The Blogoween prompt for October 10th was ‘Local Supernaturals Who Demand A Book’. Camilla over at The Reader In The Attic came up with the prompt and I think it’s an excellent one! While I’m a bit late, I really believe that South Carolina’s favorite ghost deserves a book.
The Gray Man is a phantom that shows up before devastating hurricanes/storms to warn residents to leave town. If you see him, your home will be spared from the storm even if all the other houses nearby are destroyed. I’m not sure if you have to leave town in order to have your home saved, though.
The Story {as I remember it}
In the early 1700s a young gentleman rode his horse up the South Carolina coast from Charleston in order to pay a visit to his fiancee. Somehow his horse became stuck in the pluff mud (it’s almost like quicksand) on Pawley’s Island and then so did he. Both died, so he never made it to see his ladylove. Since then, when a major storm approaches from the Atlantic some very special people will see a man (with or without legs) wearing a long gray coat, possibly dressed as a pirate. Yes, he was seen before Hurricane Florence.
Who Is He?
- Blackbeard. Seriously, he hung out in Charleston and died in the early 1700s. Of course, he died in a battle not galloping along the coast.
- One of his pirate crew. See: Blackbeard hung out in Charleston.
- Some other pirate from some other crew.
- Percival Pawley. Eeeehhhh, he was in his 50s when he died and the story clearly states a young gentleman. Here’s his ancestry.com record.
- Some rando.
A Book, Though?
How cool would a novel about a young pirate racing to see his forbidden love (has to be forbidden) before a horrific hurricane hits be? There could be the story of his lady who sits at her window pining for her pirate who will never come home. But since it’s a forbidden love, no one knows about their engagement and she’s never told. Tragedy, y’all.
I think I might write that book.
~Sarah~
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