

February is here and so is another ghost column. What to do, what to do. Of course, I could have done “ghost lovers,” but that’s been done to death, excuse the pun. So sitting down to write this month’s column on Groundhog Day, I was thinking about good old Punxsutawney Phil. He did not see his shadow, so we may actually live to see spring. Old Punx got me thinking about ghosts of animals. I wondered if he is actually seeing another ghostly groundhog each year, sending him scurrying back into his hole. I guess anything is possible. I have had more than one run in with a furry ghost, and quite a few of those encounters were right here in Cape May. I remember one episode in particular that would have sent old Phil burrowing deep in the ground.
I had gone to bed late that night and struggled to fall asleep. It always takes me a little extra time to fall into a good night’s sleep when I am staying somewhere new. I think it’s more the change of energy than the change of mattress, but whatever reason it was that night, I was dead tired when I finally fell asleep and I was out. I don’t even remember what I was dreaming about, I was that sound asleep. My good night’s sleep did not last more than a few hours, however, before something tried to get my attention. At first, I dismissed it as the edge of the blanket touching my face. Then I realized the feeling was more familiar. It was my cat on the bed. It was still dark out and it was nothing new to have my cat jump up on the bed to sleep. This time the nocturnal rumblings had been relentless enough to pull me out of a deep sleep—and I was annoyed.
It was exactly three in the morning. I know because that’s when I screamed for help. I thought I was home in bed, and my cat had jumped up next to me and was trying to snuggle up close. Then I looked around for my clock on my night table and neither was there. That’s when I realized I was actually at a guesthouse in Cape May, and there weren’t any cats in the house, at least not any with a pulse. Once I woke enough to comprehend that the purring, pacing feline on my bed, in that dark room on the second floor of the old Victorian house was actually a ghost, I yelled out in a panic for help. In fact, I pathetically yelled, “Ghost kitty!” A medium is not at his or her best at three in the morning.
The call for help was embarrassing, but I was truly startled and had been awakened in the middle of the night from a deep sleep by a feline phantom. By the time I composed myself and got out from under the covers, the ghost cat had disappeared and I was left to explain myself to my friends, who ran into the room to see the brave psychic medium rattled by a furry little ball of ethers. I think “embarrassing” would have been the right word. The next morning I was much more up about the experience. A cup of coffee helped. It was not my first experience with ghosts of animals, but it was certainly one of my most memorable.
I was staying at Columbia House that night, one of the best guest houses in Cape May. It was supposed to be haunted by a benevolent old man named William Essen, the former baker and confectioner in town. He was wheelchair bound at the end of his life from complications from diabetes. Of course he was nowhere to be found that evening. I was not even aware of Essen having a cat, but anything was possible.

Quizzing the enchanting Laura Zeitler, who along with her husband Jim run Columbia House, I mentioned my run in with the paranormal…cat. Laura told me there was a cat that lived in the house before they bought the property. The cat’s name was Alex and he lasted through two previous owners. I guess he finally finished life number nine.
Reports of animal ghosts are nothing new. Cat ghosts are, in fact, quite common. Cats are place-centered in life, and in death. Ghosts of dogs are far less common. While dogs are usually attached to people, and will follow them to Heaven, cats could care less if we were alive or a ghost. As long as there is a warm place to sleep, and lots of food to eat, the cat is happy. For a ghost cat, food is no longer an issue, but territory becomes tantamount to survival. Cats may cling to their former homes after their bodies have died. Some seem to have unfinished business, while others just seem too lazy to move onto Heaven. Whatever the reason, cats do haunt.
Theoretically, anything could become a ghost, I suppose. Human beings should not have exclusivity on lingering around after they die. Ghosts certainly are winning the popularity contest on network television today, but you rarely hear about ghosts of anything but people. I suppose the thought of ghosts of things like, mosquitoes, would not appeal to too many. The notion that our beloved pets start to come back as ghosts does, however, seem to attract more than a little attention. One of the things I am often asked as a psychic-medium is “do I ever channel pets from Heaven?” The answer is, I do. Not as often as I channel people, but some former pets do come through in a channeling session. These spirits of furry and feathered friends tend to arrive with groups of human loved ones from the Other Side during a channeling session. It is fairly common with my channelings to see the spirit of a dog or cat show up. These would be pets that have gone to Heaven and are returning to say hello as spirits. Not as common is encountering one of these furry friends as a ghost.
My experience with Alex the cat was not a bad one. It just startled me. I am sure Alex was just looking for a warm bed (or body) to curl up with for the night. I had experienced a ghost cat a few years earlier at my friend Kathy’s house. She had told me about her “ghost kitty” many times over the years. One day while I was cat sitting her (living) cats, I was spending some time with her cat Eric in the master bedroom. Eric was sequestered in the bedroom, and I felt he needed some company so he would not get lonely. Eric was sitting in the window looking out at the street as I laid back on the bed and closed my eyes. In a few minutes, I felt him jump up on the bed and heard him purring. I reached over to pet him, but reached into empty space. I opened my eyes to see where he was, but he was still sitting in the window, unfazed. Whatever was purring next to me was not Eric, and not alive for that matter. I actually thought at the time how cool it was that I had experienced my first phantom feline. After telling Kathy all about it, we agreed it must be a cat from one of the earlier owners of the house. The house was built in 1908, so there had been several owners.
As with human ghosts, and hauntings in general, cat ghosts seem to come and go. I have never experienced the cat ghost at Columbia House again, and Kathy’s ghost kitty comes and goes as well. Recently my partner and I have been seeing a ghost cat in our home in North Jersey. We see it just out of the corner of our eyes. First, I thought it was our living cat Harry, but this cat is dark charcoal in color, not light bluish gray like Harry. Also, when we have seen our ghost cat, Harry has been asleep in another part of the house. I am not sure where this new ghost has come from, but it has never been in the house before, and we have lived here since 1995. I guess I attract all kinds.

Another favorite phantom feline is at the John F. Craig House on Columbia Avenue. I have done many great events at the Craig House in Cape May, and one of the energies in the house is the ghost of a cat. I have seen him a few times, darting into the hallway or around the corner. Owner Barbara Masemore feels it might be a cat that once belonged to former owners of the house, as she is not a cat person, and has never owned one. Again, the cat just seems to be hanging on for some reason.
One of the interesting paranormal occurrences at the Craig House happens upstairs in one of the third floor rooms. Some people have claimed to feel a slight brush against their face in the middle of the night. I had long attributed this sensation to a ghostly child. One that has turned up at a few of our Craig House séances. However, I now think this ghostly phenomenon is more likely the work of a spectral cat, that is just being friendly to those it knows are animal lovers. For people who love animals, being nudged in the middle of the night by a cat is not a frightening sensation, and at that hour, when one is half asleep, there is not much difference between a living cat and a ghost cat!
There are many more B&Bs, inns and hotels where I have experienced ghost cats in Cape May. Aside from the nocturnal knockings, not one of these felines would make a scary ghost story. They are just going about their catty business, not trying to frighten anyone at all. They are just trying to say, “I am here, I’m comfortable, and I am not about to leave”.
Dogs seem to make very faithful ghosts. While their tenure as an earthbound spirits is usually only temporary, they have a warmer and more solid feeling on a psychic level than ghosts of cats. After we lost our dog Higgins, a faithful English springer spaniel who died at almost 16 years old, we sensed his presence for several months. Phantom scratches at the back door echoed his old lifetime routine of telling us he wanted in or out of the house. A doggy toy squeaking in the hallway, when no one was near it, proved his spirit was still full of the Old Nick. Even distant sounds of his barking echoed down the hallway on a few occasions. I was happy to know he was still faithfully staying by my side, but saddened to think he would not be able to cross over to Heaven should he stay attached to his old master. One day, without any prodding, the haunting stopped. “Higgy” had gone to Heaven. It was certainly his time, but we were sad all over again for losing our old boy.

Ghostly dogs make much better ghost stories than ghost cats. If you have ever walked the long expanse of Higbee Beach in Cape May you may have not even noticed the most famous ghost of the strand, a large black dog. No one is quite sure where the pup originated, but many people over the last 50, possibly more, years have reported seeing a big black dog running along the beach and then vanishing from site. Now, of course, big black dogs DO run along Higbee Beach as it is a dog friendly zone in Cape May, but those dogs are alive. It may seem like some of them are ghosts as certain owners fail to keep a watchful eye on their furry friends but, these dogs are alive and kicking and their owners are usually within a quarter mile or so.
Dogs also haunt various dwellings in town. Probably the most famous paranormal puppies are those of the Emlen Physick Estate. Dr. Emlen Physick, along with his maiden Aunt Emilie, loved animals. They kept a large dog run behind the carriage house, where the outdoor dining tent is today. Aunt Emilie would cook the meals for the pups every day. They were all well loved and cared for by the Physicks.

On one of my first visits to the old mansion on Washington Street, I sensed the presence of several ghostly dogs, both large and small. In those days, the guides at MAC did not speak of such thing as ghosts at the Physick Estate. I did find a few guides with whom I could confide and we happily exchanged our stories of ghostly encounters at the estate. I was told by one guide that Dr. Physick’s mother, Frances Ralston, was NOT a dog lover, and the canines were forbidden to come into the mansion. So why was I sensing ghosts of dogs in the house? Ghosts will follow old patterns and it would be unlikely the ghostly dogs would cross former barriers after being banned from the house in their lifetimes. This presented one of those wonderful mysteries that comes with ghost investigations. Ghosts are full of history and mystery, which is why I love them so much. Behind every haunting is a ghost, and behind every ghost is a story. Even ghosts of animals have a story to tell, should they stop long enough to tell it. I needed to figure out this mystery.
After returning to the house many more times I was finally able to piece together the haunting of the Physick Estate. Mrs. Ralston was dead and gone. Dr. Physick was only an infrequent ghostly visitor, or clever enough to avoid my psychic radar. In time, I discovered another dead maiden aunt, Isabella (Belle) haunting the upstairs. Aunt Belle had epilepsy and died around 1883 in her 30s. She was confined to the upper floors of the mansion and was kept out of site of visitors because having an illness like epilepsy back then was frowned upon by society. Isabella was basically kept shut up when company came to call. Luckily, she did not have to endure that isolation for too many years. The Physicks built the house in 1879 and Aunt Belle only lived there a few years before she died. Her health issues eventually got the best of her and she became the first of many ghosts at the Physick Estate.

Dr. Emlen Physick (pictured left) loved his dogs. When he died in 1915, Aunt Emilie took over as dog caregiver. Emilie was the last to go, living until the 1930s. The dogs were long gone at that point, but I think their faithful spirits stayed with, and guarded, the Physick family’s lone sentinel until she died. When Aunt Emilie crossed, my theory is she found Belle was still residing in the house as a ghost. I would wager Emilie knew this while she was alive. She seemed like a sharp lady with lots of positive energy. Ghosts and séances were the rage in the 1920s and I imagine Emilie would have been into such things. I can picture the Physicks gathered around the parlor table doing a séance back then, trying to conjure up Aunt Belle!
For some reason, maybe the fact that the house has never really been lived in except by the Physicks, Emilie and Belle still roam the halls of the old mansion. Aunt Emilie must have really loved the dogs because they also haunt the house and grounds. My theory has always been that after Mrs. Ralston died and crossed over, Emilie let the house literally go to the dogs. She let them inside the house. They continue to enjoy that privilege as ghosts.
Oddly, I have sensed the dogs only a few times over the years I have been visiting the Physick Estate. Even at our annual October “Midnight at the Physick Estate” sèance and ghost hunt, I have rarely sensed any dogs in the house. Others have sensed the ghostly canines on various tours MAC gives of the house, but my experiences with the pups has been very limited. These are benign animals, simply waiting to head off with their mistresses to Heaven. Knowing Aunt Emilie and her penchant for entertaining and love of life, that trip may be some time off! This mix of ghostly dames and dogs seems to like haunting their old home very much. Luckily for all of us ghost enthusiasts it is open year-round as a public museum.
In Cape May, you will encounter many wondrous things. I would imagine Punxsutawney Phil would see quite a few shadows in town. When it comes to the paranormal, you never know what might turn up here. You may see a ghostly man or woman roaming the streets, or even find one sitting on your bed (if you are lucky). You may even encounter the ghost of someone’s former beloved pet. You can rest assured all the furry phantoms I have encountered have been friendly, especially the dogs. If you are the intuitive type, you may even be able to communicate with one of these spirited pups. If you are truly psychic, and they like you, they may even roll over―and play dead.
Until next time, keep the computer monitor lit, you never know what might be purring in the chair behind you.
To read more about what I do check out my website at craigmcmanus.com
loved the article – and can’t wait to meet you! So excited to say that we just booked the May 6 – 8, 2011 weekend with you at the Queen Victoria B&B! Our family of 4 have enrolled in the 7 – 9 channeling session, my kids are 18 and 14 and would love to hear some Cape May Ghost stories sometime too! They’ll be glued to your every word!!
Thanks Kathy. Looking forward to meeting yo and the family as well. I will see if I can work in a few ghost stories that weekend!
Dear Craig,
I just finished reading your article on “Furry Phantoms of Cape May”.
Do you believe in reincarnation? I know this is going to sound weird, but I had a small dog (Maxine) for almost 18 years. She was like my shadow. When I was home she would always have to be by my side. People would joke how she is so attached to me. She was a very dedicated little dog. If I was sick, she would stay by my side for days and as soon as I was better, it was if she knew. When she died, I was devastated. You would of thought that I lost a person. I don’t think I felt that bad when my parents passed away. I know what you must be thinking right now…….crazy lady. Well, to get back to the reincarnation part, I have since added two new little dogs to the family, one is your average hypernut and the other one I call my old man or old soul. He is very mature for a puppy, almost like an older dog. Very quiet and well behaved almost abnormal for such a young dog. It’s not that he is sick. He has a clean bill of health. The thing that really gets me is when I talk to him he intensely listens and stares at me as if he wants to say something to me. He will knod and tilt his head, I wonder if it is possible that Maxine came back in his body. There was a time or two since she passed that I thought I heard a sound like a dog walking on the bedroom floor at night and then I realized that the dogs were asleep in bed with me. I really didn’t think too much of it. Can you give your opinion on this, it would be much appreciated, if not I understand. I am hoping to be back in Cape May this June. Me and my husband took your trolley tour on October 23, 2010 at night. Very interesting. Hope to do another one again.
Hi Jane – I do believe we have the opportunity to come back for more lifetimes on the Earth. I am with you on the faithful dog feelings. I lost my almost 17-year-old dog Benny this past October. We got him as a rescue dog when he was about two years old and he was a faithful companion ever since. He would be at my feet wherever I was in the house. He was more human than dog, when it came to personality. I had a very rough past year. I lost my Mom in May, Benny in October and my Dad a month ago. I miss them all, but I especially miss Benny as he was always by my side.
I do believe out beloved pets can come back. We have been thinking of getting another dog to keep our remaining dog, Jackie, company. The thought has crossed my mind more than once that it would be wonderful if Benny could find his way back to us again. I know he will be there waiting for me when I cross over someday, but I sure would love to see him again, in any form, before that! Although, if he comes back as a mosquito, I am not sure how well the reunion would go.
Hi Craig,
Just wanted to thank you for getting back to me on reincarnation. So sorry to hear about your mom, dad and Benny. I lost my parents within 14 months of each other. So hard. Definitely think about getting another dog, they are so worth it. Who knows, maybe Benny will be reincarnated. I will be looking up your tours for late spring early summer and hope to see you then, who knows, maybe I will be lucky and hit lotto and move to Cape May. Love it there. Well, thanks again.
Jane
Hi Craig:
Being a huge animal lover (3 dogs,1 cat) , i was comforted by this article. Just knowing that its possible to have a beloved pet return for a final goodbye makes me smile. My two are with me constantly,and our third newly rescued Pug Izzy is following along with the pack.
Thanks for the great article.
Donna L.
Glad you enjoyed it Donna. Hope to see you in Cape May!
Will see you at the Queen Victoria at the end of the month,we cant wait.
Hi Craig,
i have had the pleasure of meeting you and hope to many more times. My cat story is that Kobye (my solid black 8 year old cat) was hit by a car and killed. He was discovered by me on my way home at 2 a.m. from moving offices. (I don’t know how he got out) Without saying how painfully heart broken I was, I held on to him and told him how I hoped I would see him again. We buried him at 3 a.m. About 3 weeks later I told my hubby that I thought it was about time to adopt another brother for Olyvyr, his (not real litlle brother) he left behind. Olyvyr was found by me at our ranch where some feral cats roam. There was one baby black kitten and 2 gray tiger striped. I initially picked out one of the tiger striped kittens but upon my return, the mother had taken them both and left the black one behind. Initially we were so upset and even tried to return him for an exchange of the “pretty one”. It never happened and we easily fell in LOVE this kitten. (Olyvyr we named hi—pronounced Oliver) Turned out to be….I need more space-so sorry–read on………
Turned out to be a wonderful kitten that is still growing into a great young man! They were inseparable! Well after telling my hubby I am ready to get a new kitty, the next day this beautiful gray tiger kitten showed up sitting on the waterfall of my primary home. (Where Kobye was killed) He looke exactly like the “pretty” cat we had wanted for Kobye. Not only does he look just that kitty but he seems to be Kobye–reincarnated! He acts JUST like him! They sit and lay in the same quirky was no other cats usually do. His demeanor is a dead ringer! He wasn’t even afraid the first time I approached him as a baby kitty. It’s like he already knew me AND OLLY!! Like he wanted to come back in the appearance of Olly’s real bro that I wanted for Kobye but him in presence. He gave off an impression to me that he wanted his name with a “K”. :) We named him “KODYE”. (Just turned the b around) We LOVE HIM!! Thanks for getting through all that! :) :) :)
Hi Debinique – Thanks for that wonderful story. I am glad everything worked out for you. I do believe things in life happen for a reason. Wouldn’t it be great if all of our beloved pets could find their way back to us? Thanks for posting!
We (Phil and I ) were excited to see a nod to phil as we visit cape may each spring and fall. We love cape may. Phil and I both really love the vibe there. You have an amazing thing. So Phil was happy to see his picture and story on your website.
From the weather capital of the world… happy groundhog day…. heres to spring right around the corner and our visit to your fair city.
Ben Hughes
Official Handler of Punxsutawney Phil
Thanks Ben! You have to come to Cape May…we have ghost groundhogs who are ONLY shadows! ;) – Craig
Hi Craig,
We have corresponded in the past (not previous life) – please excuse the pun. Loved your article about ghost pets ! I had a scary but necessary learning experience with my mother’s beloved black cat. Inky was quite ill but I didn’t realize just how ill she was at the time. One night I inadvertantly moved Inky from the bathroom tub where she was sleeping because I needed to get my bath. She looked back at me as she walked away and gave me a look that made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. I loved Inky and believe me never had a cross thought about her. She walked around the corner to my mother’s room and laid on the floor curled up to sleep. My mother came home from her night’s Bingo outing and found her dead. We were all heart broken. Several weeks later my sister and I heard the usual movement in her side of the bedroom closet where Inky formerly liked to snuggle in to sleep when our other cat was elsewhere. Then several nights later I was awoken in the middle of the night by having my head batted by a furry paw. I realized that our other cat was asleep in my sister’s bed. So it must be INKY !! I was frightened at first but mustered up the courage to speak to her from my heart. I told her that I loved her and said I was sorry I didn’t know she was so sick. I felt a swell of warmth in my heart and felt that she heard me. She never bothered me again. Moral of the story . . . if you have wronged a cat and she comes back after you after she is dead, speak from the heart. Love can heal and I believe it helped her to finally rest.
Best wishes, Johnetta Toy
Thanks for sharing that wonderful story Johnetta. My partner’s cat Piper had died while he was living in his apartment in Bergenfield. On the last day before my partner moved, as he was leaving his old apartment and getting ready to close the apartment door for the last time, he heard Piper’s meow echo through the empty rooms. He told him he needed to move on to Heaven and that he was moving on to another home as well. He felt the cat heard him, but it was heart wrenching to think of his old faithful cat still haunting the apartment and crying out that he was being left behind. We hope he did move on, but cat’s are stubborn and place centered and Piper may still be haunting the apartment to this day, and that was almost 20 years ago.
Thanks for sharing your story. – Craig
Dear Craig, Thank you for this article. I was excited to see the photo of Columbia House featured, as I knew there would be some commentary on Alex. I knew Alex well. Over many years as my husband and I rented the Parlor Suite on the first floor, Alex was a companion for us — our “vacation cat”. As soon as we arrived and eventually settled into one of the rocking chairs on the porch, he would be in one of our laps. We would allow him to wander in and out of the rooms as he wished, and one night he had inadvertently been left outside during a horrendous thunderstorm. “It was a dark and stormy night” indeed. We found him on returning from a journey in our car, and promptly swept him up in towels and brought him into our rooms for the night. We allowed the door with access to his litter box open, but he did not want to go. Instead, at about 3am he jumped on the bed, lay down between us, and stayed there until morning.
Alex had many, many friends, or, one should say, fans, in Cape May. Not only those who stayed at Columbia House, but others who just became familiar with him lying in princely form in the small front yard. He was well known as the “ambassador” of Columbia House, and greatly loved.
Then, only days before we arrived one September, our hostess called us with the terrible news that Alex had passed away. She wanted to let us know before our arrival, as she knew how attached to him we were. When we did arrive, she met us, we heard the entire story, and she and I were in tears by the end.
She had told us the previous year of a statue of Alex she was planning to have made as a gift for her husband — of Alex drinking from the outside fountain as he so loved to do. She hadn’t been able to do that exact statue, but had had another one made, which now would be his memorial. It was placed inside the front door. For a time, Alex’s ashes were also kept in the house. His death was also marked by owners of neighboring inns, who placed a black ribbon in his honor on the gate that used to mark the entrance to the guest house.
During our stay that autumn, we were having our breakfast one morning when my husband said that he had had the strangest sensation during the night, of a cat jumping up on the bed and moving around, kneading the bedclothes. (This is something we are VERY familiar with, having had multiple cats in our home for many years.) I looked at him, astonished, but then again not too surprised, because I had had the exact same sensation. We compared notes, and found that for us both, it had happened around 3 o’clock in the morning.
Coincidence, wishful thinking. . .perhaps. But given our longstanding relationship with Alex, and the gratitude he showed us that one stormy night as his rescuers, I am certain that he had returned to us to give us comfort and let us know he would be our vacation cat for as long as we needed him to be.
R.I.P. Alex. You were a wonderful friend.
P.S. Craig, we have never met, but please accept my deepest sympathies on this year of hard losses in your life.
Thank you Susan for this wonderful follow up to Alex’s story. Alex’s ashes were disinterred by landscapers after Laura and Jim first bought the house and had the side garden redone. They were reburied soon after. They only found out about the cat after finding the urn. My Alex experience was at exactly 3AM. I will be staying there in May, so I will have to see if the phantom kitty makes a return engagement.
If you happen to have a good picture of Alex, I would love to see it and add it to the The Ghosts of Cape May Book 1 when I next update it. You can reach me through my website craigmcmanus.com
All the Best, Craig