The Pickens County Museum of Art and History, formerly the county jail, is said to be home to the ghost of a boy named Willie Earle who calls out in anguish, “I didn’t do it!” So the story goes, in 1944 Willie was blamed for killing a cab driver when, in reality, it was the cab’s passenger who committed the crime. Willie was arrested, but a mob of cab drivers stormed the place and tortured and killed Willie before he could be tried. Later, 31 cab drivers were arrested and tried for Willie’s death, but were acquitted. Now Willie’s ghost still calls out from the jail, pleading his innocence.
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Geographic Information
- Address:
- 307 Johnson Street
Pickens, SC 29671
United States
Get Directions » - GPS:
- 34.881314, -82.70573200000001
- County:
- Pickens County, South Carolina
- Nearest Towns:
- Pickens, SC (0.2 mi.)
Arial, SC (4.4 mi.)
Liberty, SC (6.5 mi.)
Easley, SC (6.9 mi.)
Creekside Apartments, SC (8.0 mi.)
Six Mile, SC (8.3 mi.)
Norris, SC (8.8 mi.)
Central, SC (11.7 mi.)
Powdersville, SC (13.6 mi.)
Berea, SC (14.2 mi.)
Contact Information
- Web:
- http://www.co.pickens.sc.us
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Disclaimer: The stories posted here are user-submitted and are, in the nature of "ghost stories," largely unverifiable. HauntedPlaces.org makes no claims that any of the statements posted here are factually accurate. The vast majority of information provided on this web site is anecdotal, and as such, should be viewed in the same light as local folklore and urban legends.
Myself, my wife and my two children heard this clear as a bell when we visited approx . 2 years ago! We thought it was our pre teen son who said it. I replied: Sure, you didn’t!” We laughed and moved on. We did not see anyone in the upstairs who could have said this. Hoax or not?
It was 11-09-2009 I was leaving what used to be Louie’S Bar now VA I crossed the road went to the shopping centers Harris Teeter etc I was headed back to town Shelby NC when an unknown unprovoked murderer hit me with a 7 ton suv. I felt my hit to my right femur 2nd blow to my head then multiple blows. I was somehow in a 40 ravine across the road from whats now the new carwash. It took rescue sqaud from 6 30 till almost 10 to find me. while I was there I was in shock. I was out of it 2 or 3 times. The spirit answered and said do you want to die. My answer hell no! Then 3.5 min of pure hatred that no human could carry was there at the end Satan was mad cause I never chose death and hell. The 911 call grom that Monday is at channel 14News. Look for words like “busted to pieces” and “no address”
You want to know the mystery about it. How did I get down the ravine 40 ft. Was i knocked in it by hit and run or did they get out and throw me down it i remain partially scalped and the unknown murderers seemed as though driving from direction of cherryville nc.
05-01-2011 the Shelby police were embarrassed and changed this one to a missing report. There was a black cop that woke me up around 3 pm that sunday putting on surgical gloves. I had a dream that I was on top of a roof smoking 2 hits of a joint with Osama. I told him I’d head north if I were dead. Not making any sense of the dream I got home exactly in time for fox carolinas 10Pm presidential news that they had killed Osama. When the cop awoke me he asked “you know you had been reported dead right? ” I said” I know.”
The I fell asleep outside christ the king church on s Lafayette why would Osama had visited me there how does an obe occur how did I looked at a picture of him when I was 16 in school and experience love at 1ST sight how does love at 1st sight occur how does it wear off if it ever does
I live in easley SC, I was visiting pickens post office and had come to the museum st the red light.I looked up in the old museum window only to see a old women pointing to something in the grass.I stoped my car and got out trying to see what she was pointing at.I looked at her in the window as she stood there crying and pointing.So I went to go inside the museum only to find they was closed.As I walked around the side of te building I looked up and she was gone..she was wearing a bun in her hair…I wasn’t imagineing this ,I seen someone,I had no clue it was haunted.till I heard the story years later