Ghosts of the Cigar Princess and the Forgotten Detective

Marie Louise Gato was the 19-year-old daughter of Jacksonville cigar factory owner Gabriel Hidalgo Gato. At the time of her death Jacksonville was home to 15 cigar manufacturing companies, her father’s company, Modelo Cigar Manufacturing, was the largest. She was shot five times as she Read More …

Ghost Light Road

The residents of Washington Irving’s Sleepy Hollow had their Albany Post Road, which the Headless Horseman rode upon. Jacksonville has Greenbriar Road. Greenbriar Road runs from Mandarin toward Fruit Cove and Switzerland. It was a dirt road for many years, sand actually. The road wasn’t Read More …

Wiccademous, witch of the woods

There are woods filled with ancient oaks across the street from Fernandina Beach High School. Those woods hold the burial site of a young girl. A girl who was executed for witchcraft hundreds of years before the school was built. Some spins on the legend Read More …