Ethel Allen is trying to get our attention.

"Oh definitely," Christie Taylor nodded, confidently. "Definitely."

For almost nine years, Taylor has been serving tables at Ashley's Restaurant. Way back in 1934 - one year after the place opened as Jack's Tavern - something terrible happened to a customer.

"Ethel Allen was a regular in here [in the 1930s]," she told us Thursday during our visit to the restaurant. "It was one of the unsolved murders in Brevard. It was a gruesome, brutal murder. She died at 19. They found her body floating down the Indian River... This is where she was seen last."

Although Taylor said there's no evidence that Ethel Allen was murdered inside the restaurant, this is where she's chosen to, well, hang out.

Taylor feels her "everywhere."

"The bathroom. [And] upstairs," she said. "I was upstairs closing by myself. I felt a tap on my shoulder, like, 'Hey you.' I turn around and I'm doing a 360 and there's nobody there."

"She's here," she continued. "I don't know if she's stuck or why she hasn't crossed over to the other side. I don't know because I haven't felt any evil or bad things going on. You just know there's a presence."

I started chatting with Sandi Hefner, who was sitting at the bar. The Cocoa Beach woman says she, too, is a regular. Without hesitation, she enthusiastically shared one of her ghost encounters.

"I was upstairs, probably one of my very first visits here, and the silverware seemed drawn to each other like there was a magnetic force," she said. "I just kinda watched in amazement."

But Ethel Allen may not be the only one to worry about. Taylor mentioned "a little girl ghost."

"The story on that is she died on US 1, but there's also another story that she was hit on the train track," she said. "I find things on the ground that shouldn't have fallen off the shelf. When I was in the bathroom, the door was like somebody was trying to open it. And I knew nobody was in the bathroom."

Want to check it out for yourself? Every Monday, Ashley's hosts "Dinner & A Ghost." You'll hear from a ghost hunter who will show you his paranormal pictures from throughout the restaurant. Call (321) 636-6430 to reserve a spot.

Ashley's is located at 1609 South US1 Rockledge.

Meanwhile, here is some additional info we got from their official website:

Legend

In 1934 the body Ethel Allen, a nineteen-year-old local of the area, was found brutally murdered on the shores of the nearby Indian River. She was a regular of Jack’s Tavern, and it was one of the last places she was seen. At least one of the psychics who have investigated the paranormal activity at Ashley’s claims to have had a vision of the murder of Ethel Allen taking place in the restaurant.

It is believed that Ethel’s murder is the main source of the ghostly activity which happens, much of which seems to be centered on the ladies restroom. One manager has seen the feet of a woman dressed in 1930’s era footwear in the next stall, only to exit her own stall and find that the other one is empty. Patrons have also reported apparitions of a young woman in the bathroom mirror.

The haunting is not limited to the ladies room though. A common experience is a feeling of being pushed by an invisible force while ascending or descending the stairs. Lights have been seen flickering on and off during the night, burglar alarms go off unexplainably, glasses and dishes fall and break without cause. Many employees tell of hearing whispering in the restaurant after closing, and often find objects have moved when opening the next morning.

Conclusion

The legends concerning the ghosts of Ashley’s are varied. Writers and photographers, news reporters, psychics, and ghost hunters have investigated the restaurant, and each have come to their own conclusions. Some believe the spirit of a victim of an accident on either the highway in front of the building or the train tracks in the back may have wandered into the restaurant. Others believe it is the ghost of an elderly male employee who did odd jobs and lived upstairs that haunts the building. But most everyone agrees that there is something strange going on at Ashley’s. The question is: what?

To learn more about the haunting of Ashley’s Restaurant, the books below are great sources. And if you aren’t convinced of which story is true, be sure to come and experience it for yourself, and then decide what you believe.


References

Carlson, Charlie. Ashley's Shadow. 1. New Smyrna Beach, FL: Luthers, 2005.
Jenkins, Greg. Florida's Ghostly Legends and Haunted Folklore: South and Central Florida. 1. Sarasota, Fl: Pineapple Press, 2005.
Moore, Joyce. Haunt Hunter's Guide to Florida. 3. Sarasota, Fl: Pineapple Press, Inc., 1998.
Myers, Arthur. The Ghostly Register. 1. Chicago, Il: Contemporary Books, Inc, 1986.