George Singleton investigated mysterious 'crying baby' in 1975

Baby’s wailing seemed to come from these woods

(For decades, local historian and paranormal investigator George “Buster” Singleton published a weekly newspaper column called “Somewhere in Time.” The column below, which was titled “Cries of a baby? Nighttime wailing a mystery” was originally published in the Aug. 21, 1975 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

One of the many fascinating stories pertaining to the supernatural in Monroe County was one told to me by Miss Lois Wiggins. Miss Lois has lived in the vicinity all her life, and the story has been handed down through her family for many years.

Near the old home place where the Wiggins family was reared, the strange phenomenon has repeated itself many, many times.

During the late evening hours, when the darkness creeped across the ridges and it was time for supper around the Wiggins home, the wails of a small baby could be heard coming from the woods below the house.

Darker, louder

“The screams come as though the child is in pain. As it grows darker, the cries get louder,” states Miss Lois.

“My daddy (we called him Papa) spent many hours along with the hired help, trying to find where the sounds were coming from. He would light a lantern and look hour after hour, not once finding anything that would solve the mystery.

“The sounds of the child’s crying worried Papa. He never accepted the fact that he wouldn’t sooner or later find where the crying was coming from.”

Since hearing the story from Miss Lois Wiggins and Mrs. George Klepac, I, too, have wondered about the strange sounds in the night. What could have happed in the past years that might shed some light on this peculiar incident?

Was there, somewhere along the way, a lost child who was perhaps left in the deep woods for a reason?

Hidden baby?

Or was there a baby hidden from someone or some unknow foe, and the person was never able to return and claim the infant? So at night when the darkness settles over the ravine, the child’s spirit cries out in fear and hunger, waiting for the loving arms that will never hold it again.

There are those that may laugh and joke about this strange happening. Then there are some who, like myself, have witnessed a portion from the realm of the great unknown or the supernatural, and believe such things do exist.

Perhaps in the none-too-distant future, man will develop his ability to look beyond the sunset, and then all things will be seen in a new light. Then the shadows of darkness and the things that are mysteries to us will vanish forever.

(Singleton, the author of the 1991 book “Of Foxfire and Phantom Soldiers,” passed away at the age of 79 on July 19, 2007. A longtime resident of Monroeville, he was born to Vincent William Singleton and Frances Cornelia Faile Singleton, during a late-night thunderstorm, on Dec. 14, 1927 in Marengo County, graduated from Sweet Water High School in 1946, served as a U.S. Marine paratrooper in the Korean War, worked as a riverboat deckhand, lived for a time among Apache Indians, moved to Monroe County on June 28, 1964 and served as the administrator of the Monroeville National Guard unit from June 28, 1964 to Dec. 14, 1987. He was promoted from the enlisted ranks to warrant officer in May 1972. For years, Singleton’s columns, titled “Monroe County history – Did you know?” and “Somewhere in Time” appeared in The Monroe Journal, and he wrote a lengthy series of articles about Monroe County that appeared in Alabama Life magazine. It’s believed that his first column appeared in the March 25, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal. He also helped organize the Monroe County Museum and Historical Society and was also a past president of that organization. He is buried in Pineville Cemetery in Monroeville. The column above and all of Singleton’s other columns are available to the public through the microfilm records at the Monroe County Public Library in Monroeville. Singleton’s columns are presented here each week for research and scholarship purposes and as part of an effort to keep his work and memory alive.)