Do you believe in ghosts? Ever seen or heard one?

I can say that I have honestly heard one. It was my paternal grandmother speaking to me right after her death; before I even knew that she was dead. I suppose you could say that I have seen one as well, but that's a whole 'nother subject that I'll delve into on another post.

Anyway, those of you  that have read my novels know that ghosts play an important role in them, especially the ghost of the Grey Man that appears in A Lone Palm Stands. You may be surprised to find that the Grey Man is a very real legend around the lowcountry of South Carolina. So just who is this Grey Man? Well, most people agree that he is a benevolent ghost that warns the inhabitants of the South Carolina sea islands of approaching hurricanes. Yes, I know we have the Weather Channel and local news now a days, and it's darn near impossible not to know when a storm is threatening, but back in the days before radar and weather satellites, the Grey Man was the only early warning system around.

According to legend, the Grey Man is the spirit of Plowden Charles Jeannerette Weston (man, did they ever love long names back in the day). His family had one of those huge rice plantations in Georgetown County in the 1800's, so the guy wasn't doing bad for himself. In fact, he went to Cambridge to study whatever they studied back then ( Rice 101?) where he met a British hottie by the name of Emilie Frances Esdaile. That's when things started to go south for Plowden, both figuratively and literally.

When the couple announced their engagement, the father of the bride and the father of the groom began a battle to see who could provide the biggest, most expensive wedding present ( never had that problem before, have you?). Emilie's father started things off by saying he would give the couple a dowry of 7,000 pounds. Not sure how much that is in dollars, but I'm sure it was a lot of money, especially in the 1800's. So not to be outdone, Plowden's father agreed to match the 7,000 pounds AND give the couple not one house, but TWO houses, one in London and one in Geneva. Oh, and he decided while he was at it, he would give them their very own plantation in South Carolina, on the Waccamaw River (Jeez, this guy must have been the Donald Trump of the old South).

The plantation stretched to the shore of Pawley's Island, a tiny sea isle where Plowden decided to build yet another house. After all, the couple needed a place where they could escape the mosquitoes in the summer (I have to admit that makes a lot of sense to me--if you've ever seen a South Carolina mosquito, you understand why many consider it to be the state bird). So Plowden constructed a two-story home overlooking the sea that he affectionately named Pelican Inn, a place where the couple spent most of their time (guess they didn't care too much for the London and Geneva houses).

Plowden ended up serving in that little dispute the South had with the North, known as the Civil War, and became a company commander. Near the end of the war, he contracted tuberculosis and died. He was buried at the plantation, not far from Pelican Inn. It is claimed that he loves his island so much, even in death, that he returns to warn the residents of the impending danger of approaching hurricanes.

So is Plowden truly the Grey Man? No one knows for sure. But one thing is certain -- too many people have seen the Grey Man over the years for it to be a simple case of their imagination gone wild. And long before the National Weather Service made its debut, the Grey Man was 100% accurate in predicting hurricanes hitting the island. Interestingly, those that heeded his warning and evacuated were rewarded by returning to homes completely untouched by the damaging wind and storm surge.

I did take some literary liberty in my interpretation of the Grey Man in A Lone Palm Stands, but I hope that the Grey Man that visited Angela in the book just before Hugo struck captured the essence of this interesting legend.

So,I guess it all comes down to this -- if you're ever strolling along one of the sea islands of South Carolina and find yourself  face to face with  the strange, shadowy figure of a man dressed in grey, I have but one suggestion --- head for the mountains as fast as you can, for a storm is sure to be brewing.

If you'd like to learn more about the Grey Man (and read an alternate explanation as to who he is) please take a look at this website:  http://www.hauntedlowcountry.com/index.php?/hauntlow/south_carolina/the_gray_man/