Doug Dillon's Blog, page 19
September 17, 2016
Authors of the Paranormal @Jacksonville, Florida
A Harry Potter Paranormal Halloween event for all ages at Barnes and Noble Claire Lane Center, Jacksonville, Florida – Saturday, October 29, 2016, 5 PM until 8 PM.
Exciting Harry Potter Activities +
Authors of the Paranormal signing their books and chatting with customers (see below for more details).
Actual Ghost Hunters showing off their equipment and sharing their fascinating experiences.
For questions, call the store @ 904-886-9904.
Store address: 11112 San Jose Blvd.
Featured Authors of the Paranormal
Dave Lapham and Doug Dillon
Dave Lapham – Nonfiction
Dave’s books about hauntings in St. Augustine, Florida are the prime sources of information for researchers looking into the paranormal happenings in America’s Oldest City. These books are:
Dave’s book, Ghost Hunting Florida, is an excellent guide for those interested in Sunshine State paranormal investigations.
Dave proudly served his country as a U.S. Marine Corps officer and it is this hard-headed, no nonsense attitude that allows him to write about the paranormal with great balance.
Click here to see Dave’s website.
Doug Dillon – Nonfiction and fiction
Doug has been probing the paranormal for more years than he cares to count. All that effort has resulted in two nonfiction books where he shares the results of his investigations:
Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences
An Explosion of Being: An American Family’s Journey into the Psychic
Doug is a former Central Florida educator who has combined his love of history, appreciation for the city of St. Augustine and his own paranormal experiences, in order to create a novel series for young adults and adults young at heart.
Titled, The St. Augustine Trilogy, these books carry readers into the frightening world of teenagers Jeff Golden and Carla Rodriquez.
Books 1 & 2 are in print and Book 3 will be available in 2017. These novels are being used in some Florida high school reading programs for motivational and skill building purposes.
Sliding Beneath the Surface: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book 1
Stepping Off a Cliff: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book 2
Halloween Paranormal Book Event – Jacksonville, Florida
A Harry Potter Paranormal Halloween event for all ages at Barnes and Noble Claire Lane Center, Jacksonville, Florida – Saturday, October 29, 2016, 5 PM until 8 PM.
Exciting Harry Potter Activities +
Authors of the Paranormal signing their books and chatting with customers (see below for more details).
Actual Ghost Hunters showing off their equipment and sharing their fascinating experiences.
For questions, call the store @ 904-886-9904.
Store address: 11112 San Jose Blvd.
Featured Authors of the Paranormal
Dave Lapham and Doug Dillon
Dave Lapham – Nonfiction
Dave’s books about hauntings in St. Augustine, Florida are the prime sources of information for researchers looking into the paranormal happenings in America’s Oldest City. These books are:
Dave’s book, Ghost Hunting Florida, is an excellent guide for those interested in Sunshine State paranormal investigations.
Dave proudly served his country as a U.S. Marine Corps officer and it is this hard-headed, no nonsense attitude that allows him to write about the paranormal with great balance.
Click here to see Dave’s website.
Doug Dillon – Nonfiction and fiction
Doug has been probing the paranormal for more years than he cares to count. All that effort has resulted in two nonfiction books where he shares the results of his investigations:
Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences
An Explosion of Being: An American Family’s Journey into the Psychic
Doug is a former Central Florida educator who has combined his love of history, appreciation for the city of St. Augustine and his own paranormal experiences, in order to create a novel series for young adults and adults young at heart.
Titled, The St. Augustine Trilogy, these books carry readers into the frightening world of teenagers Jeff Golden and Carla Rodriquez.
Books 1 & 2 are in print and Book 3 will be available in 2017. These novels are being used in some Florida high school reading programs for motivational and skill building purposes.
Sliding Beneath the Surface: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book 1
Stepping Off a Cliff: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book 2
Paranormal Book Event @ Barnes & Noble, Jacksonville, FL
A Harry Potter Paranormal Halloween event for all ages at Barnes and Noble Claire Lane Center, Jacksonville, Florida – Saturday, October 29, 2016, 5 PM until 8 PM.
Exciting Harry Potter Activities +
Authors of the Paranormal signing their books and chatting with customers (see below for more details).
Actual Ghost Hunters showing off their equipment and sharing their fascinating experiences.
For questions, call the store @ 904-886-9904.
Store address: 11112 San Jose Blvd.
Featured Authors of the Paranormal
Dave Lapham and Doug Dillon
Dave Lapham – Nonfiction
Dave’s books about hauntings in St. Augustine, Florida are the prime sources of information for researchers looking into the paranormal happenings in America’s Oldest City. These books are:
Dave’s book, Ghost Hunting Florida, is an excellent guide for those interested in Sunshine State paranormal investigations.
Dave proudly served his country as a U.S. Marine Corps officer and it is this hard-headed, no nonsense attitude that allows him to write about the paranormal with great balance.
Click here to see Dave’s website.
Doug Dillon – Nonfiction and fiction
Doug has been probing the paranormal for more years than he cares to count. All that effort has resulted in two nonfiction books where he shares the results of his investigations:
Carl Jung, Hauntings, and Paranormal Coincidences
An Explosion of Being: An American Family’s Journey into the Psychic
Doug is a former Central Florida educator who has combined his love of history, appreciation for the city of St. Augustine and his own paranormal experiences, in order to create a novel series for young adults and adults young at heart.
Titled, The St. Augustine Trilogy, these books carry readers into the frightening world of teenagers Jeff Golden and Carla Rodriquez.
Books 1 & 2 are in print and Book 3 will be available in 2017. These novels are being used in some Florida high school reading programs for motivational and skill building purposes.
Sliding Beneath the Surface: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book 1
Stepping Off a Cliff: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book 2
September 15, 2016
Getting Around in Old St. Augustine, Florida
Understanding the old city of St. Augustine is a lot easier if you can review some basic maps beyond the folded up kind that don’t give you certain perspectives and information. Next to each photo below, you will find a link giving you such information:
This photo shows King St. as seen from Flagler College.
Click here for a map showing the city limits of St. Augustine.
Here is a view in what I call the Water St. Neighborhood. This is where much of my young adult novel, Sliding Beneath the Surface takes place.
The area has quite a history all its own and is actually known as the Abbott Tract. On some maps it is shown as the eastern half of what’s called Uptown.
Click here for a map showing Neighborhoods of St. Augustine in or near the historic area.
Click on any of the following for further information on the city of St. Augustine:
A Calendar of Events for St. Augustine
Lighthouse Ghosts in St. Augustine, Florida
Ghostly Tales of Paranormal Florida. Links to the Supernatural at its Best.
Since so many paranormal events have occurred at the St. Augustine Lighthouse, I decided to pull together some key information from various sources into this one posting.
Over the years, visitors and staff members alike have definitely experienced a lot of strange things. Many paranormal investigators have studied the lighthouse, including the popular TV team, Ghost Hunters. So if you haven’t visited the place, put it on your “to do at some point in my lifetime” list.
Photo courtesy of the State Archives of Florida
Historical Background
The present day lighthouse sits at the northern tip of Anastasia Island directly across Matanzas Bay from downtown St. Augustine. In the evening, from downtown, you can see its beam sweep across those waters and then shift out over the Atlantic.
Erected in 1874, the building was preceded by a coquina stone structure originally built by the Spanish. In fact, the Spanish had maintained a watchtower near the present day site ever since their arrival during the late 1500s. Before the Europeans arrived, of course, Native Americans freely roamed the area.
What People Experience at the Lighthouse Itself
Historical photo from the lighkeeper’s hom
Each night, staff members lock the door at the top of the lighthouse that leads outside to the viewing balcony. Periodically, they find the door open in the morning. There is a security system but but no alarms sound.
On occasion, people see the figure of man at the top of the lighthouse at night even though the place is closed and locked.
At times, people smell cigar smoke at the base of the lighthouse. It is always cigar smoke and there are strict No Smoking signs everywhere on the lighthouse grounds.
A Special Lighthouse Story
Photo courtesy of Greg Dillon, www.greg’sgallery.net
Even though the lighthouse became automated in 1955, someone still needed to monitor the beacon in case something went wrong. One night, the caretaker realized the light had actually ceased functioning. Immediately, he walked rapidly in the darkeness from the old lightkeeper’s house towards the lighthouse entrance.
With each step though, he 
thought he heard someone walking behind him on the gravel walkway. But when he turned around,there was no one there.
Brushing off his experience as imagination, he continued walking only to once again hear those gravely footsteps behind him. Again, he still found himself alone.
Unnerved a bit at this point, the man rushed into the lighthouse and up the stairs. This time though, he could hear footsteps ringing on the metal stairs behind him.
When he finally got to the top and checked the lighting mechanism, he found nothing wrong. As he threw the switch to restart everything, the beacon started functioning again. Not wasting any time or waiting to listen to phantom footsteps, he ran down the 219 metal steps.
For three nights after that event, the beacon again stopped working. Just like before, the caretaker found nothing wrong and was followed just as he had been that first time. He did, however, acquire the habit of taking a flashlight and gun with him whenever he went to the lighthouse after sundown.
The Lighthouse Keeper’s House (Serves now as a museum and gift shop)Some sort of presence is often felt.
People get startled by their experiences but don’t seemed to be threatened by them.
People often experience cold spots.
In the brick bottom floor where the old cistern is located, people have seen the shape of a tall man. One staff member saw this shape in an doorway. It appeared gray in color against the dark room beyond. As the staff member stared in disbelief, the shape simply merged with the darkness.
At times, chairs are moved or overturned
In the gift shop, staff and volunteers will find items have been moved out of place overnight. Sometimes items disappear only to reappear at a later date. Music boxes will turn on by themselves.
A Special Story About the Lightkeeper’s HouseIn the 1960s, the old Lightkeeper’s house was rented to a man who periodically had guests. On two different occasions, guests reported seeing the exact same thing: A little girl in a frilly dress who stands in a doorway and then disappears.
Tracing Some of These Paranormal Events to the Past
One unverified story is that someone, a lightkeeper or a helper, hanged himself from the lighthouse.
Another more traceable story has it that a tragedy happened during the construction of the present day lighthouse. 5 little girls were placing in a handcar set on a railroad track. Somehow the handcar went out of control and ended up in water where three of the children drowned. Two of them were the daughters of the construction supervisor for the lighthouse.
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If you enjoyed this article, and you’re interested in other true stories of fascinating hauntings, you might like the new book I just published.
Titled, Carl Jung, Hauntings and Paranormal Coincidences, it uses the great psychiatirst’s own paranormal experiences as jumping off points for some of my own life events and those of other very reliable people.
Listed below are direct book links to some of the larger book retail outlets in the English speaking world where you can find it:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, Kobo (Canada)
Student Guide Book to St. Augustine, Florida
Student guide to a St. Augustine, Florida field trip, grades 2-5.
Gary Sanchez’s teacher took their fourth-grade class 100 miles from home to the oldest city in the United States. Gary had so much fun he wants his parents to bring him back for another visit!
Established by Spain in 1565, St. Augustine, Florida has a huge stone fort built over 300 years ago. Visitors to that fort get to see where the great Seminole war chief, Osceola, was kept prisoner. Visitors get to crawl into the old, windowless gunpowder room discovered when the United States took over the fort from Spain.
Cannons still fire in this city just as they did when invaders burned St. Augustine to the ground. On special days, men dressed as pirates and Spanish soldiers pretend to fight in the streets. Cool cemeteries, the oldest wooden schoolhouse in America, and a lighthouse with 219 steps make this ancient city one of the most interesting in the country.
Class Trip Series
Published by Mitchell Lane Publishers
Interest Level: Grades 2-5
Click to Buy:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Free Resources for Language Arts Teachers
Help for High School Reading and Language Arts Teachers Using Class Sets of YA trilogy in the Classroom. Basic information here with details found in the listed links.
The St. Augustine Trilogy by Doug Dillon
A paranormal/historical series.
Set in current day St. Augustine, FL with time travel to actual historic events.
Written with at-risk kids in mind.
Premise: You Create Your Own Reality.
Already being used in high school readling classrooms.
Author’s background includes 14 years in the classroom and 5 years of working fulltime with at-risk young people and their families in the state of Florida.
The author does periodic book signings in the city of St. Augustine: Barnes and Noble, Ripley’s Believe it Or Not, and the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center.
Description
Told in his own words, this paranormal/historical series is a very personal account of fifteen-year-old Jeff Golden’s explosive coming of age in America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida.
Join Jeff and his girlfriend Carla as they experience mind-blowing events that threaten to destroy their very existence.
Follow the two teens as Lobo, the Native American shaman, tries to protect them from powerful forces beyond understanding. Be there when Jeff and Carla discover the depths of reality as well as their own powers to reshape what they find.
The St. Augustine Trilogy
Book 1: Sliding Beneath the Surface 154 reviews on Amazon.com and reviewed by the St. Augustine Herald.
Book 3: Targeting Orion’s Children
The Free Resources for Reading Teachers Using the Trilogy in Their Classroom
Detailed online Teacher’s Guide with extensive links.
A photo disk with pictures of St. Augustine, historical reenactments, character photos, trilogy graphics, author pics., etc.
A guide to the photo disk.
Consultation with author.
Click here to see more information on these resources and other details.
The following links take you to further posts that expand on the writing of the The St. Augustine Trilogy and the author’s intent for the series:
Reading Help for At-Risk Kids. An overview of the trilogy’s use in reading classrooms.
Reading Motivation That Worked. The original article published about the author’s efforts with the original teacher who used Book 1 of the trilogy with all of her students.
Kathy Snyder – the first reading teacher in Florida to use the trilogy in her reading classes.
Reading Teacher Sparks Student Interest. An article from the first teacher to use the trilogy in her classes.
A book Series for the Reading Classroom. The multiple themes and threads woven into the series.
Main Characters in the St. Augustine Trilogy. A brief introduction.
The St. Augustine Trilogy and America’s Oldest City. The setting for the series in St. Augustine, Florida and how that provides a fascinating backdrop for action.
Pirates parade in the streets of old St. Augustine
The St. Augustine Trilogy & Historic Events. Specifies actual historic events, integral parts of the series. that happened in America’s oldest city.
Teaching History Through Young Adult Novels. An analysis.
Teaching Resilience Through Young Adult Novels. Targeting at-risk kids and the teachers who work with them.
Click the following in order to see the two trilogy novels presently in print, and their reviews, as currently listed on amazon.com:
Free Reading Resources for English Teachers
Help for High School Reading and English Teachers Using Class Sets of YA trilogy in the Classroom. Basic information here with details found in the listed links.
The St. Augustine Trilogy by Doug Dillon
A paranormal/historical series.
Set in current day St. Augustine, FL with time travel to actual historic events.
Written with at-risk kids in mind.
Premise: You Create Your Own Reality.
Already being used in high school readling classrooms.
Author’s background includes 14 years in the classroom and 5 years of working fulltime with at-risk young people and their families in the state of Florida.
The author does periodic book signings in the city of St. Augustine: Barnes and Noble, Ripley’s Believe it Or Not, and the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center.
Description
Told in his own words, this paranormal/historical series is a very personal account of fifteen-year-old Jeff Golden’s explosive coming of age in America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida.
Join Jeff and his girlfriend Carla as they experience mind-blowing events that threaten to destroy their very existence.
Follow the two teens as Lobo, the Native American shaman, tries to protect them from powerful forces beyond understanding. Be there when Jeff and Carla discover the depths of reality as well as their own powers to reshape what they find.
The St. Augustine Trilogy
Book 1: Sliding Beneath the Surface 154 reviews on Amazon.com and reviewed by the St. Augustine Herald.
Book 3: Targeting Orion’s Children
The Free Resources for Reading Teachers Using the Trilogy in Their Classroom
Detailed online Teacher’s Guide with extensive links.
A photo disk with pictures of St. Augustine, historical reenactments, character photos, trilogy graphics, author pics., etc.
A guide to the photo disk.
Consultation with author.
Click here to see more information on these resources and other details.
The following links take you to further posts that expand on the writing of the The St. Augustine Trilogy and the author’s intent for the series:
Reading Help for At-Risk Kids. An overview of the trilogy’s use in reading classrooms.
Reading Motivation That Worked. The original article published about the author’s efforts with the original teacher who used Book 1 of the trilogy with all of her students.
Kathy Snyder – the first reading teacher in Florida to use the trilogy in her reading classes.
Reading Teacher Sparks Student Interest. An article from the first teacher to use the trilogy in her classes.
A book Series for the Reading Classroom. The multiple themes and threads woven into the series.
Main Characters in the St. Augustine Trilogy. A brief introduction.
The St. Augustine Trilogy and America’s Oldest City. The setting for the series in St. Augustine, Florida and how that provides a fascinating backdrop for action.
Pirates parade in the streets of old St. Augustine
The St. Augustine Trilogy & Historic Events. Specifies actual historic events, integral parts of the series. that happened in America’s oldest city.
Teaching History Through Young Adult Novels. An analysis.
Teaching Resilience Through Young Adult Novels. Targeting at-risk kids and the teachers who work with them.
Click the following in order to see the two trilogy novels presently in print, and their reviews, as currently listed on amazon.com:
Free Teacher Resources with YA Novels
Help for High School Reading Teachers Using Class Sets of YA trilogy in the Classroom. Basic information here with details found in the listed links.
The St. Augustine Trilogy by Doug Dillon
A paranormal/historical series.
Set in current day St. Augustine, FL with time travel to actual historic events.
Written with at-risk kids in mind.
Premise: You Create Your Own Reality.
Already being used in high school readling classrooms.
Author’s background includes 14 years in the classroom and 5 years of working fulltime with at-risk young people and their families in the state of Florida.
The author does periodic book signings in the city of St. Augustine: Barnes and Noble, Ripley’s Believe it Or Not, and the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center.
Description
Told in his own words, this paranormal/historical series is a very personal account of fifteen-year-old Jeff Golden’s explosive coming of age in America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida.
Join Jeff and his girlfriend Carla as they experience mind-blowing events that threaten to destroy their very existence.
Follow the two teens as Lobo, the Native American shaman, tries to protect them from powerful forces beyond understanding. Be there when Jeff and Carla discover the depths of reality as well as their own powers to reshape what they find.
The St. Augustine Trilogy
Book 1: Sliding Beneath the Surface 154 reviews on Amazon.com and reviewed by the St. Augustine Herald.
Book 3: Targeting Orion’s Children
The Free Resources for Reading Teachers Using the Trilogy in Their Classroom
Detailed online Teacher’s Guide with extensive links.
A photo disk with pictures of St. Augustine, historical reenactments, character photos, trilogy graphics, author pics., etc.
A guide to the photo disk.
Consultation with author.
Click here to see more information on these resources and other details.
The following links take you to further posts that expand on the writing of the The St. Augustine Trilogy and the author’s intent for the series:
Reading Help for At-Risk Kids. An overview of the trilogy’s use in reading classrooms.
Reading Motivation That Worked. The original article published about the author’s efforts with the original teacher who used Book 1 of the trilogy with all of her students.
Kathy Snyder – the first reading teacher in Florida to use the trilogy in her reading classes.
Reading Teacher Sparks Student Interest. An article from the first teacher to use the trilogy in her classes.
A book Series for the Reading Classroom. The multiple themes and threads woven into the series.
Main Characters in the St. Augustine Trilogy. A brief introduction.
The St. Augustine Trilogy and America’s Oldest City. The setting for the series in St. Augustine, Florida and how that provides a fascinating backdrop for action.
Pirates parade in the streets of old St. Augustine
The St. Augustine Trilogy & Historic Events. Specifies actual historic events, integral parts of the series. that happened in America’s oldest city.
Teaching History Through Young Adult Novels. An analysis.
Teaching Resilience Through Young Adult Novels. Targeting at-risk kids and the teachers who work with them.
Click the following in order to see the two trilogy novels presently in print, and their reviews, as currently listed on amazon.com:
Free Teacher Resources with YA Series
Help for High School Reading Teachers Using Class Sets of YA trilogy in the Classroom. Basic information here with details found in the listed links.
The St. Augustine Trilogy by Doug Dillon
A paranormal/historical series.
Set in current day St. Augustine, FL with time travel to actual historic events.
Written with at-risk kids in mind.
Premise: You Create Your Own Reality.
Already being used in high school readling classrooms.
Author’s background includes 14 years in the classroom and 5 years of working fulltime with at-risk young people and their families in the state of Florida.
The author does periodic book signings in the city of St. Augustine: Barnes and Noble, Ripley’s Believe it Or Not, and the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center.
Description
Told in his own words, this paranormal/historical series is a very personal account of fifteen-year-old Jeff Golden’s explosive coming of age in America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida.
Join Jeff and his girlfriend Carla as they experience mind-blowing events that threaten to destroy their very existence.
Follow the two teens as Lobo, the Native American shaman, tries to protect them from powerful forces beyond understanding. Be there when Jeff and Carla discover the depths of reality as well as their own powers to reshape what they find.
The St. Augustine Trilogy
Book 1: Sliding Beneath the Surface 154 reviews on Amazon.com and reviewed by the St. Augustine Herald.
Book 3: Targeting Orion’s Children
The Free Resources for Reading Teachers Using the Trilogy in Their Classroom
Detailed online Teacher’s Guide with extensive links.
A photo disk with pictures of St. Augustine, historical reenactments, character photos, trilogy graphics, author pics., etc.
A guide to the photo disk.
Consultation with author.
Click here to see more information on these resources and other details.
The following links take you to further posts that expand on the writing of the The St. Augustine Trilogy and the author’s intent for the series:
Reading Help for At-Risk Kids. An overview of the trilogy’s use in reading classrooms.
Reading Motivation That Worked. The original article published about the author’s efforts with the original teacher who used Book 1 of the trilogy with all of her students.
Kathy Snyder – the first reading teacher in Florida to use the trilogy in her reading classes.
Reading Teacher Sparks Student Interest. An article from the first teacher to use the trilogy in her classes.
A book Series for the Reading Classroom. The multiple themes and threads woven into the series.
Main Characters in the St. Augustine Trilogy. A brief introduction.
The St. Augustine Trilogy and America’s Oldest City. The setting for the series in St. Augustine, Florida and how that provides a fascinating backdrop for action.
Pirates parade in the streets of old St. Augustine
The St. Augustine Trilogy & Historic Events. Specifies actual historic events, integral parts of the series. that happened in America’s oldest city.
Teaching History Through Young Adult Novels. An analysis.
Teaching Resilience Through Young Adult Novels. Targeting at-risk kids and the teachers who work with them.
Click the following in order to see the two trilogy novels presently in print, and their reviews, as currently listed on amazon.com:
