Honors Variant: SBC ghost stories

Kat Jorgensen

Professor Rainville

Honors Variant

5 November 2012

            After attending the Sweet Briar Ghost Stories my initial reaction was surprise to the number of stories and circumstances in which students and staff had encounters with Daisy and other figures from the plantation era.  Many of the stories, especially those about Daisy, occurred in the President's house and include her harp, the mirrors and the great fire.  I know that at the time many of these stories were written the Meta Glass building was not in existence however  Daisy currently is said to live and be most present in Meta. After the stories I was wondering why Daisy's ghost has moved and why Meta was chosen. Additionally, from the variation of stories I heard, the description of Daisy was often portrayed different. In some stories Daisy appeared to be a young girl trailing her mother and wanting to have a playmate yet in others she is said to have a serious expression and a fondness for her harp. A majority of the stories focused on Daisy and occasionally Indiana however there was no mention of any other ghost such as Lucian. I was also wondering if there have been any ghost encounters with any of the former slaves of the plantation?  In one story there was a light that was carried across Boathouse Road and then snuffed out. In this story the ghosts could have been Indiana and Daisy or possibly slaves from their nearby cabins.

            The general atmosphere at Sweet Briar during the early 1900's was another aspect of the stories that I found intriguing. Currently Sweet Briar is considered to be in a rural setting however I can only imagine how isolated the college would have been during the early days. With many of these stories occurring at night and the fact that there were fewer lights outside during that time, the college must had a very eerie feel to it. Also with the lack of technology, many of the students seemed to be more creative and would write poems about their encounters with ghost. Today writing poems about theses occurrences seems slightly out of the ordinary but during that time period it was generally more common. Throughout the stories it is possible to tell that the close atmosphere between the students and faculty was present as many of the students lived in the Presidents house with their faculty and in their stories it was possible to tell that the students had close relationships with the faculty.

            Listening to the stories and accounts of students during the colleges early days was fascinating both because of the insight into the day-to-day events at the college but also the different perspectives and portrayals of Daisy and the other Sweet Briar ghost.