We recently took a trip to one of our region’s most charming cities: Savannah. But beyond the Spanish moss drapery, quaint coffee shops and cobblestone roads are centuries of ghost stories passed down from generation to generation. Here are a few we heard while spending a weekend in town.
The Kehoe House
An Irish immigrant, William Kehoe made a name for himself in Savannah and built the impressive Kehoe House in the Historic District. He and his wife, Anne Flood, lived in the stately mansion with their 10 children, which included twin boys. However, tragedy fell upon the house; one of the rumors is that the twins were playing and fell into a lit fireplace, killing them. Today, guests at the Kehoe House report hearing the sounds of children running and giggling in the hallways—mind you, the bed and breakfast is an adults-only venue.
432 Abercorn Street
A house that finds itself back on the market almost as soon as it’s purchased, local lore says that anyone who lives in this house will either die or be haunted by past residents. One of the stories behind Savannah’s very own Amityville horror alleges that a murderer broke into the house and killed three little girls, not realizing a fourth was hiding in the closet. That little girl grew up and moved into the guest house next door and let the house fall into disrepair, vowing to never let anyone live in it. After she passed, family after family moved in and ran back out, haunted by the ghosts and horrors that lay behind the front doors.
Marshall House
The property of one of the most powerful women in Savannah, Mary Marshall’s inn was converted into a military hospital during the Civil War. It went back to its glory days as an inn until the 1950s, then fell into disrepair until 1999. Legend has it that when construction crews were working in the basement, they found a sea of bones–the amputated limbs of those Civil War soldiers. Some guests at the hotel, especially those on the top floors, claim to hear knocks at their door and heavy boots walking the hallways.
This web extra was inspired by our September/October 2019 issue of Boca magazine. For the full piece and more content like this, subscribe to the magazine.
