animal at large. At the time of origin there were only 2 bridges in Cabauw, and the iron creature just kept running from one side to the other. Those who had seen the beast claimed it looked like a regular foal, but made a strange noise as it ran that could only be described as if it was filled with iron, and its joints were made up of rusty hinges. It was said that nobody could stop the Iron Foal as the old story suggests:

Three strong brothers, awaited the Iron Foal with bats. Their attempts to stop the animal were futile however, and ended quite tragically. The beast charged right through the group of boys, hitting the middle sibling who broke all of his ribs and died instantly. Several attempts have been made to rid of this ghostly apparition. A pastor once blessed the road to keep out the Iron Foal. Some say it has never returned afterwards. A different story tells of a white father who drove the creature out of Cabauw. The Iron Foal then jumped into the water and hollered "I'll be back in 100 years!" It's questionable whether any of these attempts have actually worked at keeping the foal at bay. Well into the 20th century, people claimed it was still there.

While stories of the Ijzeren Veulen originated from Cabauw, rumors of this creature have apparently spread to other towns in the area, such as Polsbroek and Haastrecht. But also further away, such as Kesteren and Lienden, and possibly Hoevelaken too. Some towns in the area of Cabauw did not fear the iron foal, but have somehow picked up the word in their vocabulary. It was a nickname for some townfolk.