DINE OR DASH?

People come into The Witchery everyday looking for the Galveston Ghost Tour. We always pass along the info they need to find Dash Beardsley's original Strand Ghost Tour. It's rated the number one ghost tour in Texas and the number two ghost tour in the country.

One day I got a phone call from none other than Dash thanking me for sending business his way. Of course I was happy to do it. He told me he was creating a Secret Societies Cemetery Tour and as the historian for the local Masons I cleared up a couple of questions for him. I invited him to stop by and introduce himself next time he was downtown which he did soon after. I knew it was him as he walked in the door because of his trademark and unmistakeable appearance. We hit it off right away and he invited Kimberley and I to be his guest on the ghost tour.

Last Saturday, July 17, I asked Kim if she wanted to skip dinner and take the tour after work. I called Dash and he said the offer was still good. We closed the shop at 7 and rushed to make the 7:30 start time. We arrived just as he began his introduction.

It was still sunny out for 7:30 PM and there was a group of about 50 people. Right from the start the crowd was entertained as Dash asked individuals where they were from and to share ghost stories from their area. After hearing a few stories and a shout-out to The Witchery the tour began on the steps of Moody Plaza with a history of the island starting with the Karankawa indians.

He talked of pirates and fires and when the story led to the 1900 storm as if on cue the clouds darkened and a wind stirred up. As he raised his voice and intensity so did the clouds and the wind. It seemed that all the souls that perished in Isaac's storm suddenly arrived en masse.

As the gusts of wind whipped at Dash's trench coat and the crowd shielded their eyes from the blowing debris I was thinking to myself he couldn't have timed his performance more perfectly. As the story of the 1900 Storm ended so did the threat of rain and Dash led us down the Strand stopping periodically along the way to tell us a little history and a ghost tale tied to a particular building.

If I had to think of anything negative to say about the tour it would have to be that it was long. Over two hours! But, to Dash's credit, he kept us and the rest of the group entertained all the way to the end. No matter how much you think you know about the island you'll learn something on this tour! Kimberley and I had a great time that night and I recommend it to tourists and locals alike.

GHOSTS AT THE GALVEZ

It was late in the afternoon on Friday, July 2, when the phone rang at the shop. The voice of the young lady on the other end informed me she was the concierge for the Historic Hotel Galvez. She began to relay a story to me that, as a Galveston Island resident, I was somewhat familiar with.

The story goes something like this...a young lady checked into room 500 waiting for her fiance to return from sea when she found out that his ship was lost. Overcome with grief she hung herself in one of the turrets. Unbeknownst to her he had survived and returned to discover the tragedy whereupon he also committed suicide. Now the two souls are trapped in the Hotel Galvez and there are many accounts of haunting by staff and guests.

It seems there was a guest at the hotel who knew of the story and wanted to have the couple's relationship spiritually "blessed" on the 4th of July. The concierge was trying to find someone who understood the situation and could provide the needed "service." I would have loved to do this myself, but I had big plans for Independence Day, so I called our most popular psychic, Sharon Michelle Davis. She agreed to help out.

Reporting back, Sharon said the hotel staff served as witnesses to the ceremony in room 500, which had been set up as a bridal suite complete with champagne and scattered rose petals. Well, the next day, as Sharon was preparing to get a massage, her and her masseuse had a strange experience involving two "lights."

To hear Sharon's full account come to the next meeting of Galveston Ghost Hunters at The Witchery, Sunday, July 18, at 6pm.