By admin 
Forget about Christmas in July, what about Halloween?
The creatures, ghouls and eerie tales that make up South Carolina’s canon of urban legends don’t take a summer vacation.
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According to local legends, they still linger beneath the streets of Columbia or on the side of the state’s many winding back roads, so discover some of the Palmetto State’s most notable folklore icons:
The Third-Eye Man
The tunnels slithering underneath South Carolina’s capital, now sealed to the public, span much of the bustling University of South Carolina campus and the Statehouse grounds – but some suggest that the tunnels have an inhabitant all their own.
The ghoulish “Third-Eye Man” was first spotted by two USC students in 1949, when they saw a man dressed all in silver open a manhole and slip underground. One of the two students, a newspaper reporter, wrote about his experience.
A legend was born.
The next sighting came only a year later, according to The Daily Gamecock, when a police officer ran across several mutilated chickens. When he walked back to his car to make a report, he reportedly caught sight of a pale-faced man dressed in silver – and with an important addition to the middle of his forehead.
When back up arrived there was no third eye to be found, but the name stuck. And so did the legend.
The last sighting was in the 1970s, but people should still keep their eyes peeled around Longstreet Theater – one of his favorite hangouts, according to the University of South Carolina.
The Boo Hag
Ever woken up exhausted or gotten sick overnight? You might have had a nocturnal visit from the Boo Hag.
A fixture in many old Gullah Geechee legends and storytelling of the African diaspora, the Boo Hag is rumored to be a skinless being who enters homes at night, according to “Legends and Lore of South Carolina” by Sherman Carmichael, who has written 12 books on Southern folklore.
As legend would have it, she climbs on top of sleeping victims, draining them of energy, strength or life force. She may even be able to steal others’ skin, to disguise her own red appearance.
Don’t fret, the Gullah communities of the state’s Sea Islands have a folk remedy to go along with this legend.
Families would sometimes say that painting their doors, window sills or other entry points blue could warn away evil spirits, confusing haints by resembling the water or sky, according to the Miami Museum of Contemporary Art of the African Diaspora.
The Lizard Man
Bishopville, South Carolina is a seemingly sleepy town in Lee County – it has less than 3,100 residents as of 2024 – but what’s lurking in its swamps has made it a notable name for those chasing the macabre.
The first sighting of the “Lizard Man” was in 1988, when teenage McDonalds employee Chris Davis blew a tire after work, according to the South Carolina Encyclopedia. The creature was described as at least seven feet tall, with green scaly skin, red eyes and three toes on each monstrous foot.
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Deputy Chester Lightly, a policeman who patrolled the Scape Ore Swamp a few miles from Bishopville, said he heard nothing but reports of the Lizard Man for a few weeks after.
Two men reported they’d been chased and a couple said he attempted to eat their car before Lizard Man-mania reached a fever pitch with a feature on the CBS Evening News on Aug. 14.
The Lizard Man has been spotted here-and-there since, but as then-governor Carroll Campbell told Time Magazine in 1988, “This is a very elusive sort of fellow.”
The Ghost Hound of Goshen
Even if you are a dog person, this specter is not another one of your furry friends.
If you were driving down the often empty stretch of road known as “Old Buncombe,” between Newberry and Union 100 years ago, you might have spotted this enormous white hound looming on the shoulder.
Located in what is now Sumter National Forest, the Ghost Hound of Goshen or the “Happy Dog” was first sighted in the 1850s off the old road, but stories persist in some of the most remote parts of the state, Curator of the Newberry Museum, Ernest Shealy, told SCETV in 2018.
The Ghost Hound of Goshen is rumored to be a dog that now haunts the forest, howling for his owner who was hanged for a crime he didn’t commit.
That although his toothy grin may seem happy, the dog is not considered to be a “nice spirit,” so maybe think twice before stopping for a cuddle.
The Gray Man
One spirit you can trust just might be Pawley’s Island’s “Gray Man.”
Heading into hurricane season it might be a good idea to make nice with this protective spirit, who is said to wander the island’s beaches and marshes to warn of a coming storm, according to The Sun News.
The legend is said to have emerged from a destructive hurricane in 1822 that battered Georgetown and miles of Horry County coastline. A young man is rumored to have been swallowed up by pluff mud on Pawley’s Island around that time, and that he appears to warn his fiancée of each impending storm.
There is even alleged video evidence of the spirit, from during Hurricane Florence in 2018, where a shadowy figure can be seen standing on a dock.
The most recent reports of the Gray Man came in just before Hurricane Ian in 2022, so it might be a good idea to heed his warnings if you catch a glimpse.
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