The Story of the Wanderer

Are you ready for a bone-chilling tale of haunted history and paranormal activity? Buckle up, because we're taking you on a journey through the story of "The Wanderer" - a ship with a dark past that's connected to Savannah in more ways than one.

Built in New York in 1857 by a group of wealthy investors led by Charles A.L Lamar, "The Wanderer" was no ordinary schooner. Captain William C. Corrie was ordered to sail to the coast of Africa and kidnap hundreds of African men to bring into slavery in the United States. Despite the fact that the slave trade had been made illegal in 1808, these ruthless men were determined to make a profit.

Corrie carried out their orders, kidnapping around 480 African men, with only 409 surviving the journey due to poor conditions. The kidnapped men were dropped off on Jekyll Island to avoid being caught by federal agents, but their plan didn't go as intended. The ship was caught and confiscated, and Lamar and his investors were put on trial.

But the story doesn't end there. The 400 African men were forced into slavery, and although they tried to return home, none of them would ever see their families again. One of the kidnapped men, named Warden Lee, even wrote a desperate plea for help in a public letter titled "Please help me", but tragically he would never make it back to Africa.

As for "The Wanderer" itself, it would continue on, being confiscated by the Union navy and turned into a blockade ship during the Civil War. But its mercantile use would come to an abrupt end on January 12th, 1871, when it sailed into a sudden storm off the coast of Cuba and was lost at sea.

Today, "The Wanderer" remains a haunting reminder of Savannah's dark past and the atrocities committed in the name of greed. Some say that the ghostly presence of the kidnapped Africans still lingers, trapped forever in the depths of the sea. Others claim to have heard strange whispers and eerie footsteps on Jekyll Island, where the men were dropped off.

Join us at Ghostown Tours as we explore the haunted history, abandoned buildings, and paranormal activity surrounding "The Wanderer". Are you brave enough to come face-to-face with the ghosts of Savannah's past?