Hauntings?

[johnboyanoski]

You know, you may just be right.

could be, could be...

[Beowulf]

John - I just picked up your book from the Open Book. Having only had it for an hour now, I've just read the first chapter, and am thoroughly enjoying it.

I got one of Nancy Roberts books some years ago. While quite good, the book of hers that I have seems to focus more on the myth than the accounts. Your stories (or the one I've read so far) tend to add substance to those myths by recounting modern sightings. This is exactly what I was hunting, and I thank you for compiling the stories and writing the book.

[johnboyanoski]

John - I just picked up your book from the Open Book. Having only had it for an hour now, I've just read the first chapter, and am thoroughly enjoying it.

I got one of Nancy Roberts books some years ago. While quite good, the book of hers that I have seems to focus more on the myth than the accounts. Your stories (or the one I've read so far) tend to add substance to those myths by recounting modern sightings. This is exactly what I was hunting, and I thank you for compiling the stories and writing the book.

Thanks for the kind words and buying the book. I am a big fan of this site, and decided to finally post because there was so much speculation about which members of the media may or may not be on this site.

[btoy]

Its not just the media, but some of the Developers who are doing these projects read the site as well.

[RestedTraveler]

And business owners/management and government officials, too. This is an interesting mix of individuals here.

[RestedTraveler]

Where else can you get such a cross section of society discussing the same issues in the same forum than a place like U.P.? We have college students, realtors, doctors (and doctors' kids), developers, architects, engineers, IT types, media, marketing and advertising people, government officials, business owners/managers, and just residents interested in what's going on in their community and doing their part to take some ownership of issues and provide their input. And that's just here in Greenville. I can't speak to what other segments of society are involved in their own respective communities, but I suspect the makeup is very similar.

U.P. is wonderful in that way, really.

[Beowulf]

OK, back to the topic at hand. I've finished John's book, and it's great. I did notice that lots of his tales have "back in the Civil War" in them, or some other reference to times long past. One of my earlier questions still stands. Why don't we have modern ghost stories, say, within the last 20 years?

[linkerjpatrick]

OK, back to the topic at hand. I've finished John's book, and it's great. I did notice that lots of his tales have "back in the Civil War" in them, or some other reference to times long past. One of my earlier questions still stands. Why don't we have modern ghost stories, say, within the last 20 years?

Maybe we have less ghost stories because things are not as dark anymore plus you have less old structures.

A prime example of such a structure was the "old museum" at Camp Old Indian. When recently colasped under a falling tree during the last ice storm.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/linkerjpatric...57594091085276/

I'm not sure why it was refered to as a museum. Maybe the camp displayed some artifacts and memobilia there at one time. Anyway when I was at camp I heard ghost stories told about this place. One concerning fang groundhog like creatures called mugwamps and another about the man who originally inhabited the cabin. The story was called "red-eye" and involved his mad wife through hot coals or a hot poker in his eyes and his "spirit" was seen to be wandering the surround hillside was a red light going back and forth. Of course these stories may have been based on other stories and localized to scare young scouts in order to keep them from going into such an unsafe building. I think these days ghosts are a lot more "high-tech" as old time ghost storie have been replaced by urban legends, ufos, government conspiricies etc. I guess ghost stories for the most part could have been classified as rural legends.

I remember seeing what I thought were ghosts when I was a little kid but I think it turned out to be the weird effect of moonlight shining through the limbs of trees creating shadows that my mind changed into another form. ( I once "saw" what looked like a tiny man (leprechan, etc.) sitting on some trash cans at a camp site but as I looked harder it turned out to be just shadows. Of course other stories have a funny effect on us as I often see Imperial Star Destroyers in the sky ( triangular shaped clouds).

I did see "red eye" recently. Turned out to be possum.

[johnboyanoski]

OK, back to the topic at hand. I've finished John's book, and it's great. I did notice that lots of his tales have "back in the Civil War" in them, or some other reference to times long past. One of my earlier questions still stands. Why don't we have modern ghost stories, say, within the last 20 years?

I think part of it has to do with the times and story telling. People in the 1800s and early 1900s had little forms of entertainment so ghost stories were a way to pass the time. Now that you can watch a movie coming out every other week that deals with the supernatural, it kind of meets the need.

However, I do have some modern tales in the book, but the reason they aren't well known is because of story telling. People know Willie Earle and Poinsett Bridge because the stories have been around a long time. Newer ones don't engrain in the mind so quickly.

That's my theory. Sort of.

[btoy]

OK, back to the topic at hand. I've finished John's book, and it's great. I did notice that lots of his tales have "back in the Civil War" in them, or some other reference to times long past. One of my earlier questions still stands. Why don't we have modern ghost stories, say, within the last 20 years?

Also, we are much less superstitious than we once were.

BTW, my dad used to share a home with a ghost in Kittaning, PA.

[linkerjpatrick]

I think part of it has to do with the times and story telling. People in the 1800s and early 1900s had little forms of entertainment so ghost stories were a way to pass the time.

It also seems like most "mysterious stories" are less spiritual and more technical or biological. i.e. UFO's and odd creatures like The Lizard Man of South Carolina, Bigfoot, Nessie, the Monster dog of Maine. Contrails, etc. A lot of this newer lore has moved from the campfire to the Internet and late night radio talk shows like Coast to Coast AM.

[Beowulf]

Good points, all.

I do think it's because folks are less likely to attribute things out of the ordinary to ghosts and haints.

[RestedTraveler]

Also, we are much less superstitious than we once were.

Are we less superstitous than we once were or are we just more accepting of unnatural phenomena these days? I mean, I don't go telling ghost stories but it's not that I don't have any belief in ghosts/spirits/pk energy/whatever. Perhaps it's just that we've found more and more ways to explain the unexplainable?

[Beowulf]

Are we less superstitous than we once were or are we just more accepting of unnatural phenomena these days? I mean, I don't go telling ghost stories but it's not that I don't have any belief in ghosts/spirits/pk energy/whatever. Perhaps it's just that we've found more and more ways to explain the unexplainable?

To paraphrase Arthur C. Clarke, "sufficiently advanced technology is virtually indistinquishable from magic." In this case technology doesn't just refer to tools but to what we know about the world.

But back to the book. I saved the last three chapters for my lunchtime reading today. I was having lunch at Walnut Lane Inn, and there is a story about the inn in John's book. Despite my earlier comment about modern stories, it looks like John has done a good job of collecting a fair number. In addition to the Walnut Lane owners, there's a story involving the McCalla's and the Little Theatre, and several fairly recent sitings.

However, even most of the modering "sitings" still seem to see someone in very old attire - nothing really modern. Maybe we've just become more adept at escaping this mortal ground than our predecessors.

[btoy]

Remember when that store, Three Degrees North, got kicked out of the Greenville Mall for running radio ads that said the place was hounted becuase it was built on indian barial grounds?

[janrey]

To paraphrase Arthur C. Clarke, "sufficiently advanced technology is virtually indistinquishable from magic." In this case technology doesn't just refer to tools but to what we know about the world.

But back to the book. I saved the last three chapters for my lunchtime reading today. I was having lunch at Walnut Lane Inn, and there is a story about the inn in John's book. Despite my earlier comment about modern stories, it looks like John has done a good job of collecting a fair number. In addition to the Walnut Lane owners, there's a story involving the McCalla's and the Little Theatre, and several fairly recent sitings.

However, even most of the modering "sitings" still seem to see someone in very old attire - nothing really modern. Maybe we've just become more adept at escaping this mortal ground than our predecessors.

I don't know if it's in the book but back when the old Fatz Cafe (Pelham Falls location Pelham at 14) burned down I went down to take pictures. There was an old guy wandering around who went into a tale of the ghosts that supposedly haunted the place. I believe the place was a mill of some sorts where the owner cut off his hand. He lingered for a while and later died. It was several restaurants and I can't recall if it was Fatz or another restaurant prior to it that the late night cleaning staff left in fright in the middle of cleaning never to return. The morning crew was greeted with the previous nights dishes. There were more sightings but no one was so scared that they ran off.

[Beowulf]

Just giving this thread a bump as we get closer to Halloween...

I just picked up "Ghosts of the South Carolina Upcountry" by Tally Johnson, a resident of Chester, SC. It's similar in style to John B's book. There is some overlap between the two, but each also has a few unique stories.

[johnboyanoski]

Just giving this thread a bump as we get closer to Halloween...

I just picked up "Ghosts of the South Carolina Upcountry" by Tally Johnson, a resident of Chester, SC. It's similar in style to John B's book. There is some overlap between the two, but each also has a few unique stories.

[Beowulf]

Yo, JohnBoy,

I caught your interview on "Your Day". It was quite good. Walnut Lane Inn is just around the corner from my office. I think I might have to eat lunch there tomorrow for Halloween.

[goodbye]

Yo, JohnBoy,

I caught your interview on "Your Day". It was quite good. Walnut Lane Inn is just around the corner from my office. I think I might have to eat lunch there tomorrow for Halloween.

[johnboyanoski]

I had intended to catch that, but forgot. Hopefully they have it available on their website.

[Beowulf]

I did, in fact, have lunch at Walnut Lane Inn today. I was the only one there, apart from the proprietor and the ghosts. That in and of itself was spooky. I had an excellent Monte Cristo sandwich while some mournful violin music played on the stereo. Just as I was finishing up, the only other customer arrived - a minister.

Apart from the general air of eeriness, I didn't see or hear anything.

[Cap'n Prowler]

Apart from the general air of eeriness, I didn't see or hear anything.

[wellen]

^^^ Nice.

[RestedTraveler]

Nice, indeed!