12 August 1890
Brooklyn Eagle

ALL IN WHITE _______________ A Pretty Young Ghost Haunting in South Brooklyn Wears a Mother Hubbard Gown and a Nellie Bly Hat When You Think You See Her You Don't See Her Comes out of of 84 Union Street _______________

Patrolman Thomas McGRATH, of the Eleventh precinct, has not yet recovered from an exciting experience with a ghost. After hearing the outline of the story from the police in the station house an Eagle reporter saw Mc GRATH on beat at 11 o'clock this morning and this is what he said: "At 3:15 o'clock last Saturaday morning I was patrolling Union street, near the corner of Columbia. There were two men loading up a wagon in front of KRAUS'S livery stable and I stopped for a few minutes to watch them. The watchman was sitting up on a block smoking his pipe in front of the stable. After watching the men for ten minutes I walked up slowly toward Columbia street. I saw a woman passing along in front of the jewelry store on the south side. I thought it strange that a woman should be out at that time in the morning and walked towards her. I was then distant about one hundred feet. She walked along Columbia street till she came to the corner. She crossed Union street diagonally, bringing her to the north side. We approached to within ten feet of each other and were coming closer still when the woman completely disappeared. I was going towards her. I had my eye on her and there was nothing between us and the electric light was shining full on her when she disappeared. She was very pretty pretty; I think she was 18 years of age, and she was dressed from head to foot in white. She wore a mother hubbard gown and a Nellie Bly hat. She moved very slowly and her footsteps made no sound, neither did her dree wave about as a woman's dress does when she is walking. I tell you when I saw that I trembled like a leaf, for I knew I had seen a ghost. Now, I don't want to tell this yarn and be exposed to ridicule, and have people think I'm inventing a story, and I would sooner not have anything printed in the papers. But what I say is solid truth, and I ain't the only man who saw this thing. I saw that young woman as plain as I see you now, and she disappeared as I have told you. When I got a little nerve back I went to the house in Columbia street and tried all the doors. The only door that was open was the second house from the corner. Then I went and got a lantern from KRANSE'S stable and the watchman there came with me to Columbia street. I looked in the coal box and finally I took the lantern and went down the rickety old stairs and searched all through the big cellar. The watchman would not go along with me and I tell you it was not a nice job after what I had seen. I told the watchman all abbout the young woman who disappeared and he said he had seen her shortly before 3 o'clock come out of 84 Union street. He thought it was one of the Italian women, and the fact that she was dressed from head to toe all in white did not interest him at all. He told me he thought it was the ghost of an Italian bride who was murdered on her wedding night in that house about seven years ago. I went to the police station and got another officer to come with me. We searched the neighborhood, but saw no more of the young woman, but Mr. FOGARTY, of the Police Gazette, who lives at the corner of Columbia and President, saw her on President, near Columbia, at ten minutes past 4. She looked too young and pretty to be out alone and he went towards her. He told me that when he got within a few feet she just melted away, the same as she did for me. Well it scared him worse than it did me, and I was pretty scared. I've been on the park police eleven years and on the city force ten years and I never saw anything of this kind before.

Scene Of The Encounter

A--Where the Ghost forst appeared to McGRATH B--Where the ghost disappeared C--Where McGRATH stood when the ghost disappeared D--The house who cellar and passages McGRATH searched E--84 Union street, out of which the watchman saw the ghost issue F--Livery stable where the watchman sat. McGRATH'S comrades fully corroorate his story as to his condition when he called at the station house. Back to GHOSTS Main Back to CEMETERY INDEX Back to BROOKLYN Page Main