Thousands haunt Charleston's Old City Jail

The hour was late, it was dark and no one walked the streets of Charleston in this area of the historic city — not even on a lovely springtime Friday evening. Nothing spooked us, however, until we turned the corner and spotted the Old City Jail, a three-story massive structure that easily raised hairs on the back of our necks. Bulldog Tours staff members stood sentinel outside the Old City Jail, otherwise we might have turned tail and ran.

Bulldog offers ghost tours nightly at the historic jail located at 21 Magazine Street. This monstrosity was built in 1802 on what was once Potter's Field, according to Sean, our ghost guide for the evening. So while there were numerous deaths inside the old jail (we'll get to that in a minute), there were dead people beneath our feet as well. Apparently, indigent and John Doe's found dead on the streets of old Charleston were buried on this spot. And, in addition to the jail housing criminals, the Union Army took over the place during the Civil War and housed prisoners of war inside while hundreds of Union soldiers camped out in the yard.

Here's why it's haunted - the giant building had no electricity, running water and other necessities to make life bearable so many inmates died within its walls. Sean claims 14,000 died here. That's quite a number. And many died of starvation, dehydration and sometimes murder by the hands of other inmates.

There are numerous stories about the old jail, including one regarding Lavina Fisher and her husband John, who were arrested and convicted, along with other members of her gang, of highway robbery. The charge was a capital offense and the couple sentenced to hang. John claimed he was innocent but forgave the executioners, Sean told us, but Lavina didn't go down so easily. She ranted and raved all the way to the top of the gallows. The legend has it that she told the minister, "If you want a message to send to hell, give it to me and I'll carry it." Sean believes the truth is less dramatic, that Lavina wasn't cursing out the executioners but rather calmed down and uttered a similar phrase believing she might actually be heading in that direction.

Regardless, Lavina Fisher supposedly haunts the jail.

There's some nasty folks haunting the third floor, including a guy Sean names Hank. One notorious fellow pushed a tour guide down the stairs, sending her to the ER. And some believe convicted pirates might be hovering about. On the ground floor a visitor caught a particularly spooky shadow figure floating across his camera.

By the tour's end my companion and I hadn't seen or heard a ghost but we certainly didn't mind leaving that creepy place. I did get a nice solid orb on one photo (at right). You be the judge.

The Old City Jail, by the way, closed in 1939. It had a long history, from the time of Thomas Jefferson's presidency to World War II.

Haunted Deep South is written by travel writer Chere Dastugue Coen, author of Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana.

Cave Spring, Georgia, full of legends, ghosts

There’s something spooky about caves. Could be the darkness, the relentless dampness or the threat of spiders and bats. Regardless of logic or explanations, ghost stories abound.

Take Cave Spring, Georgia, which dates back to European settlement in the 1820s and before that, the Creek and Cherokee people who were attracted to its delicious waters (you can literally drink from its source and many people bring jugs to carry it home). 

The historic town 16 miles south of Rome encompasses about 1,200 residents — plus a few who don’t show up on census records. The cave for which the town is named is reported to be haunted. In fact, several structures around the cave and its spring-fed Cedar Creek and neighboring park have full-time occupants as well.

On the day we visited Spring Cave, nothing appeared out of the ordinary but I caught a moving blue orb on the far side of the cave. I tried to remain as still as possible and shoot at the same spot and, at one time, set my camera to a fast shutter speed to capture numerous images in seconds. The blue spot constantly moved. At one point, it disappeared, then reappeared and floated about once more. In the first picture below, a friend saw a face. I saw it too. Do you?

Apparition? Could it have been someone behind me moving and causing a reflection to also move? I even tried to shoot repeatedly when no one was near. But still, you be the judge.

Other haunted spots in Cave Spring, Georgia, include:

The Georgia School for the Deaf, begun in 1846 and still active today, was once used as an infirmary during the Civil War. 

The Cave Spring General Store, where a Native American woman is believed to be buried. Legend has it that a chief named Big Rattling Gourd bit off his wife’s nose because she was unfaithful.

Naturally, in a town with this many legends, there are ghost tours in October. Click here for more information.

Haunted Deep South is written by travel writer Cheré Coen, author of Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana by The History Press. She writes the Viola Valentine paranormal mystery series under the pen name of Cherie Claire.

AAA goes ghost hunting this month

The September-October 2015 issue of AAA Southern Traveler magazine looks at Louisiana's haunts, from the many ghostly sites of Shreveport (that's Oakland Cemetery to the left) and New Orleans to Loyd Hall Plantation outside Alexandria (right). 

Young 'Petit Jean' rests (perhaps) on top of Arkansas mountain

High atop a mountain in central Arkansas lies a grave with a most unusual legend.
Adrienne Dumont was in love with a French nobleman named Chavet, who was scheduled to travel to the New World to explore lands for the King of France. In the 1700s the region that’s now the state of Arkansas was under French rule. Chavet refused to let Adrienne accompany him so she dressed as a cabin boy, called herself Jean and followed him anyway. Because of her small size, she was nicknamed by the ships crew “Petit Jean,” which means Little John in English. According to the legend, neither the ship’s crew nor Chavet recognized Adrienne. When she became ill with a fever, the crew discovered her identity. She asked them to bury her atop the mountain she came to love and they complied. That mountain about an hour outside of Little Rock is now called Petit Jean and the neighboring state park with its gorgeous waterfalls carries her name as well.
How accurate is this legend? According to the “Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture” there are various details to the story.

“Her fiance or sweetheart is referred to variously as Cheves, Chavet, or Jean-Jacques Chavez. His departure for the New World is generally attributed to his being part of an exploratory expedition. One source, however, states that his departure was precipitated after he was forced to kill in self-defense another admirer of Adrienne’s, Albert “Bertie” Marshand, a favorite nephew of King Louis XVI.”

Another version of her coming to America is to inflict revenge on Chavet.

“The discovery of her identity is also a point of contention,” the Encyclopedia states. “One source has her voluntarily revealing her identity to her lover just before her death; a second source says that her identity was discovered due to her illness, at which time she begged her beloved’s forgiveness before she died. A third source deviates from this significantly. In this source, it is her lover who became ill with swamp fever. As he leaned on Petit Jean for support, he recognized her distinctive green eyes. She and some friendly natives nursed him back to health. Unfortunately, she then fell ill and remained so for several months, nursed by the natives while her fiancé traveled to an unnamed French settlement to build their home.”

            Whatever the details, the legend remains and the grave on the east point of the mountain is visited by tourists every year.
             Some say the spirit of Petit Jean exists there as well.

Haunted Deep South is written by travel writer Cheré Coen, author of Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana by The History Press. She writes the Viola Valentine paranormal mystery series under the pen name of Cherie Claire.

The Beaver House in Statesboro, Georgia, serves up more than great meals — but stay for their family style dinner!

            Clay Beaver is the fourth generation owner of the Beaver House in Statesboro, Georgia, but those who have come before him refuse to leave the historic home that’s now a restaurant. He claims there are seven ghosts residing in the building.

            “And I have seen every one of them,” Beaver said.

            I was on a tour of Statesboro with a group of fellow travel writers and naturally, being a ghost aficionado, I have to ask about apparitions when I visit a historic home. And I got an earful.

            The one Beaver has seen twice in all her ghostly glory is Annie, who died at five years old from pneumonia after breaking her neck falling from a tree. Beaver sees little Annie in a brown velvet dress.

            “It’s as clear as day,” Beaver said. “It’s so real.”

            The first time happened around 11:30 p.m. one night when Beaver was in the house with a friend. They spotted Annie at the bottom of the stairs, walking past.

            “We took off, running back out the house,” he said with a laugh. “We were scared to death.”

            Two uncles have also appeared, once in a wedding photo looking at each other from two opposing transom windows on the second floor.

            “They’re always together,” Beaver said. “I’m not sure why.”

            Roy Beaver, Clay Beaver’s grandfather, was a large man and he appears to staff and visitors on occasion. Once he was spotted standing in the dining room looking out the window, Beaver explained.

            The builder of the circa-1911, 6600-square-foot house, John Alexander Beaver, also visits, as well as great grandma Nella “dressed to the nines.”

            The Beaver House serves up a mean "Boarding House" family style meal. On the night we visited we were treated to overflowing plates of fried shrimp, roast beef, mac and cheese, greens, mashed potatoes, biscuits and much more. They also serve a Low Country Boil on weekends and plenty of other delicious dishes.

            Because the old Victorian home is expansive and romantic, the Beaver House hosts numerous weddings over the years. But wedding photographers come home with more than they bargained for — one photo sported a child, a Barbie Doll and a tricycle by the front door, only it wasn’t of this world!

            Want to know more? The Beaver House web site has a page of ghostly tales.

Cheré Coen is an award-winning travel writer specializing in the Deep South. She is the author of "Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History," "Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana" and "Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana" and co-author of "Magic's in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets." She also writes Louisiana romances under Cherie Claire, including "A Cajun Dream" and "The Letter." Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.