Danny’s Bed

In a town where the spooky and the unknown are practically the local pastime, we find an innocent-looking bed that caused quite a stir. Welcome to Savannah — a seriously haunted city, where, if you’re lucky, you just might see, hear, or feel those who have passed on.

There are countless encounters to be had here, and plenty of them turn up on our Savannah ghost tours. This is one of the strangest — the tale of a haunted antique bed and the little boy who refused to let it go.

Savannah’s Haunted Antiques

How many times have you browsed an antiques shop, admiring the furniture, and thought, “What a great price — and they really did build things better back then”? True enough. But have you ever heard of haunted objects? No? Then please, sit down and relax while I tell you a story… Actually — is that an antique chair you’ve just settled into? Oh my. On second thought, maybe y’all should stand for a moment.

Savannah is full of lovely old — and haunted — antiques, so be careful where you sit. We pass by a few likely spots on our ghost tours in Savannah. Just be careful: you never know when you might be sitting on someone’s great uncle.

The Bed Comes Home

Al Cobb is the father of twin boys. In 1998, he purchased an antique bed for one of the twins, Jason. Jason was thrilled with his Christmas present — right up until he tried to sleep in it that night. As he lay there, he sensed someone in the room with him. Someone was watching him sleep.

As the days went by, the occurrences grew stranger. Like a lot of kids, Jason was told he was only dreaming (as someone who grew up in a haunted house myself, I have plenty of sympathy for him). But Jason surely wished it had been dreams. Something was waking him at night. It felt like someone was propping their elbows on his pillow, and he could feel a cold breath against his neck.

On the fourth night, Jason woke to find that a framed photo of his grandparents, which sat on his nightstand, had been shattered. He went to his parents again, insisting something was truly wrong — and this time they believed him, because Jason would never have harmed a photo of his beloved grandparents.

It’s Time to Get Answers: “Danny 7”

Living in Savannah, and having a real interest in local history and the paranormal, Mr. Cobb decided to ask their unseen visitor a few questions directly. He left a sheet of paper and a pencil in Jason’s room and asked the spirit for its name and what it wanted.

Later that day, they found their answer. The spirit had written down “Danny 7,” along with a note explaining that his mother had died in the bed in 1899. A frightened family suddenly had a name — and a heartbreaking little history — to go with their haunting.

Poltergeist or Haunted Object?

Was this poltergeist activity, or simply a haunted object — a bed a young boy had attached himself to in death? It’s hard to say. There were two teenage boys living in the house, along with a ghost who liked to pull open kitchen drawers, stack the dining room chairs on the table, and leave notes. One note claimed the bed was his: Danny’s.

You’ve probably heard poltergeists explained on a ghost tour. No? Here’s the short version: a poltergeist is a noisy, unruly spirit that moves, stacks, or throws objects. They’re rarer than traditional hauntings, and many researchers believe poltergeist activity tends to center on female adolescents. By that theory, you could rule a poltergeist out here.

A haunted object, on the other hand, can be a piece of furniture, a piece of jewelry — any item a person was fond of. Spirits can attach themselves to objects, just as Danny attached himself to his bed. That, I suspect, is what we have here: a haunted object, not a poltergeist. And I imagine there are hundreds of haunted objects scattered across Savannah. Next time you’re on a tour, ask your guide.

Danny’s Rage

Danny didn’t just leave polite notes about his wishes — he was known to throw a tantrum or three. Remember the note claiming the bed was his? He was furious that Jason was sleeping in it.

One night, Jason lay down and said aloud, “Danny, this is my bed now.” He rolled over to sleep — then heard a noise. He turned back just in time to see a terracotta head that had been hanging on the opposite wall lift into the air and hurl itself straight at him. Jason ducked. He ran for his parents, and when they returned just minutes later, the bedroom had been completely trashed — lamps knocked over, curtains torn from the rod. This child ghost was incredibly angry.

When the bed left the house, so did the boy.

It was time for the bed to go. It was packed up and sent off to auction — and when the bed left the house, so did Danny.

The Bed Finds a Home

At auction, a woman who had read about the bed in the paper convinced her husband to buy it — and, oh, did they come to regret it. The bed’s reputation preceded it: customers stopped visiting their store, and their security system began alarming again and again through the night. The endless false alarms finally wore them down. Once more, it was time for the bed to go. Notice a theme?

Eventually, a very loving woman and her daughter bought the bed, and it now sits in a room off her garage — a space she calls Danny’s Room. Step inside, and the air feels cold and damp. Neither mother nor daughter will lie down on the bed, because they don’t want to upset the little boy. Did they sense that intuitively, or had they simply absorbed enough of this haunted city’s folklore to know better? I think it was something simpler: I think they were listening with their hearts.

The moral of the story is that spirits are people too. They have thoughts, memories, and feelings, and they can grow attached to objects — or to the living. So the next time you go to buy an antique, you just might want to make sure it doesn’t come with a history.

Danny, rest in peace. Maybe one day you’ll see that the journey into the light can be a beautiful one.