The Bodysnatcher

Thomas "Tomahawk" Hawke
- College Gardener (& Bodysnatcher)

Thomas Hawke earned his nickname through the obvious wordplay on his surname, though by his early twenties he had acquired an actual tomahawk from a visiting American trader and discovered its usefulness for both heavy garden work and college maintenance tasks. Born around 1770, the naturally shy young man found gardening suited his retiring disposition, allowing him to work quietly among the flower beds while avoiding the boisterous college social life. Despite his reserved nature, Thomas possessed an easy charm with the college ladies, often bringing them carefully arranged posies from the gardens and helping with their private flower beds, his gentle manner making him a favourite among Cambridge's more refined households.

His quiet competence and discretion made Thomas invaluable to the college community during the late 1780s and early 1790s, but also drew him into Cambridge's shadowy networks when he was barely past twenty-one. While most knew him simply as the reliable gardener who could coax blooms from the most stubborn soil, whispered rumours suggested his knowledge of Cambridge's burial grounds extended beyond mere horticulture and into the much-despised realm of the resurrectionists – bodysnatchers...! Those few who moved in the town's unofficial circles - figures like the young Millicent Fairweather, just beginning to establish her own network - may have known the true scope of his evening activities, though Thomas himself remained as tight-lipped about any nocturnal work as he was about his daytime conversations with the college's prominent families.

The ceramic ghost's black base represents the rich soil that permanently stained his hands, while the white streaks capture both the lime dust from his garden work and the pale moonlight that often accompanied his most private labours. Thomas carried his secrets as quietly as he carried his distinctive tomahawk, and by the time public hysteria about body snatching reached Cambridge in the 1820s, he had long since retreated into the simple life of tending roses and maintaining the college grounds. Those who remember him speak more of his gentle way with flowers than any darker associations, leaving behind only whispered stories and remarkably well-tended gardens.

Every ghost is hand-made and unique - yours will be similar to the image shown but will vary in intensity and amount of streaking or other markings making it just as beautiful, but different.