Ghosts of St. Augustine — David Lapham

Ghosts. Unearthly presences. Things that go bump in the night. St. Augustine, America's oldest city, has them all. The unique and often turbulent history of the Ancient City has spawned more than four hundred years' worth of shadowy figures of the dark hours. Come walk through misty, cobblestone streets, down shaded alleys, along the wall of the old stone fort. Smell the smoke of ancient fires, the musty corners of old houses, the garlic and olive oil of Majorcan kitchens. Listen to the tinkling of wine glasses long shattered, the strum of Spanish guitars long broken, and the laughter of a dozen foreign tongues long dead. Awaken to the midnight howling of the city's prowling cats; seek sleep between nightmares lulled by the lapping waters of the Matanzas Bay -- named for the massacre of the French Huguenots by the Spanish here in 1565. Author Dave Lapham has collected twenty-four stories from St. Augustine's rich oral history into a light, yet sometimes hair-raising peek at the spooky side of the Oldest City.