
Signs of Our Time
Have you ever stopped to read a historical marker as you traveled across the US? Perhaps you’ve wondered if there was more to the story.
This podcast seeks to reveal the story behind the story from America's roadside historical markers. We explore the facts and sometimes quirky and unusual background information making our heritage even more fascinating.
Let me know if you have an unusual historical marker we can explore. americanhistoricalmarkers@gmail.com
Signs of Our Time
Episode 3 - Grancer the Dancer
Have you ever loved doing something so much that you would like to do it forever? Well maybe that is exactly what happened in the story of Grancer the Dancer. This character from America's southern history was known for his joy of dancing and hosting parties attended by everyone in the community.
I invite you to listen to this story and, if you are in the south Alabama area, stop in on a late Thursday evening by the local cemetery in Kinston and you might join in the dance with Grancer the Dancer.
References:
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Historical Marker Database: https://www.hmdb.org
I invite you to share this podcast with others. If you have interesting stories about historical markers you've discovered, or perhaps are in your area, please email me at: americanhistoricalmarkers@gmail.com.
I also invite you to leave me feedback by clicking on the "Send Us a Text" tab at the top of this discription.
Safe Travels!
Hello Friends,
I’m your host Dave Laton and welcome to Signs of Our Time, Discovering America’s heritage, one sign at a time.
This podcast is designed to provide the story behind the story found on America’s roadside historical signs.
In today’s episode we are going to explore the story of Grancer the Dancer.
William “Grancer” Harrison was born in South Carolina around 1789. He later moved to Coffee County Alabama sometime in the 1830s to establish a large plantation near the Cripple Creek and Pea River in the area known today as Kinston, Alabama located just above the Florida state border.
By the way, it seems that the name “Grancer” was a common name for a grandfather in the early history of South Carolina.
We don’t know a lot about Grancer because the courthouse where records were kept was flooded and many records were destroyed. So, what we know has been passed down by legend. And as usually happens, the legend grows.
It seems that Grancer the Dancer, as he became known, was successful as a plantation owner. He also liked to host weekly barbecues, dances, and horse races whenever possible. He greatly enjoyed these activities, and they were so popular and well attended that he had his slaves build a large dance hall just for the parties he sponsored. He had a pair of clogs, or dancing shoes, that he wore just for the parties he loved so well.
The years passed and Grancer began to prepare for his final arrangements. Slaves were forced to travel to the brick kiln in Milton, Florida, and return with loads of brick. Milton is located approximately 70 miles from Kinston so the trip would have taken a while to travel by wagon.
Work began on the large above-ground tomb in which he intended to be buried. In a last act of excess, Harrison was to be buried in the tomb with his dancing clothes and his clogs on, lying on his feather bed. The burial site was within earshot of his beloved dance hall so he could still be a part of it in some way.
When Harrison died in1860, he was buried exactly as he had instructed. The Thursday night dances continued for a while, but without Harrison, the mood just was not the same, and the dance hall soon fell into ruin.
Not long afterwards people began to tell tales of passing the Cemetery late on Thursday nights and hearing the eerie sounds of fiddling and dancing coming from the cemetery.
Other stories had passers-by reporting of hearing the deep, booming voice of a man calling out square dances and being accompanied by a fiddle. And others have spoken about a mysterious chill in the air and strange tapping noises. It seems that even in death, Grancer the Dancer’s joy and enthusiasm for dancing is still alive.
Well friends, there you have it. A story from America’s past. I hope you enjoyed this episode. I invite you to continue listening as we bring more episodes about the rich heritage of our great nation.
I invite you to share this podcast with others. If you have interesting stories about historical markers, I invite you to email me at: americanhistoricalmarkers@gmail.com
I’m Dave Laton and thank you for listening, and safe travels!
Reverences: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Historical Marker Database: https://www.hmdb.org