Some are skeptical, but others heed warnings in the stories passed
from generation to generation. You draw your own conclusion...
Before technology, when bad weather slammed the tiny isle of North
Island, furious storms came up most often unexpectedly. Shrimpers and
ship pilots feared these "Furies of the Bay" at North Island . . .
with good reason!
In the early 1800's, a stone lighthouse was built on North Island,
appointed with cozy living quarters and flaunting a great whale-oil
lantern to guide ship pilots through the treacherous Bay. The
innkeeper had a daughter named "Annie."
Annie took part in the day-to-day upkeep of the lighthouse; when
supplies were low, she and her father rowed across the Bay to
Georgetown to obtain supplies. Scheduling their trips to travel with
the tides, they would arrive back just in time to light the glowing
lantern...
Pawleys Island was an enormously wealthy island - due to the rice
plantations. One of the planters traveled by horseback, hoping to
propose marriage to his lover. He was thrown from his horse and landed
in quicksand; the sand enveloped him . . . taking his life! Two days
later, the woman he intended to propose to was walking along the
shore; she saw a grey figure appear. Shaken by the vision, but curious
- she moved closer. It was her lover. As she stretched out her arms,
he slowly disappeared...
A nightmare plagued her dreams that night; a storm at sea would take
her life. The very next day, her family fled from the island, just in
time to escape an approaching hurricane. The man was not seen again
until the turn of the century. The Storm of 1893 struck The Grand
Strand with great force! The storm wiped out the settlement of
Magnolia Beach, just north of Pawleys. Ever since, the visions only
occur when hurricanes threatened the coast. The man would appear and
warn people of the devastating storms. Those who listened would
survive, those who didn't . . . would perish.
Halfway through the trip, giant waves grew, and swamped the boat! He
desperately tied Annie to his back, and attempted to brave the angry
water to safety . . . Exhaustion and shock won the battle, and the
light keeper awoke on shore not remembering how he got there.
Little Annie had drowned, while still tied to his back. Since that
dreadful day, sailors have reported a sweet, blonde child appearing on
the bow of their boats, usually on calm days, pointing to the Bay and
begging them to "Go Back" . . . Without fail these visions occur
before a violent, unanticipated storm. Those who ignored her found
themselves in a watery grave!
Annie of the Lighthouse