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Savannah Terrors

Mercer House
Location Pin Savannah, GA

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Savannah Terrors

6. Mercer House
Location Pin Savannah, GA

Wavy Line
Wavy Line

The story of the haunted Mercer House begins with Jim Williams, a popular man who began reconstructing Savannah homes in 1955. Of the more than 50 homes he restored, some of the more well known are the Hampton Lillibridge House, Habersham's Pink House, the Armstrong House, and the Mercer House. Williams bought the Mercer home in 1969 from the great-grandfather of songwriter Johnny Mercer. Jim Williams made the Mercer his home while restoring it and made a name for himself among the people of Savannah with lavish parties that he held each week. When he wasn't restoring the house, he used it as an antique shop, sometimes selling fake antiques for much more than their worth. Jim Williams' decadence took a turn for the worse on May 2, 1992 when he murdered his assistant Danny Lewis Hansford. When it was revealed that Hansford was also William's lover, the trial became rife with controversy. Williams claimed self-defense, proclaiming that Danny threatened him with a loaded gun. His plea appealed to the jury, freeing him from a life sentence. But he didn't really get away free. After a short amount of time in jail, Jim died from either a heart attack or an unknown type of AIDS-induced pneumonia. Some say Williams collapsed in the exact sport where Hansford fell when Williams shot him. Could this be a twisted turn of fate? Was it really pneumonia that overpowered his failing immune system, or did Hansford grab Williams' heart with a ghostly hand and stop its beating? The tragic tale of Jim Williams and Danny Hansford is not the first to stain this house's history. Many ghosts make the Mercer House their eternal home, refusing to let go of their former lives. In 1913, a physician living at the house was pushed off a balcony, breaking his neck on the sidewalk below. But who pushed him? Some report apparitions of a man with a twisted neck walking the grounds. Years later, two little boys were playing on the roof when one fell from the balcony and was impaled on an iron fencepost. Was he pushed as well? The other boy swears that he saw his friend being pushed, but the poor child did not see anyone present to push him, and was frozen in shock from witnessing the gory event. The arrow remains broken to this day. If you see something moving out of the corner of your eye, look quickly; the boy runs down the sidewalk looking for directions to his home, and you just might be the person to help him. Just be sure to watch your step on the balconies, or you might find yourself on the concrete below.

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