wounded and captured during Sheridan’s Ride, his Yankee captors actually saluted him and gave him a horse to ride. While he was a prisoner of war, he was hailed a hero and received visits from many of the prominent Union officers, including President Lincoln. When the war ended, he symbolized the prodigal son being joyfully welcomed home. He was even paraded down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington D.C. with the victorious Union troops. The southerners forgave him of all this because he had been a prisoner of war at the time. When he returned to New Orleans, he was given a hero’s welcome. Then he rode as quickly as he could to Virginia City to retake control of his father’s investments in Virginia City.”
“What did Samuel do?” I ask.
“Samuel had grown accustomed to running the mines and the money he had squandered of James’s in the process. He was jealous of his nephew and refused to take orders from him. When James had had enough of Samuel, he put his foot down. Samuel lashed out in the only way he knew how – he murdered him.”
I gasp, covering Colonel Blair’s picture with my hands in a feeble attempt to shield him from an act that had happened long before my time.
Sunny continues, “He was such a coward that he didn’t dare face him. Instead, he put a bullet in his head while he slept. James never woke.”
“Did Samuel go to prison?”
She shakes her head. “He accused someone else of the crime.”
“Who?” I demand.
Sunny looks sadly at me. “You know them already. Samuel accused James’s loyal friends. The same ones he digs with each day.”
“No…” My voice trembles.
“Yes, James was such a hero that the locals didn’t even wait for a trial. They strung those poor men up in a tree and hung them. Samuel got everything he wanted: his nephew out of the way, the mines, and no witnesses.”
I blink the tears out of my eyes.
She nods slightly. “The other miners called the large man ‘Big Gabe’ and from what I’ve read about him, Gabriel was extremely intelligent. Being born to a free woman, he was given every advantage. He could read and write better than most white men at the time. He could have run the mines every bit as well as John and better than Samuel. Gabe and John were also best of friends. I suspect he was the reason John sold his slaves, but the loyalty ran both ways. When John went to war, James wasn’t the only one to follow. Gabe dutifully played the pretend role of his slave, tending his horse and cooking for him. When John died, Gabe watched over James.”
“So, Samuel killed James and framed John’s best friend for it?” I wipe more tears off my face.
“It was the easiest way to get rid of both of them. He brought James’s body to town and rounded up a drunken mob. Gabe, and James’s friend, Henry, were pulled away from the dance they had gone to and were lynched that same night. It was said that Gabe cursed Samuel as the rope was put around his neck. He promised him that he would never know peace again. Within three years, Samuel shot himself in the head in one of the very mines he had run for his brother.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Colonel Blair, Gabe, and Henry never left this land. They have relived the last day of their lives for over a hundred years, and Samuel couldn’t deal with their presence.”
I think for a couple minutes. “Sunny, that’s a really sad story, but I’m not completely convinced I have...”
She lifts a hand to stop me. “It’s late. Why don’t I walk you home?”
Because of my recent experiences with being haunted, the talk of ghosts has greatly disturbed me. I walk very close to Sunny the distance to my house. Images of the three guys run through my head, leaving me with more questions than answers.
“Sunny, I’m not admitting I can see ghosts. But if I can, why didn’t I see them in Charleston?”
“I suspect you did, but you were too young to realize what they were. Also, watching your mama die
“What did Samuel do?” I ask.
“Samuel had grown accustomed to running the mines and the money he had squandered of James’s in the process. He was jealous of his nephew and refused to take orders from him. When James had had enough of Samuel, he put his foot down. Samuel lashed out in the only way he knew how – he murdered him.”
I gasp, covering Colonel Blair’s picture with my hands in a feeble attempt to shield him from an act that had happened long before my time.
Sunny continues, “He was such a coward that he didn’t dare face him. Instead, he put a bullet in his head while he slept. James never woke.”
“Did Samuel go to prison?”
She shakes her head. “He accused someone else of the crime.”
“Who?” I demand.
Sunny looks sadly at me. “You know them already. Samuel accused James’s loyal friends. The same ones he digs with each day.”
“No…” My voice trembles.
“Yes, James was such a hero that the locals didn’t even wait for a trial. They strung those poor men up in a tree and hung them. Samuel got everything he wanted: his nephew out of the way, the mines, and no witnesses.”
I blink the tears out of my eyes.
She nods slightly. “The other miners called the large man ‘Big Gabe’ and from what I’ve read about him, Gabriel was extremely intelligent. Being born to a free woman, he was given every advantage. He could read and write better than most white men at the time. He could have run the mines every bit as well as John and better than Samuel. Gabe and John were also best of friends. I suspect he was the reason John sold his slaves, but the loyalty ran both ways. When John went to war, James wasn’t the only one to follow. Gabe dutifully played the pretend role of his slave, tending his horse and cooking for him. When John died, Gabe watched over James.”
“So, Samuel killed James and framed John’s best friend for it?” I wipe more tears off my face.
“It was the easiest way to get rid of both of them. He brought James’s body to town and rounded up a drunken mob. Gabe, and James’s friend, Henry, were pulled away from the dance they had gone to and were lynched that same night. It was said that Gabe cursed Samuel as the rope was put around his neck. He promised him that he would never know peace again. Within three years, Samuel shot himself in the head in one of the very mines he had run for his brother.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Colonel Blair, Gabe, and Henry never left this land. They have relived the last day of their lives for over a hundred years, and Samuel couldn’t deal with their presence.”
I think for a couple minutes. “Sunny, that’s a really sad story, but I’m not completely convinced I have...”
She lifts a hand to stop me. “It’s late. Why don’t I walk you home?”
Because of my recent experiences with being haunted, the talk of ghosts has greatly disturbed me. I walk very close to Sunny the distance to my house. Images of the three guys run through my head, leaving me with more questions than answers.
“Sunny, I’m not admitting I can see ghosts. But if I can, why didn’t I see them in Charleston?”
“I suspect you did, but you were too young to realize what they were. Also, watching your mama die
Similar Books
