This blog has commented before on Ray City ghosts and other Haints of Berrien County. One story from Alapaha, GA concerns the ghost of Ben W. Furlong.
In February of 1887 the Atlanta Constitution reported on a ghost appearing at a Berrien County sawmill.
A few months ago Berrien county was startled and shocked by the murder of a negro by Ben W. Furlong. The finding of the body of the negro, the suicide of Furlong, and the flight of his accomplices, Lofton and Sharon, made a remarkable story. The strangest part of the story is this; Workmen and laborers, persons living around and employed at the mill, where the tragedy occurred, assert positively that Furlong’s spirit or ghost stalks forth nearly every night, prowls around the mill building and seems sometimes to be examining the machinery. Quite a number of negroes claim to have met the ghost on the railroad track and around the mill at odd times.[6
A recently encountered article from the Valdosta Times, October 2, 1886 provides some of the back story on the guilty wanderings of Furlong’s spirit.
B. W. Furlong
Valdosta Times
Saturday, October 2, 1886B.W. Furlong Commits Suicide.
B.W. Furlong has for several years enjoyed the reputation along the B. & W. road of being a desperado. He has had more personal difficulties, killed and wounded more people than anybody this side of Texas. The true bills against him in Berrien County alone runs up among the dozens. Some how he has managed to dodge the officers or to evade the judgment of the law in some way, or else he would have swung, or have been put in the penitentiary long ago. Such being the character of the man not many tears were shed when then news was made known some days ago that he had committed suicide by taking an overdose of laudanum. Following this information a few days come this special from Alapaha which throws light upon the deed.
“One of the most terrible crimes ever committed in this community has been brought to light to-day. It has been rumored for some days past that B.W. Furlong and others had murdered a negro man near this place and to-day a coroner’s jury was summoned and the investigation led to the discovery of the body buried in the horse lot of Furlong. The jury will continue the investigation.
“As stated in the News a day or two ago, Furlong was murderously desperate when in his cups. The story of the encounter which resulted in the killing of the negro remains to be learned. There is little doubt but that Furlong’s suicide by taking laudanum was the result of the knowledge that he was suspected of killing the negro, and preferred death to arrest for murder. A few weeks ago he shot an engineer named Brock, who ran on the Brunswick & Western road. On another occasion he is said to have almost killed his wife. No prominent man living in Southwest Georgia in years has borne so wide a reputation of desperation.”
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