Charleston Gothic: Part 6- Ghostly Alchemy

About this episode

In the final episode of the Charleston Gothic series, the investigation returns to the Dock Street Theatre and explores Charleston's relationship with Edgar Allan Poe.

A wax figurine forgotten in museum storage. A book of poems that prophesied a ghost. A woman on a beach who found something she wasn't looking for. In the final episode of the Charleston Gothic series, the investigation returns to where it began — the Dock Street Theatre — and follows the last of three trails through Charleston's tangled relationship with Edgar Allan Poe. Along the way, a century-old literary vision resurfaces, a forgotten poet speaks truths the city wasn't ready to hear, and the question that launched the series finally gets its answer. Sources referenced in the episode: Books Israfel: The Life and Times of Edgar Allan Poe by Hervey Allen (1926) Carolina Chansons: Legends of the Low Country by DuBose Heyward and Hervey Allen (1922) The Arrow of Lightning by Beatrice Witte Ravenel (1926) The Dreamer: A Romantic Rendering of the Life-Story of Edgar Allan Poe by Mary Newton Stanard Edgar Allan Poe's Charleston by Christopher Byrd Downey Poe's Brother: The Poems of William Henry Leonard Poe by Hervey Allen and Thomas Ollive Mabbott Ghosts and Legends of Charleston by Denise Rolfe (2010) Poe-Land by J.W. Ocker Sheppard Lee, Written By Himself by Robert Montgomery…

Topics covered

• society
• culture
• personal
• journals
• arts

Keywords

• wax figurine
• ghostly alchemy
• Dock Street Theatre
• forgotten poet
• literary vision
• Edgar Allan Poe
• Charleston Gothic
• poems
• ghosts
• legends

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Israfel: The Life and Times of Edgar Allan Poe, Carolina Chansons: Legends of the Low Country, The Arrow of Lightning, The Dreamer, Edgar Allan Poe's Charleston, Poe's Brother, Ghosts and Legends of Charleston, Poe-Land, Sheppard Lee, Written By Himself

Books & works: Charleston Gothic, Books Israfel: The Life and Times of Edgar Allan Poe, Carolina Chansons: Legends of the Low Country, The Arrow of Lightning, The Dreamer: A Romantic Rendering of the Life-Story of Edgar Allan Poe, Poe-Land, Edgar Allan Poe, Alchemy, Poe's Mother, A Source for 'Annabel Lee

Places: Charleston

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• Charleston Gothic: Part 2- Buried Treasures · December 14, 2025 · 54 min
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