Jamie Davis Writes

Cumberland Island

Cumberland Island has a well-earned reputation for being a beautiful, desolate wilderness beach. Owned by the National Park Service, and accessible only by their ferry or private means, it takes some effort to get there. But it is oh so worth it! We caught the 9:00 a.m. ferry out of St. Mary’s, Georgia, to Cumberland. It takes about 45 minutes to get to the Dungeness Dock. Once we landed, we walked up the gravel path and on toward the driveway leading up to the Dungeness Ruins.

Dungeness Ruins - Cumberland Island, GA — ***Dungeness Ruins – Cumberland Island, GA***

This is the old Carnegie estate, which fell victim to an arsonist in 1959. Much still stands, though. And it isn’t hard to imagine the old grandeur at all. When I arrived at the old iron gates leading up to the house, I paused for a moment and let my imagination soak it all in before I took a step back in time.

We enjoyed exploring the grounds, the cemetery, seeing the wild horses, the pergola remains, and even stumbling across some rusting remains of Carnegie automobiles!

Wild horses - Cumberland Island, GA — ***Wild horses – Cumberland Island, GA***

Pergola - Cumberland Island, GA — ***Pergola – Cumberland Island, GA***

Rusting Carnegie Cars - Cumberland Island, GA — ***Rusting Carnegie Cars – Cumberland Island, GA***

When we were finished rambling through the grounds, we continued on through the boardwalk that passes through the salt marsh. In just a few short minutes our boardwalk ended, and we were climbing up sand dunes that looked as if we had landed on the surface of the moon. No one else was around. We had it all to ourselves! We strolled a little further down the path and found the actual entrance to the main beach. I’d never seen anything like it. Just a gorgeous, wild desolate beach. Miles and miles were ours for the taking. We’d packed a picnic lunch so we picked a spot and enjoyed our private picnic. We then played on the beach for a few hours.

Soon, it was time to walk further south to exit the beach for the Sea Dock ferry pick-up. The entrance off the beach is like some kind of fairy tale land. The trees are magnificent! Winding, and interloping with each other. I was walking under a gnarled canopy of oak trees, and feeling as if I might be stepping into Hobbit territory.

I was so tired I fell asleep on the return ferry. We selected Borrell Creek Landing for dinner in St. Mary’s and were not disappointed! This is a fantastic local place that has a deck overlooking a salt marsh and great quality food combined with excellent service.

This trip is definitely earning a spot on rotation for a quick Saturday escape.

As always, our travels can be found indexed inside our “Play” journal from Stealth Journals. A look inside the Play Journal can be found below:

Cumberland Island: Indexed inside our Play Journal, by Stealth Journals

October 20, 2013 1

Surviving Yellow Fever: A Night Out at the Davenport House

Last night Bob and his significant Savannah freelance writer saw the 7:30 Dreadful Pestilence performance at the Davenport House Museum. Variations of the program have been running for ten years now, but being new to the city, this was my first time seeing it.

We began in the courtyard and walked across the street to the old Kennedy Pharmacy to observe an 1820 town hall meeting that covered the events of sickly season (May – October) from the perspective of two dueling newspaper editors. During the meeting, we heard from the mayor and several townspeople as well. It is a story as old as any city, I imagine. One editor wanted to report freely on the deaths because he believed that health officials were hiding the extent of the disease, and the other editor accused him of over-reacting and inciting panic in the city. This storyline is very much relatable to our time.

The people blamed foreigners, mostly the poor Irish families who were accused of living in filth and spreading disease. It was not until the very end of sickly season when the mayor had suffered the death of his own wife that he realized Yellow Fever was not a disease limited to the poverty-stricken population of Savannah. It could happen to anyone, and he advised his citizens to flee immediately if they had the means to do so.

Once dismissed from the town hall meeting, we entered the candlelit house where we observed the doctor treating a young girl, and then we climbed the cantilever stairs all the way up to Yamacraw (staged in the authentic haint-blue, peeling paint attic, which is generally off-limits to the public). In Yamacraw, a slave told us that the Africans had to bury all of the city’s dead, while their own population remained uncounted in the death toll.

The night ended at a wake. A young girl had passed. A few days before, her mother saw the corpse candle in the girl’s bedroom (a single floating flame in the room, but without a candle to ground it) which was a sure sign of impending death.

In the end, we gambled and drew slips of paper to let fate determine our chances. After four days of suffering, I fought hard and rallied. I survived the deadly pestilence. Bob was not so lucky.

October 12, 2013 0

More Art That Reminds me of Halloween

A compilation of more art that reminds me of Halloween for some reason.

Paul Klee’s Schoolhouse

http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/32590

Francis Bacon’s Study After Velásquez’s Portrait of Pope Innocent X

http://emuseum.desmoinesartcenter.org/

And of course, no Halloween collection would be complete without Edvard Munch’s The Scream

October 6, 2013 2

The Fitzpatrick Hotel – Your Home Base in Washington, GA

I am posting part of an email that I received from The Fitzpatrick Hotel in Washington, GA.

“Weekend Special — October 4th and 5th, 2013
Spend a delightful weekend with a stay at the Fitzpatrick Hotel and experience the outdoor cemetery drama, “Resthaven Revisited”.

For a limited time, book a Standard room* at the Fitzpatrick Hotel on October 4th and/or 5th for $115.00 and receive 2 tickets to “Resthaven Revisited” on Saturday evening October 5th.

“Resthaven Revisited” takes place in the historic Resthaven Cemetery and gives you the opportunity to meet some of its most famous residents. Their dramatic tales will haunt you for a LIFEtime! Performances begin every 20 minutes from 6-9 pm. Transportation to and from the cemetery will be provided at no charge by the Washington Pilot Club. Guests may also go directly to the cemetery if desired.”

The Fitzpatrick Hotel - Washington, GA — ***The Fitzpatrick Hotel – Washington, GA***

The Fitzpatrick Hotel is located in historic downtown Washington, GA in walking distance to the Robert Toombs House. One of the best things you can do is eat dinner at Talk of the Town and then stroll around the neighborhood.

There are so many antebellum homes out there! Can you see the ghost in the upstairs window?

Washington is one of the few towns in Georgia that actually has Revolutionary War and Civil War History. What’s more, Washington, GA is the last place the Confederate Gold Treasury was seen. Somewhere around $450,000 in silver and gold coins went missing during a train robbery. Callaway Plantation is nearby, and is allegedly the sight of many Confederate ghostly spirit guests. They certainly have some authentic props around the house. Check out the hair art and the coffins. Yikes!

Callaway Plantation – Washington, GA

The Mary Willis Library is gorgeous! They even have one of the original Confederate Treasury chests on display.

Mary Willis Library – Washington, GA

Further Reading:
http://www.thefitzpatrickhotel.com/
http://www.historyofwilkes.org/sites-callaway.html
http://www.gpb.org/georgiatraveler/202-legend

October 4, 2013 0

Oglethorpe Trolley Tours

Last Sunday evening, I found myself boarding a blue trolley outside of the Pirate’s House and embarking on a haunted tour. Off we went, and the Savannah freelance writer strikes again. Currently, I am working on my second book (this one will cover haunted hotels), and the Kehoe House recommended this tour company.

Joan Altmeyer was our guide, and she was a perfect mix of Southern Lady, Comedian, and Storyteller. She started giving the tours in spring of 1999. She made the tour a lot of fun! Joan said she hasn’t had any personal paranormal experiences, but she is a believer because of some of the things that have happened to her mother and grandmother. I asked her what her favorite Savannah ghost story was and she said she enjoys the Alice Reilly story, which focuses on Wright Square. “I think that things that really happen, history-wise, are much more fascinating than fiction. Alice Reilly was actually the first woman to be executed in Georgia, because of the murder.” Joan was recorded several years ago telling the story, and you can listen to it here: http://bit.ly/19VYvVv

For further reading about Savannah’s ghosts, Joan recommended Margaret DeBolt’s Savannah Spectres and Other Strange Tales.

Some of the highlights of the tour for me were getting to drive past the infamous Hampton Lillibridge House on East St. Julian St., seeing the old Savannah Women’s Asylum (actually an orphanage for girls) that is currently a private residence, and hearing about the Marshall House Hotel (a former union hospital).

As for the Kehoe House? Joan believes this former mortuary is a happy place, and there are stories of the Kehoe children returning to their childhood home after they have lived to old age elsewhere. Children are heard running around the third floor playing.

At dusk, reigning supreme over Columbia Square in downtown Savannah, the Kehoe House appears like a beautiful, happy home. Surely if it is haunted, it must be full of boundless, childlike energy, just like Joan’s version of the tale.

Exterior Kehoe House — ***The Kehoe House – Savannah, GA***

Stay tuned for when Oglethorpe Tours is allowed back into the Old Candler Hospital’s Morgue Tunnel! Access is currently denied due to the construction on the new law school. A sneak peek at what has been going on over there can be accessed here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoMeeP53UUM&list=FLJNDOoyWBbQzJ0RXmH0rJFg&index=8

One of the great things for out of town guests is that the trolley will pick you up from your hotel in the historic district and drop you anywhere else downtown if you would like.

http://oglethorpetours.com/

October 2, 2013 0

Medfield – The Shutter Island Hospital

Llewellyn published my article about Medfield in their journal!

http://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/2389

Medfield – The Shutter Island Hospital

September 30, 2013 1

Wormsloe Plantation

About a mile and a half up this road, arguably one of the most beautiful roads in Savannah, you will find the Colonial ruins of the oldest structure in Savannah.

Wormsloe has a nature trail that will take you by the marsh, and behind the ruins you will find the old family cemetery plot. The reason you came, though, is to walk oak alley and imagine you have stepped back in time, all the way back to 1733. It is easy enough to do.

Richard Scott Hill – The Rembrandt Mask Series

The Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia is definitely on the list of “Top Things I Ever Spent $5 on.” The museum is part of Tula Art Center, a self-described hidden treasure (agreed) in Atlanta’s Buckhead neighborhood. Bennett Street is also home to the Atlanta Photography Group Gallery.

For some reason, this exhibit just sprang to mind tonight. It must be that Halloween is in the air. Richard Scott Hill created some of the best Halloween art I have ever seen. I don’t think that is what he was doing, but to me, it is perfect Halloween art. Hill took self-portraits of Rembrandt and then cut the eyes and nose out and pasted them onto images of other people. It is brilliant and hilarious and disturbing all at once. I love it and think it is just so wildly creative. His images actually remind me of the book Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.

The Rembrandt Mask Series - Richard Scott Hill — **The Rembrandt Mask Series – Richard Scott Hill**

Take a look.

The expression of Rembrandt pasted on the pregnant woman could actually be very close to her real facial expression. This is the most true to life example.

Next, we have the toddler.

A toddler acting or appearing as an old man kills. Every time. Think of the baby commercial where he is talking in his grown-up voice when he finds out that riding the dog is “apparently frowned upon in this establishment.” It kills me, it really does.

Lastly, we have a skeleton with a face.

Need I say more? He actually looks happy to me. He could practically join the animated cast of Nightmare Before Christmas.

I love Halloween.

A Stop at Darien, GA

Another one of my goals as a newly transplanted wannabe Savannahian is to explore the Georgia coast. Darien was the closest city, and it appealed to me because they have an old jail that they’ve turned into an art center, a fort, and the legend of Altie (a Sea Monster, what else could it be?).

The Old Jail Art Center

Old Jail Art Center - Darien, GA — ***Old Jail Art Center – Darien, GA***

The Old Jail Art Center is located at 404 North Way just before historic downtown Darien. The McDonald Brothers Jail Building Company constructed the jail in 1888. Today, it is part local gallery (5 rooms solely dedicated to art exhibits) and part museum. The cells are still intact, and there are plenty of exhibits on display inside them! The museum is free, but donations are accepted. There is even a gift shop downstairs. The McIntosh Art Association offers painting, pottery, and even creative writing classes here. This is a charming and oh so worthwhile venue.

Fort King George

The fort was constructed in 1721 and was abandoned in 1732. What you see here today is a replication from maps and drawings. It’s funny because I called that from the parking lot. I looked at Bob and said: “This is what Disney World thinks a fort is.” It is nicely done, and an enjoyable stop, but just know that you are not walking through buildings from the 1700s. When you go in the visitor center to pay, you need to make a left and walk through the museum. Then, make like you are back in elementary school and watch the film. You’ll actually get a kick out of it. It will give you the cliff’s notes version of the history of Darien becoming a seaport, the Guale Indians, and the Santo Domingo de Talaje mission.

Once inside the block house, climb to the top and look through the window out into the Altamaha River. This is actually one of the most popular spots to try and find Altie.

The buildings may not be authentic, but the grounds are beautiful, and this is where you hear the history if you are listening. Ruins of the sawmill and some tabby ruins are still on the grounds. When you leave the blockhouse, take the nature trail back to your car.

Fort King George - Darien, GA — ***Fort King George – Darien, GA***

I can’t guarantee this for future guests, but there was a very brazen raccoon out there who really amused me. He trotted out of nowhere and made a direct play for the trashcan right outside the visitor’s center. I was rooting for him, but I guess it was a slow day and he left empty-handed. He was a fast little sucker too. I couldn’t even get a photo.

Altie – Darien, GA

The aquatic cryptid (sea monster) is very serious business. There is an entire pamphlet devoted to Altie that can be picked up from the very sad and empty outlet mall directly off the interstate (Exit 49). The first Altie sightings date back to the 17th century with the Yamasee Indians. The most recent reporting is from a fisherman in 2002. I would love to take a boat down the Altamaha River in search of Altie.