24 April 2016

Looking for Alice

Alice Flagg grave marker, All Saints, Pawley's Island, SC  
I appreciate that churches must get very weary of ghost seekers in their graveyards. I was there for a respectful visit - photographing the church and touring the cemetery but I couldn't resist keeping my eye out for the grave marker of Alice Flagg and taking a few pictures while I was there. Alice is frequently mentioned in any collection of lowcountry ghost stories. Coins, flower petals and token rings were left on the stone. Here is the version from Myrtle Beach Online
Alice Flagg, whose brother Dr. Flagg owned Wachesaw Plantation, was raised in wealth and grandeur along the Atlantic Ocean. She fell in love with a poor, young man and they maintained a secret affair, and later an engagement.Once Dr. Flagg found out about the lovebirds, he quickly shipped Alice away to a boarding school in Charleston.While there, Alice grew ill with fever and a broken heart. She returned home and, while being prepared for bed, Dr. Flagg found her engagement ring on a chain around her neck. Consumed with bitter rage, Dr. Flagg tore the ring from Alice’s neck, marched out onto the marsh and threw the ring into the muck.With each day Alice grew sicker, but she never forgot her precious ring. She died, begging with her last breath for her ring. She is believed to be buried in the Waccamaw Cemetery, underneath a plain, white stone marked “Alice.”To this day, many people claim to see Alice wandering around her grave, searching for someone or something. Some have reported a slight tug or spin on rings worn around fingers and on chains. Legend has it that walking backward around Alice’s grave on a certain night of every year causes the ghostly white figure to appear, searching for her lost love.Source: “Tales Along the Grand Strand of South Carolina” by Blanche W. Floyd

7 comments:

Commander Zaius said...

Lived in that area for decades, and I have never understood the reason for the coins on the grave. Obviously I'm missing some element of Alice's story.

William Kendall said...

A rather poignant story... one can see that it could give rise to ghost tales.

Teresa said...

Oh my! Poor Alice ) : but wonderful picture ! Hello from Teresa, who you met in the St. Francis lobby.

Charlestonjoan said...

Beach Bum, Coins are left on other graves. They are usually a token of remembrance. There is the old tradition of something to "pay the ferryman".
http://gravingwithjenn.com/paying-respects-why-coins-are-left-on-headstones/
The different thing here is the rings that are left. There are a couple different superstitions about walking around the tomb 13 times. People seem to love this stuff.

Charlestonjoan said...

Boo!

Charlestonjoan said...

How fun to meet you! Thanks for stopping me and saying hello. I've met a few people lately and it is always a treat.

Catalyst said...

She didn't have a restaurant in an old church up in . . .

Naaah, guess that was a different Alice.