Located deep in the canals of Xochimilco, the Island of Dolls was created by Don Julián Santana Barrera, who began hanging dolls from trees in the 1950s after reportedly discovering the body of a drowned girl. Believing her spirit haunted the island, he collected thousands of dolls to appease her — many of them decaying, headless, or burned. Visitors and investigators have reported whispers, doll movements and disembodied voices, especially near the hut where Barrera lived. He was found dead in 2001, face-down in the canal — allegedly in the same spot where the girl drowned