Book Review for Haunted Harbor

Title: Haunted Harbor--Charleston's Maritime Ghosts and the Unexplained
Authors: Geordie Buxton and Ed Macy
Published: 2005/2012 by History Press
Amazon Purchase Info

I wasn't about to leave Charleston, S.C. without at least one book of regional ghost stories, and the title I chose from the gift shop at Patriot's Point was Haunted Harbor, by Geordie Buxton and Ed Macy.  I chose this particular book because I'm a big fan of this publisher's other books in this Haunted America series AND because I already owned a book about the haunts of downtown Charleston and wanted something a little different to add to my collection.

I'm rather pleased with this choice! It's a very short book, only 128 pages, and many of those are simply full-page photographs, but there's a lot of information packed in here!  Charleston is an extremely historic city, playing a big role in both the start of the Revolutionary War AND the American Civil War...and Charleston Harbor was right there at the base of it all.  From 18th century pirates to modern day industry, Charleston Harbor has been a hotbed of activity for over 300 years. It would make sense that it would pick up a few ghosts...

...and the emphasis with this book is on the few, lol.

I really liked this book---it was interesting and definitely covered plenty of strange incidents and other weirdness, but it did seem a little...light...on actual tales of ghosts. The authors sum it up best at the beginning of the chapter dealing with the Charleston County Jail with the quote, "Some places in the port city don't necessarily need ghosts to be haunted. Their creepy history speaks for itself." I personally would like my hauntings to deal a little more with ghosts, and I don't think the problem was that there are a lack of such specters, even within the confines of the harbor!

Anyway, some of the tales you'll read about is the creepy face in the flag at Ft. Sumter, a spooky experience shared by 18 members of a boy scout troop on the USS Yorktown, a UFO filmed in the area, and a mysterious car accident that may or may not have really happened. Definitely take a look at this book if you plan on visiting the Charleston area---it'll give you some great ideas about interesting and haunted places to visit that just aren't really discussed in other books about area hauntings. There's a good dose of history thrown in, and even though the text seems a little disjointed at times (possibly because of the dual authorship), you can actually learn quite a bit about the history of this area and why Charleston Harbor has been so important over the years, not only to the city and the state...but to the whole country as well.

The Galloping Horseman of Pine Baron

Wescott Road, Edisto Island

In a little over a week, I'll be in Charleston, South Carolina! So, I was pretty thrilled when I recently stumbled across a little ghost story from Edisto Island, located about 40 miles south of Charleston.  I found this tale in the book, Tales of Edisto, by Nell S. Graydon.  Originally published in 1955, this book (which I got from our local Goodwill) is a treasure trove of the early history of the area, complete with a fair sprinkling of ghosts and legends!  One such legend is The Galloping Horseman of Pine Baron.

I haven't been able to find out much history about the actual original home of the Pine Baron plantation (often referred to as Pine Barren or Pine Barony).  However, we know that the original house was one of the many homes associated with the Whaley family, who were early settlers to the island.  Colonel Joseph Whaley was cited as living in the home between 1806 and 1862, when he was forced to leave due to Civil War tensions.

After the war, Joseph, along with his son William Whaley, fought to regain legal control of Pine Baron and other property.  Unfortunately, the original home was believed to have burned to the ground in the 1930s by a disgruntled family member.  There are several notable stories associated with the history of the house, but today's tale comes from a newer home of the same name located on the plantation.

In August of 1945, a storm was on its way to Edisto and the author of Tales of Edisto (Nell Graydon) was staying at a cabin on the beach.  When an evacuation of the beach was called, Mrs. Whaley invited several displaced persons to spend the night in the old family mansion.  At the time, Mrs. Graydon's son was with the 11th Airborne Division on Luzon in the Philippines. Communication with him had been sparse in recent weeks and there were rumors of upcoming major action in that area...action that if went poorly, would result in horrible consequences.  Therefore, Mrs. Graydon had been glued to the radio, hoping for news of the war.

About an hour had passed at the home when a tree fell, knocking out power. The increased rains were also threatening to flood the nearby creek and for the first time in history, the water was seeping uncomfortably close to the house.  One of the gentleman who were staying with the party, a Mr. M-, decided to throw on his overcoat and walk down to his car, where he hoped to hear some news about both the war and the weather conditions on the car's radio.

Mr. M- was gone for over an hour before coming back up to the house.  Unfortunately, there was too much static to hear much of anything and he had no war news to report to the worried Mrs. Graydon.  He did manage to hear enough to learn that the storm was hitting nearby Beaufort and that's when he decided he better head back up to the house!  He hadn't been back for long when Mr. M- casually asked the other 11 or so guests at the home what the gentleman with the lantern had wanted.

Mr. M- told the group that while he was at the car, he saw a man on horseback with a lantern quickly gallop toward the house.  However, none of the guests had any idea what he was talking about.  No one had come to the door and no one had seen or heard anything.  Mrs. Whaley, however, knew EXACTLY what was going on, and put her hand on Mrs. Graydon's shoulder.  "Don't worry," she said.  "Your boy is safe and no harm will come to Pine Baron or its occupants from this storm."

She quickly explained...

A former owner of the home, William Whaley, had such a short fuse that he was known as "Powder Bill."  Ever since his years at South Carolina College in the mid 1830s he had been known to partake in plenty of duels.  Shortly after his marriage, his young wife was appalled to learn that William would be taking part in yet another duel, 40 miles away in Charleston.  She begged him to allow her to accompany him, but he wouldn't allow it.  As a compromise, he promised to post couriers with fresh horses every five miles between Charleston and the island.  As soon as the duel was over, the news would reach her quickly.

Luckily, William survived the duel and the good news reached the young Mrs. Whaley in a timely fashion, right as planned.  And ever since then, in times of danger or despair, the occupants of Pine Baron would look for the Galloping Horseman.  The Galloping Horseman only brought GOOD news, and seeing him was a sure sign that all would be well.

*This story has a lot of similarities to another popular South Carolina coastal legend, the Gray Man of Pawley's Island.  The Gray Man, if seen during a hurricane, is a good omen, and whomever sees him will be safe from the storm.*

South Carolina's Forgotten Ghost Photo

The information for today's post comes from an excellent little book called The Ghosts of Charleston by Edward B. Macy and Julian T. Buxton III. While fairly short, its packed with stories from Charleston, South Carolina's many, many haunted hot spots, including a whole chapter dedicated to today's photograph:

The photograph above was taken about 11 pm on June 10, 1987 at the St. Philip's Church Graveyard.  Local resident, Harry Reynolds, had been out all day testing his new Kodak ASA-200 film camera, when he decided to end the day with a couple of shots at the nearby cemetery.  Unfortunately, the gates were already locked for the evening...so Harry cut through a nearby playground that adjoined the cemetery property, and took his photos through the wrought iron gate.

Most of the cemetery shots turned out rather dark, but the image above, which was the last on the roll, came out showing what appears to be a clear image of a shrouded woman kneeling over a grave!  Thinking it was a simple double exposure, Harry sent the photo and the negatives off to the Kodak lab, where experts ruled out that possibility, as well as the possibility of tampering.

Convinced he had caught a real ghost on film, Harry then set out with the help of his wife and a friend to discover who the ghost could be.  They learned that the grave belonged to Sue (Susan) Howard Hardy, wife of Gaston Hardy, who was the Secretary of the Treasury for the South Carolina Railroad.   She had died on June 16, 1888 at only 29 years old.  As their research would show, Sue passed away from complications due to labor.  Her stillborn baby had died six days earlier...on June 10th.

Harry had taken a photograph of what appears to be a woman in mourning, 99 years to the day, after Sue Hardy's child had died.  Is this a photograph of a mother mourning the loss of her child from beyond the grave or simply a camera malfunction?  If you're in the area, you can find out for yourself! Today, the cemetery is a favorite stop on the different Charleston ghost tours and it is reported that the mournful cries of a woman can be heard at certain times in the evening.  Some of the tours also offer a warning:  When copies of the photograph by Harry Reynolds are passed out to guests, pregnant women are warned not to touch them after several incidents have arisen where pregnant women DID handle the photographs and consequently felt as if they were being choked, felt nauseous, etc. The church, however, doesn't put much stock into these reports, and has gone as far as to issue the following signage:



Further Reading:
St. Philip's Church website
Scares and Haunts of Charleston
Find-a-Grave: Sue Howard Hardy