Morris the Ghost Cat (Gulfport)
The story (see above link to Ghost Stories of St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Pinellas County by Deborah Fretham, published in 2007).
Summary of the story: In 1970, a cat arrived at the Gulfport Casino. He was named and cared for by the workers of the casino until his death in 1985. A monument was built to him to house his ashes. Some people claim that the wind movements on the beach are the ghost of this cat.
Snapshot of Gulfport:
History of Gulfport:
History of Gulfport Casino:
Brandy's observations:
We were able to find the monument, which is somewhat hidden against the building. While the monument clarifies a few things (Morris the CASINO cat), verifies that the cat was there from 1970 - 1985, and that its ashes are there, our investigation did not find any proof of a cat there.
*The only equipment readings showed that the EMF Pump was the only thing producing any energy at the spot.
*Odysseus showed no reaction to any presence.
*Beth sensed an older couple petting a cat, but not the one that matches the description of Morris. She also sensed someone who died of drowning in the location in the 1990's; male, African American, young. Research indicates that someone did drown in 1995 (link to come). However, nothing showed "Morris" to be there.
*Interviews with locals and business owners showed that most (3 of 4) knew of the legend, but no one had directly come across the cat. They did add that the cat's spirit is supposed to show up at night (something not known before) and that there were other cat stories in the area.
--One woman had heard of a bar with an adopted feline mascot, but that cat was still quite alive. She had not heard of the ghost cat.
--A very historic inn's owner reported hearing the story, and added that her inn's ghost also attracted cats. I believe that there might have been a report of a ghost cat at this location as well.
--Two others had heard of the story and repeated it nearly the same as the inn's owner. They had heard of the cat, and that his ghost showed up at night.
*Due to the aspect that folks are familiar with the story but no one, to date, has come in contact with the entity, I'd say that this fits in with an urban legend.
FOLLOW UP:
*We need to attempt to return at night when the cat is said to show up. We have yet to get any reports of a time when the cat allegedly appears, however, so it may be a guess for us.
*I have sent a request to the Gulfport Gabber to run about the Casino Cat to see if we can get either eye witness accounts or more on the legend itself. I have not heard back from the paper and am not certain if they will do this or not. If they do, then we may fill in some gaps on the legend, or if we find an eye-witness we might prove it to be a true ghost tale.
*We have run an episode of Paranormal Pets Radio about the investigation (Click here to hear it) and have extended the request via the show to any area dealing with a similar story. If more areas across the US/world report similar stories then that may show it to be more of an urban legend.
MARY'S OBSERVATIONS
The Gulfport Cat
There is a legend of a ghost cat that allegedly has been seen around the Gulfport Casino. This cat lived at the Casino for many years and his ashes are now interred in a memorial next to the water at the back of the building. As the story goes, he is frequently seen cavorting around the outsied of the Casino much as he did in life. In order to either substantiate this through eye-witness accounts, or possibly debunk it as an urban legend, four members of the SPIRITS team braved a chilly (for Florida) Sunday morning to discover more about the ghostly cat.
In all we interviewed 4 people. One was the owner/manager of a local hotel, one an employee of the hotel, a business owner and a bartender. Of these only the hotel owner seemed familiar with the story of the cat. The bartender told us of another bar that had a mascot cat, but that one was very much alive and well. The businessman may have had some knowledge, but not a clear account of the haunting. We were unable to find anyone who had seen the cat personally. The story seemed obscure even to those who had lived in the area for sometime.
In my opinion, this is not a true haunting, but an urban legend. There is no first person account available and all who recount it seem to have heard of it happening to someone else. As in the typical urban legend, the cat has been seen by someone’s “cousin’s hairdresser” and not by anyone known personally to the teller.
LES'S OBSERVATIONS
We investigated the "Ghost Cat of Gulfport" trying to prove whether an urban legend or a true haunting! I used an EMF meter and digital camera during the hunt. The EMF stayed at a very low reading the entire time except for when I put it directly next to the EMF Pump at which time it spiked. I also took about 35 pictures of which I could find nothing out of the ordinary on any. So, it would be my opinion, at least on this day, that this is most likely an "Urban Legend' as opposed to an actual haunting.
BETH'S OBSERVATIONS
Ghost Cat
During our visit to investigate the legend of the Gulfport ghost cat I did not sense the animal being near the memorial or beach area. On the boardwalk adjacent to the cat's memorial, I had a vision of a middle aged couple walking toward and reaching out to a cat. There was nothing out of the ordinary on the photos taken.
(FYI)
I also had an unrelated vision of a young black man who had drowned at the beach. I saw several onlookers around his body that was at the edge of the water. I am curious to see if I can find research that would validate this vision.
UPDATE: Oct. 16 -17, 2010
Brandy was in an art show at the Gulfport Casino. Attempted to ask about the ghost cat. Spoke with one employee of Gulfport who had heard of the cat, but not the ghost or much else. She had been employed there since 2003. Took pictures of the sculpture, no results.
Do you have a ghost cat story to add? If so, please enter it in our guest book! Or email us at tbspirits@netscape.net
