New Orleans claims to be the most haunted place in America, and the Crescent City has the stories to back it up. Louisiana Ghost Stories II: Lagniappe is the second riveting collection from acclaimed author Jesse Wimberly. These ten tales of the macabre are set in and around New Orleans and are guaranteed to frighten and enlighten. Go down to the crossroads on a moonless night and meet Old Scratch. Eavesdrop in Pirate’s Alley when Jean Lafitte reveals the location of his hidden treasure. Venture into the asylum or the heart of Mardi Gras as Inspector Sterling investigates brutal murders in the city. Get lost with two brothers on a flatboat in the swamp when they meet The Mossgatherer. Rooted in actual events that have taken place over the years, these stories of the supernatural and occult will keep you on the edge of your seat. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, this collection will challenge even the bravest of readers.

“He struck a match to look at his watch. In the flare of the light they saw a young woman just at Pitot’s elbow—a young woman dressed all in black, with pale gold hair, and a baby sleeping on her shoulder. She glided to the edge of the bridge and stepped noiselessly off into the black waters.”—from Ghost Stories of Old New Orleans Ghosts are said to wander along the rooftops above New Orleans’ Royal Street, the dead allegedly sing sacred songs in St. Louis Cathedral, and the graveyard tomb of a wealthy madam reportedly glows bright red at night. Local lore about such supernatural sightings, as curated by Jeanne deLavigne in her classic Ghost Stories of Old New Orleans, finds the phantoms of bitter lovers, vengeful slaves, and menacing gypsies haunting nearly every corner of the city, from the streets of the French Quarter to Garden District mansions. Originally printed in 1944, all forty ghost stories and the macabre etchings of New Orleans artist Charles Richards appear in this new edition. Drawing largely on popular legend dating back to the 1800s, deLavigne provides vivid details of old New Orleans with a cast of spirits that represent the ethnic mélange of the city set amid period homes, historic neighborhoods, and forgotten taverns. Combining folklore, newspaper accounts, and deLavigne’s own voice, these phantasmal tales range from the tragic—brothers, lost at sea as children, haunt a chapel on Thomas Street in search of their mother—to graphic depictions of torture, mutilation, and death. Folklorist and foreword contributor Frank A. de Caro places the writer and her work in context for modern readers. He uncovers new information about deLavigne’s life and describes her book’s pervasive lingering influence on the Crescent City’s culture today.

When a ten-year-old boy is invited to attend a big fight that attracts cockfighters and gamblers from all over the area to a pit in Carencro, he is so excited that he barely sleeps a wink the night before. But can the tender-hearted boy come to grips with the consequences that come with a cockfight surrounded by Old South voodoo rituals? In a collection of short tales, Jesse Wimberly once again leads others on an imaginary journey through horror and the supernatural world as he introduces diverse characters, each experiencing seemingly unimaginable events. When the police chief of New Orleans receives word that the bloody body of a young woman has been found in the street, he begins an investigation that leads him down a dark path that leaves him with more questions than answers. When Esther's boyfriend breaks up with her just before her high school prom, she commisions help from her hairdresser--and two voodoo dolls--to instigate a vengeful plan. Louisiana Ghost Stories III shares ten more chilling, macabre tales of horror from a master storyteller.

Louisiana is a place of legend, especially in the deep, dark bayou. Visit the swamps, and smell the usual combination of decaying vegetation and sluggish water. You might sense another smell, too--one you can't identify but seems distinct. It could be more of a feeling than an odor. That feeling is fear, and it spreads past the bayou and into the heart of New Orleans. Louisiana Ghost Stories is a collection of original tales based on fact mixed with myth. A place of legend, the state is also a place of storytelling, and many of those stories grow like thick vines in the memories of locals and visitors alike. Step into the haunted plantations. Hear about voodoo and gris gris. Examine pirate legends, and follow ghosts into the dark. Come face to face with the Cajun werewolf, known as the "loup garou." Hear of the heinous offenses of infamous serial killer, the Axeman. Learn the horrid history of the LaLaurie mansion, and even stumble upon a tale of Hallow's Eve. With stories eerie, mysterious, sexy, and colorful, prepare yourself to be scared as legends come to life and haunt the page.

In this book Tiya Miles explores the popular yet troubling phenomenon of "ghost tours," frequently promoted and experienced at plantations, urban manor homes, and cemeteries throughout the South. As a staple of the tours, guides entertain paying customers by routinely relying on stories of enslaved black specters. But who are these ghosts? Examining popular sites and stories from these tours, Miles shows that haunted tales routinely appropriate and skew African American history to produce representations of slavery for commercial gain. "Dark tourism" often highlights the most sensationalist and macabre aspects of slavery, from salacious sexual ties between white masters and black women slaves to the physical abuse and torture of black bodies to the supposedly exotic nature of African spiritual practices. Because the realities of slavery are largely absent from these tours, Miles reveals how they continue to feed problematic "Old South" narratives and erase the hard truths of the Civil War era. In an incisive and engaging work, Miles uses these troubling cases to shine light on how we feel about the Civil War and race, and how the ghosts of the past are still with us.

Discover this Cajun and Creole city where ghost stories abound . . . photos included! The Hub City boasts a multitude of spirits and specters, from those lost in Civil War skirmishes and fever outbreaks to those souls that simply can’t say goodbye. Today, they wander the halls of bed-and-breakfasts and restaurants and linger along back roads and cemeteries. Pirates are rumored to guard buried treasure, and ancient French legends hide in the swamps, bayous, and woods. Join journalist and ghost seeker Cheré Dastugue Coen as she visits Lafayette’s haunted sites and travels the countryside in search of ghostly legends found only in South Louisiana.

Reproduction of the original: Strange True Stories of Louisiana by George W. Cable

Gathers Cajun stories featuring werewolves, pirate ghosts, witches, and skeletons.

Travel beyond Bourbon Street into the macabre history of one of the most haunted cities in the United States with the author of Wicked New Orleans as your guide. New Orleans—the Big Easy, the birthplace of jazz, home of Cafe du Monde and what some call the most haunted city in America. Beneath the indulgence and revelry of the Crescent City lies a long history of the dark and mysterious. From the famous “Queen of Voodoo,” Marie Laveau, who is said to haunt the site of her grave, to the wicked LaLauries, whose true natures were hidden behind elegance and the trappings of high society, New Orleans is filled with spirits of all kinds. Some of the ghosts in these stories have sordid and scandalous histories, while others are friendly specters who simply can’t leave their beloved city behind. Join supernatural historian Troy Taylor as he takes readers beyond the French Quarter and shows a side of New Orleans never seen. Includes photos!