The good citizens of Pensacola woke up on the morning of July 13, 1957 to discover that a monster out of a Hollywood horror movie had struck their quiet coastal town. News Journal reporter William "Bill" Dingwall would write in 1989 that the grounds keeper at the Roberts Cemetery on Creighton Road was making his daily rounds when he noticed something askew. In utter shock, he saw that the concrete slab on a grave had been moved aside. The lid of the coffin had been opened and the body of the young woman was moved. The Escambia County Sheriff's Office was called and Sheriff Emmett Earl Shelby assigned a special team of investigators to the case. Headed by Investigator Charles Walter Solari Sr., they consisted of S. R. Gill, Curtis Hunt, Russell Duncan, Bill Lynch, and Charlie Williams. Fingerprints were sought, but unattainable. Three days later on July 15th, the "desecrater" struck again. This time it was Whitmire Cemetery in Ferry Pass and the ghoul's outrage was discovered by the deceased woman's husband.
The Sheriff's Office now knew that a Ghoul was loose in the community! Again, prints were nowhere to be found and creditable clues and witnesses were lacking. The public was in a panic and the horror of the crimes was all anybody could talk about. The lawmen had little experience with dealing with anyone with this type of profile. What urges drove a man to commit such a horrible act? The term "The Ghoul of Whitmire" was created by the media, which in turn reciprocated in more Ghoul Mania. But soon the crimes disappeared as 1957 blended into 1958 and the public's memory dimmed. Then, the Ghoul struck again on February 23, 1958! Again, a young girl's grave was discovered open and vandalized at Whitmire and the mania erupted with even greater fear and shock! Extraordinarily, the Ghoul was moving 1,200 pound slabs to get inside, which had to be done with great difficulty. Before the case ended, the reward rose from $500 to $1,500 (1958 prices).
In the meantime, the news quickly spread nationwide and reporters from all over the country were besieging Sheriff Shelby with questions. Suspects were rounded up based on thousands of tips, but each proved fruitless! Days went by and nothing! Then the Pensacola area became enshrouded in a thick fog! It was as if Hollywood was filming a movie for the Ghoul's benefit. Law enforcement became jittery that the fog might encourage him to strike again! Manpower was added to the shifts and patrols were doubled. They didn't have long to wait before they grudgingly got their wish. On Saturday, March 8th the Ghoul struck again at Whitmire. And according to Mr. Dingwall, it was "the last and ghastliest of these bizarre crimes!" That morning, a woman had gone to the cemetery to visit her husband's grave. She noticed a nearby grave appeared to be disturbed so she notified the sheriff's office. Upon arrival, they discovered that the girl's body was missing. They fanned out into the nearby thickets and 250 yards away near the swamp they found the body. Her clothing was disshelved and appeared to have burn marks on it as well. The clothing was sent to the FBI, but remember DNA as a forensic tool was still 25 years away. The citizenry of Pensacola screamed for blood! But even if apprehended the offense of "grave molestation" was still only a misdemeanor.
The Ghoul never struck Pensacola again and seemed to disappear into the darkness of obscurity. Perhaps, he passed away or perhaps he moved on to other locales. But, Trevor Webb stated in his 2011 article that, "on Feb. 18, 1965, seven years after the last incident, the sheriff’s office was called back to Whitmire Cemetery. In the same cemetery, during the same time of year and in the same manner, a woman’s grave had been disturbed. This case was not publicized." Either way, the "Ghoul of Whitmire" disappeared. Many of the investigators have also long since taken the long walk themselves such as Sheriff Shelby who passed away in 1995. The chief investigator, Charles Walter "Bubba" Solari graduated from Pensacola High School in 1934 and after a long career in law enforcement passed away in 2007. The reporter, Bill Dingwall retired from the newspaper in 1987 before joining the others in 2011. But strangely, the word that struck fear in young and old alike has little meaning to our new generations! Probably a good thing!
Pensacola News Journal Headlines of 2-24-1958
Pensacola News Journal Headlines of 3-9-1958
Pensacola News Journal Headlines of 10-5-1958
Sheriff Emmett Earl Shelby, Escambia
County, Florida (1912-1995)
William "Bill" Dingwall, Pensacola
News Journal (1930-2011)