Big Talbot Island Hauntings

Name:            Jim
Email:           jayfl@animail.net
Location:        Jacksonville, FL
Type:            Ghost
Date:            Friday, April 28, 2000
Time:            01:13 PM

In the early 80's, I used to spend a lot of nights on Big Talbot Island at what are known as "The Bluffs", near Houston Cemetery, and at a rest area directly on A1A. This island is most definitely haunted by several ghosts. Some are believed to be slaves of the Houston family. Others are believed to be Tamaqua Indians due to the burial mounds on the Island. One is definitely evil in nature. Others may be Civil War Soldiers.

A brief description of the island goes like this. As you travel north on A1A (Heckscher Drive) from Jacksonville, you go across several Barrier Islands. Starting with Fort George Island, this island was owned by slave owners in the 1700's (check out Kingsley Plantation, might be haunted, but no personal experiences here). Next is Little Talbot Island nothing really to note there. After crossing a bridge onto Big Talbot Island, you come to the site of the old rest area about 100 yards north on the left. Houston Road is about 200 yards north of that on the left. Houston Road leads back about 1 1/2 miles to Houston Cemetery. About 300 yards north of the rest area on the right is a trail leading to ancient Tamaqua Burial Grounds. Heading north, you go through dense woods for about 2 1/2 miles till you come to a road on the right leading into a State Park (the whole area is State Park Property). This road takes you to what's known as "The Bluffs" by locals. North of Big Talbot, lays Amelia Island, a documented haunted island. One haunting is Fort Clinch (a Civil War Fort) on the north end of the island where the ghost of a soldier still is seen on patrol frequently. On to the Big Talbot Hauntings...

The old rest area, about 100 feet north of the bridge onto Big Talbot Island, is a good spot. There have been lots of sightings here. Several sightings of glowing orbs and cold spots. The orbs are very impressive, seeming to move through the woods effortlessly through VERY dense underbrush that makes it impossible to navigate even with a machete.

The next spot going north is Houston Cemetery. The graves in Houston Cemetery are dated back to the 1700's and early 1800's. In and around this cemetery, there have been many strange sightings. Glowing orbs in the woods again, dogs barking loudly (yet, when recorded on tape all you can hear are the whispers of our group, no dogs), cold spots, unexplained mist or fog. Truly a spooky place to be. Some crypts are open and have been robbed by grave robbers.

The Burial Grounds are next. Strange moaning sounds and more orbs can be seen and heard here. The area is always colder than the surrounding woods. In the heat of summer, there is at least a 10 degree difference in temperatures in that area. It's always cooler.

The last place on the Island heading north is "The Bluffs". This is where things get stranger and very evil. You can hear the dogs barking here sometimes. One night we had a campfire going and burned a small bag. The bag, that should have burned for no more than 3 minutes, burned for 15 minutes. Everything seems to come in sixes, six lights, six dogs...almost a 666 thing. Another night after midnight, some friends and I were recording a tape off the radio. It was a Pink Floyd album "Umma Gumma". After listening to the radio through the whole album, we played it back and there were Satanic messages on the tape such as, "Praise Satan, Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord". I have felt cold chills running down my spine in that area repeatedly.

I spent the better part of 5 years in those woods and I could go on for hours about this area. The best time for viewing seems to be late night during the new moon phase for some reason. The apparitions don't appear every night, but when they do, it's a massive sighting. It seems everything happens at once. If you're in the area, stop by and check it out. Have friends with you for safety as well as witnesses.