OUR FAMILY WEREWOLF?
By Noel Read Stowe
In the 1840's the Owen family in Pleasant Hill of Talbot County in west-central Georgia produced an alleged werewolf (see references). Her name was Emily Isabella Burt. She was the daughter of Mildred Owen Burt and Joel
Hurt Burt. Isabella's mother Mildred was the daughter of Daniel Grant Owen and the sister of my Great Grand Uncle Daniel Owen. “Uncle” Dan was the husband of my Great Grand Aunt Emma Read Owen. I spent many summers during the 40s at my Great Uncle’s place “The Elms” at Pleasant Hill, GA.
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| "Auntie" Emma Read Owen (1843-1947) Uncle Dan Owen (1830-1892) |
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| Emily Isabella Burt (1841-1911) |
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| Mildred Owen Burt (1812-1890) |
"Isabella had thick dark hair, and shaggy brows that covered her eyes. She rarely smiled, which many thought was fortunate because it revealed pointed canine teeth" (“As the Stories Go”). None of this is apparent from her photograph and was probably greatly exaggerated. Supposedly, she spent lots of time in the library studying the paranormal and developed headaches only alleviated by opium. It was also reported that she often went out at night and disappeared for long periods of time.
In the Pleasant Hill area where Isabella lived sheep and cattle were found killed and drained of blood--not for food - but perhaps slaughtered for sport. Isabella was suspected of the deaths. As a result, she was sent to Paris in order to visit a doctor for a possible cure. It was believed that she suffered from the mental illness clinical lycanthropy, in which a person believes she has transformed into an animal and behaves accordingly. During her time in Paris no farm animals were killed and upon her return to Talbot County no more animals were killed. Undoubtedly Isabella suffered from the accusation all her life and was likely never accepted into society even after her death in 1911. Some residents of Talbot County objected to her being buried in the consecrated ground in the Owens and Holmes Cemetery. Luckily, common sense prevailed and this mentally ill woman was laid to rest in her family’s cemetery, finally at peace.
References:
“As the Stories Go”
1990 Davidson, William H. “A Rockaway in Talbot: Travels in an Old Georgia County. Vols. I, II, II, and IV.
