The Spirits of Poogan’s Porch

Posted: 03.05.2025 | Updated: 03.05.2025

Charleston is nicknamed the Holy City due to the number of churches there, but it’s also a haunted city with a long list of ghost stories to tell. One of the most well known haunted establishments in the city is a restaurant called Poogan’s Porch. 

Named after a beloved dog, Poogan’s Porch has been serving up award-winning Southern cuisine since the late 1970s. Alongside the food are some truly terrifying ghost stories you won’t soon forget.

Want to hear the whole story about Charleston’s historic hauntings? Book a ghost tour with Charleston Terrors for your next trip today!

Is Poogan’s Porch Haunted?

Two very different spirits are believed to haunt Poogan’s Porch. The first is Poogan himself, whose furry ghost still enjoys greeting customers even in the afterlife. 

The other is a former resident named Zoe. Zoe’s spirit clings to the house and does not seem to approve of the many guests who come through “her” house each day. She’s been known to frighten both staff and guests with her ghostly antics. 

The History of Poogan’s Porch

Before it was Poogan’s Porch, the Victorian building located at 72 Queen Street was a single family home constructed in the late 1800s. The best known residents to date are the St. Amand family, which included sisters Zoe and Elizabeth. Both women were school teachers and considered spinsters. 

They were known to be incredibly close but also quite different from one another. Where Elizabeth had an outgoing, extroverted personality, Zoe tended to be more quiet and reserved. As a teacher at Craft’s House School, Zoe had a reputation for being both strict and stern.

Zoe’s life completely changed when Elizabeth died in 1945. The sisters had become increasingly reclusive as they grew older and mostly interacted with each other. After Elizabeth’s death, a heartbroken Zoe was left completely alone. 

It’s said that she never healed from the grief she experienced and fell into a depression. Neighbors would wave to Zoe when they saw her standing in the window, but she seemed to stare through them, never acknowledging anyone and just staring with a vacant stare. 

Zoe began sleepwalking and became a danger to herself. She was placed into psychiatric care at St. Francis Hospital in 1952. She died there two years later, nearly a decade after Elizabeth’s passing. 

The Story of Poogan

After Zoe’s death, the house at 72 Queen Street continued to be a private residence until 1976. That’s when it was purchased by Bobbie Ball who convinced the city of Charleston to let her turn the building into a restaurant. As she began renovations, a friendly, West Highland White Terrier named Poogan showed up. 

The story of Poogan’s origins varies. Some sources say he was a neighborhood dog, while others maintain he was left behind by the previous owners of the house Bobbie had just purchased. 

Whatever case, Poogan was beloved by the community and made himself a regular guest at the 72 Queen Street house. He made such an impression on Bobbie that she named her restaurant Poogan’s Porch. 

In the early years of Poogan’s Porch, guests would be greeted by Poogan who generally hung out on the expansive front porch. Sometimes he would sneak inside and beg for table scraps. He was especially fond of Bobbie’s iconic buttermilk biscuits, which are still on the menu today.

Poogan died in 1979, but his spirit still lives on in Poogan’s Porch. There is even a bronze statue of Poogan in the front yard where his remains are buried, reminding everyone that the restaurant is named after a dog who was loved by all who knew him.

The Ghosts and Hauntings of Poogan’s Porch

It’s believed that the two most famous residents of Poogan’s Porch still reside within the walls of the restaurant. Over the years, countless guests have reported the feeling of a dog brushing past their legs under the table. 

To their shock, there’s no dog or any animal to be found. Staff believe that this is Poogan’s ghost still searching for treats and table scraps. His presence is considered both friendly and warm, which isn’t quite the case for the restaurant’s other resident spirit.

The Ghost of Zoe

Countless guests and staff members at Poogan’s Porch have reported seeing an elderly woman in an outdated black dress. Whenever anyone tries to make contact with her, she suddenly disappears, much to their horror. 

When these sightings occur, longtime staff will point to a picture of Zoe St. Amand and ask if that’s the woman who disappeared. The answer is always yes.

The ghost of Zoe engages in an array of poltergeist-like activity that can be rather unsettling to say the least. She’s been known to knock over glasses, turn on bathroom sinks, and move furniture. Owner Bobbie Ball recalled Zoe being especially moody after a remodel of the building. 

One night after closing, Bobbie couldn’t get the alarm to set. As she spoke with someone at the alarm company, she was shocked to see a bar stool fly across the room. This was followed by the kitchen door opening with a crash. Bobbie knew that Zoe haunted the restaurant and speculated that she was unhappy with the changes the new owner had made. 

The best known sighting of Zoe happened in 1996 when a woman went to use the upstairs bathroom. She was washing her hands when someone began pounding their fists on the door. The woman quickly opened the door but found the hallway empty. 

Closing the door, she turned back to the mirror and saw an old woman in a black dress standing behind her. The woman let out a scream and ran down the stairs and out onto the sidewalk, refusing to go back inside. Since then, other women have seen Zoe’s reflection appear in the bathroom mirror.

Haunted Charleston

The hauntings at Poogan’s Porch are just two of the seemingly endless number of ghost stories Charleston has to tell. Next time you visit, be sure to learn all about these spooky tales by booking a ghost tour with Charleston Terrors! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and keep reading our blog for more real South Carolina hauntings.

Sources:

• https://theghostdoctor.com/poogans-porch/
• https://www.counton2.com/news/local-news/yelp-users-say-poogans-porch-among-most-most-haunted-restaurants/
• https://kiawahriver.com/ghost-stories-the-tale-of-the-poogans-porch-dog-ghost/