Geneva history rife with ghostly tales

Donna Latham recounts the stories of woeful howls, dragging footsteps, and haunted mansions from her book, "Ghost of the Fox River Valley," Thursday night at the Geneva History Society. (Sarah Rivers photo)

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GENEVA - It was a dark and stormy night - perfect for stories about ghosties and beasties and things that go bump in the night.

There was the piano teacher, long dead but still heard playing. There was the murdered man whose faceless, handless corpse is put on display to see if anyone can identify him.

And the intersection of Fourth and Campbell streets, where on August nights, the footsteps of two murdered police officers can still be seen on their beat.

Geneva History Center Director David Oberg shared these and other tales of local ghosts and haunts to a crowd of more than 50 who turned out for That Thursday Thing, a series of programs on Thursday nights this summer.

Aida Gaddi of Geneva was thrilled.

“I love ghost stories,” Gaddi said. “I believed in ghosts since I was a kid. It’s very interesting.”

Among the ghostly tales Oberg shared was that of Vere Cory, who lived in the former Kris Kringle Haus and taught piano to many children in Geneva.

“In her younger years, she moved in high society. In fact, we have invitations at the Geneva History Center to Vere from Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft inviting her to state functions,” Oberg said.

After she died, Cory could be heard still playing the piano - even after it was removed from the house.

In another tale, an unknown murder victim was found in a snowy ditch in 1923 on a lonely country road outside Geneva.

“Where once had been a face was a charred and blackened skull,” Oberg said. “His arms ended in ragged stumps. His hands had been removed to prevent identification. Two bullet holes testified that he had met with a violent end.”

Authorities could not identify him, so they put him up for public display in the former Skoglund’s Funeral Home at what is now the Strawflower Shop, 210 W. State St., to see if anyone could tell who he had been.

“Half the city came to see the handless, faceless man. Locals dubbed him King Tut and he became an overnight sensation. Yet in the end, no one could claim him nor identify his corpse,” Oberg said.

Eventually, he was buried in Geneva’s Oak Hill Cemetery.

In 1885, Geneva Police Officers Joseph Grant and John McNett walked along Fourth Street late at shortly after midnight on Aug. 28, on the lookout for burglars - and found a group of two, possibly three.

“As they attempted to arrest the perpetrators, a struggle ensued and shots were exchanged. When the smoke cleared, Grant and McNett lay dying at the intersection of Campbell and Fourth streets,” Oberg said. “The perpetrators fled and Geneva buried two of their finest.”

One was convicted, a second one confessed but he was nowhere near the city at the time of the killings. So the second and possibly a third killer were never brought to justice.

“Perhaps that’s the reason that on warm August nights when the moon is just right ... you can sometimes see the long shadows of two figures standing vigil, protecting and serving Geneva, more than a century after their deaths”

The program was intended as a walking tour of local ghost stories. But as a darkening sky approached with supernatural foreboding and followed with a big lightening strike, Oberg herded attendees to the basement of the history center to finish up in safety. Tour-goers joked that it was perfect staging.

“I think it’s great that the historical society brought the weather,” said Judy Chalberg of Geneva.

What’s next:

Haunted Geneva Tours at  2, 4, 6 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25 at the Geneva History Center. 113 S. Third St. More information: 630-232-4951 or www.genevahistorycenter.org