Georgia Mysteries

Check Out The Atlanta Ripper on Facebook

2012-01-26T14:02:00.000-08:00

Check out the Facebook page for The Atlanta Ripper. Go to
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Atlanta-Ripper/149026535188256

Since this book chronicles a part of the history of black Atlanta, check it out in honor of Black History Month. This February, I will be presenting a paper on how the Atlanta Ripper murders offered another opportunity for the leadership in both the black and white communities in Atlanta to come together to resolve problems and work on community relations in the early 20th century. I will be on a panel at the annual Georgia Association of Historians meeting in Macon, Georgia for this. In addition, I will be presenting a program on The Atlanta Ripper murders to our student body at Georgia Military College's Atlanta (Fairburn) campus in late February.

The Haunting in Georgia Update: Movie in Post-Production

2012-01-16T07:52:00.000-08:00

As most of my readers know, in March 2010, I posted an email interview with Joyce Cathey, the mother of Heidi Wyrick, the little girl who is at the epicenter of the phenomenon that came to be a Discovery Channel episode called "A Haunting in Georgia." According to Mrs. Cathey, Gold Circle Films had purchased Heidi's life rights with the intention of producing the film, The Haunting in Georgia. This would be the second installment in the series of films that began with The Haunting in Connecticut released in 2009.
Recently, I was doing a little research on the topic again and I found out over at Internet Movie Database that the film is in post-production and will be released soon. According to the site, the film will star Chad Michael Murray (One Tree Hill and House of Wax) as Andy Wyrick, Heidi's father; Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica and White Noise 2: The Light) as Joyce Cathey, Heidi's mother; Emily Alyn Lind as Heidi; and Cicely Tyson in an unnamed role. I am not sure of her involvement in the project. According to the site, the budget for the film is $9,000,000 (nine million dollars). Oddly enough, it is going to be released on 21 June, 2012, in the Netherlands, but there is no mention of a specific date for release in the United States. The film is listed as being in post-production. For those wondering if this film was shot in Georgia, unfortunately, it was not. The filming locations are Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Winnipeg, Manitoba (Canada). It is about Georgia, but not shot in Georgia. Of course, it is not unusual for a film not to be shot on location near the place where the events depicted in the film happened.
Speaking of filming in Georgia, it is amazing how many horror-related films and television series are shot in Georgia. While The Haunting in Georgia is not shot here, it is about Georgia, but other very popular horror series are shot here. Included in that list is Teen Wolf starring Tyler Posey; The Walking Dead, which most folks know about by now; and The Vampire Diaries, which is shot in and around Covington, including near the old Gaither Plantation. Last year, I blogged about the cast and crew of The Vampire Diaries being spooked by odd things happening at that old plantation house. Georgia seems to be a magnet for odd occurrences, and it now seems that it is a magnet for movies and television series about them. Is this the Southern Hollywood now?

Some of the More Notable Georgia Bigfoot Sightings Took Place in the Augusta Area

2012-01-15T17:41:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, the first book I wrote, although it was the third published, was Bigfoot in Georgia. In the book, I highlight a number of Bigfoot sightings in the state, including some of the more famous ones. Perhaps two of the most notable ones were in the Augusta area. They both happened on or near Fort Gordon, a military installation near Augusta.

The first took place in 1965, and the witness reported the incident to the BFRO in 2002 after reading of other encounters in the same area. Realizing that others had experienced what he did all those years ago made the witness feel that he was not out of his mind, imagining this, or just crazy. According to the witness, he was 14 years old at the time and there was construction going on on base. The witness reported that a young girl who lived in the apartment below them on base mentioned that her little brother talked about a tall man who would come and stare at him through the window at night, not a small feet given that the window ledge at their apartment was about 7 to 8 feet above the ground. One day, wanting to explore, the young man walked in to a wooded area that was being cleared for more base housing. The red clay was being pushed around by bulldozers and there in that clay, the witness saw large footprints, some as large as 18 inches long and 5 inches wide with five toes. Curious about them, and not yet afraid, he sat upon a rock in the woods near the tracks. He started feeling as if something was watching him, and he became nervous. Shortly, he heard a bi-pedal walking in the woods nearby. As he fled out of the woods on foot, he could hear whatever this was pursuing him. Later, after telling a friend about what he had heard, the two of them decided to return to the area, and both felt and heard the same thing. Like the witness had done alone before, the two left the area in a rush.
The link to the story is here:
http://www.bfro.net/GDB/show_report.asp?id=4236

The second sighting of interest in the Augusta area also took place near Fort Gordon. Apparently, a member of the army at the Fort Gordon Signal School was walking in an wooded area near a creek and ravine when a creature over 10 feet tall having a gorilla-like face approached him from about 20 feet away. The witness actually described the animal he witnessed to an artist, and a drawing is located on the page where the report is archived at the BFRO. The link is here:
http://www.bfro.net/GDB/show_report.asp?id=2218

These are two of the area's most well-known sightings.

Radio Interview for Georgia Focus About The Atlanta Ripper

2012-01-07T12:14:00.001-08:00

I will be doing another radio interview about The Atlanta Ripper for The Georgia Focus, a news network covering Georgia politics, culture, and events. The interview will be done in McDonough and I will post when it will run on the air. Glad to see that the book is still making some noise. In addition, I will be presenting a paper I wrote about the murders at The Georgia Association of Historians meeting in late February in Macon. My presentation will be in one of the earlier sessions and will last about 15-20 minutes. Some of the other topics in my session sound interesting.

Michael Wolff Begins Haunted Pillar Tours This Month in Augusta!!

2012-01-01T18:46:00.000-08:00

Michael Wolff of Augusta has recently taken on a new venture. In October of 2011, he began the Augusta Ghost Trolley Tours in Augusta. Most don't recognize that Augusta is the home to a great deal of legend and folklore. Mr. Wolff has also launched a new series of tours for 2012. They are called the Haunted Pillar Tours, taking the name from the famed Haunted Pillar at the corner of Fifth and Broad in downtown. Check out his tours. The websites are:

http://www.augustaghosttrolley.com/

http://www.pillarguyradio.com/

These sound like a lot of fun. I will be driving over in the near future to take these tours.

New Series of Posts for 2012

2012-01-01T18:36:00.000-08:00

Starting this month, I am going to be focusing on the legends from Georgia's major cities in 2012. Of course, I will post other topics as they arise, but what I want to do is focus on the legends and folklore from the larger areas of Georgia, as well as highlight any tours or literature that would help acquaint my readers with those areas more. Right now, I am focusing on the city of Augusta. Savannah seems to be the most popular source of ghost stories and legends in Georgia, but what a lot of people do not realize is that there are gobs of legends and stories from places like Augusta, Macon, Athens, Columbus, and Atlanta. In January, I will be focusing more on Augusta before moving on to Atlanta in February. Hope you enjoy!!!

Happy New Year and Thank You for Your Support in 2011.

2011-12-31T21:00:00.001-08:00

Thank you to all my readers for your support in 2011. Let's make 2012 even better.

Floyd County Man Finds Much Bigfoot Evidence in His Community

2011-12-31T20:59:00.000-08:00

According to reports filed recently at the Bigfoot Field Research Organizations' site (BFRO.net), a Floyd County man has found quite a bit of evidence of Bigfoot activity in the area near Rome and Cedartown.
The man has taken his wife and daughter with him on several hunting trips. On one occasion, he and his wife found tracks. They alarmed his wife so that she wanted to leave the area immediately.
After contacting BFRO investigators, the gentleman was told about tree-knockings and advised to try to communicate with the animals in that manner. On the trip where he tried this, his daughter, who does not believe in the existence of these creatures, or did not at that time, accompanied him. He did try woodknocking and got quite a response. Read his reports at the BFRO website:
http://bfro.net/GDB/show_report.asp?id=29318
http://bfro.net/GDB/show_report.asp?id=29530

This area is growing, but there are still quite a few rural parts in Floyd County. These are interesting reports.

The Haunted Pillar in Augusta

2011-12-31T20:48:00.000-08:00

One of the best pieces of folklore in the state comes from the city of Augusta. For those that don't know, Augusta is often called Georgia's "Second City" for various reasons. It was the second city founded in Georgia, and it was the second capital of Georgia. It is one of the state's largest cities; I believe, in fact, it is the second-largest city in the state by population behind Atlanta. So, its reputation as the "Second City" is well-earned.
The folklore of which I speak focuses on a pillar that currently stands at the corners of Fifth and Broad Street near downtown. That is not the original location of the pillar. It once stood in the old Market Square area. While there are many stories about how the pillar was built and who subsequently laid the famous "curse" upon it, most of the sources I have read seem to indicate that the most credible one deals with an evangelist who visited the city in 1829. He preached in the Market Square district and demanded that the town build him a church from where he could preach the "gospel." Unfortunately for the preacher, the town did not have the kind of faith in him and his ministry that he thought they should have, and he was mocked by the local residents. Further stoking the flames, a local magistrate came and told him he was forbidden from preaching there any longer. It was said that the "man of the cloth" was so angered by these events that he cursed all those within hearing distance of him and said that soon a great wind would come through and rip apart the town, undoubtedly the judgement of the Almighty. No one knew what became of the preacher, but almost fifty years later, a twister did indeed strike Augusta and did great damage to the Market Square on February 8, 1878. The hand of the Lord at the behest of the evangelist's curse-perhaps!!!
Shortly afterwards, a local merchant by the name of Theodore Eye purchased the pillar and had it moved to its current location. While nothing out of the ordinary happened to Mr. Eye, events that came afterwards were a bit unnerving. It is said that there have been a number of automobile accidents involving the pillar, and that more than a few times has lightening struck the concrete structure. You know what they say? Lightening never strikes twice in the same place. That is obviously not true for Augusta's haunted pillar.
A local story is also told about a cotton truck that struck the pillar in the 1950s. The truck almost demolished the pillar, and when a local resident claimed a piece of the pillar's remains as a keepsake, he fell ill and did not recover until he took the piece back. Others have photographed the pillar (it was rebuilt after the cotton truck accident) and they claim to see orbs and what can be described as illustrations of energy surrounding the pillar. Others claim that they hear footsteps walking to and from the stone mass. This is said to be the famed preacher who cursed the pillar returning to it to see who might be standing near the object of his curse.
According to Scott A. Johnson in The Stately Ghosts of Augusta, the pillar has been moved four times, and three other times, it has been almost completely demolished. Those responsible for its moving and its near destruction were unharmed and to his knowledge, still are or lived out their days normally. Much lore has grown from this famous pillar. Stories told in Augusta include the deaths of those associated with damage or desire to damage the pillar. None of those stories hold any truth. This pillar is indeed legendary. It is a local landmark, and I hope it remains such, if for nothing else than to serve as a reminder of how local legend and folklore can be deeply rooted in a community's history.

The above photo is courtesy of www.waymarking.com.

Were Georgia's Creek Indians Originally From Western Mexico?

2011-12-19T12:41:00.000-08:00

I love studying the ancient tribes of Georgia, as well as the historic tribes that existed in Georgia after the European contact. I have enjoyed reading Max White's The Archaeology and History of the Native Georgia Tribes. White is a professor of anthropology and archaeology at Piedmont College in the Georgia Mountains. This book takes the readers back to the PaleoIndian cultures that existed in the state.
More recently, I have been exploring a website called Lostworlds. It is located at http://www.lostworlds.org/. The site is maintained by professors from Georgia State University and was created by a former graduate student there who did his master's thesis documentary on archaeology-related topics in Georgia. The site focuses on the ancient and native cultures of Georgia and Florida. One recent posting on the site discusses evidence that Creek Indians of Georgia could have originated in Western Mexico. Among the pieces of evidence they site are pottery connections, mound connections, and effigies. The article is at this link, and they do such a wonderful job that I would rather you read it straight from the source.

http://lostworlds.org/muskogee-creek-indians-west-mexico/

New Bigfoot Forum Blog Site Features An Interview With Me About My Book, Bigfoot in Georgia

2011-11-06T19:37:00.000-08:00

I was very proud to be asked by the creators and moderators of a new blog on Bigfoot to be one of their first interviews. This arises from my 2010 book, Bigfoot in Georgia. Here is the link to the blog site:

http://bigfootforums.blogspot.com/2011/11/georgia-history-professor-tackles-topic_07.html

Please check out the site and comment if you will. My sincere thanks goes to the moderators who asked me to be part of this online adventure!

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

2011-10-31T08:19:00.000-07:00

This is the fourth Halloween that I have had the blog, and I do appreciate all of my readers and followers at Georgia Mysteries!!! The Atlanta Ripper book is doing great. Check out Barnes and Nobles, Books A Million, and Amazon to get your copy today. The other three I have written are still available online! Let me know if you are in metro Atlanta and I can help you find them at a local bookstore. Happy Halloween, and KEEP READING!!!!

Legends/Hauntings at Ocmulgee National Monument in Macon

2011-10-30T18:26:00.000-07:00

For quite some time, visitors to the Ocmulgee National Monument, better known as the Indian Mounds in Macon, have talked about the strange feelings they get there. In fact, the daughter of a friend mentioned that on top of the big mound she felt someone or something pull her hair. When she looked around, no one was standing near her. Her sister and aunt were nowhere near her on the mound.
My young friend was not the first, nor will she be the last to hear strange sounds and feel presences that cannot be seen at the mounds. In fact, as early as the late 1700s, traders who passed through the area and camped near the mounds heard shrieks and cries in the night. Many have reported hearing voices and seeing images that disappeared in to thin air. Not long ago, the late Sam Lawson, a former ranger at the mounds and adjunct professor at Georgia Military College, was locking up the visitors center at the park. While closing the doors, he heard the laugh of a child. His first thought was that a child had been left inside. A complete search of the building turned up nothing. A fellow ranger helped him search, and she too found no one. Later, Lawson recounted his story to the gift shop manager who said that she had also heard a child's laughter in the visitor's center, but that upon inspection, no child could be found. The two felt that there might be something to the story.
Ranger Sylvia Flowers told the author of Ghosts of Macon that throughout the years, a legend has floated around about a white and black dog being seen on the property by visitors and staff. Lawson also mentioned that he had heard the stories, and that some have even approached the white dog only to have it vanish before their very eyes. At one time, a Samuel Dunlap lived near the mounds and he owned a white dog. Perhaps the spirit of this dog has been left behind? There is also a Creek legend about a large black dog that is often times spotted at ceremonial sites like Ocmulgee, and that this dog is a spirit guard placed there to protect the sacred site.
On another occasion, visitors to the mounds reported seeing a man dressed in what they thought was a Confederate uniform. Since the mounds were the site of fighting in Georgia during the war, particular The Battle of Dunlap Hill, some reenactments have been staged there. The group thought that this was just a docent awaiting a reenactment of sorts, and they thought nothing of it, that is, until they were told no one was there that day wearing a Confederate uniform and the staff was unaware that anyone would be. Perhaps the spirit of a dead Confederate solider is also wandering around the mounds?
The Ocmulgee National Monument is a fascinating place. I take my Georgia History classes from the college there at times. This past summer, my class from our Madison campus visited. Although we were there in the hot July sun, the students loved it. They commented that this trip was one they were glad they took, and some even commented that they were going to bring their children back as soon as they could. Perhaps they will see the spirits that keep vigil at one of the oldest settlements in the Peach State!

Who Built the Stone Wall on top of Fort Mountain in Murray County?

2011-10-30T15:22:00.000-07:00

I have long been interested in the early native tribes of Georgia. As a matter of fact, I am reading Dr. Max White's The Archaeology and History of the Native Georgia Tribes now in an effort to learn more about the Paleoindians, Archaic Period inhabitants, Woodland Indians, Mississippians, and the recent tribes in Georgia (Creek and Cherokee). One of the greatest mysteries from the past in Georgia that relates to native tribes, or possibly does, is the story of the stone wall atop Fort Mountain in Murray County.
On the mountain, there is what looks like a stone wall made with rocks and other stones. It was once thought that the wall was built for defense by some tribe that occupied the mountain. However, there is no water source to be found inside the wall, and this would make those being defended by the wall more vulnerable than if the wall were not there. So this has been ruled out.
What is most interesting about this story is the Cherokee legend that is told in an attempt to answer who and why. Apparently, the Cherokees talk about a race of people with "moon-shaped eyes" who arrived in their homeland and constructed the wall. They were said to live underground, be nocturnal, and wear beards. Who were these people. Some have answered that question with another legend, this one of Prince Madoc of Wales. This legend focuses on a Welsh prince who sailed from Europe in the 12th century, some two hundred plus years before Columbus. He never returned to his homeland, but native legend tells of a race of fair-skinned men who landed near Mobile Bay and traveled inland, all the while making contact with native peoples, and, in some places, building forts, including the one on Fort Mountain.
There are quite a few legends about Fort Mountain. Some say that Hernando De Soto built the wall while in the area as protection from the Creeks. Others say that a tribe of natives used it as an observatory. There is a Georgia Historical Marker there that discusses the mystery behind the wall. Check it out at:
http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=11590

There is also a great site about ancient civilizations in Georgia, and it can be found at:
http://lostworlds.org

(photo courtesy of lostworlds.org)
This is one of the most interesting mysteries of early Georgia.

The Haunting of the Allman Brothers Home in Macon

2011-10-30T06:19:00.000-07:00

According to a great little book my friend Rita and I found in Macon at the Goodwill Bookstore there (Goodbooks) last January right after the big ice storm here in Atlanta, the Allman Brothers home has quite the haunted history. The three-story Tudor style home was the residence of the Allman Brothers for three years in the city. Before that, it was the home of former Georgia Governor Nathaniel Harris.
The book, Ghosts of Macon by Mary Lee Irby, highlights the fact that the new owners have experienced some major issues in the house since purchasing it some years ago.
Apparently, there is something strange about the stairs in the home, and Mary Lee Irby makes sure the image of the staircase is front and center in the chapter on the Allman Brothers Home in her book. The new owners stated that the first weird experience they had in the house was on the staircase. It appears that the wife, Kirsten West, kept "...tripping and falling on the stairs." She went on to state that "After one fall, I had to stay in bed for three months because my back went out. I had a ruptured disk." West mentions that she spoke with previous owners of the home and that the wife in that family also had the same issues on the staircase. Quite strange, indeed. From this, I gathered that there might have been some tragic happenings on the staircase when the original owners or the Allmans lived there. I was not the first to have that impression. West points out in her interview with the author that if you look closely at the staircase, there are a few spindles that do not match the others, as if they have been replaced because of some accident. Oddly enough, this is right where West repeatedly falls on those stairs.
On another occasion, the Wests were working with a film student from Atlanta who was doing a project on the Allman Brothers Band. One morning, the student was making the bed in the room where she slept when she saw a door open by itself out on the landing as if someone were opening it and walking through it. She also mentioned that some months prior to this, after visiting the Allman Home for a brief time, she returned to her home in Atlanta and was barraged with strange dreams of a woman running down the staircase of her own home while screaming. It appears that something was sending a subliminal message to the film student. Was there a connection here? Why did she have those dreams at her home in Atlanta after visiting the Allman Home in Macon, only to come back months later to experience what seemed like some invisible presence opening a door on the landing and walking down the stairs?
Kirsten West also mentioned that her dogs seem to stare at something in the home that she cannot see. We all know that dogs and children are supposed to have a sixth sense and be able to see things that the rest of us cannot see. Is this an example of such?
While all of these events are strange enough, they are not as off-putting as what happened to Kristen's dad when he came to visit his daughter and son-in-law. Charles Olson, who has since passed away, related that while on his visit, he arose and dressed early one morning because he smelled what he thought were cinnamon rolls baking in the kitchen. Who wouldn't be lured out of their slumber by that? And, of course, it is quite logical to assume that his daughter would be cooking something like that for her dad in honor of his visit. However, that was not the case. In fact, upon further investigation, he discovered that no one had even gone in the kitchen that morning before he arose. There must be something about cinnamon rolls the ghosts in that house like, for not long afterwards, a reporter visited the home from the Chicago Sun Times and had the same experience. But the cinnamon rolls were not the most disturbing of the father's experiences there.
One night, while sleeping in one of the guest bedrooms, Charles Olson, West's father, said he was awakened by something in his room. He saw someone standing beside his bed. It was a female. A few nights afterwards, he was awakened again and this time, another female specter appeared to be lying above his bed. He commented that "Her elbow was bent and her cheek was propped on her hand.. She had on some sort of bonnet and a long dress with ruffles that ran from the neck to her waistline. He quickly jumped out of bed and looked at the image. A few seconds later, it disappeared. From this description, it appears that the apparition was from a time well before the Allman Brothers stint there in the early 1970s.

So is the Allman Home haunted? If so, by whom? Are these ghosts from the era of Governor Nathaniel Harris? What happened on that staircase? Today, the home is a museum. You can check out the website at www.thebighousemuseum.org.

Where is Button Gwinnett Buried?

2011-09-11T13:18:00.000-07:00

Recently, in my Georgia History class at the college, we discussed the Revolutionary War in Georgia. Customarily, it is difficult to discuss this epoch in Georgia without discussing the Georgia signers of the Declaration of Independence. The most notable, for various reasons, of those three signers from Georgia was Button Gwinnett. Most often, students in my college classes can remember him because of his name. How odd, they say, it is to be named Button. However, another reason he surges to the top of the list is the way he died. He was shot in a duel by Lachlan McIntosh near Savannah.

Because he died so young, Button Gwinnett did not sign too many things. Of course, the most famous document to which his "John Hancock" is attached, is the Declaration of Independence. Funny, huh??? Recently, a Yahoo News Story declared that a signed document was purchased by a collector. The Gwinnett signature made it ten times more valuable. It sold for almost 800,000 dollars.

Nevertheless, the namesake of Gwinnett County's odd life does not end there. Oooops! I did it again. Well, you will understand as I go on. As many of you know, my friend Don Rhodes authored Mysteries and Legends Georgia: True Stories of the Unsolved and Unexplained. In the book, he devotes an entire chapter to the saga of Button Gwinnett, but not his life nor his death. What then? Rhodes opens up the discussion on his remains, and, well, where they remain. I am just full of this stuff, huh?? The story goes like this.

After Lachlan McIntosh and Button Gwinnett dueled, the latter was seriously injured. Gwinnett lingered throughout the weekend, having been shot on a Friday, and finally capitulated on Monday morning. According to accounts given by Rhodes in his book from notable historians with the Georgia Historical Society, reports in local papers at the time indicate that Gwinnett was to be buried in Christ Church Cemetery in Savannah; this is now called Colonial Park Cemetery and is a notable tourist attraction in the city, particularly on ghost tours and paranormal investigations. In fact, there is a monument there that gives the cemetery spot where it stands as the location of his burial.

One would think the mystery would not have cropped up given this certainty over his burial. However, years later, a man living near Augusta in the 1840s stumbled upon the grave of Dr. Lyman Hall, another signer from Georgia. The idea was birthed to build a monument to the three signers and place it in downtown Augusta. Hall's body was unearthed, as was George Walton's in Rosney Cemetery in Augusta. However, as the progress on the monument continued, Gwinnett's body was not included. In fact, only Walton and Hall are interred underneath it today. Gwinnett was not even mentioned as having been found in any of the reports at the time the monument was dedicated. So why the mystery? It was reported by Georgia newspapers that Gwinnett was buring in Colonial Park after he died. Did someone attempt to unearth him there and not find him? In 1956, an official Georgia Historical Marker was placed at the Signer's Monument built in Augusta in 1848, and it mentions that although Walton and Hall are buried underneath, Gwinnett's remains were never found. Odd!! Even the Georgia Historical Marker located in Lawrenceville at the Gwinnett County Courthouse mentions that Gwinnett is buried in an unknown location?

Zell Miller, in his book Great Georgians even mentions that rumor has it Gwinnett is buried atop an Indian mound on St. Catherine's Island where his home was located. Other rumors indicate that his bones were washed out to sea by a hurricane some years ago. But why is there a monument still located in Colonial Park Cemetery indicating he is buried there??
So how did this mess get started in the first place? Where is Button Gwinnett buried? Why is there a monument over a plot in Colonial Park if he isn't there. I can think of a way to find out. But that would be illegal, and macabre, if I do say so myself.

Book Discussion and Signing at Manuel's Tavern September 15th for The Atlanta Ripper

2011-09-11T12:11:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, September 15th at 7:00 p.m. I will be giving a lecture on my recent book The Atlanta Ripper: The Unsolved Case of the Gate City's Most Infamous Murders at Manuel's Tavern at 602 North Highland Avenue in Atlanta. Please come and join us if you like. The signing and discussion is being sponsored by A Capella Books.

The Atlanta Ripper: The Unsolved Case of the Gate City's Most Infamous Murders

2011-06-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

It is official, my next book will be titled The Atlanta Ripper: The Unsolved Case of the Gate City's Most Infamous Murders. It is being released by The History Press, and it should be out this August. The History Press will be at the annual Decatur Book Festival, and at their booth, they will be selling copies of my book. If you get a chance to stop by, come down. The book will also be at Barnes and Nobles and Books A Million, as the last one was.

Are Rattlesnakes in South Georgia Evolving and Becoming Even Bigger and More Dangerous

2011-06-09T12:15:00.000-07:00

From time to time, I like to check the website for Vidalia Communications, the radio stations in Vidalia, Georgia. I am originally from Montgomery County, and Vidalia spills over in to Montgomery County. Vidalia, however, is mainly in Toombs County. One also needs to know that this area is very rural, and rattlesnakes have been part of the landscapes and eco-system for years there. Growing up there, I remember playing hide-and-seek with friends and running in to the wheat field beside my house to hide, only to step on a rattlesnake in the process. Luckily, I was able to get back quickly enough before it struck. Come to think of it, that snake did not rattle until I was already pretty much on top of it. But then again, I did come up very quickly. Perhaps he was asleep and did not have time to rattle.
But this story spooks me. From this story, and I pulled it from Vidalia Communications' website, it appears that these rattlesnakes are starting to evolve based on a condition of their environment. For those who are not up on their American History, it is good to know that pigs/hogs are not indigenous to North America. They were brought here by the Europeans during the colonization and exploration era. The pigs wreaked havoc on the gardens and landscapes where Native Americans lived and tried to farm. The long and short of it is that pigs were not good for this eco-system, and it appears that they still aren't. Read the story below. It is quite interesting. I have quoted it directly from the above-referenced website:

Snake Update...

One of our readers reports this huge rattler was actually killed last year in Screven County and reported in Georgia Outdoors. We appreciate the update and here's that story:
Huge snake could have been 20 years old.
By Nick Carter
Posted Wednesday August 18 2010, 4:12 PM
In late July, Conrad Greene, of Savannah,was working food plots with a couple buddies on their Screven County hunt club near Cooperville. They were checking some fruit trees when Travis Timms, of Savannah, almost stepped on this enormous eastern diamondback rattlesnake. Conrad said the snake didn’t even rattle. It merely lifted its head up above the grass, surveyed the scene and tried to slither away. But it didn’t make it far. Conrad popped it with the .44 mag he carries for such occasions.
Nick Kearns, of Savannah, picked the snake up on a stick for this photo. Since then the photo has gone viral online and through text messages. It has been reported by different sources on the Internet rumor mill to have come from several different Georgia counties and from as far away as Missouri. Ridiculous measurements of up to 14 feet and more than 100 pounds have surfaced.
Actually, the snake is not nearly that big, but it is still enormous. Conrad said the rattler measured 6-feet, 6-inches, had 12 rattles and 2-inch fangs.
“The thing that got me about this snake is how big its head and girth were. He was easily as big around as my calf, and I’m a pretty big boy,” said Conrad. “This thing probably could have eaten baby pigs. A rabbit would have been just an appetizer for this snake.
“That snake was probably big enough that it would have broken your leg if it hit you.”
Snake expert Steve Scruggs said the snake was probably 20 years old.
“It’s an incredible specimen,” said Steve. “It’s very rare that we get one that old because what do people usually do? They kill them.”

June 8-- A reader forwarded this picture of a huge rattler killed near the Ohoopee River southeast of Lyons. The first-person account is from the unnamed man holding the snake.

"We have killed 57 rattlesnakes on two separate Ohoopee River trips this year since mid-May. Not one has buzzed! We provoked one fair sized boy with a stick and he coiled and struck at the stick a couple of times before he buzzed up and rattled.
The purpose of this explanation is that I have been hearing the same from fellow farmers and hunters in regards to the lack of warning with rattlesnakes.
I had lunch with a friend today and he offered a theory about the fact that these buggers aren't rattling anymore. He raised pigs for years and reported that when he would hear a rattlesnake buzzing in the sow pen, the sows would bee line to it and fight over the snake. For the uninformed, pigs love to eat rattlesnakes.. Therefore, the theory is they are ceasing to rattle to avoid detection, since there are plenty of pigs roaming the countryside.
I have a neighbor farmer wife who was bitten 3 weeks ago 2 times by the same snake without any warning. She spent 5 days in ICU in Savannah. After 22 vials of anti-venom, she is back at the farm and still may lose her foot, or worse yet, her lower leg.
The days of perceived warning are over. Keep your boots on and use a light when out and about. As you all know, one can pop up just about anywhere!"

Gaither Plantation in Covington Spooks the Cast of Vampire Diaries

2011-04-28T07:13:00.000-07:00

It appears the the famous Gaither Plantation in Covington is drumming up PR, but it is not the staff and owners of the place; it is the ghosts. The plantation is in the east Metro-Atlanta area, and has a rich history. It is also known as one of the most haunted places in Georgia. Apparently, the show Vampire Diaries has been filming there. Judging from this article in Access Atlanta, the ghosts are wanting in on the stardom too!!

http://www.masslive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2011/04/vampire_diaries_cast_spooked_b.html

This is probably the coolest story I have blogged about!!!

Bigfoot in Georgia Featured on Conundrums with Jay Michael

2011-03-07T13:23:00.000-08:00

I was fortunate enough to be Jay Michael's guest this week on Conundrums, his weekly online television broadcast.
Our topic was my book, Bigfoot in Georgia. Click on the following link and check it out.
http://www.conundrumstv.blogspot.com/

Georgia Icons by Don Rhodes and Jeff Barnes

2011-03-04T12:12:00.000-08:00

My friend Don Rhodes, together with photographer Jeff Barnes, has released Georgia Icons: 50 Classic Views of the Peach State. The books is full of beautiful pictures of spectacular places of interest around Georgia. Included among them are The Varsity, Archie Butt's Titanic Bridge in Augusta, the Rock Eagle Effigy, the Tybee Lighthouse, Stone Mountain, the Ocmulgee Indian Mounds, and of course, the ever-mysterious Georgia Guidestones.

Don is a noted author, having published in the field of Georgia music history. The link on the story title above is a link to his amazon.com page. Please check it out. This is a wonderful book, and it should be included in any Georgia enthusiast's library. I highly recommend it!!!

Appearing as guest on Squatchdetective Radio Show This Sunday, February 27th

2011-02-25T16:21:00.000-08:00

I am excited to report that I will be the guest on Squatchdetective Radio Show this Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. The show is hosted by Steve Kulls and Chris Bennett. Many of you may remember Steve Kulls from MonsterQuest from the episode on the New York Bigfoot.
Check out their website at:http://squatchdetective.com/
The radio show is at this site: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/squatchdetective
The show is this Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. and the link will tell you how to log in and listen.
Hope you enjoy!!!

Altamaha River Area Seems to Be a Hotspot for Bigfoot Sightings

2011-02-20T20:31:00.000-08:00

The Altamaha River area of Georgia tends to be a very active area in terms of Bigfoot sightings. Recently, I have had several emails and found several reports of sightings and activity in the area. One reader on Facebook sent me a message that contained stories about two sightings in the McIntosh County area. The first was a story told to the reader by a friend of his who was with his father in McIntosh County in a swampy area. They were both on foot walking a railroad track deep in the woods. According to the story, the area where the tracks were had been cleared out about 20 feet. In the distance, the man and his father could see what they thought was a man walking across the tracks. Not being a Bigfoot believer, the man said he was a bit perplexed by what he saw. He said that it may not have been a man afterall, as what he saw was over six feet tall, had lots of hair all over its body, and had arms that were long and hung down its side for quite some length. In another story told to me by this same reader, he and a friend of his were on the Altamaha River for a hunting and camping trip. It was the summer of 2005, and he and his friend decided to go for a late night boat ride. Finding a creek running off the river that they had never seen, the two decided to explore the area to see if there was any game there that they might come back later and hunt. They boated about a mile up the creek when they decided to stop the motor and listen. On the banks of the creek could be heard loud growling sounds and what sounded like the crashing of tree limbs and the breaking of tree branches in the woods. The animal seemed to get more and more irritated as the pair remained on the creek, and as this happened, it became louder and seemed more aggressive in terms of breaking things in the woods. Deciding that it was time to go, the two cranked up the boat and left the area before they saw whatever was making these awful growls and tearing up the woods face to face.
At the BFRO website there are a number of reports from this area of Georgia. In one, posted in November 2008, a man was hunting with his uncle on the Altamaha River. As he sat on the bank of the river, he looked to his side and noticed what he thought was a huge man standing near a tree. He described the "thing" as being very tall, built like a football player, and hairy. In fact, he said the thing was covered with hair about a foot long. It had a greyish cheek and a pointed nose with beedie eyes. He looked away and then back again, and whatever this was had left. After hearing some splashing in the water, he realized that whatever he had seen was now in the river. He walked closer, which elicited a 15-20 second growl from the animal. The witness said that when the animal growled, all the squirrels in the vacinity ran toward him.
There have been other sightings reported along the Altamaha River basin. It is a very large area, and the river itself is ripe for such events. But I can't help but think that there is quite a bit of activity, or sightings at least, in that area. Perhaps someone has heard of these types of encounters in that area. As a matter of fact, the witness in the BFRO story above says that there is a Wayne County legend called "Feets." It would be interesting to hear more about this. I grew up and lived for quite some time in Montgomery County. The Altamaha River is formed at the south end of that county near Uvalda. It is an impressive sight. I had never heard stories like this while I was growing up there. I still have lots of family there now. I return to the area on holidays and family visits. Perhaps I ought to try to find out if there have been newspaper stories in my hometown paper that contain reports and sightings of weird animals on the banks of the Altamaha.

Bigfoot in Georgia Gets Excellent Review in Daniel Perez's Bigfoot Times

2011-02-03T10:15:00.000-08:00

Daniel Perez, the editor and publisher of The Bigfoot Times Newsletter, and well-known Bigfoot researcher, gave me rather good marks on my book Bigfoot in Georgia. In his December 2010 edition of the newsletter, he reviews the book. Some of his comments are below:
"Jeffery Wells, a department chairman for Georgia's Military College's Atlanta campus, has penned a rather interesting work on reports of Bigfoot in Georgia." He goes on to say, "The author discusses the Georgia Bigfoot hoax of 2008, which attracted international attention, but wisely keeps the discussion brief." He further writes, "BIGFOOT IN GEORGIA is well done, with references cited, and it is a very affordable book."
To be fair, he did have one criticism, with which I cannot totally disagree. He states, "His 'What is Bigfoot' chapter is long winded and goes over information already covered in other books." I can see his point, but the reason I gave such a detailed account in that chapter is I knew many people who read the book would be new to Bigfoot studies, and I wanted to make sure they would have this opportunity to understand the background and the overall context in which the book fit.
I want to thank Daniel for his kind words. He even put a large copy of the book cover on one of the pages. Also, thank you to Shane Honea, who sent me the copy of the review.

A Cop, A Video of Bigfoot in Dahlonega, The Animal Planet and Me

2011-01-27T09:36:00.000-08:00

Not long ago, a police officer and citizen riding along caught sight of what they thought might have been a Bigfoot. The pair was driving at night in the Frogtown area of Lumpkin County when, on a dark and desolate stretch of the highway, a creature resembling the legendary Bigfoot crossed the road at amazing speed. The incident was caught on the dashboard camera of the cruiser.
The video has been circulated on the internet, and although some say it is a hoax perpetrated by two North Georgia College and State University students, the campus of which is located in nearby Dahlonega, the incident has become part of the Bigfoot legend in Georgia.
Recently, a producer from The Discovery Network, contacted Mary Scott, the civilian riding along with the officer, as well as members of the BFRO about coming to North Georgia and filming their stories and following along on an outing for their documentary on the legend of Bigfoot in Georgia. The producer has also contacted me about commenting on the Cherokee and Creek legends of forest giants said to be Sasquatch, as well as the story surrounding Track Rock Gap. My interview will be held at Track Rock Gap.
The link to the story in The Dahlonega Nugget is here:
http://www.thedahloneganugget.com/articles/2011/01/26/news/04%20bigfoot.txt
The interview should be fun, as I am going to be talking about the Native American lore and stories that focus on animals that are thought to be Bigfoot, or at least bare some resemblance.
I am most interested in this talk of a hoax, as hoaxes do quite a bit of damage to sincere research in this area, but I will be posting more on this as things unfold.

Voodoo In Sandersville, Georgia

2011-01-07T06:48:00.000-08:00

The New York Times has some really interesting things. As a major news publication, they pick up stories from all over the world, and in yesteryear, they would include stories of interest from all over America, which they still sometimes do, but not with the frequency which they did this in the past. I came across a neat article that they ran in June 1888.

Apparently, in 1888, a local pastor's wife fell ill, very ill it seems, and the man of God sought help in any way he could to keep his bride alive. When traditional medicine did not seem to work, he resorted to calling in a, let's say, non-traditional healer. The man, who was part native American according to the article, diagnosed her as having been poisoned with rattlesnake venom, a malady that otherwise brings death quite quickly. For the large sum of $18.00, at least a large sum in that day, the man, named Gus Cheevers by the article, gave her a potion that caused the poison to seep out through her pores. The article gave vivid description to the method. It said, "The poison under his treatment exuded from the pores of her skin in threadlike sprays of mucous." How appetizing it must have been to see such a sight.

The story goes on to state that Cheevers did not stop with just healing the woman, but that he wanted to help pinpoint the culprit who had brought this blight on the pastor's wife. To accomplish this, all the neighbors of the couple would assemble, and Cheevers, holding a pendent would call out each of their names and have them come forward. The pendent would swing distinctly in the way of the culprit once he, or she, stepped forward. The method did not fail to provide an assailant, one Boston May. Although he denied it, the pendent told its tale and May was fingered as the poisoner. It was also noted in the article that a well owned by a man known only as "Old Jerry" began to boil up, to which Cheevers attributed to the fact that a little bottle containing the poison used to try to murder the poor woman was sitting at the bottom of the well.

What a strange story to appear in The New York Times. Sandersville is the county seat of Washington County, a county named for the first president, George Washington. I used to drive through there on my way up GA HWY 15 headed back to class at UGA each weekend I drove home. Never did I expect that such a strange story was floating around in Sandersville's past. Heck, Dairy Lane, an old-fashioned burger joint there in Sandersville, was the only thing that had caught my attention about the town in those days.

Appearing on Bigfoot Busters Internet Radio Show to Talk About Bigfoot in Georgia

2010-12-06T16:05:00.001-08:00

I will be appearing, once again, with Wayne Ford, the journalist from Athens about whom I wrote in my book BIGFOOT IN GEORGIA, on Bigfoot Busters Blogtalk Radio Show this coming Sunday, December 12th at 9:00 p.m. Click on the title of this blog post and the link will take you to the show's website at Blogtalk Radio.

I am excited about appearing again on this radio show. I was a guest back in September, along with Wayne, and it was a lot of fun. Tune in. I know you will enjoy it!

Ghost Video at Colonial Park Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia

2010-11-24T09:42:00.000-08:00

A young man from Akron, Ohio came to Savannah, Georgia to visit his aunt for the Christmas break. For Christmas, he had apparently been given (or allowed to use) a new video recorder. As with anyone from other parts of the country, the young man and his family were excited about touring Savannah with its colonial, antebellum, Civil War, and Victorian era homes and historic locations. Most interestingly, the young man was eager to visit the city because he had heard it was the "most haunted city in the nation."

Upon visiting Colonial Park Cemetery, founded in 1750 and located in downtown Savannah, he captured something quite interesting on film. Fox News (I assume the local Akron affiliate) reported on the findings and someone has loaded the video on Youtube. The link to the site where the video is located can be found by clicking on the title of this story.

So was it the ghost of a young boy? The video is copyrighted, but follow the link to the Youtube story.

Happy Halloween Everyone

2010-10-31T12:32:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween to all of my readers. I have many more blog articles coming up in the next few days. I realize I have been kind of slack on posting these last few months, but with a new home and a few new responsibilities, it has been busy. But things are slowing down now, and I am looking forward to more posts. I just put up a few ghost legends today in honor of Halloween. Happy reading!!!

Ghosts of The Andersonville Raiders

2010-10-31T12:18:00.000-07:00

Andersonville was the site of one of the biggest tragedies during the War Between the States. Although there were Union prisons with as gruesome carnage as what was seen at Andersonville, this prison is often remembered for its emaciated bodies, starving Union soldiers who suffered because there was a lack of food, and the awful stench of death associated with the place. However, there is another story about Andersonville that has endured in Georgia myth and legend.

Apparently, there was a group of Union prisoners called the Andersonville Raiders. This group stole, and in some cases, did physical harm to many of their fellow Union prisoners while in the camp-all in an effort to survive. Their bullying and pillaging became so intense, that when they were caught and brought to trial, it was their fellow prisoners who tried them and then sentenced them to hang, right there in the prison yard. Personnel and vistors to the site say that the apparitions of Union soldiers can still be seen here on these grounds. The phrases "Had to rob them," and "Couldn't have survived otherwise" can be heard floating through the air.

The legend is best described by the famous folklorist, the former Nancy Roberts in her book Civil War Ghosts and Legends. I highly recommend this book if you are interested in folklore and legend, particulary in the area of the War Between the States. Roberts, who died a few years ago, did a marvelous job of retelling the famous legend of the Ghosts of the Andersonville Raiders.

A Haunted School in Chickamauga, Georgia

2010-10-31T10:15:00.000-07:00

One of the better books I have read recently was by Leslie Rule, the daughter of famed writer, Ann Rule. It is called Coast to Coast Ghosts. In the book, there are a multitude of stories from all around the U.S.A. One particular ghost story was from Georgia, and it was actually about a haunted school.
According to residents of the town and teachers at Gordon-Lee Memorial High School, there are a lot of strange things that happen there. Some report hearing voices and laughter echo through the halls when noone is in the school. The school was built in 1932, and the main building was originally a boarding school. The town itself is the site of the famous Civil War Battle of Chickamauga. It is reported that over 25,000 people died in two days during the battle. Chickamauga, the town, was used as a headquarters for the Union Army. Nearby the town, and school, a sharpshooter, atop his horse, combed the countryside shooting at the Union troops and spying. He was killed in the midst of his spying, but legend has it that night hikers in the woods were the sniper/spy was said to have ridden his horse can still see a pair of glowing eyes. They have given the spectre a name-Phantom Green Eyes.

It appears that this little town, way up at the northern border of the state, has its fair share of legends!!!

Evil Presence at the Eagle Tavern in Watkinsville

2010-10-18T12:48:00.000-07:00

Watkinsville, Georgia is in Oconee County-the county just south of Athens-Clarke County, which as most Georgians know, is the home of the University of Georgia. As a UGA student, I traveled through Watkinsville a lot of Fridays headed home and on a lot of Sundays headed back. The Tavern is a landmark in the city, and it is a reminder of a bygone era in Georgia's frontier history.

The Tavern is owned by Oconnee County and the State of Georgia today, and it serves as a welcome center and local tourist destination. It has a very long history. Built in the early 1800s, the site was said to have once been part of Fort Edwards. The fort stood in this area where Creek and Cherokee Indian territory once intersected, and the fort was placed there by the state of Georgia as a way to protect against the frequent attacks by natives in the area whose hostilities, while directed at each other, were often directed at white settlers to the area. After 1820, the building became a stagecoach stop for coaches traveling back and forth between Athens and Milledgeville. The building housed not only a tavern, but also an inn, which I am sure was a welcome sight to weary stagecoach travelers in the early days of the 19th century.

The Eagle Tavern has not only been the site of rest for travelers and a place to find drink for the revelers, but it apparently is also a place where something evil still resides. According to Corinne Underwood in her book Haunted History: Atlanta and North Georgia, the Eagle Tavern has had its share of specters and weird happenings. One employee at the welcome center described the sight of a dancing lady. The apparition appeared to her out of nowhere and was wearing a pink dress. On other occassions, employees have heard the sound of loud/heavy footsteps in the facility when noone else was present, as well as the smell of cherry tobacco while noone was present who smoked in a facility that was non-smoking. Additionally, a group gathered outside witnessed what looked like a finger and hand in the upstairs window, but upon examination, noone was there (Underwood 27-30).

These instances have not caused a great deal of alarm at the Eagle Tavern; however, one startling event did. According to mediums who have visited the Tavern, there appears to be an evil presence in the basement. Paranormal experts refer to this entity as non-human or elemental. An employee had such negative experiences in the basement that she fears returning there. First, after coming in to contact with the presence, her eye became irritated, then infected. A sensitive told the employees at the Eagle Tavern that they should not go in to the basement because the entity could do physical harm. This was proven so true when members of the East Georgia Paranormal Society visited the Tavern and did an investigation. One member was physically attacked. The entity bit his hand and broke bones in it. Investigators said that you could hear the bones crushing on camera. During another investigation, a different research group picked up an EVP in the basement saying, "I wish you would die." Yet a third group investigated the Tavern basement when one of the researchers felt a pressure on his lower back as if he were wearing a heavy backpack. The video showed that there was a black figure standing over the man with what appeared to be elbows pressing down on the man's shoulders (Underwood 31-33).

Is there an evil presence in the basement of the Eagle Tavern in Watkinsville, and if so, what is it? Why has it decided to physically harm visitors to the basement? Could it be possible that this is an evil entity spawned by a tragic event in the tavern's past? The historic landmark has been a common sight to college students for ages. I wonder how many of them have taken the time to visit and find out what lurks inside. I know I didn't!!

October and Halloween Book Signings at Bell, Book and Candle

2010-09-24T09:26:00.000-07:00

This October, Bell, Book and Candle in downtown McDonough, Georgia will be hosting a series of book signings in line with theme of the Halloween season. Here is the schedule:

October 16th-Dan Brooks
HAUNTED MEMORIES OF MCDONOUGH, GEORGIA

October 23rd-Jeff Wells (me)
BIGFOOT IN GEORGIA

October 30th-Reese Christian
GHOSTS OF ATLANTA: PHANTOMS OF THE PHOENIX CITY

In addition to these events, the bookstore will also be sponsoring "HorrorFest"-a series of fright tours on the hour each Friday and Saturday night from 8:00 p.m. until midnight. There will also be a tour of the McDonough Memorial Cemetery, complete with historical docents by candlelight. Check out their facebook page.
If you want to reserve a spot on the tours or come to the book signing, call them at 770-957-1880.

It Looks Like A Panther May Be Roaming Around South Georgia

2010-08-06T15:34:00.000-07:00

It appears that there are more than just water and football wars along the Georgia border. This article, appearing at one of my favorite blogsites, Phantoms and Monsters, details a July 21st episode where a farmer in South Georgia spotted marks on the neck of his horse that looked like they were the product of a large cat, possibly a panther.

Click on this link and check out the story:
http://networkedblogs.com/6Bu5R

New Blog Talk Radio Show Devoted to the Search for Bigfoot in Georgia

2010-07-19T10:25:00.000-07:00

Starting August 7th, 2010, there will be a new BlogTalkRadio show devoted solely to the search for Bigfoot in the state of Georgia. Shane Honea is one of the guys involved. Check out their site. Notice the cover of my book is on there too, as well as a link to the Amazon site where you can purchase a copy. They have extended me an invitation to be on the show a few weeks after it begins. I am really looking forward to this. Thanks to Shane and the other guys who are putting this together.

Conundrums Webcast About Bigfoot in Georgia

2010-06-24T09:28:00.000-07:00

The interview I did with Jay Michael on Conundrums is now available on their site. Please visit
http://conundrumstv.blogspot.com/

I hope you enjoy. The interview was about Bigfoot in Georgia, my book.

Student Captures Video in Darien of What He Thinks May Have Been Altamaha-ha

2010-06-21T11:08:00.000-07:00

Recently, I received a comment on the blogsite from a young man who is a student near Brunswick. Apparently, he was visiting Fort King Georgia near Darien a few Sundays ago, and he caught the footage seen on this video he loaded on to YouTube. After a few messages back and forth, he was able to describe the events of the day.

Bored out of his wits, he decided to visit the fort and go on the nature trail. As he came to the boat launch, he noticed an animal flapping around in the water. He took a few pictures with his Droid phone, but decided to try and capture video of it as well. The YouTube video was taken with his phone. He told me in his email that he wished it had been able to zoom closer, but this was as close as he was able to get with the phone camera.

He showed the video he captured to a woman who was working at the time at the facility. She told him that it was more than likely not a manatee because she had never seen one at that location. (I admit that this does not entirely rule out the possibility that it was a manatee.) He noticed a flyer about the local legend of "Alti", which is sometimes called Altamaha-ha, and he began to do some checking. He found some footage of a similar sighting in Florida. He also has been looking in to the behavior of manatees, and from what he has learned, the activity he saw from the aquatic animal he witnessed that day does not match what he has learned is the normal behavior of the manatee.

Check out the video. I have embedded it here, and I have provided a link to the YouTube video on the YouTube website. Simply click on the title of this post to see it.

So what do you think? Is there really a type of Loch Ness Monster swimming around the coastal waterways of Georgia?

Did You Know There Was A Volcano In Georgia? What About the Wog?

2010-05-27T12:56:00.000-07:00

Did you know that there was a volcano in Georgia? Me neither, at least until I was doing some reading on the history of Winder, Georgia. In my research on Georgia political history, I have done a lot of reading about the late U.S. Senator Richard B. Russell, Jr. He was from Winder. As I wandered across a book or two on Barrow County and Winder history, I found an interesting snippet of information about a place not far from Winder and the home of Senator Russell, that is oftentimes called Georgia's Volcano.

This is not a volcano in the pure sense, the but area, according to author G.J.N. Wilson, did not support vegetation, and the trees growing nearby were very small compared to those growing normally in other areas. The area was a few acres in size, and it was full of bubbling, bluish mud like sludge. The mud moved in some places, giving the impression that it was boiling. In fact, in the center, it had the appearance of boiling water.

The Creek Indians called this area Nodoroc, somewhat akin to hell. They considered the area to be a place of great evil. In fact, it was said that living near the area was a monster called the WOG. It is the WOG that I find most interesting. They said that this was an animal with long jet black hair, the size of a horse, front legs larger than its hind legs, and had a small white sliver of white hair at the tip of its tail that if fanned up and down. The other spooky feature about this legendary animal was that it had a long forked tongue. According to Alan Brown in Haunted Georgia, the settlers in the area many years ago used to report that they could see the long forked tongue sticking in through the chinks in their log cabins. The Creek Indians said that teh WOG was the devil, and that he lived in Nodoroc.

The WOG was said to have only eaten carrion but would attack if threatened. Other stories told about this legend state that the WOG would roam the area looking for small animals, some being dogs and cats, to devour.

This legend is very strange. It is part of Creek Indian legend in Georgia. In one legend, a Creek chief, Umausauga, had a daughter that was being pursued by a Choctaw warrior. Not wanting anything to do with him, she rejected his advances. He killed her. When her father found out, he sent a party of Creek warriors to find the killer. They found him, cut out his heart and fed it to wolves, and threw the body in to Nodoroc to be eaten by the WOG.

This is one of the coolest Georgia legends I have ever read about. I think it is more than neat that there is a huge area near Winder that used to be home to some sort of boiling mud-like substance that settlers called a volcano. The WOG, whatever it was, has to be one of the most intriguing legends. Has anyone else heard about this?
You can reference stories in Dr. Alan Brown's Haunted Georgia, Jim Mile's Weird Georgia, and Frank and Victoria Logue's Touring the Backroads of North and South Georgia. In addition, the legend is mentioned in GJN Wilson's Early History of Jackson County, Georgia.

Dinner With the Author in Downtown McDonough

2010-05-26T14:48:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, June 19th at The Season's Bistro in downtown McDonough, I will be discussing my book In Atlanta or in Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900 as part of a dinner with the author event. The event will include dinner, an after dinner discussion of the book, possibly a train crash tour of downtown McDonough, and book signing. The books are available at Bell, Book and Candle on John Frank Ward Boulevard downtown.

I appreciate Lynn and Caprice for helping set this up. It should be a lot of fun. Contact Lynn at The Seasons Bistro about the dinner, and Caprice or Shannon at Bell, Book and Candle about the book.

Bistro-770-288-2544
Bell, Book and Candle-770-957-1880

Bigfoot in Georgia and Georgia Mysteries Website to Be Featured On Conundrums Netcast June 24th

2010-05-26T11:20:00.001-07:00

I will be the guest on Jay Michael's weekly online video show called Conundrums. The show will be broadcast at the following website on Monday, June 24th.
http://conundrumstv.blogspot.com

We will be discussing my book Bigfoot in Georgia, as well as this website Georgia Mysteries. Tune in and watch me as I talk about the legend of the Georgia Bigfoot.

Bigfoot Obviously Angry at A Couple in Emanuel County

2010-05-11T04:31:00.000-07:00

I am from this area, albeit about 45 minutes west of Emanuel County, but my mother lives less than ten minutes from the area in this report now. My friend Matt Pruitt investigated this report and posted it. I talked with him about it shortly afterwards. He commented that it was one of the more interesting reports from the state.

Apparently, a couple bought some property in Emanuel County. For those not familiar with the area, Emanuel County is about an hour or so West of Savannah, and the county seat for Emanuel County is Swainsboro, which is the home of East Georgia College. It obviously is the home to something else as well.

The incident took place near the Ohoopee River, a place where prints and other things have have been seen, indicating that there might be some activity along this waterway. This particular encounter took place in November 1982 when a couple purchased some property in the area that had once been a fishing camp. On the property was a small mobile home measuring 12x45 feet. On this occasion, the weather was a bit cold, with the person reporting the encounter mentioning that it was in the 20s. Being that it was getting close to winter, I can imagine that the air was crisp and cool.

The area where this took place was heavily wooded, and, as I mentioned before, the Ohoopee River is nearby. On this evening, the wife was in the kitchen, while the husband was in the living room of the mobile home reading. The couple had purchased the property and were staying in the mobile home temporarily until they could build their house on the land. Obviously, this ticked off someone, or someTHING. On that night, as both were quietly passing the evening, a loud howl erupted from the night and something violently shook the mobile home, almost tipping it off the blocks and supports upon which it was sitting. The howling and shaking lasted about ten seconds, an eternity when something like this happens. The man grabbed his firearm and quickly went outside to investigate. Nothing was there-anywhere.

As Matt Pruitt of the BFRO researched the report, he discovered that the man had lived there for a while after the incident. It was also mentioned in the report that the man reporting the incident had never even imagined that it COULD have been a Bigfoot encounter until he came upon the BFRO website and heard the Ohio Howl from 1994 recording posted on the site. He said it matched what he heard almost perfectly. Pruitt felt that what happened was the couple had "intruded" upon what was probably Sasquatch hunting ground, and that it might be possible that the animal was using the mobile home as a shelter. Afterall, the man reporting the encounter mentioned that the home had been abandoned for a little while before he and his wife came there, and that when they moved in, there was evidence that animals had entered the home. Pruitt feels most certain that this Sasquatch had been using it as a shelter, and the couple disrupted that.

This is a strange one to me. What makes it even scarier is the fact that my mother and stepfather live nearby, and my stepfather, who I had no clue believed in Bigfoot until my book came out, says that he hunts in the area a good bit. In fact, he and my mom own more than a few acres of wooded land in the area. They have dogs, and there is a pond not far from the back porch of their house on the property. If something like this was living nearby as recently as the mid 1980s, I am honest in saying I am a little nervous for them, and a little nervous for myself too. For I visit their home at Thanksgiving and Christmas each year. HMMMMM............

Bigfoot in Georgia and other book signings at the Geranium Festival in McDonough

2010-05-05T19:39:00.001-07:00

I will be joining two other local authors in a book signing at the Geranium Festival in McDonough on Saturday, May 15th. Bell, Book and Candle will be hosting a few local authors, and I am included. I will be signing copies of my book Bigfoot in Georgia, as well as copies of In Atlanta or in Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900, and Moments in McDonough History. The signing will be in the morning hours and last until around 2:00 p.m. The address is 45 John Frank Ward Boulevard, McDonough, Georgia.

Come out and visit or pick up a personalized copy of all three books.

Great Book on Georgia Mysteries by Don Rhodes

2010-04-13T15:37:00.000-07:00

Recently, I had to opportunity to start an email friendship with an author, Don Rhodes. Don has spent many years covering the country music (as well as some other genres) scene for various newspapers, mainly in the Augusta, Georgia area. He came upon one of my blogs and emailed me. Little did I know that he and I would have such a great time emailing one another. I will have the opportunity to meet him in person this summer when he does a book signing in the McDonough area.

Don has written Mysteries and Legends Georgia: True Stories of the Unsolved and Unexplained for Globe Pequot Press. This is a great book. In it, Don talks about some very interesting mysteries from the Peach State. Especially interesting is the mystery of where Button Gwinnett, a signer of the Declaration of Independence from Georgia, is buried. In addition there are stories about Susan Hayward, the lost gold of the Confederacy, John Ross and the Cherokees, Jimmy Carter and the UFO, the curse on Jacksonborough, and the Georgia Guidestones. I have blogged about a few of them here before. I especially appreciate Don's sense and love of history. Not only is this book a good read for those looking for nice little mysteries from Georgia, it is quite educational in the sense that he has included the history behind a lot of the areas from where these stories of mystery originate.

Don is a great writer, which shows in this book. I highly encourage my readers to check out a copy of this book, and Google his name to see the other fascinating titles he has to offer!

Bigfoot Sightings Still Happening in Georgia: Clinch County October 2009

2010-03-28T08:44:00.000-07:00

It appears that the hairiest residents of the Peach State continue to be noticed by innocent by-standers just passing through. The latest sighting in Georgia, according to the researchers at the BFRO, was in October of last year in Clinch County.

Clinch County is located near the Florida border. It is one of the largest counties in the state by land mass, and there are tons of acres of forested, untouched areas in the county. The report in question here centers around a couple who was driving through the area on their way back home to Florida. Here is what they had to say. I have taken this from the report issued at the BFRO. This report can be found at www.bfro.net.

And I quote: "On October 7, 2009 at about 11:30 pm , my wife and I were returning to Weeki Wachee , Florida from a trip to North Carolina . We were driving south on US 441 in an unpopulated area at about 65mph. We were about halfway between Homerville and Fargo which is slightly west of the Okefenokee Swamp . It was very dark with very scant traffic and we were the only car in sight. There were no other lights visible anywhere and no houses or businesses anywhere around. My wife had turned on the map light because we were getting low on gas and we needed to check the distance to the nearest probable area for gas. She was looking down at the map and didn't see it, but she sure smelled it. Years before , we had been camping in the Okefenokee Swamp and were aware of the wildlife diversity. I have hunting , camping , and Brazilian jungle experience and I am not easily frightened, but this shook me up. It was an instinctive reaction similar to when you have a surprise encounter with a poisonous snake.

I saw a very dark brown/black constant colored tall humanoid figure standing on the left shoulder of the road , quarter facing toward the road and toward the direction of our travel. The figure was standing still, very vertically erect with both arms loosely down at its sides. I couldn't see any facial features or individual features of hands or feet. I estimate it to be about 7 ft. tall and weigh between 200 and 300 pounds. It was lanky rather than stocky and was not crouching forward , but was standing very vertical. The smell coming into the car vent was very powerfull and was a combination of sewerlike and a strong musky animal odor. There was a small animal roadkill a few yards down the highway that was fresh , so that wouldn't account for the fowl odor. We conjectured that the creature had smelled the roadkill and came out of the woods to investigate. The hair on the head was long and stringy, but the rest of the body hair seemed only two or three inches long and layed down rather than sticking out in a fuzzy fashion. The thing that struck me was that I couldn't see any facial features or varied colors around the hand areas.

We thought about turning around to re- investigate, but in the middle of the night , I frankly didn't think it was prudent. We proceeded to the next major intersection to buy gas, and I asked the station employees if anyone else had mentioned something unusual or if there were any kind of unusual wildlife sightings in the area. They answered 'no'. That was the end of our incident.

All but one of the sketches I have ever seen of creatures anything like this , showed a more stocky crouching ape-like creature. What I saw was a tall, lanky , humanoid creature that looked almost "helmeted" because of the way the head hair fell straight down similar to a woman with long straight hair. I could see no neck . I don't know what I saw but I will never stop my car at night anywhere that area."

The above report was investigated by BFRO researcher Ken Johnson, who found that the couple was very credible. Johnson added this to the website as a result of his follow-up interview with the couple.

And I quote: "I spoke to this witness by phone, and he described his credible encounter in great detail, both in the report, and also as he related it to me. I can add a few details to his account after speaking with him.

The figure he saw looked tall and lanky, and looked rather 'spider-monkey-like' to the witness, rather than stocky and ape-like, as he has heard of other bigfoot-type descriptions. It also had arms that were longer than those of a human's, reaching almost to it's knees.

The animal did not seem to react, or to be concerned by the passing of their car, but seemed fixed on something nearby, possibly the road-kill that the witness and his wife mentioned as being a short distance down the road.

When the couple stopped for gas and asked some of the locals if they were aware of any unusual animal sightings in the area, one man told them, after hearing the description of the animal they had just seen, 'you saw a swamp ape'.

Additionally, the witness told me that this sighting had been quite disturbing for him, even though he is not normally shaken by most situations. He also said that if armed, and presented with a situation in which it became necessary to shoot at one of these animals, it's human-like appearance would make that very difficult to do."

Of all the Bigfoot research organizations that handle sightings nationwide, I trust the BFRO the most. Not that everyone else is lying, but the BFRO has such a vast network of supporters, a high standard for those conducting research and following up on reports, and a membership with diverse skills, that they stand very tall in a crowded field. If anything, this report signifies that people are seeing something in Georgia, and the activity continues to this day. Clinch County, if you know anything about it, has a lot of the very things that Bigfoot researchers tell us are needed to sustain such a species. Interesting.....

A Haunting In Georgia: Interview with Joyce Cathey

2010-03-16T10:47:00.000-07:00

Since opening the blog, I have had several people request that I do something on the Heidi Wyrick saga that was documented by The Discovery Channel's "A Haunting." The episode was called "A Haunting in Georgia." It featured the Wyrick family of Southwest Georgia, a family that had been tormented by the presence of spirits in their homes and on their family property.

Recently, I caught up with Joyce Cathey, Heidi's aunt, who has co-written a book about the ordeal called THE VEIL: HEIDI WYRICK'S STORY. Her co-author was Rebecca Harrington. Joyce is a very pleasant woman, who enjoys discussing what she and her family has gone through with anyone interested in learning about the subject. As a matter of fact, there is a movie deal in the works. I emailed Joyce some questions and she was kind enough to email me back the answers. Thanks, JOYCE!!!
The email interview is below. GM=Georgia Mysteries, and JC=Joyce Cathey

For those of you who are not familiar with this story, click on the title of this blog article, and it will take you to the website that the Wyricks and Joyce have established. Also, check out "A Haunting in Georgia" on The Discovery Channel.

GM:Why do you think what happened did happen to your family?
JC: We do not know why these things happened. This questions is asked a lot and believe me, we have searched for answers for the past 20 years and are still searching. I don’t think we will ever know for sure.

GM:What more can you tell me about Heidi's interaction with Mr. Gordy?
JC:Heidi began talking to Mr. Gordy at the age of three. Her initial interactions consisted of almost daily visitations and she’s had many conversations with him. She has memories of him pushing her on the swing and helping her learn to ride her bike. But after the Unsolved Mysteries episode aired she became the target of comical antics from her school mates and was treated very badly through her middle school years. Heidi eventually stopped talking about Mr. Gordy. She hated the fact that she was gifted, if you will, and tried to shut it out and as time progressed his visits became less frequent.

GM:Were there any negative vibes associated with Mr. Gordy?
JC: There were never any negative vibes from Mr. Gordy. She always did, and still does, feel that he was her protector of sorts.

GM:Have you or anyone else associated with the haunting ever contacted or been contacted by the Gordy family?
JC: My sister, Lisa’s mother, talked with Mr. Gordy’s daughter on a few occasions and also kept contact through letters. She visited with Heidi on a few occasions but lived in Florida. She asked Heidi to tell her dad that she loved him. Mr. Gordy’s daughter is recently deceased.

GM: Do things continue to happen now?
JC: Things still continue to happen although not as frequent as when she was younger.

GM: How does the family handle these things?
JC: Things were very difficult for the Wyrick family in the beginning because no one knew what was happening. As you know, it was several years before the connection was made and his identity was confirmed. The Wyrick’s had a lot of support through their family, friends, and also their extended church family. My mom was raised in north Georgia and a place known as ‘Hainted Holler’. She, too, was born with a veil and has always been able to see things, though her abilities were not as strong a Heidi’s. So we were always familiar with stories of the spirit world and believed that there was something beyond our own dimension.

GM: Tell me more about the book and how it came about.
JC: When the events shifted from benign to becoming violent I knew I had to document them. Initially I wrote them down just to keep up for our family, but interest throughout the community ran high and after recounting the same story over and over again, I had no choice but to publish the things I’d written.

GM: What can you tell me about the upcoming movie about the hauntings?
JC: Gold Circle/Lions Gate films bought Heidi’s life rights in March, 2009. The status has now in the production phase and filming is slated to begin in late spring or early summer. Hopefully, it will hit theaters in the fall.

I will be researching "Hainted Holler" as I can. This sounds like a very interesting place. Joyce even mentioned that she was interested in doing a book signing in McDonough at Bell, Book and Candle in the near future. I have been working on getting that set up with the owners of the bookstore. This is where I have done both of my book signings.

Georgia Bigfoot Shot and Killed in 1943?

2010-02-15T15:09:00.000-08:00

In my recent correspondence with Wayne Ford, the journalist at the Athens Banner-Herald about which I wrote in my Bigfoot in Georgia book, I learned that there was a mysterious story about a Bigfoot in Georgia that was shot and killed. This story appears in John Green's book, Sasquatch: The Apes Among Us, published in 1978.

According to the story, which appears on page 370-371 of the book, the story of this killing was told to a man named Rich Grumley, who was with a bigfoot research group based in California. This was not the BFRO, as the BFRO was not founded until the 1990s. A man told this story to Grumley. Rich Grumley has since passed away, according to an article in The Bigfoot Times from July 2009. Nevertheless, the story goes that in 1943, a county in Georgia experienced the mysterious slaughtering of sheep and calves. The animals had been attacked by something that was pulling their legs off. The county must have been in the North Georgia Mountains, for it was said that local men chased the perpetrator onto a small mountain where they shot it 60 times, one slug hitting it in the eye and piercing the brain. The men collected the dead carcass, loading it on back of a pickup truck and bringing it back in to a nearby town. The man who reported this story to Grumley said that the animal was so large that its torso was wider than the back of the pickup and its feet dragged the ground due to it being so long. The animal was covered with reddish-brown hair, but the palms of the hand, face, and soles of its feet were bare. There was minimal hair on its head and chest, and like so many Bigfoot sightings, there was a terrible stench associated with the creature. The report goes on to mention that the animal was buried under a pile of rocks.

Like Wayne Ford, I speculate that the story may be more legend than fact. Granted, as Ford stated in a letter to me, a small mountain town newspaper might not have had access to a national wire service to report such an event, but most surely this incident would have been plastered all over the front page of the local paper. The problem here is that noone associated with this report knows in what town this took place, or supposedly took place. Nothing comes up in a news search. It would have been the talk of the area had it happened. However, as I cannot confirm this report, I cannot in good conscience totally deny that it happened. Afterall, 1943 was smack dab in the middle of World War II. The biggest "boogers" out there to most people, especially in the South, were the Nazis, Facists, and Japanese. Many boys were fighting overseas, and reports from the war front would more than likely have dominated the news at that time-local and state, not to mention national. Perhaps this was an isolated rural incident that took place in a town with NO local paper, so the residents of the community had to rely on a paper from another place. With so much going on-war, depression, Communist scare-perhaps there was not much attention paid to this by news reporters at the time.

If anyone has ever heard this story in their locality, please email me. I would love to find out more about it. John Green was contacted by Wayne Ford, and Green knew no more than what was printed in his book. Grumley has died, and noone knows the name of the man who reported to Grumley. Stumped, I am!!!

Reese Christian, Author of Ghosts of Atlanta, To Appear at Bell, Book and Candle

2010-02-15T11:41:00.001-08:00

Reese Christian, the author of Ghosts of Atlanta, will be doing a book signing and book discussion at Bell Book and Candle in McDonough on Saturday, February 20th starting at 1:30. She will sign copies of her book, as well as copies of the 25th anniversary DVD of the movie Poltergeist, on which she was a guest commentator for the special bonus footage on that anniversary edition.

She will also be the guest speaker on the McDonough Haunted History Tour, and will be leading an investigation at Bell, Book and Candle, as well as other "haunted" locations in downtown McDonough later that evening.

Reese's website can be located at www.reesechristian.com.
For more information, call Bell Book and Candle at 770-957-1880 or email them at bellbooksandcandle@hotmail.com.

More Good Reviews for Bigfoot in Georgia: This one from the Southeast Sasquatch Association

2010-02-05T11:54:00.000-08:00

I just saw where the owner of the blog, Southeast Sasquatch Association, reviewed my book today. Here is his post on his website. Click on the title of this article to see the website. Here is a clipping and pasting of his comments:

Taken from the Southeast Sasquatch Society Website:

"Friday, February 05, 2010
Book Review: Bigfoot In Georgia by Jeffery Wells

Really good book on reports from the Peach State

This book, written by the social sciences and education department chairman for Georgia Military College's Atlanta campus, is a really terrific treatise of reports from the southern state. It covers reports mainly from a logical area, the North Georgia Mountains, mainly the northern counties in the Peach State. There are also reports from the metro Atlanta area near the town of Newnan, the same area the movie Deliverance was filmed in. Sightings from southern Georgia are also profiled, more particularly the Georgia/north Florida border. There is also an entire chapter devoted to the fairly famous Elkins Creek cast, which was examined by Jeff Meldrum and Jimmy Chilcutt and given the stamp of approval. Names such as the Belk/Belt Road Booger and the Happy Valley Horror are given to localized Sasquatch creatures, and frightening encounters are also recounted. Organizations such as the Georgia Bigfoot group are profiled, along with a reporter, Wayne Ford, who not only writes about Sasquatch, he investigates them as well. The recent infamous hoax is skimmed over very quickly and hardly mentioned, which is a good thing, because the book is really good and informative enough without it. I highly recommend this book, which from what I understand is the first in a series highlighting reports from all 50 states. **** out of *****
Posted by bf2006 at 9:45:00 AM"

Chad Arment, Author of The Historical Bigfoot, reviews my book, Bigfoot in Georgia, on his blog

2010-01-27T10:24:00.000-08:00

Chad Arment, who wrote the book "The Historical Bigfoot," reviewed my book," Bigfoot in Georgia," on his blog at www.strangeark.com. I have clipped and pasted his review below. A link to his blog can be accessed by clicking on the title to this post. Overall, it was a positive review.

This is taken from his blogsite, www.strangeark.com/blog, author and creator-Chad Arment.

"Monday, January 04, 2010
Bigfoot in Georgia

The publisher recently sent me a copy of Jeffery Wells' Bigfoot in Georgia, so I'll note a few things here for potential readers. First the basics:

Bigfoot in Georgia
Jeffery Wells
Pine Winds Press (Idyll Arbor); 2010
ISBN 978-0-937663-17-2
165 pp., retails for $18.00

Let me start off pointing out that Amazon currently has the book discounted (on pre-order) to a bit over $12, so don't be afraid of the $18 price tag.

The book covers Bigfoot sightings in Georgia, including regional Native American tales, some early newspaper accounts, and other stories up to the present day. There is discussion in the first chapter on the overall history of Bigfoot sightings, another chapter discusses the Elkins Creek cast, and he devotes a fair bit of text to specific organizations or researchers (for example, a chapter on journalist Wayne Ford).

The author is a professor at Georgia Military College (Atlanta campus), and his ability to write is certainly above par for the subject. This is a decent state guide on the topic, and the author handles it objectively. It looks like most of the reports come from other researchers and organizations, so the scope of sightings may be familiar to the more well-versed Bigfoot enthusiasts. That's not a bad thing -- if anything, more regional Bigfoot organizations need to seek out individuals like Wells to organize and write up their files in a professional manner. Too many guides (or websites) are haphazard or don't convey an objective approach to the subject. I would have liked to have seen a more thorough survey of sightings in this book, but I suspect it would be too difficult to manage that while dealing with the various personalities in Bigfoot research. That's one reason I don't bother with this topic much myself."

Upcoming Book Signing for In Atlanta or in Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900 and other media items

2010-01-08T20:49:00.001-08:00

I will be in Cobb County signing copies of In Atlanta or in Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900 on Saturday, February 6th from 9:00-10:30 a.m. for Eagle Eye Book Shop at their set up at the Southeastern Flower Show in the Cobb Galleria. Eagle Eye Book Shop is located in Decatur, and I did a book signing at their bookstore back in October on the night before Halloween. If you are in the area, drop in.

In addition, I have been contacted by James Wojonowski and Jeff Cooper of J2 Productions, a local production company in Henry County, about appearing in their documentary on the train crash. Others will be interviewed as well, but James wanted me to appear and discuss my research on the crash and the book. I really appreciate them asking, and I am a fan of their work. Check out their videos on Youtube. Go to www.youtube.com and search for Henry County Georgia or McDonough, Georgia and several of their videos should come up.

Caprice Walker of Bell, Book and Candle is working with me on organizing a book signing for my new book Bigfoot in Georgia very soon. I will update you on when that will be.

I will also be a guest speaker at Paranormal Expo 2010 in downtown Atlanta on January 30th. I will be discussing Bigfoot in Georgia. This is being sponsored by our good friend, Dr. William Lester, on whose show I have appeared several times. I am excited about being asked to be there, and it looks like he has some pretty interesting people lined up to speak. I can't wait. Click on the title to the post to see his website and information on the event.

The Atlanta Ripper-Who was the serial killer stalking the African American Community in Atlanta in the early 1900s?

2010-01-03T09:04:00.000-08:00

For four years in Atlanta, beginning in 1911, someone terrorized the African American community and became known as the Atlanta Ripper, a play off the name of the famous London killer in the Whitechapel district in the late 1800s known as "Jack the Ripper." For those four years, an unknown killer, or as some put it, killers, roamed the dark streets of Atlanta, preying upon young African American women, as well as some of mixed race. The list of victims swelled to over 20 people, as the city was in the grips of fear over where and against whom the fiend would strike next.

The Atlanta Ripper claimed his first victim in January 1911 with the murder of Rosa Trice. Trice's body was found near Gardner Street, and it was in a severe state. Her head was crushed and her throat was cut, some saying it was slashed from ear to ear. Other victims were found in the Grant Park area, and by the spring of 1911, the killing spree had grown. Other victims included Belle Walker, Addie Watts, Lena Sharpe, Sadie Holley, as well as others. Perhaps the most frightening encounter came with Emma Lou Sharpe, a young woman that many think came face to face with the Atlanta Ripper AFTER he had killed her mother.

On July 1, 1911, Emma Lou Sharpe, at home on Hanover Street, was awaiting the return of her mother, Lena Sharpe, who had gone shopping for groceries. Realizing that it was dangerous out on the streets because of all the murders, Emma Lou became worried about her mother after she had been gone for over an hour. Knowing it was not the better part of wisdom to go looking for her, Emma Lou decided against her best judgement and went out on the streets. She left home and went to the market in search of her mother. She was terrified to find that her mother had never gotten there. While she was returning home, she came upon a stranger, a tall black man with broad shoulders and donning a broad-brimmed black hat, according to Corrina Underwood in her book Murder and Mystery in Atlanta. The man spoke to Emma Lou, asking her how she was feeling. She replied that she was fine, after which she began to walk away. The man stood in her way and told her not to be afraid. He further commented that he never hurt "girls like you." He was definitely lying, as seconds after he spoke those words, he pulled a knife out and stabbed Emma Lou in the back. Luckily, Emma made it to safety, as she ran screaming from the scene. A crowd of neighbors heard her cries and came running. The stranger was nowhere to be found, but at least Emma was okay. The same could not be said for her poor mother. Her body was found later, and it was deduced she was dead by the time Emma Lou was out on the streets in the midst of her encounter with what most definitely must have been the Atlanta Ripper.

Another young woman had an encounter with the Atlanta Ripper and lived to tell about it. Her name was Mary Yedell, and she was a 22 year old cook in the employ of W.M. Selcer. When leaving for home on Saturday, July 8, 1911, she encountered a stranger who she described as tall and black. She was so frightened that she ran screaming back to the Selcer home and alerted her boss. He ran in to the alley where he found the stranger and confronted him. The man disappeared in to the darkness and was not seen afterwards by anyone involved in the incident. Young Mary Yedell had fortunately escaped with her life. That was not the case with over two dozen other young African American women on the streets of Atlanta.

There were several arrests made including Todd Henderson, Henry Huff, John Daniel, Henry Brown, and Charlie Owens. However, Todd Henderson and Henry Huff were brought to trial and found not guilty; after the arrest and incarceration of John Daniel, murders continued casting the shadow of doubt on Daniel as the murderer or at least making it appear that he did not work alone; Henry Brown was acquitted after it was revealed that the Atlanta police had beaten a confession out of him, and Charlie Owens was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison for one of the murders. Many doubt that Owens was guilty, and others point to the fact that after Owens was put in jail, the murders continued.

So was Owens the only Atlanta Ripper? Was he one at all? Was there more than one, or was there only one, and the police never knabbed the right person? The killings did not stop until 1914 with the death of Laura Smith. Henry Harper was arrested as a suspect. However, there was never a definitive answer as to whether or not the men who were arrested and convicted worked alone, or if they were just copycat killers and the real Atlanta Ripper was still at large and was not responsible for ALL the murders. It was quite possible that there was more than one, and that they worked together, but most criminologists say that serial killers work alone. Was this the case with the Atlanta Ripper? In an interesting turn of events, according to Underwood in her book, during the trial of Leo Frank who was accused of the murder of Mary Phagan, it was said that Jim Conley, also a tall African American man, was involved in Phagan's murder. Detective W.J. Burns even went so far as to say that not only was Conley guilty of killing Phagan, but that Conley was also the Atlanta Ripper. As Underwood points out, nothing ever came of this and Conley has never been blamed for those crimes other than by Burns. The fact remains that the Atlanta Ripper murders are a mystery. Was it the work of one serial killer? If so, was he inspired (terrible choice of words I know, but need to make a point) by what he read of Jack the Ripper some decades earlier in London? Or were some of these killings the work of a copycat killer(s)???? This is a very interesting true crime story from right here in Georgia.

Bigfoot in Georgia. The BOOK IS FINALLY HERE!!!

2009-12-16T19:49:00.000-08:00

After almost two years in the making, my book, Bigfoot in Georgia, arrived today on my front porch. Well, I mean my 20 free author copies. However, what this means is that the book has now been released. Amazon.com has been selling them in advance, but I am not sure if they will reach buyers before Christmas. However, in the south Atlanta metro area, Bell, Book and Candle in downtown McDonough has a few copies. You will have to call and request a copy, however, Give them a call at 1-770-957-1880. If it is after store hours, leave them a message and they will get back to you. They will set up an over the phone payment and arrange for the book to be sent directly to you, and if you call in time, it will be delivered before Christmas if you like. If you would like to come in and get your copy, you still need to call ahead to reserve your copy to make sure it is there when you come by to pick it up. After the first of the year, however, they will have plenty on the shelves for walk-in business. It will take a few weeks before Barnes and Nobles, Borders and Books A Million has it on their sites, but they are going to pick it up as well. There will be other bookstores around the state carrying them in January, but the marketing process has just begun to take place since the books came off the press and were delivered today for the first time ever.

I hope you enjoy it. I sat and read my own book today in four hours straight. I must say that although I wrote it, reading it this afternoon was like seeing it for the first time. Bigfoot stories and material is VERY INTERESTING!!!

Bigfoot in Fulton County? Well, at least in 1961!

2009-12-15T18:45:00.000-08:00

Fulton County, Georgia's most populous county, and the home of Atlanta. With almost 1 million people in Fulton County, it would be the last place that anyone would search for a bigfoot, and for the most part, it is more than plausible to think that there would not be much sasquatch activity in the county today. However, in 1961, one of the most interesting reports of bigfoot activity came from Fulton County, which, at that time, still had a great deal of rural areas, especially in the southern portion of the county.

Matt Pruitt, a bigfoot researcher, investigator for the BFRO, and a good friend of mine, handled this report. The events in question happened in 1961, but the report was not made to the BFRO until 2003. The delay can certainly be explained by the fact that the internet had a great deal to do with the ease of reporting bigfoot sightings anonymously. Most people shy away from talking about their experiences via newspaper, radio and television for fear of ridicule. While the internet has also done its fair share of making hoaxes easier, it has also made people who have seen and heard things more inclined to use it as a venue for discussion. Such may be the case with the person who reported this event to Matt.

It appears that in 1961, a family lived in a house with a basement in south Fulton County near the Campbellton Road. That year during the fall, the children of the family were playing in the yard of the house where they lived with their mother and grandparents. They had moved in with them after the death of their father. This is when they came in to contact with what they thought was a gorilla. The animal was underneath the house inside the unfinished basement. The children were frightened of it, and they decided to throw rocks at it. This illicited no real response from the animal, only a smile. The children retreated from the area and sought the safety of their mother. They returned to the spot later only to find the animal gone.

The report goes on to say that the family, through the coming years, would find very large footprints nearby, and more frightening, they would experience something looking in the windows of the home. Whatever it was had red glowing eyes. (There are a number of bigfoot reports where the animal was reported to be looking through the windows and doors of homes and other buildings. This is not uncommon behavior for these animals at all. Red eyes are also common in these reports. Researchers tell us that some of these animals do have red glowing eyes in the darkness.) In addition, family members would find apple cores near the tracks. It was apparent that the animal ate apples and would leave the core behind. It more than likely got them from the apple tree growing behind the family home. (Gees, it could have at least taken off its trash if it was going to steal apples from the family tree.)

As Matt investigated this report further by talking to the man who experienced this as a child, he found more details. Apparently, the children got close enough to the animal to notice how human-like its face was. Also, it did not seem threatening, for when the children drew near, it appeared to smile at them. The fur covered the creature making it appear gorilla-like.

Upon further inspection, Matt found that family members indeed saw these animals numerous times through the years. One incident involved one of these animals stealing eggs from the family's chicken coop. Others included them stealing and eating apples directly from the family's apple tree, and loud shrieks and screams coming from the woods nearby. These animals were seen peering in to the family's windows from time to time. The neighbors were well aware of their presence, and it was thought that a family of them lived in the area.

Fulton County, even in the southern portion, is very much different today than it was in 1961. There are still some rural parts, especially around Palmetto, Union City, and Fairburn. However, those small towns are growing and the urban sprawl is cropping up everywhere there too. I doubt this family group of sasquatches is still there. Naturally, they would have died out after 48 years, but their offsprings would perpetuate the group. However, I am willing to bet that as human encroachment on their living and hunting grounds has happened, what remained of them moved on. This could explain so many sightings in Fayette, Paulding, Coweta, and Douglas Counties. Perhaps there has been movement. The urban sprawl of Atlanta would have moved southward in to the lower portion of Fulton County, so perhaps this family group spread out and moved on, thus moving in to other nearby wooded areas, which could be in some of those other counties. Maybe, just maybe, this might account for the increased sightings over the last 30 years in those areas. This is just a hunch. Noone knows for sure. However, in my book Bigfoot in Georgia, I deal with the possible displacement of these animals in the last chapter. I discuss movement, how human and urban sprawl might be affecting these animals, and what possible ramifactions may come about as a result of this.

A family of Fulton County Sasquatches!!! Who would have thought. Better be careful out there my hairy friends. Some of those fast-talking Fulton politicians might come round trying to register you to vote!!!!

Book Signing at Barnes and Nobles Was Great!!

2009-12-13T07:07:00.000-08:00

The book signing at Barnes and Nobles in Morrow, Georgia this past Friday night was great. Although we only sold about six books, that was great for a big chain book signing with a regional book. Bell, Book and Candle still holds the record for my train crash book. The book signing there sold 24 copies, and so far they have sold almost 50 copies of the book. They are really great promoters. I appreciate all that they do.

We are working on a date for the first book signing for Bigfoot in Georgia. I plan on holding it at Bell, Book and Candle as well. That will more than likely be some time in the early part of 2010. Also, I have been contacted by a lady in Dublin, Georgia who wants me to come and do a book signing there. I think we may try to set something up for the early spring on that one.

Post on the Fayette County Bigfoot Sighting Is Picked Up by the Fayette County Newspaper

2009-12-10T19:44:00.001-08:00

It appears that the article I posted on December 5th about a bigfoot sighting in Fayette County is getting a lot of attention. The Citizen reporter Ben Nelms posted an article about it at the paper's website. You can access the site by clicking on the title of this post above.

The paper mentions that the story was picked up off this very blog. I am glad that word is getting around about this blog. If you are interested in more sightings and legends concerning the Georgia Bigfoot, or stories from Creek and Indian lore about this alleged creature, you won't want to miss my book "Bigfoot in Georgia" which is already available by pre-order at Amazon.com, and will be released on December 16th. Locally, in the South Metro Atlanta area, the book will be carried at Bell, Book and Candle in downtown McDonough. You can order your copy there by calling 770-957-1880. They will ship one to you from the store.

Check out The Citizen Online and see the story about the Fayette sighting. Meanwhile, I have other reports and strange sightings to talk about from the Fayette, Coweta, Paulding, South Fulton, and Douglas County area. Keep reading!!!

On the Trail of the Georgia Bigfoot...Latest Sighting-Fayette County

2009-12-05T18:56:00.000-08:00

The Georgia Bigfoot, other than being the title of my next book, is also an ongoing mystery in the Peach State. With sightings dating back to the early 1800s in Georgia, and ranging from the mountains to the coast, there is much to be said for the possible existence of the elusive creature in Georgia.

One organization that continues to stay on the hunt for the Georgia Bigfoot, and I use the word hunt not in the sense of find and kill, but of gathering evidence, is the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization. Their database is full of credible eyewitness accounts and sightings from all over Georgia. The following was one of the most recent reported in the state. The link to this report can be found by clicking the title of this post. They are a top-notch organization with membership all over the nation. Their site can be found at www.bfro.net.

According to the report, this sighting comes from Fayette County, a rapidly growing county in the southwest portion of the Atlanta metropolitan area. It is the home to Fayetteville, Peachtree City, Tyrone, and other communities that are experiencing the throngs of the urban sprawl of Atlanta. The county is still rural enough that there are a number of dark country roads. This is apparently where the sighting took place.

The person who reported this sighting said that it occured on July 17, 2009, this past summer while she was driving home on Lee's Mill Road. The driver was rounding a curve around 11:00 p.m. that evening when she saw something crossing the road in front of her. The animal was caught in the headlights of her car. The animal walked upright on two legs, was slim, and had greyish-brown hair. The driver mentioned that the animal never stopped to look at her, but simply trotted across the highway into the Fayette County darkness. The night was clear, no rain, and the driver felt very comfortable with her description.

This area of Georgia, Fayette and Coweta County, have been rich with sightings of these animals. One may remember the Belt Road Booger or the Happy Valley Horror near Newnan. But Fayette County has a share of sightings, especially near Peters Road and other rural parts of the county.

So what is it that is hanging out in the dark night in Fayette County? Does the Georgia Bigfoot still roam the rural area of Fayette County? Is the development the area is seeing stirring up these animals and distrupting their habitats? It seems that sightings in this area are on the rise. Could this be a product of urban sprawl and population? Once again, the legend of the Georgia Bigfoot is huge. Fayette County is just one of the many places the legend lives on.

Article on the train wreck in the latest edition of Georgia Backroads Magazine

2009-12-04T08:35:00.000-08:00

I am pleased to announce that the article I wrote a little while back on the Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900 is one of the featured stories in this winter's edition of Georgia Backroads Magazine. The magazine's website can be accessed by clicking on the title of this blog article. The cover is pictured above and is taken from their website, www.georgiabackroads.com. This is an interesting magazine that includes great stories about Georgia history, travel, and nature. I wrote the article about a year ago even before I had the contract to publish the book. The article was revised to include a copy of the cover of my book and some of the photos in the book. Check it out. I love this magazine.

Upcoming Appearances and Book Signings

2009-11-29T12:47:00.000-08:00

I am so grateful to all of you who have sent me emails asking about book signings for the Bigfoot book. Since the book will not be out until December 16th, and the holidays are so soon after that, I more than likely will not be doing any book appearances for Bigfoot in Georgia until after the new year. However, I will be doing a book signing for In Atlanta or in Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900 at the Barnes and Nobles in Morrow for their fundraiser for Morrow High School on Friday, December 11th at 7:00 p.m. The Barnes and Nobles will be donating sales that night to the Morrow High School. The book signing is actually a book discussion and signing. It is being sponsored by the Barnes and Nobles of Morrow and the history department of Morrow High School from what I am told.

In addition, I will be the guest on the Dr. William Lester Show on Saturday night, December 5th from 10:00 p.m. until 12:00 a.m. We will be talking about the release of Bigfoot in Georgia, my blog, and the train crash book. It is quite possible that Caprice Walker, the owner of Bell, Book and Candle and the McDonough Haunted History Tours will be joining me on the show. That day is her birthday :), so I am not sure if she will be around or not. Hopefully, she will because there was a paranormal investigation at the bookstore on November 14th, and there were quite a few things that happened. She will really want to talk about those if she joins us. I plan to blog about one of those incidents here.

I hope you can tune in. The radio show is located at www.gameconradio.com. Please listen in, and join us at the book signing on the 11th if you can.

My Latest Book-Bigfoot in Georgia Released on December 16, 2009

2009-11-22T13:42:00.000-08:00

My latest book, Bigfoot in Georgia, is going to be available starting December 16, 2009. As you might know, this was the first book I wrote, but has been under contract since summer 2008 being prepped for publication. The book chronicles the history of sightings, legends, Native American folklore and modern searches related to Bigfoot in Georgia. It is available for preorder right now from Amazon.com. Click on the title of this post and it will take you right to the page on Amazon.com where you can order it. It will also be available at Bell, Book and Candle in McDonough, Georgia. You can call them at 770-957-1880 to reserve your copy.

The Devil's Turnaround: Is There a Malevolent Spirit in This Marietta Graveyard?

2009-11-21T17:46:00.000-08:00

History Press has a series of books called Haunted America. One of the books in that series is called Haunted Marietta by Rhetta Akamatsu. On October 30th, in Decatur, I had the privilege of meeting Rhetta at a joint book signing we did at Eagle Eye Book Shop. Reece Christian, author of Ghosts of Atlanta, was also there signing books.

One of the stories she recounts in her book is about a cemetery in Marietta called the Devil's Turnaround. The cemetery, according to Akamatsu, is associated with an African-American church in the area that was founded in the 1800s. There are old graves in this graveyard, some dating back to the 1860s. Apparently, burials are still taking place there, as there are also some plots as recent as 2006. The reason the graveyard is called the Devil's Turnaround is due to strange activity that happens there, as well as the fact that the older graves are aligned in a semicircle for some reason.

Akamatsu says that there is a lot of activity in this cemetery of the human kind, as well as the supernatural. Apparently, there is a good bit of vandalism, but there also appears to be cult activity there as well. She and her team have visited the cemetery and seen holes where bodies had been dug up. She has also found snakes with their heads cut off, and there have also been reports of dead dogs being buried in shallow graves there. Perhaps this is what has contributed to what Akamatsu says is a malevolent spirit present in the cemetery.

Paranormal research groups have gone to the graveyard and investigated. On a recording, one researcher picked up a voice (possible EVP) that said, "I think I'll kick you." Other weird happenings include large objects being picked up and hurled through the air by some unseen force. Some visitors and researchers at the cemetery have reported being bitten, scratched, and bruised without knowing how these things happened to them. Investigations at this graveyard have been featured on such television shows as TruTV's Haunting Evidence. Patrick Burns of the Atlanta Ghost Hounds, once visited the cemtery and when he returned home that night, he discovered a deep scratch on his arm as he disrobed for bed. He was unsure as to how the mark got there, and did not remember feeling anything at all in the cemetery, especially anything that could have left a mark as deep as it was. Other visitors to the graveyard have reported things being thrown at them, bite marks on their arms, and being lifted off the ground by unseen hands.

So what is it that seems to taunt visitors to the Devil's Turnaround in Marietta? Could it be that vandals, cult rituals, and other nonsense have roused an evil presence that was there? Or is it the spirit of some soul buried on the grounds who does not like his/her resting place being the scene of such activity? Urban legends about this place abound. What can be certain is that something strange is going on at the Devil's Turnaround.

Georgia Tech Student Mystery-What Happened to Joseph Morse?

2009-11-06T06:09:00.000-08:00

I have been doing a bit more research on missing persons in Georgia. There are quite a few. One of my readers has sent me information on a missing person from Douglas County from several decades ago, and I am doing some research on that one now. But not long ago, in a webpage where I had been looking at a theory about what happened to Tara Grinstead, I spotted something that caught my eye. It was about a young college student from Ohio who had enrolled and completed a year of classes at Georgia Tech, but disappeared in the spring of 2000.

His name is Joseph Morse. He was from Cincinnati, Ohio and had checked out Georgia Tech with his family back in the spring of 1999 and fell in love with the school. He enrolled as a civil engineering major in the fall of that year. Later, he would change his major to mechanical engineering, but sadly enough, he would never graduate from the school.

Joe, as he was called, was an ideal student. He was a graduate of Moeller High School in the Cincinnati area, graduating 23 out of a class of 203. He ran track, had lots of friends, made good grades, and devoted some of his spare time to charitable and civic events and organizations. Anyone would be proud to have had him as a son. Georgia Teach really appealed to him because he wanted to be in an urban environment like Atlanta with good weather. It was gravy that the school had such a good national reputation in engineering. Originally, Joe had set his sights on schools like MIT and Stanford. Georgia Tech was lucky to have him. Once he arrived at Tech, he was placed in the Towers Dormitory. He even became the president of his hall council at Towers, and he even ended the fall semester with a 3.4 GPA. He was well on his way to becoming a successful student, and then, a successful engineer.

He came home over the Christmas holidays, and his family reported nothing weird. He was just Joe, they said. Once back at school at Tech for the spring semester, he changed his major to civil engineering. He even was able to land a co-op job with the Caterpillar company at a location in Illinois for the coming fall semester, which meant that he would have to take classes in the summer and stay in the dorms there during that time so he would not get behind in his studies since the co-op position would mean he would not be able to take classes that fall while working at Caterpillar. That Easter, he was able to come home, and once again, his parents said nothing was out of the ordinary. He did seem to sleep alot that weekend, but that was nothing alarming to his folks, as they thought it was normal behavior for a college student.

But things had started falling apart for Joe that spring semester at Tech, and noone understands why. First, his grades began to plummet. He did okay in his engineering classes, but he all but stopped coming to his English class and his grades reflected that. His grades in his other classes began to slip as well. He even began to call home more often. His parents said that he phoned frequently, and it was pretty obvious that he was eager to get back home at the end of the semester. His arrangements were to leave his stuff in the dorm at the end of the semester, go home for a week break, and then return to Atlanta to take summer courses at Tech before going to Peoria, Illinois in the fall for the co-op job. To do this, he would have to enroll in summer classes and make arrangements to live in the dorm during the summer. After Joe's disappearance, his parents found out from the school that he had never even attempted to register for summer classes, and that he had not applied at all for housing in the dorms for the summer. This was very unlike Joe, for he was always quite diligent about taking care of his school business. Once more, his grades were nowhere near what they had been in the fall. All of this seemed to be out of character for Joe.

On May 6, 2000, Joe was to fly home to Cincinnati where his mom was waiting for him at the Dayton International Airport. He was flying standby, and if he was unable to get a flight, he would take a bus. That morning, his friends saw him leave the dorm room, go to the showers around 8:30 a.m., and nothing seemed unusual. One student commented that he was swinging his keychain around his finger like a coach normally does, and this was quite normal for Joe as well. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Keep in mind, all of the things mentioned above (falling grades, no arrangements for summer, and poor class attendance) were unbeknown to his family. They thought nothing was wrong. Apparently, Joe never made it to the airport that morning, but he did go to a local ATM at Lenox Square Mall and withdraw 120.00 out of his checking account. This was all he had in there. ATM cameras have him on camera doing this at 10:58 that morning. Those were the last images of Joseph Morse.

His mother waited for him at the airport, but he never arrived that day. She never heard from him by phone, and there was no email to her or other family members explaining the delay. But Joe was not on a plane or bus to Ohio that day. Joe never tried to come home that authorities are aware. The last place he was seen was at the ATM. Joe's parents began to contact the school, where they found that Joe never removed any of his clothes or belongings from his dorm room. He left his room with his glasses, wallet, and the clothes on his back, nothing more. He was wearing a plaid shirt and khaki Docker shorts. The ATM pictures show that he was wearing his glasses when he withdrew the money from the ATM. Parents and authorities circulated his picture and information about him around campus and the area, but noone had seen hair nor hide of him. It was as if Joseph Morse had just disappeared in thin air. His advisor reported that he had stopped answering his emails from him asking him to come meet with him about his classes and academic work. Joe seemed to let his school work slip severely during the spring semester. Campus police asked his friends and classmates about his behavior. They saw nothing strange. His roomate said that he would sleep in some mornings because as he left for classes, oftentimes, Joe would still be asleep in bed. But he did not see that as strange.

Noone seemed to know what happened to Joseph Morse. Then, four years later in 2004, a report circulated that police in Miami, Florida had discovered a body that had been dead since around May 7, 2000. The police were looking for the identity of a man they said broke in to a construction site, climbed a 187 foot crane and jumped. Some online researchers have said this was young Joseph Morse. One website even went so far as to say it was without a doubt Joseph Morse. That same site also said that according to Florida law, records on this body and cause of death would be sealed for 50 years, but that if one had a legal reason for inquiring, the records could be opened. It was also reported that Georgia Tech police had closed his file and that they had concluded the body was that of Joseph Morse.

Was the body they found in Miami, Florida in 2004 that of Joseph Morse? If so, why did he break in to a construction site and jump from a crane of almost 200 feet? What prompted him to stop attending class and let his school work go when it seemed to mean so much to him? Was he abducted and forced to do what he did? I would imagine that an abductor would find some easier way of disposing of a person. Climbing a huge crane like that is very odd in and of itself. Or was Joe planning something else and traveled to Miami for a different reason? Did he know someone down there? Was he suffering from something that made him temporarily delusional? Was this a trip he took with friends and they decided to mess around the construction site and crane for laughs as they were in Miami and when Joe fell, the rest got scared and fled? Noone has any clue how and when he arrived in Miami. If he died the next day after having been at Lenox Square at 10:58 a.m., then he must have left Atlanta for Miami sometime on the 6th or early in the morning on the 7th. But if the body was his, and he was there, how did he get there? When did he arrive? I have not read anything about the finding of the body from 2004 except what I have repeated here. Did the family find flight records or bus records showing he had traveled to Miami? This case is quite strange. If the body in Miami did not belong to him, then he is still out there, but noone knows where.

Weird Animal Spotted in Montgomery County-Could It be a panther or large cat???

2009-11-03T10:25:00.000-08:00

Periodically, I peruse the website of a local radio station near my hometown. They carry news, obituaries, local sports, and other things that interest me as a local from that area. Today, I looked at their site, and the first article was about a weird animal sighting near the community of Long Pond, which is a small community in Montgomery County, and is also the subject of a post about the Legend of the Long Pond Oak Trees I posted last week. Here is the text of the article from their website, which I have also linked on this blog. Just click on the title of this post and it will take you right to the site.

THE FOLLOWING IS THE ARTICLE TAKEN FROM THEIR VIDALIA COMMUNICATIONS WEBSITE:

What Was That??
Tuesday, 03 November 2009
November 3-- Do you have any idea what Jim saw? He provides the following story about what he saw late Monday near his home in Montgomery County. If you think you know what he saw, email us at zfowler@vidaliacommunications.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

"At dusk yesterday I drove up to the house and was greeted by my wife on the side porch with our two shelties. The dogs were barking and dancing around aggressively. My wife commented that they had been going on like that for the past half hour. As I walked up to the porch she exclaimed, “Jim what is THAT?” I looked across our yard toward the wood line at a side profile of a grayish brown feline shaped animal. (the head was hard to make out and appeared to be much darker) The animal was easily three times the size of our shelties and did not move for about 30 seconds. I said, ”It looks like a very large bobcat from here.” The feline shaped creature turned back toward the woods and slowly strolled off. As the animal entered the woods I saw a tail shaped like a hook swinging back and forth.

We live on a 200 acre spread just outside of Long Pond.

Thanks, Jim Beall

This is quite an interesting story. It sounds like a panther or large cat of sorts. There are quite a few reports of large cats roaming the woods of Georgia. This area is heavily wooded. It is a rural county of Georgia.

Happy Halloween

2009-10-31T06:21:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween. It is rainy here in metro-Atlanta. Hopefully, this won't discourage trick-or-treating. Today, I will be holding the second book signing for In Atlanta or In Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900. It will be held at Bell, Book and Candle from 11:00-3:00 p.m. Come join us if you are in the area.

Strange and Mysterious: My book recommendations

2009-10-30T07:53:00.000-07:00

I realize that the Halloween season is almost over, but several blog readers have emailed me and asked me for recommendations on some good Georgia mystery readings. I doubt you can get ahold of these books in time for Halloween, but then again, good mystery reading knows no real season. Here are some of my recommendations to you. I have ranked them.
1. Haunted Savannah by James Caskey
2. Shadow Chasers: The Woolfolk Tragedy Revisited by Carolyn DeLoach
3. The Mayor's Guide: The Stately Ghosts of Augusta by Scott A. Johnson
4. 13 Georgia Ghosts and Jeffrey by Kathryn Tucker Windham
5. Haunted Georgia: Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Peach State by Dr. Alan Brown
6. More Great Southern Mysteries by E. Randall Floyd
7. Ghosts of Atlanta: Phantoms of the Phoenix City by Reese Christian
8. Murder and Mystery in Atlanta by Corrina Underwood
9. Haunted Memories of McDonough by Dan Brooks and Caprice Walker
10. Ghost Stories of Georgia by Chris Wangler

I am sure that there are tons more, but these are the ones I find to be the most interesting. Perhaps one day soon, my Bigfoot in Georgia book will be on someone else's list of good Georgia mystery books. It will be released in January through Idyll Arbor/Pinewinds Press.

Book Signings This Weekend for In Atlanta or In Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900

2009-10-27T19:15:00.000-07:00

My new book "In Atlanta or In Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900" will be enjoying its first two of several book signings this weekend, just in time for Halloween. The first one will be Friday, October 30, 2009 in Decatur at Eagle Eye Book Shop. I will be there signing books with two other History Press authors. The address is 2076 N. Decatur Road. The number is 404-486-0307. We will be there from 6:30-8:00 p.m.

The second book signing will be the next day, Halloween Day, October 31st from 11:00 a.m. until 3:00 at Bell, Book and Candle at 42 John Frank Ward Boulevard in downtown McDonough. The number is 770-957-1880. At Bell, Book and Candle, the owners will be providing some light refreshments. After the book signing, the Haunted McDonough tour will be conducted. You might want to make reservations for that since it will be a big night. Last week, they had over 80 people on the tour.

My next book signing will not be until December 11th at Morrow High School in Morrow, Georgia. This will be sponsored by Barnes and Nobles and the History Department of Morrow High School. I will actually be doing a book discussion and signing there. This will be part of their annual book fair.

Come join me at any of these events. The Halloween signings will be a lot of fun.

The Legend of the Georgia Werewolf Girl

2009-10-27T11:56:00.000-07:00

Over time I have seen quite a bit of material on the legend of the Georgia Werewolf-Emily Isabella Burt. Apparently, Ms. Burt was a resident of Talbot County, a rural county in southwest Georgia between Macon and Columbus. The Burt family, a wealthy and prominent family in the Talbot County community, had several children. According to the late Nancy Roberts in her book "Georgia Ghosts" published by John F. Blair publishers in 1997, there was Sarah, Mildred, Emily Isabella and Joel. Mrs. Burt was widowed by the age of thirty-seven and had inherited a nice estate from her deceased husband.

Of all of her children, it appears that Emily Isabella was the one with the most problems. For one, she had inherited a lot of physical traits from her father, including dark hair and bushy eyebrows. However, she was said to have had sharp, white canine teeth that made her smile quite disturbing. In one report, Roberts claims that Emily Isabella's mother took her to a local dentist to see if the teeth could be altered in any way. He could do nothing for her. Soon afterwards, she fell ill and suffered from restless nights. The only thing that seemed to allay those sleepless nights was an elixir that contained opium. Nevertheless, the elixir was not fullproof, and some nights, Emily Isabella roamed the countryside. In addition to these strange issues, Emily Isabella had a fondness for reading, and her subject of choice was the supernatural. Given the fact that part of her mother's inheritance upon the death of her father was a vast collection of books, this affinity for reading was quite convenient. Even her mother was fond of this reading habit, as it was a way to keep an eye on Emily Isabella as she stayed home and read in the family library.

Legend has it that the beau of one of Emily Isabella's sisters, a William Gorman, reported to the Burts that something was killing his sheep. Fearful that this may soon be happening to her animals, Mrs. Mildred Burt became quite concerned. On ensuing visits, Gorman would recount stories about more sheep killings and that some of his cattle were killed as well. He was concerned about the killings and decided to take action. He reported that he was going to be putting together what amounted to a posse. Their intentions were to shoot and kill whatever beast was doing the damage. Emily Isabella was unusually interested in what was going on and what events had transgressed in the hunt for this animal.

On the night of the big hunt, Mildred Burt, who also had inherited more than a few guns and was a great markswoman, went out with her pistol. She apparently suspected that Emily Isabella was somehow involved with the killings and she wanted to be prepared for anything. As she was near the area, an animal lunged for her and she fired. It ran away. Interestingly enough, the next morning, it was reported that Emily Isabella was missing her left hand. After being taken to a local physician, her mother decided to send her to Paris to be treated by a doctor who specialized in lycanthropy, a disorder that made its victims think they were werewolves. While she was in Paris, the attacks stopped, and once she returned, supposedly cured, the attacks fell to a minimum.

Isabella remained in Talbot County until her death in 1911. She was 70 years old and is buried in the Owens and Holmes Cemetery near Woodland. Her story has endured, but not everyone is convinced this legend is true.

The Southeastern Institute of Paranormal Research has done some looking in to the story. In a report on their website, the forum moderator, only identified as Denise, filed a report on the legend claiming that it was false. Her post is on the website and I have linked it to this blog. Click on the title of this post and it will take you directly to the article. The picture above is of the cemetery where Emily Isabella is buried, and was taken by the SIPR group who adopted the cemetery and has cleaned it up a good bit. In her report, she says there is no evidence to corroborate that Emily Isabella Burt was a werewolf. She and her group have adopted the cemetery in which Emily Isabella was buried and have pictures on their website of the location. Her report mentions that the memorial marker to her mentions that she was well-known and well-liked in her community, certainly not things said about someone who was a pariah of sorts. Denise reports that newspaper reports from that time claim that the attacks were the result of a "rabid wild animal" and nothing more. She also mentions that the Paris trip was to see relatives and friends there, not to see a doctor who treated lycanthropy. But there are some who question these conclusions. One of the Burt relatives, an English professor who teaches at a local community college in Atlanta says that it is possible that the Paris trip was to see a doctor for her condition. He commented that it is quite likely that the family would have said that Isabella was visiting family, for they most certainly would not have let it out that she was seeing a doctor, for there would be a lot of questions as to why she could not be treated here. A trip across the Atlantic to see a physician would breed questions. Good point.

So was there anything to this legend? This story has shown up in a good many books on the supernatural and strange in Georgia. As mentioned earlier, Nancy Roberts wrote of it in her book "Georgia Ghosts." It also appears in Jim Miles' "Weird Georgia", as well as Dr. Alan Brown's "Haunted Georgia." I am sure there are a host of others. Was Emily Isabella a lycanthrope and the stories told all true? Or was the explanation that Diane Denise of SIPR valid? Was the trip to Paris to see a doctor or relatives? More research should be done on this topic.

The Enduring Mystery of the 500,000 Plastic Coffins in Madison Resurrects In Light of New N1H1 Scare

2009-10-26T14:40:00.000-07:00

With the recent deaths from the N1H1 virus, talk focused on the 500,000 plastic coffins, or burial vault liners stored off Lions Club Drive in Madison, Georgia has resurfaced. As a state of emergency over this flu strain has been declared in some countries, and the CDC and other government agencies heightening measures here in the states, the two year old conspiracy theory material has become popular once more.

It appears that there are over a half million black, plastic coffins or burial vault liners stored in Madison, about an hour east of Atlanta, in a field lot inside the city. Speculation ran rampant a year or so ago about what this was all about. With the heightening tensions with Iran, war in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and the constrant threat of another terrorist attack, speculation about these coffins centered on theories like biological warfare, martial law, or a nuclear holocaust. Many claimed that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) owned these and were storing them there. However, as more and more questions arose over the purpose of these eerie looking black coffins, an answer came forth.

According to a letter sent out by a vice president at a Covington, Georgia company (Covington is about 20 minutes west of Madison) the coffins were owned by the Vanguard Corporation who was storing them there. The letter stated that the company leased the land to store the coffins on and the reason there were so many is that they produced them in large quantities to fulfill pre-need arrangements that customers had already made. Essentially, the company said these coffins were there awaiting the death of the customers who had already made purchases and arrangements for their burial. The heat was supposedly taken off the federal government and FEMA. It appeared that there was no pre-planning by the federal government for martial law, mass deaths as a result of rebellion against a New World Order, or pre-planning by FEMA and the feds for a nuclear fallout or biological warfare. But many failed to be satisfied by the explanation.

First, bloggers and conspiracy theorists said the story did not pan out. First, they pointed to the number of coffins themselves. They asked why the company pre-produced SO MANY of them. They also were never satisfied by answers they got from Vanguard. These theorist said that while Vanguard may very well have made these coffins, there was no evidence that they were NOT making them for FEMA or the feds. Many conspiracy theorists point to the fact that Madison is a rural area where not alot of attention would be drawn to this (so much for that) and that it was also VERY close to Atlanta, a major world transportation hub. Interstate 20 would make it easy to ship these things to Atlanta to Hartsfield and from there around the country for mass use.

Click on the title of this story above, and it will take you to a website where the letter from Vanguard, as well as copies of the story from the local paper in Madison have been kept. There is also a picture of some of the coffins in that field on that site. Google out 500,000 coffins in Madison, and there will be tons of stories. There are also multiple YOUTUBE videos about the subject.

As I mentioned earlier, more and more discussion about these coffins is cropping up now that we are in the N1H1 scare. With all this talk of states of emergency, innoculation, and spread, people are wondering if FEMA may have known in advance about a possible outbreak and was planning ahead. So, I ask, is there any merit to the stories and concerns of the conspiracy theorists? Was Vanguard telling the WHOLE story when they responded to concerns? Or was there more to the story, like for whom all these coffins had been made? Who owns the land on which these are stored? Why are there so many? Why are they not in a holding facility somewhere else? Perhaps there is nothing to this, or perhaps this is a HUGE national mystery, based right here in Georgia.

Were Soldiers Buried Alive After the Siege of Savannah

2009-10-25T12:37:00.000-07:00

One of the most intense battles fought during the American Revolution was the Siege of Savannah. The battle commenced on October 9, 1779, as allied French and American forces began to lay siege to British held Savannah. As it turns out, the British were well-entrenched in the city, and the allied forces under Count Charles Henri d'Estaing and Major General Benjamin Lincoln had their work cut out for them in trying to dislodge the Redcoats.

d'Estaing had demanded the surrender of the city on September 16, 1779, sending a letter of such to British General Augustine Prevost. Prevost asked for 24 hours to respond, and in this 24 hour period, he refortified the city. In fact, it was Lt. Col. John Maitland's 800 troops from South Carolina that were brought in to the city on this day to help back up Prevost and his forces. At the end of the 24 hour waiting period, Prevost signaled that he would not surrender the city, electing to fight instead. However, d'Estaing and the allied forces did not attack any time soon. They waited, and this may have been their costliest mistake.

When the allied forces did attack on October 9, 1779, they launched a ground attack where over 750 of their soldiers were killed; the British lost roughly 18 to death and less than 40 wounded. Included among the dead and wounded for the allied forces was Polish Count Casimir Pulaski, who had joined the Patriot cause and fought gallantly. Fort Pulaski is named in his memory and honor. Also dead was Sergeant William Jasper, the hero of the Battle of Fort Moultrie. The allied forces had no choice but to withdraw. Savannah would remain in British hands for quite some time.

As might be expected, with such high casualties, it was quite a chore to retrieve and properly dispose of bodies. The allied forces called a temporary truce with the British forces so that they could bury their dead. According to James Caskey, author of "Haunted Savannah," many reports surfaced that some of the bodies were buried in mass graves near the locations where they fell. One such place is near the Savannah Visitors Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near downtown. (Caskey 130-131). Caskey goes on to say that there are other reports indicating that when the bodies were being buried that some of the wounded were beyond help and were buried along with the dead-WHILE THEY WERE STILL ALIVE!! He even names a local doctor, Dr. Wells, who was there and witnessed the gruesome spectacle. A friend of Caskey's apparently frequents the Visitor Center and has lunch at a restaurant nearby. She reported that she felt strange and uneasy entering the bathroom of the establishment and reported it to a waitress there. The response was that many of the staff had felt it too and it was agreed that the place was quite haunted (Caskey131).

So were some American and French soldiers who constituted the allied force at the Siege of Savannah buried alive? If so, does this account for some of the unusual and strange activity in the vacinity? The next time you are in Savannah, make a trip to the visitors center, and eat in the restaurant there. It is in an old railroad car. Make sure to take a quick trip to the water works (bathrooms) and see if you find any old soldiers still hanging around....

The Legend of Long Pond

2009-10-24T06:03:00.000-07:00

In the small community of Long Pond, located in the Southeast Georgia county of Montgomery, there is a local legend that is not talked about among the residents anymore. Perhaps it is because the legend is not widely known, or perhaps noone really believes it anymore.

Long Pond is a spot in the road. My family is originally from there, and the place is beautiful. There are a few stately old homes, white clapboard churches by the highway, and moss-covered oaks everywhere. It reminds me of a small New England village. The community once had many more residents than it does now. There was a general store and a sawmill there at one time. In yesteryear, it was a place that a lot of people called home. The community is still there today, but it has almost dried up.

The area was thriving during the era of the Civil War, and, as might be expected, many young men from Long Pond went off to war for the Confederate cause. Recently, as I was thumbing through some of the files in my home office, I found several folders full of newspaper clippings from the area newspapers down there from years past. There were tons of history articles and other news items I found, or people who knew I collected these items, found important. The one on the legend of Long Pond was one of those. It was sent to me by a fellow church member years ago when I lived in the area. The legend goes that during the Civil War, residents of Long Pond planted an oak tree and named it for each of the men who were called to fight for the southern cause. There were a lot of young men from the area called to service, so there were a lot of oak trees planted. They lined a road in the community called The Old River Road. It is still a much used road and is maintained by the state and county.

The weird thing, according to the story, is that not all of the trees lived. The oak trees that died were all named for soldiers who died in war or who were missing in action. The ones that lived were named after those that returned and survived the conflict. According to the journalist who researched the story in the early 1980s, he contacted some of the Long Pond Community's oldest remaining citizens, some of which were children and grandchildren of the people who planted the trees and saw the aftermath.They report that the legend is true, which, I guess, would not make it a legend. Several elderly people are quoted in the article, and they are names that I indeed recognize from my youth. They swear that the story is true and that their parents and grandparents not only told the story, but were also among the ones there when the trees were planted and watched them as they died and lived.

I used to attend church at Long Pond. I have been down the Old River Road many times. The famous Cooper Conner House mentioned in another story on this post, was once located right off that road. It has been moved to the campus of Brewton Parker College, but it was the one that the famous ghost ram roamed around. I have seen a lot of oak trees along the road. As I am home for the Christmas holiday this year, I plan on driving down to the area again and riding down the Old River Road and seeing if I can find the line of oaks. Perhaps there are spots where oaks once were planted and are no longer there. Perhaps I can get pictures and upload them here.

Other Ghostly Connections to Godfrey Barnsley

2009-10-18T19:16:00.000-07:00

In a recent article, I spoke of Godfrey Barnsley, a Savannah businessman who sought to make a fortune in cotton and moved near Adairsville in North Georgia to build a beautiful mansion and estate. If you missed that article, please scroll down and it should be there. If not, click on "older posts" and it will be on the next page or so.

I learned a bit more about Godfrey Barnsley from several sources, including James Caskey's "Haunted Savannah: The Official Guidebook to Savannah Haunted History Tour 2008." In the book, Caskey discusses the Scarbrough Mansion on Martin Luther King Boulevard in downtown Savannah. The home is now the location of the Ships at Sea Museum. The website for that museum can be viewed at www.shipsofthesea.org/pages/house. The mansion was the one time home of William and Julia Scarbrough, hence the name Scarbrough House. Apparently, the home has an historic past, as it was the scene of a visit by United States President James Monroe, who came to Savannah to see the launch of the S.S. Savannah, the world's first oceangoing steam vessel. William Scarbrough was an investor in the venture, although it was financially unsuccessful. William had to sell the mansion, which was purchased by his son-in-law. Graciously, the son-in-law allowed William and his wife, Julia, to remain in the home. Julia, ever the southern belle, loved to give lovely and large dinner parties. William's financial troubles did not seem to detour these either. Her parties were so well-attended that Julia became a legend for her parties in Savannah. Incidentally, William and Julia Scarbrough were the parents of Godfrey Barnsley's wife Julia. As haunted as Barnsley Gardens were and still seem to be according to some, his in-law's mansion is the scene of a little haunting of its own.

According to Caskey on pages 95-96 of "Haunted Savannah. . ." published by Bonaventture Books, many people claim to have seen windows ablaze with lights at the house in the 1960s as the home was empty. Some passsersby and locals have even reported the sounds of lively and loud laughter, as well as a piano playing in the early hours of the morning. Caskey speculates that it may very well be the spirit of Julia Scarbrough and her guests as they continue to enjoy Julia's parties at the mansion.

In another twist, Caskey goes on to report Godfrey Barnsley was also a bit of a dueler. He and his brother, Gartrelle, seem to have had the misfortune of falling in love with the same woman-Chessie Scarlett. Talk about a Southern name!!! Due to the fact that the two brothers were unable to put the squabble over who should become Chessie's husband to rest, they decided to participate in a duel to settle the matter; however, this was anything but a common duel. This was what Caskey calls a "poison duel." The way the duel went, according to the book, was "They arranged for an impartial friend to pour two glasses of wine, and into one was added a lethal dose o fpoison. The appearance and character of the wine was unchanged, so neither had any way of telling which glass held just the spirits, nor which might make them a spirit. Both brothers drank deeply, and Gartrelle fell dead."(Caskey 96) Caskey goes on to say that Chessie was truly in love with Gartrelle, so it appeared that the duel was in vain. Barnsley would go on to marry the daughter of William and Julia Scarbrough. Godfrey Barnsley moved to North Georgia; his land was cursed, and, well, read the post on Barnsley Gardens and you shall see. However, I can clearly state without reservation that it appears that Godfrey Barnsley's troubles started well before he built Woodlands Mansion at Barnsley Gardens. Was he cursed to begin with? Possibly. I also find it ironic that his in-laws had a little trouble financially as well, and their mansion ended up being the subject of a haunted tale of Savannah.

By the way, James Caskey is part of Cobblestone Tours, and if you click on the title of this story above, it will direct you to Cobblestone Tours's website. They have GREAT tours in Savannah.

Live Radio Show From Heritage Park McDonough Talking about In Atlanta or in Hell

2009-10-16T20:56:00.000-07:00

I will be doing a live interview for 92.1 FM at Heritage Park in McDonough on Saturday, October 17th. The owner of the station phoned today and said he picked up a copy of the book and read it yesterday. He wants to interview me about it as they do their live feed from the Heritage Park Fall Festival in McDonough. We will actually be doing the interview near the replica of Old Engine #7. I believe the AM channel is 1410 or 1420. Listen if you are in the area.

Fourth Anniversary of the Disappearance of Tara Grinstead

2009-10-14T19:32:00.000-07:00

As you know, I have been following the mystery surrounding the disappearance of Tara Grinstead, an 11th grade history teacher from Ocilla, Georgia. She mysteriously vanished back in October 2005. The case is very strange, as it does not appear that Tara was the victim of an abduction. Her case was thought to be related to the disappearance of Jennifer Kesse in Orlando, Florida, but as teams with both investigations met, it became apparent that they were unrelated.

One thing of note happened this year in the case. A video started appearing on Youtube from someone called catchmekiller. The guy in the video claimed to be involved in her disappearance. Investigators came up with the identity of the man in the videos; his name is Andrew Haley. He was indicted this past July 2009 and charged with tampering with evidence and making false statements in connection with a criminal investigation. Apparently, Haley was mentally disturbed and wanted attention. He made comments in the videos, which were said to have been posted in February 2009, that he had something to do with her murder and disappearance. Haley is from Gainesville, Florida from what I understand.

The search for Tara Grinstead continues. The GBI are now focused on the fingerprints taken from the latex glove found in her yard. They have yet to find a match among the suspects or in national databases. It appears that this case has hit a brick wall. It makes me wonder if Tara Grinstead is still alive. Perhaps she left on her own free will. Some have said that she would have returned by now if that were the case, for her mother died of cancer not long ago, and those who knew Tara find it hard to believe she would not have made some attempt to come home or be close to her mother in her last days, or at least be part of her burial and memorial. So far, however, there has been no sign of Tara Grinstead. I wonder what has become of the house she lived in. I wonder if it is still vacant, or if someone else has moved in. From what I remember, Tara was renting the home when she disappeared.

Click on the title of this story and it will take you to Findtara.com, the official search website.

The Mystery of Barnsley Gardens

2009-10-07T06:16:00.000-07:00

I have had several readers on this blog email me and ask me about the ever popular legend of Barnsley Gardens. I remember reading about this legend many years ago, and it has been one of the most popular ghost stories associated with Georgia. So, I decided I would post about it at least once. But there are a million places you could read about Barnsley Gardens. I have posted a link to the website of the current resort and spa establishment that is at Barnsley Gardens today. Just click on the title of this post and you will see it.

The story goes that in the late 1830s, Savannah businessman Godfrey Barnsley purchased 10,000 acres of land in Adairsville, a city in the northwest corner of the state. That area of the state still had a substantial Native American population and many of them resented the encroachment of white settlers. One of them, an elderly chief who lived on the property that Godfrey Barnsley had just purchased, was very angered by white encroachment. He put a curse on the land on which Barnsley was going to build his new plantation home.

The land, as it turns out, was also said to include an acorn-shaped hill that inspired fear among the Cherokees. This added to the cloud of mystery surrounding the new estate. It appeared that the curse was beginning to take affect, for right before the mansion was completed, Godfrey Barnsley's wife, Julia, and their infant son died suddenly as they were living in temporary shelter on the property awaiting the completion of the mansion. Godfrey was devastated, but he completed the house anyway, and soon afterwards, he moved in his remaining children, a son and daughter. All went well, that is until the autumn of 1858.

That fall, Godfrey suffered a double tragedy. His son was killed by Chinese pirates on his voyage and journey through the Orient looking for exotic plants to bring back and plant on the grounds of the Barnsley estate. His daughter, now a teenager, died in the house that same year. At this point, Godfrey was so disturbed and distraught that he sought out mediums, psychics, religious leaders and the sort to help him defeat the curse.

Obviously, the curse continued, for over the next few years, Godfrey Barnsley's business ventures began to fail and by the beginning of the Civil War, he was left with a worthless cotton-buying business and an unfinished house at Barnsley Gardens. His estate was in ruins, and his dreams of becoming a wealthy planter was gone. Upon his death, Barnsley still believed in the curse and even begged a minister to help him rid the property and his family of it.

In 1989, a Cherokee chief returned to the property to lift the curse. His name was Richard Bird, and he was a medicine man from Cherokee, North Carolina. He was very disturbed when he arrived, and even commented that upon stepping foot on the property, he knew that the land was cursed. He likened the feeling he got to that of butterflies in his stomach, a very common saying for feelings of nervousness and dread. Bird had been hired by a local attorney who represented the new owners of the estate. However, according to Bird, his services were not really necessary. He reported that the curse on the property died when the chief who placed it died. In his own words, "When a person dies, his magic is no longer good." Nevertheless, the owners wanted to make sure that what befell Godfrey Barnsley did not happen to them. The property is a resort today.

So did the curse actually cause the horrors at Barnsley Gardens? Are curses real? There were a whole host of other weird events at Barnsley Gardens that lend themselves to appear that the property was cursed by the chief, and that the curse indeed was responsible for the misery the Barnsleys encountered. I would like to recommend a few books that include the stories about Barnsley Gardens. First, there is Randall Floyd's More Great Southern Mysteries published by August House Books. Secondly, there is Chris Wangler's Ghost Stories of Georgia published by Lone Pine Publishers. Both should be available online. I would try Half.com for the Floyd book.

In Atlanta of in Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash

2009-10-07T06:07:00.000-07:00

My train crash book, In Atlanta or in Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900, is now available at Bell, Book and Candle in downtown McDonough. The store is located off the square at 45 John Frank Ward Boulevard. Their web address is www.bellbooksandcandles.com. They will even ship the book to you for a nominal fee. I will also be doing a book signing there on Saturday, October 31st. Yes, that is Halloween Day, and perhaps Caprice, the owner and frequent poster on this blog, will even dress up like one of the lady passengers. I think we may even be able to talk the tour historian and author of Haunted Memories of McDonough, Dan Brooks, to dress up like the engineer J.T. Sullivan.

You can contact them by phone at 770-957-1880. In addition to the book signing at Bell, Book and Candle on the 31st, I will be doing a joint appearance with two or three other History Press authors who have recently published works about Georgia on Friday, October 30th at Eagle Eye Book Shop in Decatur. The details have not been set yet, but I will keep you all posted as I get more information.

Also, don't forget that Moments in McDonough History is still available. Contact Bell, Book and Candle for ordering. They are the only ones who have it and they will take your name, contact info, and payment and then order it and ship it to you.

Family Leaves Without A Trace in Stockbridge

2009-10-06T13:08:00.000-07:00

Because there are a lot of crazies out there, I will not devulge the names of the people who live in this house today, nor the address. However, I can tell you that the location is in Henry County, Georgia near the town of Stockbridge, which is a city of decent size about twenty minutes south of downtown Atlanta. A good friend of mine and her family live in the house, which is said to also be haunted, and is perhaps the location of a few Bigfoot visits. More about that in a future post. What I am about to tell you is even more mysterious than Sasquatch and the walking dead.

Apparently, prior to my friend purchasing the home, it sat vacant for five years. Before that, a family lived there and made attempts to purchase the home. They were so excited about buying it that they volunteered to make improvements in the home, including closing in the carport. The owner of the home was attempting to sell the house to the family. The owner's mother had lived there prior to that and when she fell ill and was sent to hospice and died, this family moved in. The time all this happened was around 1986-87. According to the owner, this family seemed quite eager, even making arrangements to secure a home loan. The house was perfect for them, and they wanted it very much. As time went on for about a year, the owner of the home would check in periodically with the family. Upon not hearing from them for a while, he decided to drive over to the house and speak with the family and check on them. What he found when he arrived is more than mysterious. It appears that the family disappeared in the night. They were gone, and it appeared that they left in a hurry, for many of their belongings were still in the house untouched as if they had fled. The neighbors even mentioned that the family was there one day and gone the next. Noone remembers having seen the family move out in the traditional way that a family would, i.e moving vans, boxes, and a lot of commotion. The neighbors felt that this was certainly strange. They made no attempts to contact the owner of the home. As a matter of fact, when my friend and her family purchased the home in the early 1990s, that same owner remained quite baffled about what happened. He had never heard from them for over five years while the house sat vacant. He had no forwarding address and nothing was left behind in the house like a note or letter explaining the reasons the family vacated in a hurry.

At the time that all this happened, the home sat in a very underdeveloped part of Henry County, which today is a thriving and booming part of the south metropolitan area of Atlanta. The home still sits in one of the quieter areas of Stockbridge, but it is by no means isolated or off the beaten path. My friend and her family have lived there for almost 17 years and seem quite happy. Upon visiting her recently and eating some really great chili, she and her family told me about a mysterious safe that was left behind by the family as they fled. The safe is locked and the combination long forgotten. My friend has made no serious attempts to open the safe, more out of fear of damaging it and losing what is a really nice antique. I can attest to this because I saw it in the basement when I visited. She does, however, often ponder what is inside the safe. Another friend has offered to bring a a stethascope to the home and listen to the tumblers in an attempt to get the combination and open it. He has also offered to use a blow torch. Needless to say, the blow torch idea was quickly shot down. It is a large stand alone safe. Picture in your mind, if you will, the safes that Boss Hogg had in his offices on the Dukes of Hazzard. It even sits up on wheels the same way that Boss Hogg's did. It is a very cool looking safe, and I can understand why my friend does not want it damaged.

But what is in the safe, and why was it left there? For that matter, why was anything left in that house by this mysterious family? Even more curious is why they left in such a hurry? Does the safe contain clues as to the whereabouts of this family and why they had to leave in a flash? Were they being pursued by someone who intended to do them harm? Or were they scared off by something in the home? Were they the recipients of the ire of the ghost of the owner's dearly departed mother? She may have loved the home so much so that she did not want it sold outside of her family. Or was she furious when the family altered the home by closing in the carport? Or is this simply a case of a family whose father or mother got in to trouble in their past and it finally caught up with them?

Some visitors to the home have commented that the home is built on what they think might be a Native American sacred site. My friend and her family have experienced some very strange things while living there these past 17 years. For example, people have pulled in the driveway and seen what appears to be my friend standing at the window of her room or office area, but as it turns out, my friend is not there at all. A black dog has been seen in the house by the family as well, when no dog is present inside the home at the time. It also appears that there is a womanly figure in the house with long blonde hair, but with the face of an owl. My friend has also overheard voices in the house that appeared that someone was having a conversation in the house. However, noone was in the home besides her. She has also heard the deep laughter of a man inside the home when the only male there was her husband, who was visibly asleep in the bedroom and had to be awakened to investigate the laughter. Are these the manifestations of something sinister? If so, did these activities occur when the family who left in the night was living there? Perhaps this had something to do with their strange flight and disappearance. Who knows? I am afraid my friend may be living on the site of what is one of the strangest events in the area.

The Camp Creek Train Crash book is now available

2009-09-25T10:27:00.000-07:00

The book on the Camp Creek Train Crash is out. It is now available online and in bookstores. It is on Amazon.com, Booksamillion. com and at TheHistoryPress.net. However, it will be available locally and during a book signing with me at Bell, Book and Candle on John Frank Ward Boulevard soon. My great friend, Caprice Walker, has agreed to do another book signing.

Here are some links
www.historypress.net (Click on see all new titles or click on South and Georgia to see my page.)
www.bellbooksandcandles.com (This is Caprice's place..If you love old, creepy places and books at the same time, this is a MUST VISIT!)
www. amazon.com

Atlanta's Lovers Lane Killer-A Southern Zodiac?

2009-08-26T19:55:00.000-07:00

There are many baffling murders and crimes committed every day. Many go unsolved. I am always enthralled with the mysteries surrounding the Jack the Ripper and Zodiac murders. They were never solved, and the blogsites, presses, and chat boards light up with theories and ideas about the identity of these killers, as well as their motives.

In Atlanta, in 1977, such a crime spree occurred. The killings were dubbed the Atlanta Lovers Lane Killings, and the murderer was called the Lovers Lane Killer. Like the Ripper and the Zodiac Killer, Atlanta's Lovers Lane Killer was never nabbed. It all began on January 16, 1977, when police came to the scene of an accident where LaBrian Lovett crossed an intersection and hit a street sign. Inside the car, Lovett and a woman, 26 year old Veronica Hill, were found naked with gunshot wounds; Lovett's wounds were in the head, stomach, right leg, and left arm. Hill's wounds were in the left leg and her abdomen. Both were taken to the hospital and later died of their wounds. It was determined that the two had been involved in sexual intercourse at nearby Adams Park. Lovett attempted to drive for help, but obviously his injuries overtook him and caused him to loose control of the car. When police arrived at the accident scene, Hill was in the backseat of the car under a coat.

The killer came out again, twenty seven days later, on February 12th. This time he struck at nearby West Manor Park when he attacked a teenage couple who were necking in the park. He came to their car around 2:45 a.m. and fired six rounds in to the vehicle. Luckily, the two were not hurt, but the assailant, who was described as a large African American male, seemed to grow frustrated by the fact that his bullets had not hit their mark. He tried to open the car doors, but they were locked. He left the scene on foot, and the teeangers were spared of the fate suffered by Lovett and Hill earlier in the year. Police reported that it was a .38 caliber gun that was used in both of the shootings.

Police were baffled by these crimes. The motives did not seem to be rape or robbery, as the assailant took nothing from the scene and did not attempt to sexually assault the female victims. On March 12, some twenty eight days after the second attack, Diane Collins, age 20, was with her fiancee in Adams Park. They had seen a movie earlier that evening and were closing out their date there. The couple did not see the gunman as he drew near their vehicle. He shot six rounds in to the passenger side window, killing Collins. Her fiancee was wounded in the head, but survived. After the attack, he managed to drive the car to his home where he phoned for an ambulance.

Police had no answers to the puzzle of the Lovers Lane Killer. They felt that since there was a 27 day difference between the first and second shootings and a 28 day interval between the second and third, that it would be logical to stake out nearby parks 29 days after the third shooting. This would be April 6-8. However, the gunman did not materialize. As the days and weeks passed, the assailant remained quiet. He seemed to have left the scene as quickly as he appeared, and noone ever heard from him again. Two years later in 1979, police admitted that they had no leads or suspects in the case. The mystery of his identity and reason for his crimes has never been solved.

So who was the Atlanta Lovers Lane Killer? Why did he strike? Was he planning his murders in intervals, 27, 28.....? Why did he prey on victims in the park that seemed to be in love? Was he a rejected lover? Did he have some fetish with couples? Perhaps he watched the couples for a while before he struck. Is he still out there? Did he change his killing habits and strike again undetected by the police as the Lovers Lane Killer? Just as interesting as the disappearance of Mary Shotwell Little is the story of the Atlanta Lovers Lane Killer.

Book Signing this Weekend: Moments in McDonough History

2009-08-18T12:23:00.000-07:00

There will be a book signing this weekend at Bell, Book and Candle in downtown McDonough at 45 John Frank Ward Boulevard for my local history book Moments in McDonough History. The event will be from 11:00-2:00. There are only a limited number of copies available, so come early.

Because of the number of responses and requests I have received, I plan on trying to do another one in the next few months. I would love for you to make it there if you can. The proceeds from this book will be donated to the Susan G. Komen 3-Day Walk for the Cure. We will also be holding a charity book drive at the same time. Come support this worthy cause and pick up a copy of the book.

Mrs. Sammy King and the Haunting Near Eastman, Georgia

2009-08-16T10:15:00.000-07:00

E. Randall Floyd, longtime columnist for The Augusta Chronicle, has quite a few titles to his name. He is also the owner and founder of Harbor House Books in Augusta, Georgia. One of the books he released before becoming the owner of Harbor House was More Great Southern Mysteries. This was the follow-up to his book Great Southern Mysteries. Both books are amazing, and I highly recommend that you check them out. I have provided a link to the Amazon site where you can order one. Click on the title of this blog article and it will take you there.

Perhaps the most interesting Georgia story in More Great Southern Mysteries is about Mrs. Sammy King, an older lady who died tragically in a thunder/lightning storm near Eastman, Georgia. For those of you who might not know where Eastman is, it is located in Dodge County not far south of Macon, Georgia. Apparently, Mrs. King had an affintity for enjoying the rainstorms and lighting that are so common to the South, especially in the spring and summer. Mrs. King loved to watch the lightning and listen to the thunder. However, on the night of her death, the thunderstorm and lightning displays made her uncomfortable. According to Floyd, the storm rattled doors and windows, making her quite fearful of the situation. Soon, she decided to close the window for safety. This was a mistake, for when she stood up to walk to the window, a bolt of lightning shot through the house and struck her. She died instantly, and three days later, her charred remains were buried in a cemetery not far from Eastman. But it appears that Mrs. King did not go to her rest upon being put in the grave. This all happened in the 1920s.

Reports have come forth over the past years that describe an older woman, stooped over and clad in darker colors wearing a bonnet, walking around near the old home that once was her residence. Mrs. Betty Kight, who purchased the old King residence in 1962, reports that the apparition is most commonly surrounded by a "soft haze of smoke." Kight first saw the apparition right after she and her husband Bob moved in to the house. One day, she was in the kitchen putting things away when she saw a lady standing in a flower bed outside the home. When she went to investigate, the woman was gone. After about a half dozen more sightings, Kight said that she became very unnerved so she removed the flower bed. That did not work. The ghost started appearing to her children during the daylight hours. All of her children had an experience with the ghost. Her son, Robert, heard singing one day, and so he went to the porch to investigate. Upon arriving there, he found Mrs. King's ghost sitting there singing from a songbook and three children were present with her. Her daughter, Elaine, went to feed the family dogs. With a plate of food in her hands, she opened the door only to find King standing there. She dropped the plate and fled.

The identity of the ghost bewildered the Kights until they reported their findings to neighbors who told them of King's tragic death in the late 1920s. The description of Mrs. King matched the ghost's description, including her bonnet. Kight found out that others have seen the ghost as well. In 1973, the Kight's bought a new house near the old one. They hoped this would relieve them of Mrs. King's hauntings. It did not. A few weeks after moving in, strange things happened in the new house. They noticed that flickering lights could still be seen in the old house. Moaning sounds were heard. Then, King began to make her presence known in the new house. There were opening and closing doors, things being moved, and other things that unnerved the family. The Kights thought about getting an exorcist, but decided against it. Soon, the Kight's accepted Mrs. King's presence. She is now part of the family, and Mrs. Kight feels that Mrs. King grew attached to the family and wants to stay among them. She feels that King did not finish her mission here on earth and is not ready to move on.

So is it possible that there are ghosts and spirits that still walk among us, and is it further possible that some of them can get attached to a living family and move with them? Who knows? But, I would suggest that if Mrs. King is going to stay, she should at least help out with the "electric" bills. I know, corny, but it fits.

In Atlanta or In Hell: The Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900; the History Press is publishing my manuscript

2009-07-18T17:57:00.000-07:00

I wanted to announce that the History Press from Charleston, South Carolina has asked to publish my manuscript on the Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900. The book is supposed to be out in October. That is not official, but according to my editor, it is the best time to release it.

I am honored that The History Press has asked for my book to be part of its catalog.

Who Murdered Georgia's First Governor

2009-07-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

John Adam Treutlen was the first man elected as governor in Georgia after the state declared its independence. He came to Georgia with his family in 1743 from southern Germany at the age of ten. While en route to Georgia, his father died, leaving only him, his brother, and his mother to make the voyage. They arrived in Georgia and became indentured servants to Michael Burckhalter not far from Savannah.

Treutlen and his family were Salzburgers, and it is quite possible that they endured some persecution in Germany, which explains their flight to the New World. After 1756, Treutlen married and became prosperous. He served as a justice of the peace in Ebenezer, as well as road commissioner and surveyor there, and even represented Ebenezer in the Commons House of Assembly in Savannah, Georgia's first colonial legislature. He was also elected to Georgia's Provisional Congress during the American Revolution. He, Button Gwinnett, and George Wells (I have no clue if I am related to this man or not) helped draft the state's first constitution, and he would become so popular as a result that he was elected the first governor of Georgia under that constitution.

His time as governor was marked with controversy, as many of the conservative elements in Georgia killed the radicals who had helped put the new government in place. Lachlan McIntosh killed Button Gwinnett in a duel, and the other radical who helped draft the new state constitution, George Wells, was killed by James Jackson. So the conservatives, also called Tories, were on the prowl against many of the radical elements in the state. For the time being, Treutlen was spared.

In 1778, Treutlen dropped out of politics and returned to Ebenezer. John Houston became governor after Treutlen. However, in 1782, Treutlen returned to state politics and was elected as Ebenezer's representative to the state legislature. That year was very tumultuous in the legislature. There were only a few radicals in the state legislature that session, Treutlen being one. Conservatives continued their assault on the radicals and the political climate was very nasty. As a result, Treutlen left Georgia and moved his family to safety in the Orangeburg District of South Carolina. He was murdered in the night in South Carolina, in front of his family, in the spring of 1782. But the question remains, by whom???

One theory is that five tories lured him outside his home and shot him. Another theory is that an angry suitor may have killed him, for a few days earlier, he married again for the third time. Perhaps one of his new wife's old boyfriends came to do him in. Also, noone knows where he is buried.

This is a tragic story, especially given the fact that Treutlen was our first elected governor. Who killed him, and where did he end up??? Perhaps we will never know.

Lions Loose in Murrayville, Georgia

2009-07-12T10:42:00.001-07:00

This story comes from a blog reader by the name of Lu. I received this news article via email from Lu back in June. Sorry it has taken me so long to get to it, Lu. Apparently, there have been sightings of lions in Hall County this summer. Perhaps Georgia is a place where some pretty furocious felines are hanging out. If anyone out there lives in the area, email me.

In the story, a Hall County woman spotted an animal the size of a calf with a long tali. She said the animal was about three or four feet in length. Other sightings took place in the Hall-Lumpkin County areas right before this woman saw what she did. She was very adamant that it was not a fox or coyote. She saw the animal as it moved toward the woods close to a creek on her property. The Hall County sheriff's department was called in. They searched the area and found nothing. There is a nature preserve a few miles away, and a call was put in to the preserve about the possibility of a missing animal. However, all of their animals were accounted for. The woman said that there were cows on their property, but all were accounted for, so this beast must not have dined yet!!!

http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=221024
The link above is to the story.

Airline Bridge Road in McDonough

2009-07-12T10:03:00.000-07:00

I have had several emails about Airline Bridge Road in McDonough. I have never been out there, but I have read on the internet that it is a strange place. Some report that when you cross the bridge, your car dies for no reason. Others say they get strange and eerie feelings when crossing the bridge.

From what I understand, there are quite a few housing subdivisions in the area. Has anyone had any experiences there they would like to talk more about?

Book Signing-Moments in McDonough History

2009-07-01T05:34:00.000-07:00

My first book, a local history book on McDonough, will be out in August. It is titled Moments in McDonough History. The proceeds from this book will be donated to the Susan G. Komen Walk For A Cure. We will be holding a book signing in downtown McDonough on Saturday, August 22, 2009 at Bell, Book and Candle from 11:00-2:00. Please join us. I will have about 20 copies of the book there available for purchase.

Bell Book and Candle is located at 45 John Frank Ward Boulevard McDonough, Ga 30252.
The phone number there is 770-957-1880. Their web address is www.bellbooksandcandles.com.

109th Anniversary of the Camp Creek Train Crash

2009-06-23T15:34:00.000-07:00

Today marks the 109th anniversary of the Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900. The crash took place on June 23, 1900 near McDonough, Georgia. The site today is still an active railroad line. It is right off Georgia Highway 42 north of the city of McDonough. Turn off Highway 42 on to Ivey Edwards Lane and the railroad line will be dead ahead. Once you cross the track look to the left and you will see the bridge over Camp Creek. Be careful when visiting this area. This is still a live track. The creek is not very big now, but on that fateful night, it was a raging river. Keep in mind when you visit this location that it was the sight of a tragedy. Be respectful.

Sherman's Girlfriend(s)

2009-05-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

Perhaps the largest tragedy in Georgia history was the infamous March to the Sea during the War Between the States. Union General William Tecumseh Sherman became quite famous for this march, which left a good portion of the state in shambles. The march began after the Atlanta Campaign ended with the Battle of Jonesboro. Sherman marched his army through Georgia and led them to the sea, taking the city of Savannah without firing a shot in the process. Savannah can be enjoyed today partially because the city was saved from the wrath of the man many called "The Butcher." Other Georgia cities were spared including Madison and Milledgeville. There are a number of rumors that abound about why some of the places along the march were not devastated. One of the most common rumors is that Sherman had a mistress in those places. I have always found that hard to believe. There is, however, a story of a young woman who did make Sherman's acquaintance some years before the War Between the States. This story may very well be the basis of some of those "mistress" legends.

The story centers around Cecelia Stovall, a beautiful young girl whose father was a wealthy cotton merchant in Augusta. Cecelia visited West Point Military Academy in 1836 to see her brother, Marcellus A. Stovall, Sherman's roommate. At a dance held on that visit, Sherman made her acquaintance. It is said that she told the young Sherman upon his advances that "Your eyes are so cold and cruel. I pity the man who ever becomes your foe. Ah, how you would crush an enemy." To this, Sherman replied, "Even though you were my enemy, my dear, I would ever love and protect you." Years later, Cecelia married Charles T. Shelman of what was once Cass County, now Bartow County. Charles built Cecelia a beautiful white house on a hill above the Etowah River. That is where the two lived when the War Between the States began in 1861.

As fate would have it, General Sherman came to the mansion on his way through the area in 1864. His attention was brought to the fine stately home high above the Etowah River. When he arrived there, he found that the family had left, and they had placed the home and its grounds in the care of an African American servant. The man exclaimed that he was glad Miss Cecelia was not there to see the sight of her lovely home being swarmed by Yankee soldiers. Upon further examination, General Sherman learned that the Cecelia of which the older man spoke was indeed his former interest, Cecelia Stovall, now Cecelia Shelman. After hearing this, Sherman ordered everything that had been taken from the home put back and that guards were to be placed at the house until his entire army had passed to avoid looting. He also left a message, which, at least until the early 1950s, was still in the family records of the Stovalls. The message read: "You once said that I would crush an enemy and you pitied my foe. Do you recall my reply? Although many years have passed, my answer is the same. 'I would ever shield and protect you.' That I have done. Forgive all else. I am only a soldier." As he handed the note to the elderly African American servant, he told him "Say to your mistress for me that she might have remained in her home in safety; that she and her property would have been protected. Hand her this when you see her."

As it turns out, Cecelia's husband, Charles, was a captain in the Confederate Army and that Cecelia had left the mansion to escape the invading army. Charles Shelman returned to the mansion after the war, as did Cecelia. He lived there until his death in 1886 and she until hers in 1904. They both were aware that they had once been absent when perhaps their most famous visitor paid a call.

This is a true story, although there may be some parts of it that were changed in the telling. However, the note that General Sherman left for Cecelia is still in the family records of the Stovall and Shelman families. Also, this story is recounted in the History of Bartow County, as well as Medora Field Perkerson's White Columns in Georgia. The note is authentic from what I have been told by local and Georgia historians. What I do wonder is if this story, while true, may have spawned the many unsubstantiated claims that Sherman did not burn other towns on the March to the Sea because he had a mistress there. It must be noted that Mrs. Cecelia Shelman was NOT his mistress, only a former love interest that never materialized. But can the many rumors and claims of Sherman's girlfriends in places like Madison, Milledgeville, Macon, and Savannah be spawned by this true story??? Perhaps.

The Legend of Rene Rondolia- Disappointing Myth

2009-05-28T08:13:00.000-07:00

I remember watching a program called Scariest Places on Earth on the Fox Family Channel. One episode was totally about Savannah and the many hauntings that supposedly take place there. One story that was told was about a huge man who lived in the early 1800s named Rene Rondolia. It was rather disturbing to hear about this supposed gigantic killer of children, who, at his birth, weighed in at 16 pounds. According to the legend, Rene would roam the alleys of Savannah at night. Having grown in to a big child with abnormal strength, Rene could harm things without intent. Small animals would often fall prey to Rene when he would inadvertantly hurt them on account of his strength. To add to the depth of this legend, it was reported that Rene did not speak English, only broken French that he learned from his mother, a French Huguenot. According to the program, Rene was the inspiration for Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. But as James Caskey, author of Haunted Savannah points out, there is absolutely no evidence to support such a claim, and furthermore, Joseph Bevan, the Savannah socialite who was a friend of Mary Shelley's father, visited with Shelley's father during a time when he and his daughter were estranged, so a meeting between Bevan and Mary Shelley would be very improbable. No credible scholar has produced any evidence that Shelley used Savannah or Rene Rondolia as an inspiration for her story. But there are still those who tell this story as if it were fact.
Moving on to Rene Rondolia, stories are told that the death of a young girl near Foley's Alley in Savannah was attributed to him. Her neck was broken, and as that was the same thing that was known to happen to the small animals with which Rene played, locals naturally assumed that this was the work of Rene Rondolia. They lynched him, hanging him from a tree in the southwest corner of Warren Square. Although it took a while, his neck broke and he died. However, it was said that the killings continued after his lynching into 1821. Others say that the ghost of Rene Rondolia can be seen near Warren Square. The story is known to scare thrill seekers and young children alike. According to Caskey, one can "Credit this tale with inspiring more sleepless nights on camping trips than any other story in Savannah."
It is good story, but sadly, it is just that-a story. There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that there ever was a Rene Rondolia, and he was never buried in Colonial Park Cemetery as the show Scariest Places on Earth suggests. I noticed it was quite peculiar when on a trip to the cemetery a few years ago, I could not locate the grave in the plot where the show said it would be. Like many other legends and tales that circulate on tours and in discussions, this one was and is a total wash.

Was the Engine of the Camp Creek Train Crash Cursed?

2009-04-10T09:54:00.000-07:00

As many of you may know, I have been doing a lot of research on the Camp Creek Train Crash of 1900. During my research, I have uncovered some macabre stories about the wreck. A few seem to indicate that something weird was going on with the engine that pulled the train. Consider the stories and see what you think.

Before arriving at the bridge which would carry so many of “Old #7’s” passengers to their final destination, it pulled in to the depot in McDonough around 9:30 p.m. that evening. Already behind schedule due to the weather, the train pulled in to the depot with a passenger car, baggage car, first class coach, and a Pullman sleeper. The train carried 48 passengers and crew. According to reports that surfaced shortly after the wreck, the locomotive for Old #7 had a sordid history. Put in to service in 1888, the locomotive claimed its first victims between Knoxville and Lenoir when it plowed in to a farm wagon and killed three persons. Eleven years later in 1897, the cursed locomotive took another nine lives when it collided with a covered wagon carrying members of the Woodward family at Avondale near Chattanooga. After this episode, the locomotive was rechristened number 851 in hopes that it could escape its apparent bad luck. However, the new number did nothing to stop the killing spree on which the engine appeared to be. For in 1898, the locomotive made its first dive in to a river. According to an article in The Atlanta Constitution on July 4, 1900, the rechristened locomotive crashed more than sixty feet into the Etowah River. The freight cars it pulled caught fire and destroyed a large amount of freight. Like Camp Creek on the night of June 23, 1900, the Etowah River had been swollen by rains at the time of the wreck. In fact, 851 lay buried in mud for several weeks. According to the article, “It was finally raised by the aid of a monster-derrick and a ten wheel locomotive. . . . It was rebuilt, and sent again on its career of killing, behaving well until it culminated in the Camp Creek affair. The original number 846 had been restored after raising it from the Etowah.” However, the eerie history of the 846 does not end there. The first engineer to handle the 846, John Ramsey, met a quirky fate when he was scalded to death. The second engineer, Abe Laird, died of typhoid fever during the summer of 1899, just one year before the wreck, and one year after the Etowah River crash. In addition, J.T. Sullivan, who drove the train on June 23, 1900 when it went down in the Camp Creek and killed dozens of people, was not the actual engineer. He was a replacement for the regular who could not make the trip for some reason.

Was the engine cursed? Who knows? But after the incident at Lenoire, the collision and death of the Woodward family near Chattanooga, the deaths of John Ramsey and Abe Laird, and the ill-fated run on June 23, 1900, there are many people who think it might have indeed been!!!

The Historic Green Manor in Union City-Does the Ghost of Florence Westbrook Still Walk the Grounds of the Mansion?

2009-03-05T09:55:00.000-08:00

My post-Civil War American History class has been studying the turn of the century in America. I have been talking with them about the industrialization of the nation, the plight of farmers in the South, and the differences in lifestyles of the rich, poor, and middle class. As part of that discussion, I took my class to the Green Manor, which is now a restaurant located in Union City. The Green Manor was once a fruitful post Civil War cotton farm and the families who lived there were wealthy. I wanted them to see how these people lived and to give them a first hand look at some neat local history. What I did not expect was that the Green Manor has a haunted past.

The Green Manor was the property of the Westbrook family. In fact, W.R. Westbrook and his wife, Elizabeth, gave the home and thirty acres to Cora Westbrook, the tenth of their eleven children, and her husband, Drewry Carmichael as a wedding gift in 1889. The Carmichaels were productive, as Drewry and his brother built a factory for farm equipment in nearby Fairburn, and even helped secure the area as the Georgia headquarters of the Farmers Union. The city of Union City was founded as a result of this in 1908.

After telling my class about the history of the home and the area, as well as how the turn of the century looked in what is now Fulton County, the manager began to talk about some of the popular legends about Green Manor. I can tell you, they are very interesting.

As it goes, Mrs. Westbrook (Cora) had an unwed sister, which back in the day were called either old maids or spinsters. Her name was Florence Westbrook. She moved in with the Carmichaels and lived on the second floor of the mansion. At that time, which was before the first world war, the place was a working cotton plantation. One day as the Carmichael's had their laborers burning the cotton fields and plowing it under to help make pot ash, Florence decided to take buckets of water out to the field hands, as she noticed that they were working pretty hard and were more than likely very thirsty. As she walked near the fields, her long dress caught fire and she burned to death in front of the house on what is now Westbrook Street. She was buried in a grave in the Shadnor Baptist Church Cemetery, which is right down the street from the Green Manor.

According to the manager of the Green Manor, Florence Westbrook might not have wanted to leave her sister and their mansion so soon. In 1996, the burglar alarm went off in the middle of the night at the Green Manor, which by that time had been a restaurant for almost six years. A local police officer answered the call. When he arrived, he walked all the way around the mansion and saw nothing. Having this feeling of urgency to look up, he did and saw the figure of a woman standing on the second floor of the house. He tried to call for back up thinking that someone was inside burglarizing the facility. However, his radio would not work, and all that the dispatcher could hear when he tried to call in was static. However, the dispatcher knew that the officer had gone to the Green Manor to check things out. Feeling uneasy, she (dispatcher) decided to send an officer to see what was going on. When the second officer arrived, he saw the image of the woman too, but like his fellow officer, his radio would not work when he tried to call in the report. Yet a third officer was sent to the location, this time an off-duty one who just happened to be in the area. He was also carrying his radio, but found that it would not work either. The manager also mentioned the name of the officer, but I will not give it here since I do not have permission. She went on to say that any time someone mentions the Green Manor to him, he turns white like a ghost.

Other stories about Florence abound at the Green Manor. A local journalist in Fulton County, and I will not mention his name either because I have not sought permission, has a fondness for the Green Manor and writes about it a great deal in the local paper. One night, he had been down in Palmetto covering a very controversial city council meeting. The meeting ended late, and when he drove back in to town, he passed the Green Manor. The next day, he called the manager and asked her what they had done to upset Ms. Florence, for when he passed by he saw her furiously pacing the front porch. The manager commented that the only thing she could think of was that they had put up new drapes in the room that was once the bedroom of Florence Westbrook. On another occasion, the sister-in-law of Dr. Green, the man for whom the mansion is now named and who purchased it in 1917, came to the restaurant, and upon entering the front door, she saw the figure of a woman coming down the stairs and immediately exclaimed, "My God, that is Florence Westbrook."

The manager and staff of the restaurant say that things are always moved and noone can account for how and when they were moved. The staff reports hearing water faucets come on in the basement a lot, but upon investigation, no water is running. One night, the manager herself was called to the scene due to the burglar alarm going off, and upon entering, the first thing she saw was a hat from the hat room (the name of one of the dining rooms in the restaurant) at the bottom of the stairs. Such a thing would have been noticed and immediately corrected by the staff at closing. It was not there when the restaurant closed. The police officer who came with her was quite disturbed to see this.

My students were amazed by the Green Manor. They enjoyed the tour and the ghost stories. The food there is absolutely amazing. The wait staff is great! But are there ghosts in the Green Manor? Who knows? Perhaps Ms. Florence Westbrook might stop by your table and say hello. Check out their website at www.greenmanor.biz and take a look at the pictures of the place. It is beautiful.

African Lions Loose In Georgia? Is the Circus in Town?

2009-03-02T11:32:00.000-08:00

Yes, African Lions are just that-lions from Africa, which means that they are from and found there. But in Georgia, as well as other states, these large cats have been seen in the wild.

In Loren Coleman's "Mysterious America" he reports of an incident in Georgia in 1976.
In the little town of Alapaha, and yes, that is a real town in South Georgia and I actually met a couple who live there a few years ago, there was a report of a weird animal in the pasture of Mr. J.H. Holyoak. Mr. Holyoak was driving his pick-up truck to check his cattle when he spotted something strange in the pasture. At first he thought it was a big dog chasing his cattle. But upon a closer look, he noticed that this animal looked half-panther and half-lion. Mr. H (I will abbreviate as his name is hard to type) commented that it looked pretty much like a panther except it had a mane on its neck. According to him, the mane resembled that of an African lion. His son, Ken, a graduate of the University of Georgia, reported that he had never seen anything like this in the pastures and fields of South Georgia. The sigthing took place in Berrien County. He shot the animal and wounded it, but his shot did not bring it down. The animal ran off in to the woods after the shot. Ken reported that other area residents reported seeing the large cat in the forests and swamps between Alapaha and a little town called Enigma, and as Coleman points out, that is certainly an interesting name for such an occurance.

There are other reports of lions in Georgia. In the 1960s it was reported that two hunters killed what looked like a young African lion in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Georgia. There is a photograph of this kill, and the name of the man who owns the picture is Malcolm Edwards. I know nothing else about him. It was rumored that the animal had been kept as a pet.

There are probably more than a few explanations for this. First, there could be some large cat hybrid running around that we don't know about. There are a few species of large cats here in Georgia in the wild, and this could easily be a hybrid of such. On the other hand, these could have been lions that escaped from a circus. I would rule out an escapee from Zoo Atlanta, as Alapaha is over a few hours south of Atlanta. Alapaha is close to the Florida line in South Georgia. On the other hand, the killing in Blue Ridge was more than likely an actual lion being kept as a pet. I think that is illegal in Georgia, and if it is not, it should be for this very reason. But if an escaped lion somehow got out in to the wild in Georgia, I am sure it could breed or could have been out actually chasing those cattle for food. I shudder to think what might have happened had the Holyoaks wondered up on it accidentally while it was feeding. From the sound of his report, the gunshots from his rifle did hardly anything to it.

Oh well, if Semba is actually out there in Georgia, I wonder if he likes peaches, onions or peanuts? You never know. It does appear he has a taste for steak, though!

Are there Black Panthers in Georgia?

2009-03-01T13:15:00.000-08:00

It seems that one of the oldest animal discussions in Georgia is the one centered on big black cats-Black Panthers. While there are panthers and other cats on the terrain of Georgia, it is debatable as to whether there are large black panthers in the state.

One of the oldest sightings of a black panther was in 1958 near Rome, Georgia. A motorist reported that a huge black panther jumped on the side of his car and left muddy pawprints on the side of the automobile. Other reports in Georgia exist, some in the metro-Atlanta area.

In Loren Coleman's book "Mysterious America" he mentions a report from 1975 where the local paper in Stockbridge, Georgia ran a story with the headline "Something Screams in the Night." According to the report, people in the vacinity reported seeing a sleek black cat having a long tail. The animal also had very large eyes, so much so that they were described as the size of silver dollars. The report also mentions that a famers penned up goat had been killed by the animal. A few days later, a few residents of Stockbridge reported seeing the same animal. These reports caused such a furor that officials from the Department of Natural Resources set traps in the area. Officials at the University of Georgia, specifically Dr. Ernest Provost, weighed in on the topic. He declared that "There may be panthers here but they are not black. This black business has never been proven. No one has ever gotten a black panther." The curator of the Atlanta Zoo at that time, Ron Jackson, mentioned that black panthers were not a biological impossibility, but that so far, noone had one.

I didn't realize it, but black panthers seem to be a topic of much debate. According to Coleman, there are zoologist and others in the world of science who have called black panthers the "feline flying saucers" because they are so elusive and mysterious. Others deny that they exist at all, as Dr. Provost illustrated. Noone seems to debate much about cougars and Mountain lions, but black panthers still mystify naturalists and mystery hunters alike.

Blood Mountain-Home to Unknown Creatures?

2009-02-28T09:16:00.001-08:00

In Union County, near Blairsville, Blood Mountain was the sight of a battle between Cherokee and Creek Tribes for control of territory. The Cherokees won the battle, which was fought at Slaughter Gap between Blood Mountain and Slaughter Mountain. Both Slaughter Gap and Slaughter Mountain are called such due to the tragic fight between the two tribes. A visit to the area will reveal a Georgia Historical Marker that pays tribute to the historical nature of the place.

Bigfoot researchers contend that Blood Mountain is also the source of quite a few reported Sasquatch sightings. Some field researchers with the Bigfoot Field Research Organization have followed up on reports from the area, and they say that their files contain sightings from the area. Additional legends associated with Blood Mountain include a race of people who can be heard drumming. Researchers with the BFRO say that this is more than likely the wood knocking so common to Sasquatch. They say that since wood knocking is used as a communication tool among these animals to keep track of one another when they spread out foraging for food, the animals are probably doing this as they hunt for food on the mountain, a prime location for food due to its abundance of plant and animal life. The drumming that the Native Americans and other people have heard there was probably Sasquatch wood knocking. Researchers mention that their research in to the legend of the drumming people of Blood Mountain indicate that the drumming happens at night. To these researchers, this also fits neatly in to the characteristics of Sasquatch, as they are known to forage for food at night under the cover of darkness to avoid human contact.

The North Georgia Mountains have always been the location of mysterious sightings and strange occurances. Perhaps there is more to Blood Mountain than meets the eye.

Track Rock Gap-An Ancient Georgia Mystery

2009-02-28T08:09:00.000-08:00

About five miles east of Blairsville, Georgia in Union County is Track Rock Gap. The anthropoligist James Mooney, who wrote the book "Myths of the Cherokee" recalls that the Cherokee called this place Datsu'nalasgun-yi. There are a number of soapstone rocks on a trail through the gap and these rocks are covered by petroglyphs. Moooney also mentions that the Cherokee give another meaning to the name of this place-where the tracks are.

Bigfoot researchers are of the opinion that Track Rock Gap is a place where Indians recorded their experiences with Sasquatch. One Bigfoot investigator from the North Georgia area makes mention that natives had the habit of recording what they saw around them, an explanation for petroglyphs and rock drawings in Indian territories. The drawings at Track Rock Gap are no exception. It has been said by some that the drawings at Track Rock Gap are simply historical records of natives and their observation of Sasquatch in the area. There are indeed stories and legends among the Cherokees that give some credence to the idea that Cherokees in the area had come in to contact with strange animals that could be Sasquatch. One such legend is that of Tsul'Kalu, also called Jutaculla/Judaculla.

This is quite an interesting theory. Much research has been done around Track Rock Gap, and several Sasquatch sighting databases turn up reports and sightings in the area. This summer, I plan to visit the area for a few days. I hope to get some pictures of those rocks, and whatever else might be lurking up there.

1887 Voodoo Murders in Milledgeville, or Were They?

2009-02-14T08:59:00.000-08:00

This story comes from Hugh Harrington's "Remembering Milledgeville" available from History Press (Historypress.net) and published in 2005.

In 1887, in Baldwin County near Milledgeville, a family of eleven were dead or deathly ill after they enjoyed a meal together. The father, John Harris, together with his wife and nine children all became sick after eating a meal together. Before dying, they became so sick that they were unconscious. A local physician, druggist, and college professor were called to the scene. They examined the bodies, and immediately posion was suspected.

According to Harrington, "The story gets even more interesting as it was said that John Harris had a dispute with his brother-in-law, Jim Bonner." It was said that Jim Bonner was a "practitioner of voodoo." It was reported that Jim Bonner said that since John Harris did not believe in voodoo and its power, that his whole family would meet the grim reaper within one month. After the death of four of his children and his wife, John Harris became quite ill, a maniac, according to Harrington. He was thrown in the State Lunatic Asylum.

Jim Bonner was arrested by local police upon suspicion for murder. Rumor had it that he was a practitioner of voodoo, using medicinal plants and roots that he gathered in nearby swamps and such. Although he was kept in jail for a time, he had to be released because there was no real evidence against him. He and his wife eventually left Milledgeville and went to Putnam County. After a few days at the asylum, John Harris died in convulsions. The stomach of Mrs. Harris had been sent to Athens to be examined for possible poisoning. However, there was no evidence of poison, and the results of the examination did nothing to solve the mystery. The possibility of spoiled food was mentioned, but no proof offered.

Noone knows for sure what killed John Harris, his wife, and four of his children. As Hugh Harrington writes in his book, "Bonner may have been entirely innocent or perhaps he had committted the perfect crime through the use of voodoo. Who can say for sure?"

This is a very interesting story. I find it very odd that so many of the family died around the same time after eating the same meal. Wouldn't their mother and father be smart enough to have spotted spoiled food before they ate it? Who knows? But this case is very weird. Was it the work of a voodoo doctor, or just pure coincidence?

I highly encourage buying a copy of "Remembering Milledgeville." There are quite a few stories in the book about murders and other local mysteries from Milledgeville and Baldwin County. You can also check out Hugh and his wife's work that they have done out at Memory Hill Cemetery in downtown Milledgeville. (or nearby, rather)

Tours of McDonough Memorial Cemetery

2009-02-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

My friends down at Bell, Book, and Candle, (Caprice and Dan) and I will be conducting tours of the McDonough Memorial Cemetery today at 5:00 p.m. The tour will highlight some of the same people as the ghost tour, but will also include a number of historical figures not on the tour. We will also be covering some history of American funerary customs, symbolism behind toombstones, and general history of McDonough and the cemetery itself. We envision these tours to be on the Saturdays when there is no Haunted History Tour. There is no Haunted History tour today, so the cemetery tour will take place. We will meet at Bell, Book, and Candle at 5:00 and then everyone will drive themselves out to the cemetery, which should only take about three or four minutes to get to from the bookstore. I am not sure how much the tour will cost today, but future tours will be 10.00 per person, with a discount for small children. Contact Bell, Book, and Candle for more information.

Come and join us for the tour. I will be speaking along with Dan and Caprice. One of the stories we will cover will be the brutal murder of Adam C. Sloan in 1892. We will also talk about the Dickson family and visit the grave of Mayor J.B. Dickson, his wife Grace, and the many children the two had who died in their youths. Ruth Elizabeth Dickson is also buried there in the family plot and we will talk more about her suicide.

Email me if you have any questions.

More Interesting Facts About the Mary Shotwell Little Case

2009-02-14T04:59:00.000-08:00

In the past few months I have done a few radio appearances, two of which focused solely on the case of Mary Shotwell Little. I have had several emails about the case. Several people have been wondering if there have ever been any updates on the case. To my knowledge, there were lots of calls, false leads, and supposed sightings in the years after the disappearance, but nothing that led investigators to anything remotely resembling the solution to this case. If you did not read about the case, you can find my post about it on this blog in the archives section under November 2008.

There was one immediate update or piece of information that I wanted to share with you that I think makes a big difference to the case. Jim Ponder, the FBI agent who worked the case, revealed that he thought that Mary was kidnapped. Here is the information upon which he bases his theory. He reported that the Sunday after Mary Shotwell Little's disappearance, Jim Ponder was assisting with interviewing Little's former roomates, all of which were being conducted at the Atlanta police headquarters. While he was there, a woman named Carolyn Smitherman came in and reported an interesting incident. Smitherman reported that she was in Lenox Square the day Little disappeared. As a matter of fact, it was deduced that she was getting in her car just before Mary Little would have left the mall. As Smitherman was walking to her car, she realized she was being followed. She hurried to her car and locked the door. A thin man with brown hair cut in a crew cut grabbed the handle. She replied, "If you think you're going to get in my car, you're crazy." He responded by tapping the windon and telling her that her ". . . back tire is low." Becoming concerned, she left the area quickly and drove to a nearby service station. Much to her surprise, her tires were all fine.
Ponder thinks it was this man who grabbed Mary Shotwell Little, and he says that he thinks that he drove Mary to a nearby location, raped her, brought her back to Lenox Square, and traded cars. He says that he thinks the man drove her to North Carolina. He obviously thinks that the man murdered her, for his next comments were "I imagine she's buried in the woods somewhere north of Raleigh."
This is a plausible theory, but I still wonder why he would have taken her to North Carolina. The two could have picked some other man up, perhaps the attackers friend or something, and the three could have still driven to North Carolina. The three would have been the people spotted at the gas station by attendants. But I still cannot explain why they would have driven to North Carolina. Was it coincidence that that was where Mary Shotwell Little had family and had lived before moving to Atlanta? Or did she ask her attackers to honor one last wish and take her to North Carolina if they planned to kill her?
Something else that puzzles me is that when Diane Shields was murdered and the investigations hit the paper, C.J. Strickland, a detective working on the case, was quoted in the local papers as having said that the murder of Diane Shields and the disappearance of Mary Shotwell Little were most certainly connected, Mary Little's mother called Strickland and told him that she did not want the investigation in to her daughter's disappearance pursued any further. Little had only been missing for two years at that point. Strickland was mystified by this, and he wondered if perhaps the Little family had heard from Mary, and he suggested that the FBI tap their phone lines. However, the FBI declined. So, perhaps we will never know if the family did have some additional information about her disappearance that the FBI and police did not.

The disappearance of Mary Shotwell Little is one of the oddest mysteries I have ever read about here in Georgia, or anywhere for that fact. Was Diane Shield's death related to Mary's, and if so, why? Or did Mary engineer her own disappearance? We may never know.

The Dickson Family

2009-02-13T14:53:00.000-08:00

In McDonough, right off the square on what is known as Jonesboro Road, sits a beautiful white home that is now owned by a couple who have renovated it and made it an events center of sorts. The home is often called the White House or simply the Dickson Home.
The home was once the residence of one of McDonough's most prominent citizens, James Buchanan Dickson (J.B.). J.B. Dickson served as mayor of McDonough in the late 19th century, having also been a successful merchant in town, as well as involved with the running of the First National Bank. J.B. was born in 1856 and died in 1929, right as the Great Depression was beginning and the same year of the great stock market crash. This is fitting given the tragedies that befell Mr. Dickson during his life.
Mayor Dickson's life was consumed with business. He was a successful merchant in Locust Grove, which is where he met and married his first wife, Mattie Sullivan. The Dicksons had two daughters, and then a son. However, his son died in 1889, and as if to add insult to injury, his wife, Mattie, died the same year, right after their son, just three years after moving in to the new home in McDonough. A few years later, on November 11, 1891, J.B. Dickson married his second wife, Grace Foster, and the two had a son, Gordon Dickson, on October 3, 1892. Three years later, another son, Ralph Foster Dickson, was born on July 17, 1895. It appeared that tragedy was visiting someone else now, as the Dicksons seemed to be happy and secure. By this time, they had been in their new home on Jonesboro Street for almost ten years. But this was not to last. On July 9th 1898, three year old Ralph Foster Dickson died at their peaceful home. Sadness was mixed with joy that month, as the passing of Ralph was met with the arrival of a new baby girl, Ruth Elizabeth. However, Ruth Elizabeth's ending was marred with sorrow much like her arrival.
The years moved along and in 1902, another child arrived, this time a son, Howell. However, as if a giant page were turned, another child was snatched up by the prongs of death when an infant son was born in 1904 and died that same year. It seemed as if the Dickson family could not win for losing.
More tragedy visited when on April 12, 1908, Elizabeth L. Sullivan, the mother of Mayor Dickson's first wife, was visiting and took critically ill. She died a few days afterwards in the Dickson's home. With so much death in that one house it seemed as if no more tragedy could happen, but on November 27, 1929, Mayor J.B. Dickson himself succumbed to the pains of a prolonged illness and died in his home. His wife Grace lived on for eleven more years before passing on January 1, 1940.
Perhaps the biggest tragedy to befall the family took place on July 11, 1944, when Gordon Dickson, who had moved out of the house and left his sister Ruth Elizabeth there to live alone, came from his home next door to check on her and found her dead, apparently of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. This was the eighth death to happen inside the Dickson house.
Investigative teams have been inside the home checking it and looking for any spirits that still walk the halls of the home of Mayor J.B. Dickson and his family. Their question: Is this house cursed? Many EVPs have been recorded in the house, including those saying "I am here," and "Gordon." A female voice could be heard saying "Lillie," and investigative teams have also been frightened by the sounds of a child singing a lullaby upstairs, rattling coat hangers, and the loud scream of someone coming from the second floor. Perhaps the most frightening experience was a voice saying, "Get Out!"
Other phenomenon seen at the house include orbs that show up in pictures, lights appearing on the wall over a fireplace, red mists, and unidentified sounds coming from all the home. Freelance Paranormal Society and Atlanta Ghost Hunters have all done investigations in the house and reported findings.
One of the things I think roams the halls of this house is an evil spirit. As I was discussing with a reader of this blog via email, evil manifests itself through the appearance of loved ones or just in human form. My best friend reported that his mother would talk about how her grandfather would come to visit her in her and her husband's house, and she would sit and have conversations with him. It was no time later that her husband, my best friend's father, hung and shot himself in the doorway of a bedroom in that house. When the family sold that house and my best friend was doing one last sweep through the house to make sure he had not left anything behind, he walked past the room where his father had hung himself. The door to the room was closed, but underneath the door, he could see what he thought was someone walking back and forth along the floor right in front of the door. However, noone was there, and there was nothing in the window or outside that could have cast a shadow and made it appear that there was someone there pacing. My best friend, as well as his siblings, believe that whatever had been visiting with their mother masquerading as the grandfather was the entity that tormented their father and told him to take his own life. My friend commented that when he saw this underneath the door, he left in a hurry, and as he was closing the front door, he yelled, "You can HAVE IT!!!"
Believe it or not, demons do walk among the living, and they masquerade as innocent and benevolent looking humans in ghost forms, sometimes even our lost loved ones. We must be careful. We must not tempt these things, lest we fall in to their trap. Is this what is up in the Dickson House? Well, it sounds like it to me, but I could be wrong. I do not think Ruth Elizabeth Dickson committed suicide on her own. I believe she was told to do it, or she was just plain murdered. What investigators, the owners, and tour groups have been hearing in the Dickson house is probably what is left of the evil that lured Ruth Elizabeth to her death. I have been in there, and I felt fine. I plan to go to one of the Murder Mystery dinners that are held there. But I never plan to tempt fate, and I certainly do not plan on doing any ghost hunting there.

Who Built the Wall of Rock on Top of Stone Mountain?

2009-01-03T07:57:00.000-08:00

As I blog about different historical and strange mysteries around Georgia, my readers send me emails full of information and materials about things they have heard over the years. Not too long ago, a local historian here in McDonough that I have befriended sent me an email with an attachment in it that included a news article from a Henry County newspaper that went out of business in 2002. The article was about a strange ring of rocks that once sat atop Stone Mountain.

Apparently, noone knows how the ring of rocks got there, and even Native American guides for white travelers in the early 1800s were unable to explain how the rocks got there. According to the article, the rocks were about four feet high, and at the base of one was a small gap that only person at a time could fit through.

It was speculated that the ring of large rocks could have been put there by Native Americans long ago, although an Indian guide for the Rev. Francis R. Goulding, a visitor to the area in 1822, commented that these rocks had been there since his people first came to the area and that men and women in his tribe knew no more about the rocks than whites did. The Indian guide speculated that it could have been used as a fort by some ancient tribe. However, other writers through the ages have disagreed with this assessment. It was pointed out by one person interviewed that the top of Stone Mountain would have been the worst place one could locate a fort since there was no water or access to food. Those that disagreed with the fort theory assume the ring of large rocks were used as a religious or ceremonial site. In 1951, one writer asserted that the ring was reminiscent of places Druids built for worship in Great Britain.

In 1830, The Macon Telegraph writers hypothesized that the ring of rocks could have been built by the Spanish as they explored the area under Hernando de Soto. Others disagree saying that the Spanish came through Georgia looking for gold, not building forts in the interiors of Georgia. Indeed there were Spanish missions and fortifications built in Georgia, but these were placed on the barrier islands, and by the early 1700s, they were gone and the Spanish no longer had much of a presence in Georgia. The Spanish would return to Georgia and aggressively pursue it once the English arrived under Oglethorpe and posed a direct threat to Spanish dominance in the region.

The article closes by saying that the rock wall was completely destroyed by sculptor Gutzon Borglum in 1923. I have been on top of Stone Mountain a few times in the last ten years, and I cannot remember any remnants of a wall visible at all. Borglum did a thorough job removing it. But what he did not remove was the questions of what the rock wall was and who put it there. Was it used as a fort, or was it a religious site? Could this have been Georgia's Native American version of Stonehenge?

Are Ghosts from the Titanic Haunting Atlanta's Aquarium?

2008-12-30T08:19:00.000-08:00

There is a wonderful exhibit at the Georgia Aquarium right now. It is the famous Titanic exhibit that has been touring the nation as of late. A few years ago, the exhibit was at the Atlanta Civic Center. I went to the exhibit there, and I highly recommend it. Not only can you touch a real piece of the ill-fated liner, but you can see items retrieved from the wreck including dishes, deck chairs, utensils, and other items. It is worth a trip to the Georgia Aquarium to see this. But there may be something else at the aquarium that will fascinate you, and it is not the fish. It may be ghosts from the Titanic itself.

I ran across this story while searching our college's databases for news articles on an historical topic I was pursuing. On Newsbank, an article from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution from October 27, 2008 appeared with this story. According to article, there are spooky things going on at the aquarium, and most of it stems from the Titanic exhibit. Aquarium volunteer Margarit Mourino reported that she ". . . could feel like this hand moving over [her] head and through [her] hair." Aquarium spokeswoman Meghann Gibbons said, "We've had a number of volunteers report strange encounters when they were working the Titanic exhibit."

Aquarium officials called in investigators from Roswell Paranormal Investigations. While there they were able to record ethereal voices, saw shadowy figures roaming darkened corridors, and saw a few things that could not be explained. The team uses scientific methods and equipment to conduct their research including meters to detect electromagnetic changes and thermometers to detect drops in temperature. Diana Aveno, founder of Georgia Paranormal and director of the Roswell Paranormal Investigations, helped lead the investigation at the aquarium. While there, one recording device operated by Claudia Lee picked up an eerie response to an innocent equipment related question she asked. She asked a team member in reference to an electromagnetic meter, "Where do you want me to put it?" From nearby, a whispered voice responded, "Down," The voice did not belong to Lee or anyone verifiable.

Avena commented that because of Titanic's tragic history, it made sense that the exhibit would experience residual energy. Avena also reported that an elderly woman haunted the first class cabin replica and a young worker was spotted in a room housing dishes and clothing from the wreckage. In addition, eerie discoveries were made at the aquarium that did not relate to the exhibit itself. One investigator experienced the apparition of a Native American man in a corridor behind what is called the Cold Water Quest area.

So does the traveling Titanic exhibit include ghosts in addition to the hundreds of artifacts, pictures and replicas? Why is there an appartion of a Native American in the halls of the Georgia Aquarium? Was this the result of the Aquarium being built on sacred Native American ground? Or was this just the product of an overactive imagination? I highly recommend the exhibit to my readers, and who knows, visitors to the exhibit may get to see a really neat artifact-a lost soul from the disaster. It is worth the trip nonetheless.