Monticello might sometimes seem like a quiet Florida panhandle town, but its history tells of a ghostly past stretching back to the early nineteenth century. Discover the stories behind the old blacksmith's forge on Jefferson Street--where the chilling sounds of metal striking metal still ring out across the town-- and the Hanging Tree, forever haunted by the ghosts of executed outlaws and lost Confederate soldiers. The Monticello Historical district contains over forty buildings dating back to the nineteenth century, and it is said that one out of every three buildings are haunted. Join local haunted tour guide Betty Davis and Big Bend Ghost Trackers as they reveal the amazing history of Monticello's spookiest spots. The Big Bend Ghost Trackers team was founded in 2000 and is north Florida's premier professional paranormal group. As paranormal researchers and investigators, they conduct research to find locations that are experiencing paranormal activity and study those locations in a scientific and professional manner. Using the latest electronic tools and other modern detection equipment, along with psychic investigators, they have successfully conducted more than 125 investigations. They have been featured on all of the major television networks and in numerous print publications. Big Bend Ghost Trackers created, owns and operates Historic Monticello Ghost Tours. Betty Davis works professionally in the field of social services and is a passionate paranormal investigator--the driving force behind Big Bend Ghost Trackers and Historic Monticello Ghost Tours. She enjoys creative writing of nonfiction and historical literature. Having a strong interest in history and historic places, she finds them mysterious and intriguing. She knows that they hold secrets to the past and have defined our future. Experiencing a ghostly encounter while visiting a historic landmark is what first brought her on her journey into paranormal research and investigating the unknown. Haunted Monticello, Florida By Betty Davis, Big Bend Ghost Trackers The History Press Copyright © 2011 Betty Davis and the Big Bend Ghost Trackers All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-60949-311-0 Contents Acknowledgements, The History of Jefferson County, Old St. Margarita's Catholic Church, Merchant Denham and His Cupola, Florida's First Brick Schoolhouse, Palmer House: The Doctor Is In, Jefferson County Courthouse, Ye Ole Hanging Tree, Mr. Perkins and His Opera House, A Dedicated Blacksmith Still at Work, The Reverend and the Coffin Maker, The Mysterious Street, The Brave Sheriff and the Old Jail, The Dueling Oak, All Aboard, Henry West and His Lovely Bride, Little Lula, The Spirits of Roseland, The Jilted Bride, The Hero, Those Pesky Carpetbaggers, The Old Bank and Haunted Antiques, Bibliography, About the Authors, CHAPTER 1 THE HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY Jefferson County is situated in the heart of the Florida Panhandle, with its rolling hills and stately oaks draped in wispy Spanish moss. To the first-time visitor, the fictional town of "Mayberry" comes to mind. Youngsters walking down the red clay roads with fishing poles, lemonade stands set up in front yards, picnics in the park, church cakewalks and potluck suppers bring to mind a gentler time of a bygone era. Shopkeepers and evening strollers kindly and willingly give strangers directions, recommend an eatery or assist with a flat tire. It's a place where neighbors have been known to borrow a cup of sugar from one another, bring a hot meal during times of sickness and sorrow and rejoice with each new birth. This is southern hospitality at its best. This is Monticello, Jefferson County, Florida. Jefferson County is the only county in the state of Florida that extends all the way from Georgia on the north to the Gulf of Mexico on the south. Known as the "Keystone County," it is located about midway between Jacksonville, Florida's northernmost Atlantic port, and Pensacola, one of its largest Gulf ports. Monticello, the county seat, is located just twenty-three miles east of Florida's capital, Tallahassee, and situated on U.S. Highways 19 and 90 directly off Interstate Highway 10. With a population of just under fourteen thousand, Jefferson County is the home of a diverse population, vibrant culture and varying socioeconomic classes. Most of the downtown commercial buildings, in the Monticello Historic District, date from the last quarter of the nineteenth century. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Monticello also contains more than forty buildings dating from that century. These structures reflect the typical development of a north Florida town of the period. Unlike other Florida towns of the same era, nineteenth-century Monticello remains largely intact. Jefferson County was founded in January 1827 and became the thirteenth county in territorial Florida. The county was named in honor of Thomas Jefferson, the third president