One of our oldest American ghost stories
The short story discussion group at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Eugene is reading the story “Peter Rugg, the Missing Man” by William Austin (1778-1841) for discussion on Thursday, June 7th, 2018. 
“The time to which Rugg’s career dates back is that borderland of which Hawthorne was so fond, between the colonial and the modern period; and the old localities, dates, costumes, and even coins are all introduced in a way to remind us of [Hawthorne].” –Thomas Wentworth Higginson, Peter Rugg, the Missing Man, 1910
The story was first published in Buckingham’s New England Galaxy, September 10, 1824.
The illustration is Peter and Jenny Rugg, from “A book of New England legends and folk lore in prose and poetry” by Samuel Adams Drake, 1888.
The scene of the original story was 1820 and 1825. In the story, it is revealed that the missing man actually departed from home in 1770, about the time of the Boston massacre and had continued to travel, trying unsuccessfully to reach his Boston home, until the time period of the story.
Some readers did not realize the tale was invented. They wrote to the magazine inquiring about further news. Many claimed to have seen him. This inspired Austin to write two more Peter Rugg stories. (Brookshire, Sophia. “Summary of William Austin’s Peter Rugg, the Missing Man.” Easy Literature Notes. May 2012.
William Austin (1788-1841): biographical notes
Patrick Brown writes in his historical post, 2010, that Austin was a lawyer and writer. His family had lost their home in Charleston, Massachusetts during the American Revolution. The British had burned them out during the Battle of Bunker Hill. During the War of 1812, he was a chaplain on board the Constitution.
Technique: penumbra
In his introduction to the 1908 reprint of the story, professor Thomas Wentworth Higginson gives examples of how Austin, whom he compares to Nathaniel Hawthorne, exploits the technique of casting a “penumbra” over events. He defines penumbra as “the boundary of shade and light, where the one blends with the other.” The author, in effect, suggests diverse views and different points of view. These alternate viewpoints are sometimes represented by the characters in the story, and sometimes by the authorial voice.
