History, Mystery and Stuff That Goes Bump in the Night

When I was a kid, my grandmother lived in an old farmhouse with her two bachelor brothers. The elder of the two, Uncle Charles, delighted in telling us kids that an undertaker had once owned the house, and that someone had killed themselves in one of the front upstairs bedrooms.

The house, which was about 100 years old then, had all sorts of creaks and dark corners – perfect for terrorizing a skittish five year-old. Throw in an electrical storm, with its thunder reverberating through the surrounding hills, and I was a complete basket case. My mother must have loved it.

As a teenager, my bedroom was in the basement at the far end of the house. On nights when I had watched a particularly scary episode of “The Twilight Zone” or “Night Gallery,” I had a special drill for getting safely from one end of the house to the other.

I would turn on all the lights between the stairs and my room. After turning on the lights in my room I would backtrack, turning off the lights between safety and certain peril. Sometimes I’d whistle, just to ward off any malevolent beings that might be lurking behind the water heater.

These days it takes a bit more than a gruesome TV show or movie to give me the Heebie-jeebies. But there are times, when the night is especially dark and the house is especially quiet, that I can–and sometimes do–let my imagination get the best of me.

Truth is, people love a good ghost story. And no matter where you go, there are plenty of stories waiting to be told.
Jenny Strauss has been sharing tales of “the history and mystery” of the Golden Isles for the past six years, during evening ghost tours in the St. Simons Island Village. The tours begin at 9:00, at the foot of the St. Simons Island fishing pier. After a brief welcome and introduction, Jenny leads her groups on a 90-minute journey through the past.

Along the way, she shares the tales that have been handed down through the generations: of the ghost ship that plies the waters of St. Simons Sound, a disagreement that ended in murder, and the young millionaire who built a church as a memorial to his bride. Visitors learn of the Indian village that once occupied a dark and quiet portion of Mallery Park, and of the mysterious spirits that dwell among the crooks and boughs of live oak trees throughout the island.

The legends are mesmerizing, and after awhile you begin to notice sights, sounds and smells you might ignore under different circumstances. “Was that pipe tobacco I smelled in the parlor?” you ask yourself. “Did you see something move through the shadows? Did I hear someone say, ‘Get out of my house’?”

Jenny says that’s not at all unusual. “I wasn’t a believer until I began doing these tours,” she says. “I’m constantly hearing from people who have seen, felt, heard or smelled the things I’ve described. It’s especially interesting when people mention new encounters with ghostly beings.”

Jenny offers two different tours from March through October: the “Ghost Walk” tour and the “Ghost Encounter” tour. The latter includes a stop at the St. Simons Lighthouse and the keeper’s dwelling. “The people at the lighthouse offered to make it available for the tour and I couldn’t pass it up,” she explains. “It has been very, very popular and it adds a really special element to the tour.”

During October, Jenny will offer the “Ghost Encounter” tour on Saturday nights. Tickets are available at St. Simons Island Bait and Tackle on Mallery Street; or they may purchased prior to the beginning of the tour. Jenny also will do private ghost tours for groups of 10 or more. For information, visit www.ghostwalkofstsimons.com or call Jenny at 638-2756.