Roll & Roll Hotel 1353 H Street, NE Washington, D.C.
Not far from the halls of the nation’s power, H Street—lined with handsome commercial buildings from another age—escapes towards Maryland. The Rock & Roll Hotel occupies one of these old commercial building, a building that is evidently still occupied by spirits from its previous incarnation: a funeral home. Some of the spirits may enjoy the loud, hard-driving rock music that has replaced the comforting organ music that is usually played throughout funeral homes, but other spirits apparently are disturbed by it.
According to a Halloween season article in the Washington City Paper, the nightclub’s staff (despite its name, the Rock & Roll Hotel is a live music venue and nightclub) has had numerous odd experiences throughout the building. One employee had his wife wait on him in the lobby while he locked up the building. When he returned, she was standing on the street.
“She’s like, ‘Weird, someone left the radio on.’ And it’s like some old talkie show, and they’re talking about her. And they’re describing her dress, and asking, ‘Who is she? Why is she here?’ So I come down five minutes later, and she’s literally standing in the middle of H street with her arms crossed like, ‘Nope, nope, nope.’”
Other members of the staff have heard the sounds of disembodied footsteps, voices, and have witnessed the occasional spectral figure within the building. Several staff members have been spooked in the building’s restrooms when they’ve heard stall doors slamming while in the restroom while they were alone. Candles that were distinguished by staff before locking up have been found burning the next day, even when they were doused with water.
Sources
Rudig, Stephanie and Justin Weber. “Some believe that the Rock & Roll Hotel nightclub hosts more than just shows.” Washington City Paper. 27 October 2016.
During the first few minutes of the first annual Haunted History Tour in the small town of Wetumpka, Alabama, my tour group was shuffled into a room in the unrestored portion of the town’s CHAMBER OF COMMERCE BUILDING (110 East Bridge Street). The dingy room was in rough shape and a collection of folding chairs was set out for tour participants. I glanced through a doorway into an adjoining room and was greeted by a scarecrow with a mischievous grin painted on its burlap face.
The Wetumpka Chamber of Commerce just before Wetumpka Haunted History Tour, 2016. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
The thought ran through my head, “Someone has put out some tacky Halloween decorations out for this tour. Oh my God, I hope the rest of the tour isn’t like this!” My fears were allayed however when the guide began talking about how this scarecrow moved on its own around the third floor. Passersby on the streets outside have noted the scarecrow peering down on them from one of the third floor windows. When they look again the scarecrow is often looking down from a different window. Employees of the chamber of commerce have also noted the scarecrow’s erratic movement, even once finding it torn apart on the floor of the bathroom. Even more shocking was when the scarecrow reappeared “in pristine condition”—to use our guide’s words—the following day in its usual position overlooking downtown.
The chamber’s scarecrow that moves on its own accord. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
The scarecrow, along with the other spirited compatriots, is overseeing a revival that’s taking place in downtown Wetumpka and throughout the state of Alabama. The state is beginning to awaken from its long, sad economic dream state and confidently stride back towards a fully awakened existence. Utilizing its own history, hominess, natural hospitality, stories, and even its ghosts, Alabama is brushing off the dust of its past and creating a more hopeful future.
Some of you may have noticed my absence during October. Please forgive me, I have been traveling throughout Alabama taking part in investigations and ghost tours. The life of a blogger can be rather dull when you’re only writing about these places rather than experiencing them. Last Halloween I promised myself that I would leave my schedule open this year so I could take advantage of the various investigations and ghost tours that crop up during the Halloween season. With one exception, all my investigations and tours were in Alabama, a state that I have discovered really wants its stories told.
My first jaunt, the first weekend of October, took me to Sylacauga, the Marble City. Located in central Alabama, Sylacauga (pronounced sil-uh-CAW-guh), is about 45 miles south east of Birmingham. The town was built primarily on marble quarrying: carving up the fine marble vein that spans thirty miles under this section of Talladega County. Near the downtown, the COMER MUSEUM (711 North Broadway Avenue) is situated in an Art Deco-styled marble-clad building built in the 1930s as the town’s library. Sculptures and carvings from the local marble grace the entrance of the elegant building that serves as a virtual attic for the area squirrelling away and displaying an array of historic artifacts.
I was in town for an investigation at the museum with S.C.A.R.E. of Alabama, a group founded by authors Kim Johnston and Shane Busby (who wrote Haunted Talladega County together, Johnston is also the author of Haunted Shelby County, Alabama and Haint Blue: The Rockford Haunting). Members of the group include haunted collector and author Kevin Cain whose book, My Haunted Collection, is now a part of my Southern Spirit Library, he’s also written a number of supernatural fiction works; and Kat Hobson who hosts the radio show “Paranormal Experienced with Kat Hobson” on which I appeared a few months ago and will be appearing at the end of this month. The group hosted this investigation as part of a series of public investigations that they host as fundraisers for the places investigated.
The fascinating investigation concentrated on a number of objects throughout the building that may have spirit attachments. See my rundown of the investigation here, “The Haunted Collection in the Marble City—Alabama.”
Entrance to De Soto Caverns, 2016. Photo by Lewis O. Powell IV, all rights reserved.
On the route I decided to stop outside of Childersburg to check out DeSOTO CAVERNS & FAMILY FUN PARK (5181 Desoto Caverns Parkway). As I waited for the cave tour I watched a young father carry his child off the porch of the gift shop heading towards the family’s car. In his arms the child squirmed and cried in the depths of a temper tantrum. As they passed the statue of Hernando de Soto the father said, “Hey look, it’s Hernando de Soto!” The child only screamed louder. Goodness knows that de Soto inspired similar reactions from the natives when he marched through this area in 1540.
Interior of the caverns with a replica of a native burial in place. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
Scholars suggest that Spanish explorer and conquistador Hernando de Soto may have stopped in the area as he hacked his way through the forests and natives of the region. While there is no proof that he visited the cave, there is evidence that it was known to the local natives. Several native burials were located in the main room of the cave as well as the remains of a white trader who was killed after he carved his name in the cave which was considered sacred to the natives. Being a cave fan, I was happy when Johnston and Busby included the cave in their book on haunted Talladega County.
While I have had some creepy experiences in caves (see my experiences at Lost Sea Cave in Sweetwater, TN), I didn’t have anything odd happen. Johnston and Busby note that a young daughter of the cave’s owners had experiences with Native American spirits during her childhood on the property. Worried that these spirits may have been upset by the family’s use of the cave as a tourist attraction, the owners brought in members of the native tribes that once owned the land to cleanse the property and rebury the bones of their ancestors that had originally lain quietly in the cave. Apparently, the spirits have been appeased, though I do wonder if there is any residual energy that may cause some activity on occasion.
Sylacauga itself seems to be waking up however: a number of buildings in its downtown were occupied and open for business including what appeared to be several new restaurants. For dinner I considered BUTTERMILK HILL RESTAURANT(300 East 3rd Street) which occupies an early 20th century house just outside of downtown. Listed in Johnston and Busby’s book, the restaurant shares the house with an assortment of spirits and a dark history that includes a murder within the past decade. While the menu looks delectable, it was a bit pricey for my current budget, though I did take some pictures.
Buttermilk Hill Restaurant, 2016. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
My second sojourn to Alabama took place over the penultimate weekend of October. Due to work on Friday, the trip turned out to be rather rushed and I didn’t have much time to really enjoy it the trip up. S.C.A.R.E. of Alabama sponsored an investigation of JEMISON-CARNEGIE HERITAGE HALL MUSEUM (200 South Street East) and the adjoining ARMSTRONG-OSBORNE PUBLIC LIBRARY (202 South Street East) in Talladega. Despite NASCAR races taking place the same weekend at the nearby (and cursed, supposedly) Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, the leafy streets of Talladega were quiet and still. South Street boasts some fine institutions and a handful of ghosts. On this peaceful night, antebellum MANNING HALL (205 South Street East), the huge, main edifice of the Alabama Institute for the Blind and Deaf, across the street from Heritage Hall was lit up like a beacon. Heritage Hall’s smaller, more feminine, Beaux-Arts façade was lit up as if in graceful answer to Manning Hall’s heavy, masculine Greek Revival colonnade. According to Johnston and Busby, Manning Hall does have some spirits of its own, quite possibly including the shade of the Institute’s founder, Dr. Joseph Johnson.
Manning Hall at the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
The Jemison-Carnegie Public Library was the dream of Louisa Jemison, a member of the prominent Jemison family who now have a handful of haunted places associated with them. Designed by noted Alabama architect Frank Lockwood, the library was built with a donation of land from Louisa Jemison and the Carnegie Foundation. When the library opened in 1908 local lore tells of a little 8-year-old girl sitting on the top step the first day and her being the first person to check out a book. The little girl, Gentry Parsons, would eventually pen her own books and donated many books to this library.
The facade of Heritage Hall on the night of the investigation. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
Good architecture has power. In creating beautiful spaces, the architect can physically manipulate those entering the space; the eyes and chin are raised and the dignity of the space encourages those entering to straighten their back out of respect. With better posture, those entering have their senses heightened and the feeling of awe can mellow into a sense of inspiration, lightness, refinement, and freedom. Like the great cathedrals of Europe, the architecture of Heritage Hall does exactly that. The high ceilings, airiness, and grace raises the senses of those walking up the front staircase and entering the front door. The main bay of the building is a large open space with a dramatic staircase directly ahead leading down to the main librarian’s desk.
Interior of Heritage Hall just inside the front door. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.The interior of Heritage Hall looking down the stairs just inside the front door towards the old librarian’s desk. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
After entering for the investigation I was greeted by the museum’s director and given an excellent tour of the building. The open space inside with the walls lined with art from local artists gives the place a sense of veneration and the art displays the tremendous talent throughout the region. I was also introduced to some of the paranormal activity that has been experienced here. With this building being a community center for such a long period of time, the energy that has passed and continues to pass through it has likely left a psychic imprint. That can be one explanation for the disembodied footsteps and doors opening and closing on their own accord. As a library, this building has also inspired passion for many people, people who return to this beloved spot in spirit. Some of the spirits believed to still oversee business here are Miss Willie, a former librarian; Tom Woodson, a long-time director of the museum who died a few years ago; and Louisa Jemison who may return to check on her beloved library.
Main entrance of Armstrong-Osborne Public Library, 2016. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
Spooning Heritage Hall like a protective older sibling is the Armstrong-Osborne Public Library which opened in 1979. Sadly, the architects of the newer building did not take their cues from Lockwood’s design. The building is minimalist and angular with no ornamentation; utilitarian modernist at its worst. The interior is very typical late 20th century library design which emphasizes function over design. While the architecture is nothing to write home about, the institution itself seems to be very well stocked and the librarians and staff present were delightful and very interested in the investigation.
Hall of Heroes entrance. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
The library itself has experienced a modicum of strange activity particularly around the genealogy room and its adjacent hallway which are actually part of a 2006 addition to the building. That hallway is now the Hall of Heroes, honoring the many men and women of Talladega County who have served in the armed forces. The hall is lined with photographs ranging from World War I to the most recent conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. In this hallway the spirit of a woman has been seen while the sounds of a party sometimes emanate from the genealogy room itself when it’s empty. The investigation of the library and Heritage Hall didn’t really uncover much evidence-wise. After sitting with Ghost Boxes in the main reading room of the library we adjourned to the genealogy room and the Hall of Heroes. Fitted out with computers, microfilm readers, and shelves of books old and new, the genealogy room isn’t particularly creepy, even in the dark. We did an EVP session and at one point seemingly heard a “no,” though I was one of the few people to hear it. It may have also been gastric noises from one of the participants. After relocating to Heritage Hall we didn’t pick up much activity, though we had some K2 spikes when some of men began lounging on Miss Willie’s library desk.
The Hall of Heroes is lined with the photos of men and women who served in the armed forces from Talladega County. Photo by Lewis O. Powell, IV, all rights reserved.
Sources
Johnston, Kim and Shane Busby. Haunted Talladega County. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2015.
“History.”Talladega Armstrong-Osborne Public Library. Accessed 12 November 2016.
“Our History.” Jemison-Carnegie Heritage Hall Museum. Accessed 12 November 2016.
Wetumpka Area Chamber of Commerce. Wetumpka Haunted Heritage Tour. 28 October 2016.
Stretching from Key West, the southernmost point in the country to the Canadian border at the St. John River in Fort Kent, Maine, US-1 connects the East Coast. In the South it links together important cities from Miami to Jacksonville, Florida; Augusta, Georgia; Columbia, South Carolina; Raleigh, North Carolina; Richmond and Arlington, Virginia; Washington, D. C.; to Baltimore, Maryland before entering into Yankee territory. It also links historic and haunted cities like St. Augustine, Florida; Aiken and Camden, South Carolina; Petersburg, Fredericksburg, and Alexandria, Virginia before it solemnly passes The Pentagon, with Arlington National Cemetery beyond it, before crossing the Potomac into Washington.
US-1 in Maryland, 2004 by Doug Kerr. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
US-1 may be considered among the most haunted roads in the country. Not only does it directly pass a number of haunted places, but many more can be found within a short drive of this legendary road. This tour samples just a few of the legendary spots found alongside or near this legendary road.
Pig Woman Legend Cecil County
As US-1 dips south out of Pennsylvania into the countryside of Maryland, it enters Cecil County, the domain of the Pig Woman. According to local folklorist, Ed Okonowicz, the Pig Woman stalks the northern counties of the state as well as the marshes of the Eastern Shore, though the primary setting is usually in Cecil County. Okonowicz’s version of the tale begins near the town of North East where a farmhouse caught fire in the 19th century. The lady of the house was horribly burned in the fire and witnesses watched her flee into the nearby woods. She usually confronts drivers near a certain old bridge and causes cars to stall. The drivers see the specter of the Pig Woman who scratches and beats on the car. Terrified drivers who flee their vehicles are never seen again, though those who stay in their cars are left with horrible memories and odd scratches as well as dents on their vehicles.
This tale has been told around Cecil County for decades with hotspots for Pig Woman encounters being reported around North East, Elkton, and, in the 1960s, near Rising Sun, through which US-1 passes. Matt Lake, author of Weird Maryland, associates this tale with tales from Europe that tell of a woman with a pig-like face, particularly stories that ran rampant in early 19th century London. Despite deep European roots, the Pig Woman Legend remains fairly unique among Southern ghostlore.
Sources
Lake, Matt. Weird Maryland. NYC: Sterling Publishing, 2005.
Okonowicz, Ed. The Big Book of Maryland Ghost Stories. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole, 2010.
Wormuth, Laura. “Decoding the Pig Lady of Elkton legend.” 31 October 2013.
Susquehanna River At the Conowingo Dam Between Cecil and Harford Counties
The Conowingo Dam, built between 1926 and 1928, carries US-1 over the Susquehanna River. Only five miles from the Pennsylvania border, this area was rife with activity when the Underground Railroad was in operation before the Civil War. Slaves seeking freedom in Pennsylvania would ply the river at night looking for red lanterns on the riverbanks that marked the safe houses. Slave catchers also used red lanterns to capture contraband slaves only a scant few miles from freedom in order to return them to their owners. Flimsy rafts were often employed here that led to the drowning deaths of some.
1930s era postcard of the Conowingo Dam. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
Along the river, the red lights are supposed to bob and dance on the riverbanks even today while the moans of slaves and even spectral bodies floating in the water are encountered by hikers, campers, and fishermen in the area.
Ricksecker, Mike. Ghosts of Maryland. Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2010.
Peddler’s Run Flowing parallel to Glen Cove Road and MD-440 Near Dublin
On the western side of the river, one of the tributaries offering up its waters to the Susquehanna is named for a ghost; it’s called Peddler’s Run. As the legend states, in 1763 a poor peddler on the Dublin-Stafford Road (now MD-440) was found decapitated near John Bryarley’s Mill on Rocky Run. Locals buried the body near the creek where it was discovered. Not long after the peddler’s burial, his specter was seen walking along the creek without his head. In 1843 a skull was found by another local farmer. Presuming it to be that of the now legendary peddler, the skull was buried with the traveler’s remains. The peddler’s spirit was not seen again, though his name still graces the creek.
Sources
Dublin, Maryland. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Accessed 17 September 2016.
Hauck, Dennis William. Haunted Places: The National Directory. NYC: Penguin Press, 1995.
Varhola, Michael J. and Michael H. Varhola. Ghosthunting Maryland. Cincinnati, OH: Clerisy Press, 2009.
Tudor Hall 17 Tudor Lane Bel Air
As it hurries towards Baltimore, US-1 passes through the county seat of Harford County, Bel Air. Northeast of downtown is Tudor Hall, the former home of the famous and infamous Booth family. Junius Brutus Booth, one of the greatest American Shakespearian actors of the first half of the 19th century, built this Gothic-style home for his family. In this fine home, Booth’s family were immersed in the family occupation of acting. The halls rang with snippets of Sheridan and Etheredge while family members are supposed to have performed the balcony scene from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet using the balcony on the side of the house. Some of the elder Booth’s children would achieve their own celebrity including his sons Edwin, Junius Brutus Jr., and his daughter, Asia. Booth’s son, John Wilkes, who inherited his father’s fiery personality, would achieve notoriety after he assassinated President Lincoln after the end of the Civil War heaping infamy of Shakespearean proportions on the family name.
As word of Lincoln’s assassination spread, troops began to seek out members of the Booth family. Troops searched Tudor Hall which was still owned by the Booths but being rented to another family. The house passed out of family hands a few years later and has been owned by a host of individuals. Now owned by Harford County, the house is home to the Center for the Arts and is open a few times a month for tours.
Tudor Hall, 1865. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
The Booth’s legacy has extended from the theatrical realm into the spiritual. The spirits of several Booth family members have been reported throughout the South including John Wilkes Booth’s spirit which may still stalk Ford’s Theatre in Washington and Dr. Mudd’s farm in Waldorf, Maryland, where he was treated for a broken leg after his dastardly deed at the theatre. Legend holds (wrongly so) that Edwin’s dramatic spirit still appears on the stage of Columbus, Georgia’s Springer Opera House where he appeared in the early 1870s as well as in the halls of the Players’ Club in New York City where he died. Junius Brutus Booth’s fiery spirit may still roam the halls of Charleston, South Carolina’s Dock Street Theatre, formerly the Planter Hotel, where he stayed in the 1850s. Appropriately the building was transformed into a theatre in the 1930s.
Of course, the family’s seat in Bel Air may also be haunted by members of the spirited family. One couple who owned the house told the Washington Post in 1980 that they once were greeted by small brown and white pony. The curious creature looked into the couple’s car and then peeked into the house through a rear window. Moments later the creature vanished. The couple believed the animal was the spirit of Junius Booth’s favorite pony, Peacock. The same couple had a dinner party interrupted by spectral antics when a guest asked for seconds. The hosts and their guests were astonished as the top of a cake lifted up and landed at the place of that guest. People who have lived and worked in the house continue to tell stories of unexplained footsteps, voices, and things moving on their own accord with this storied house.
Sources
Allen, Bob. “In Maryland, a couple preserves the estate of the ill-starred Booth family.” The Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA). 21 December 1986.
Meyer, Eugene L. “House Booth built is slightly spooky.” Washington Post. 10 January 1980.
Perry Hall Mansion 3930 Perry Hall Road Perry Hall
It is arguable that the namesake of this Baltimore suburb is actually haunted. This grand colonial mansion sat derelict for many years and acquired a reputation of being haunted. The legend that has persisted about this house states that builder of this home and his wife both died on Halloween night in the late 18th century and that in the time since, some 50 other people have died here under mysterious circumstances some of whom still haunt the house. Though, according to the mansion’s website, none of this is true.
Baltimore businessman Harry Dorsey Gough acquired this vast estate in the 1770s and constructed this mansion which he named for his family’s ancestral home in Britain. Gough lived the life of a colonial playboy for a while after Perry Hall was constructed but after a visit to a Methodist meeting in Baltimore, he converted to the new Christian denomination. After distinguishing himself as a planter, businessman and politician, Gough passed away here in May of 1808 (not Halloween as the legend states). The estate remained in the family until 1852 when it began its long journey in the hands of others. Baltimore County acquired the derelict house recently and will be used as a museum and events facility.
In a 2011 article for the Perry Hall Patch Jeffrey Smith, then president of the Friends of Perry Hall Mansion debunked some of the legends around Perry Hall. Using the version of the legend in Matt Lake’s 2006 book, Weird Maryland, Smith breaks down the points of the legend. While there have likely been deaths in the house, the 50 deaths under mysterious circumstances that the legend purports are absurd. Smith notes that the house is hooked up to electricity and lights seen inside may have simply been left on by a previous visitor. Where the legend states that visitors have been unable to capture video of the house is also preposterous. While this house has reasons to be haunted on account of its history, there are no stories to support that assertion.
Sources
Coffin, Nelson. “Perry Hall Mansion shuttered while updates considered.” Baltimore Sun. 1 March 2016.
Lake, Matt. Weird Maryland. NYC: Sterling Publishing, 2004.
Smith, Jeffery. “Perry Hall’s most renowned and mistaken ghost story.” 31 October 2011.
Green Mount Cemetery 1501 Greenmount Avenue Baltimore
As US-1 bypasses downtown Baltimore it forms a northern border for this venerated cemetery. After visiting Boston’s Mount Auburn Cemetery, the first “garden cemetery” in the country, Samuel Walker, a Baltimore merchant, began to draw up plans for a similar cemetery to occupy a former estate called Green Mount. Hiring Benjamin Latrobe, architect for the U.S. Capitol Building, to design this park-like cemetery which opened in 1838. In the decades since, the cemetery has become the resting place for famed statesmen, artists, writers, and military figures, as well as the infamous including John Wilkes Booth who is buried with his family.
Gates of Green Mount Cemetery, 2010, by Pubdog. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
While numerous articles state that Green Mount is haunted, none of them connect specific stories with this august resting place. However, the cemetery has one very interesting connection to the paranormal, the grave of Elijah Bond, the creator of the Ouija Board. It was not until recently that Bond’s grave was marked, appropriately with a stone engraved with his Ouija board design.
Sources
“Baltimore headstones, horrors for a hair-raising, haunted Halloween.” The Towerlight (Towson University). 27 October 2013.
“History.” Green Mount Cemetery. Accessed 23 September 2016.
Hilton Mansion Campus of the Community College of Baltimore County Catonsville
Hilton 2009, by Pubdog. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
As US-1 leaves Baltimore it swings by the suburb of Catonsville. According to a 2004 lecture given on the haunts of Catonsville, community college faculty held contests to select a member to attempt to spend the night in this haunted mansion. Some encountered the sword-wielding Confederate soldier who is supposed to guard the home’s main staircase. Author Tom Ogden notes that the apparition of a woman wearing a nightgown and holding a candle has also been encountered here. The house dates to the early 19th century, though the interior was completely replaced in the early 20th century. The home now serves as the college’s Center for Global Education.
Sources
Hagner-Salava, Melodie. “’Spirited’ talk evokes ghosts of Catonsville’s past.” Catonsville Times. 4 March 2004.
Ogden, Tom. Haunted Colleges and Universities: Creepy Campuses Scary Scholars and Deadly Dorms. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press, 2014.
Historic Savage Mill 8600 Foundry Street Savage
Located between Baltimore and Laurel, Savage, Maryland is a quiet, unincorporated community on the banks of the Little Patuxent River. Downtown Savage lies between busy I-95 and slightly less busy US-1. The community was created as a mill town providing employees for the Savage Manufacturing Company’s textile mill which was constructed in the 1820s. The mill was in operation for more than a hundred years before it closed just after World War II. The old mill complex was used for the manufacture of Christmas ornaments for a few years before it was purchased for use as a warehouse. In 1985, the mill was reopened as a venue for boutiques, restaurants, and antiques dealers.
Aerial view of Savage Mill and the Little Patuxent River, 1970, by William E. Barrett for the Historic American Buildings Survey. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
The mill has since become one of the driving forces for tourism to the area drawing more than a million people in 2010, but not all those people are attracted by shopping and attractions at the mill, some are brought because of the ghosts. The owners of the mill started ghost tours in the mid-2000s to capitalize on the ghost stories surrounding the mill complex.
Throughout the mill complex, spirits of former millworkers still linger. Merchants and patrons of the mill have heard their names called, been tripped by the puckish little girl’s spirit on the steps of the New Weave Building, seen faces at the windows, or perhaps encountered the spirit of Rebecca King who fell down the steps in the mill’s tower.
Sources
Alexander, Sandy. “Using the supernatural to sell Howard County.” Baltimore Sun. 4 October 2004.
“Ghostly history.” Washington Times. 23 October 2004.
Hoo, Winyan Soo. “At Maryland’s Savage Mill, history and commerce converge.” Washington Post. 28 April 2016.
St. John’s Episcopal Church 11040 Baltimore Avenue Beltsville
Like a moralizing parent looking over wild children, St. John’s Episcopal Church presides over the sprawl of US-1 (known as Baltimore Avenue here) as it passes through Beltsville. During the Civil War this commanding site featured a Federal artillery battery. The wife of a rector here in the 1970s recorded a number of experiences with spirits both in the church and in the churchyard. One evening while the wife and her children picked flowers in the churchyard they were startled to hear the sounds of a service coming from the church. After intently listening, the family entered the sanctuary to find it darkened and empty.
Sources
Carter, Dennis. “Hunting for haunts.” The Gazette. 25 October 2007.
Tawes Fine Arts Building Campus of the University of Maryland College Park
Moving south out of Beltsville, US-1 passes through College Park and the University of Maryland Campus. Though no longer home to the Department of Theatre, the Tawes Fine Arts Building retains its theatre and recital hall. The current home to the university’s English department, the building may still also retain its resident spook. Not long after the building’s opening in 1965, students began noticing the sound of footsteps in the empty theatre and would occasionally have mischievous jokes played on them, seemingly from beyond.
With quite a population of resident ghosts on campus, the university archivists have started documenting the stories. According to one of the archivists quoted in Michael J. and Michael H. Varhola’s Ghosthunting Maryland, Mortimer, Tawes’ ghost, may actually be a dog rather than a human spirit. According to campus lore, Mortimer was brought into the theatre during its construction and would frolic on the stage. The theatre’s seats had yet to be completely installed and the house was filled with metal frames the seats would be attached to. The frolicsome canine jumped from the stage into the house and impaled himself on one of the frames. Supposedly, he was buried in the building’s basement.
Sources
Okonowicz, Ed. The Big Book of Maryland Ghost Stories. Mechanicsburg, PA, Stackpole, 2010.
Tawes Theatre. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Accessed 5 April 2013.
Varhola, Michael J. and Michael H. Ghosthunting Maryland. Cincinnati, OH: Clerisy Press, 2009.
Bladensburg Dueling Ground Bladensburg Road and 38th Street Colmar Manor
When Washington outlawed dueling within the limits of the district, the hotheaded politicians and gentlemen of the district needed a place to “defend their honor.” They chose a little spot of land just outside the district in what is now Colmar Manor, Maryland. The activities at the dueling ground provided the name for the nearby waterway, Dueling Creek or Blood Run, now blandly called Eastern Branch. When the city of Colmar Manor was established in 1927, the city used dueling imagery on its town crest including a blood red background, a pair of dueling pistols and crossed swords.
Senators, legislators and military heroes are among the hundred or so men who dueled at this place in some fifty duels that are known and countless others that took place at this spot. Commodore Stephen Decatur was killed here in a duel with Commodore James Barron in 1820 and Representative John Cilley of Maine, who knew little of firearms, died here after combat in 1838 with Representative William Graves of Kentucky. The spirit of Stephen Decatur has been seen here along with other dark, shadowlike spirits that still stalk the old dueling grounds. The bloody grounds are now a park that stands silently amid the roaring sprawl of suburbia.
Sources
Hauck, Dennis William. Haunted Places: The National Directory. NYC: Penguin, 2002.
Taylor, Troy. “The Bladensburg Dueling Grounds, Bladensburg, Maryland.” Ghosts of the Prairie. 1998.
Varhola, Michael J. and Michael H. Varhola. Ghosthunting Maryland. Cincinnati, OH: Clerisy Press, 2009.
On a cold day in January of 1830, a small Methodist school was carved out of the North Alabama wilderness and named LaGrange College. The college was built in the community of LaGrange, near what is now Leighton in Colbert County. With 70 male students and 3 professors, the college was fairly successful. Twenty-five years after opening, the Methodist conference decided to move the school to Florence, renaming the school Florence Wesleyan University. A large, Gothic structure, named Wesleyan Hall, was constructed for the school and it was here that Union General Sherman stayed as he and his forces passed through the city during the Civil War.
Harrison Plaza and Bibb Graves Hall, the school’s administration building. Bibb Graves Hall is said to be haunted. Photo 2007 by Burkeanwhig, courtesy of Wikipedia.
The school struggled during and following the war. In 1870, the Methodist conference offered the school to the state of Alabama. After the state’s acquisition, the college became a teachers’ college and has operated successfully under a series of different names until it took on the current name in 1974. Operating on a campus designed by the sons of landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead, and within a mix of historic and modern structures, the university has over 7,000 students, over 350 faculty members, and a number of spirits.
Off Campus Bookstore 472 North Court Street
Occupying a corner of the intersection of North Court Street and East Irvine Avenue, the Off Campus Bookstore is a part of what could very well be named the most haunted intersection in Florence. Just next door to the bookstore is the Edward Asbury O’Neal House, the haunted home to two state governors. Across North Court is historic and haunted Coby Hall, then across East Irvine is the modern and haunted hulk of Norton Auditorium with antebellum Rogers Hall (also known as Courtview) next door. While Rogers Hall is purported to be haunted, there is little documentation.
In the presence of these grand buildings, the Off Campus Bookstore, located in an early 20th century bungalow, may seem out of place, but its story is perhaps the saddest and most terrifying. The story began with the young daughter of the family living here being bitten by her dog. The dog was foaming at the mouth, and when the little girl extended her hand, it bit her, infecting her with rabies. With no treatment options at that time, the child died painfully in one of the upstairs bedrooms.
Since the girl’s death, she has continually been seen both in and around the house, sometimes in the presence of her beloved pet. Debra Johnston recounts an evening once, during the time that this house served as the Kappa Sigma fraternity house, when some brothers in conversation were interrupted by the apparition of a small girl asking, “Have you seen my dog?” In the 1980s, while the house was being renovated for use as a bookstore, a gentleman in the house witnessed a floating pink mist accompanied by the sound of a child walking barefoot.
Store employees still see the little girl around the store and note that candy often turns up missing when the store is opened in the mornings. Passersby still see the little girl looking from the windows of the bookstore at night and sometimes report hearing a child inquiring about her dog.
Directly across the street from the bookstore stands graceful COBY HALL which served as a private residence until the early 1990s when a school benefactor bought the house and donated it to the university in memory of his wife. Originally named Courtland Mansion, the home was constructed in the 1830s, and it has had an interesting history. During the Civil War, the house was occupied by troops of both sides including Confederate General John Bell Hood. The home is now an events space for the university.
Coby Hall, 2006 by Burkeanwhig, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Many staff members and students working in the house have experienced paranormal activity. The apparition of a woman wearing a navy skirt and white blouse has been seen on the first floor of the house, though her identity hasn’t been established. Jessica Penot reports that the spirit of Margaret Patton Simpson, wife of John Simpson who built the home, is still in residence here and dislikes disorder and chaos within her former home.
Across East Irvine from Coby Hall sits modern NORTON AUDITORIUM. During construction of this auditorium in the 1960s, tradition holds that a worker was killed in a fall and subsequently remains in the building in spirit. Interestingly, this common feature in ghostlore can also be related to two other Southern college theatres: Price Theatre, LaGrange College, LaGrange, Georgia and Van Meter Hall, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky.
While the exact identity of the spirit remains unknown, the spirit has been named “George” by those working in the auditorium. George has become notorious for causing odd sounds throughout the building and messing with the lights. Two young men spending the night in the building actually witnessed all the lights in the building turning on at once, though the main electrical breaker was switched off. Members of the staff of the campus newspaper, The Flor-Ala, were able to communicate with George via a Ouija board in 2011 (not something I can recommend for amateurs).
Behind the auditorium Oakview Circle branches off of North Pine Street. Along this street of gracious old Southern homes is the PHI GAMMA DELTA HOUSE (523 Oakview Circle) where the brothers of the Phi Upsilon Chapter reside along with a female ghost named Ella. According to legend, Ella fell down the stairs here and died. Her screams are sometimes heard here and the spirit acts out when brothers bring their girlfriends into the house.
Phi Gamma Delta House, 2007 by Burkeanwhig, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Continuing down North Pine Street, the long, International Style LaGRANGE HALL stretches off to the right just after the bridge. This 1960s era residence hall has been the scene of some paranormal activity. A recent article from The Flor-Ala recounts the experiences of a student in this residence hall during the 2014-2015 school year. She reported a feeling of being watched in the bathroom and seeing stall doors open on their own.
Towards the east side of campus along North Wood Avenue is the oldest building on campus, WESLEYAN HALL, where the pathetic form of a young boy still wet from his fatal swim has been observed. At times, the young boy’s wet footprints have been seen on the floor, but questions still linger as to the youngster and how he downed. Tradition holds that the boy is Jeremiah, a young Union drummer boy, and the son of one of General Sherman’s officers. Sherman is traditionally thought to have occupied the building during the Civil War.
In some versions of the legend, young Jeremiah was kidnapped by locals and used as a pawn to prevent Sherman from burning the town. After Sherman threatened to do that very thing if the boy was not returned, the boy was returned unharmed. In other stories, the boy simply went for a swim in a nearby creek and drowned.
Wesleyan Hall, 2007 by Burkeanwhig, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Wesleyan Hall is considered a magnificent example of Gothic Revival architecture and was constructed in 1855. During the Civil War, troops of both sides occupied the building. An investigation conducted by the staff of the Flor-Ala, the campus newspaper, in a number of haunted buildings on campus in 2011 turned up doors opening and closing by themselves here, and a computer turning itself on and off.
A product of President Franklin Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration, WILLINGHAM HALL was constructed as a men’s dormitory in 1939. It has seen a variety of uses in the years since and currently houses offices for history, English and political science faculty. It was an English instructor who had a fearful experience here late one night a few years ago. He had returned to his office to retrieve a book when he heard a loud pounding that seemed to come from the basement. Looking in the basement, the instructor saw nothing and returned to his office. The pounding started up again accompanied by male voices. At that point the instructor calmly fled the building.
Willingham Hall, 2007 by Burkeanwhig, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Willingham Hall sits on what was the site of the Locust Dell Academy which was operated by Nicholas Hentz. Local historian and ghost author Debra Glass noted that Hentz was known to play music very loudly into the night. Perhaps he is still responsible for the spectral racket that is heard here.
Towards the center of campus sits the massive GUILLOT UNIVERSITY CENTER. Built in 1986, this structure replaced O’Neal Hall which had originally stood on this site since 1913. The resident spirit of O’Neal Hall was Priscilla, who legend holds committed suicide by hanging herself in an elevator shaft. The reasons behind her pain have been lost to history, though her form was seen a number of times within the old building. In 1984 a student locking up the building after a fraternity meeting was drawn by the sounds of a woman sobbing. Venturing upstairs, the young man encountered the diaphanous form of a young woman weeping. He fled.
Guillot University Center, 2007 by Burkeanwhig, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Author and local ghost expert Debra Johnston has recounted that while giving tours in front of the Guillot Center after hours the elevator doors were seen to open and close despite no one being inside the building. The front door of the building then opened by itself, though the building was locked for the night. She ventured that perhaps Priscilla had come out to hear her own ghost story.
Sources
Delinski, Bernie. “UNA possesses lion’s share of ghost stories.” Times-Daily. 31 October 2015.
“Haunting at UNA.” The Flor-Ala. 27 October 2011.
Honeycutt, Lauren. “Ghost encounters on campus.” The Flor-Ala. 22 July 2016.
Johnston, Debra. Skeletons in the Closet: True Ghost Stories of the Shoals Area. Debra Johnston, 2002.
Johnston, Debra. Skeletons in the Closet: More True Ghost Stories of the Shoals Area. Debra Johnston, 2003.
This article is part of my series, Street Guide to the Phantoms of the French Quarter, which looks at the haunted places of this neighborhood in a street by street basis. Please see the series main page for an introduction to the French Quarter and links to other streets.
Royal Street
Hotel Monteleone
214 Royal Street
This imposing hotel is the tallest building in the French Quarter and, at 600 rooms, among the largest. This building is a physical, literary, and paranormal landmark within the Quarter. When a lowly Sicilian cobbler, Antonio Monteleone, purchased a hotel in 1886, he probably did not imagine that it would be the beginning of a classic American rags-to-riches story. His hard work paid off and he acquired neighboring buildings and expanded his hotel. Since it opened its doors the hotel has attracted celebrities including numerous well-known writers who have mentioned the hotel in their works.
Hotel Monteleone, 2009 by Bart Everson, courtesy of Wikipedia.
One of the more well-known features of the Monteleone is the Carousel Bar featuring an actual carousel that was assembled in the bar in 1949 and rotates slowly as patrons enjoy craft cocktails. While patrons revolve at the bar, spirits revolve around patrons and staff throughout the hotel. Spirits here range from a trusty engineer to a little boy who supposedly died of a fever while his parents were out. Others include the spirits of a few people who committed suicide by jumping from the roof. The International Society of Paranormal Research investigated the hotel in 2003 and concluded that there are 12 individual entities patrolling the halls and corridors of this hotel.
Sources
Caskey, James. The Haunted History of New Orleans: Ghosts of the French Quarter. Savannah, GA: Manta Ray Books, 2013.
“History.” Hotel Monteleone. Accessed 7 June 2016.
Hudson, Shaney. “The Big Easy’s his haunt.” The Age (Melbourne, Australia). 27 February 2012.
Mroch, Courtney. “Why Hotel Monteleone’s Haunted 14th Floor Isn’t What it Seems.” Haunt Jaunts. 25 March 2011.
Cafe Beignet
334 Royal Street
The spirit of a Native American woman is occasionally seen strolling through this restaurant that occupies an old carriage house. Most likely she remains here from the time prior to the city’s existence. She is most often seen towards closing time.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Muro, Maria. “Haunted Eats.” New Orleans Living Magazine. 9 October 2012.
Louisiana Supreme Court Building 400 Royal Street
This monstrous white marble-clad building caused much controversy when the site was cleared starting in 1903. This block was originally a collection of 19th century buildings bisected by Exchange Alley which was lined with offices for architects, engineers, politicians and lawyers. The destruction that took place here contributed to the rise of preservation policies throughout the city. Upon completion of this building in 1910, the Louisiana Supreme Court, state Attorney General, and other courts moved in, though by 1934, the building was deemed inadequate. After years of deferred maintenance, the Supreme Court moved out in 1958. The building saw renovations starting in the 1990s and reopened in 2004 with the state Supreme Court returning to the building.
Rumors of the building being haunted began to arise during the building’s renovations. Author and researcher Victor C. Klein interviewed a construction supervisor and several workers and contractors who told similar tales of tools and equipment disappearing in the building. A number of them also encountered “a well dressed, middle age, white gentleman” whom they found looking out a window in the upper stories of the building. When confronted, the odd gentleman would disappear.
Louisiana Supreme Court Building, 2015 by MusikAnimal, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Klein continues by noting that guests of the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel on nearby St. Louis Street would report this man to the front desk staring intensely into their rooms. According to Klein, this was so frequent that the front desk had a scripted response to these calls, though they didn’t inform the guests that this gentleman is probably a ghost.
Jeff Dwyer remarks on several other spirits within the building including a pair of shooting victims who were supposedly gunned down in a courtroom during a Mafia trial in the 1930s and a panhandler who is sometimes seen just outside the building on Royal Street.
One of the more well-known and respected restaurants in the city, Brennan’s has made its home in this historic building since it opened in 1946. This 1795 structure once housed the Bank of Louisiana. Later on in the 19th century, Paul Morphy, one of the most famous chess players in the world lived and died here. He may be the apparition that is sometimes seen in the dining room.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Taylor, Troy. Haunted New Orleans. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2010.
Brennan’s, 2015 by Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Court of the Two Sisters
613 Royal Street
One of the more romantic of New Orleans’ great restaurants, the Court of the Two Sisters possesses a number of legends including one about the gates through which patrons pass. The wrought iron gates are supposed to have been made in Spain where they were blessed by Queen Isabella with a charm that all those who touch them as they pass will be charmed. The restaurant occupies an 1832 building that housed a shop owned by two sisters, Bertha and Emma Camours. Apparently inseparable, the sisters operated a notions shop in this building for many years and, not being able to live without the other, died in 1944 two months apart.
The courtyard of this grand restaurant has a wishing well known as the “Devil’s Wishing Well” as it may have witnessed and been charmed by rites practiced here by Marie Laveau, the city’s great 19th century Queen of Voodoo. Until it was toppled by Hurricane Betsy in 1965, a willow tree grew here where pirate Jean Lafitte may have dueled with and killed three men. Those three men may be among the specters flitting throughout this courtyard. Enjoy one of the famous Jazz Brunches served here daily and be sure to pay homage to the sisters who may still be holding court.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
“Our History.” Court of the Two Sisters. Accessed 8 June 2016.
LaBranch Building
700 Royal Street
The delicate lacy ironwork of this large home hides one of crueler ghost stories in this city. In the early history of the city a system of plaçage was practiced by many of the wealthy white planters. This system, found in Spanish and French colonies, allowed these wealthy men to take on mistresses, often free women of color, whom they would support. Certainly such arrangements caused conflicts within the legal marriages of these men. Such a conflict is at the heart of the story here.
Upon the death Jean Baptiste LaBranche, who owned this home at one time, his wife, Marie, was able to find out the name of his mistress. She sent an invitation to the young woman inviting her to tea. When the unsuspecting mistress arrived, instead of exchanging pleasantries over tea, Marie LaBranche had the woman bound and chained to a wall in the attic where she was left to die a slow death from starvation. While this is a marvelously gory legend, it is clouded with a good deal of doubt. Occupants of this building have reported paranormal activity, however. Cold spots and feelings of panic have overtaken some working on the third floor, where the poor mistress supposedly met her untimely death.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Taylor, Troy. Haunted New Orleans. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2010.
St. Anthony’s Garden
Behind St. Louis Cathedral across from Orleans Street
This meditative garden has existed here behind the cathedral since the establishment of the church. Located between two haunted alleys: Pere Antoine’s and Pirate’s Alleys, the garden is named in memory of Pere Antoine or Antonio de Sedella, whose spirit may haunt the alley named for him as well as St. Louis Cathedral. According to Jeff Dwyer, this garden was a popular place for duels in the mid-18th century. Some sensitives have detected wafts of smoke from those events.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
734 Royal Street
Just like the story of the LaBranche Building, the story from this classic New Orleans town house involves a mistress, in this case she was an octoroon (she was 1/8th black) and her name was Julie. She was kept by a wealthy young man who was officially unattached in a well-furnished apartment here. Despite her pleas to her lover to marry her, he could not do so without losing his social standing and perhaps his fortune with it. Carelessly, in order to appease her frequent requests for marriage, the young man said he would marry Julie if she spent the coldest night in December nude on the roof. On the coldest night in December she undressed and crawled onto the roof. Her lover discovered her lithe corpse frozen not long after.
Since that time, Julie’s nude form has been seen on the roof of this building on the coldest night in December. During the remainder of the year Julie lingers in the warmth of the building’s interior. The Bottom of the Cup Tearoom once occupied the ground floor of this building (it moved to 327 Chartres Street) where the shop offered tea and psychic readings. Many of the psychics working here noted Julie’s shade and they believe she may have moved with the shop to Chartres.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Smith, Katheine. Journey Into Darkness: Ghosts and Vampires of New Orleans. New Orleans, LA: De Simonin Publications, 1998.
Cornstalk Hotel 915 Royal Street
This intimate boutique hotel occupies a mansion with a unique cast-iron fence featuring stalks of corn. Legend relates that the fence was commissioned to comfort the Iowa-born wife of a former resident by reminding her of the cornfields of home. Once the home of Judge François Xavier Martin, he may be one the spirits that still stalks the halls with his footsteps, rattling door knobs. The sounds of children have also been heard here.
Sources
Brown, Alan. The Haunted South. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2014.
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Cornstalk Hotel by Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Andrew Jackson Hotel
917 Royal Street
A tragedy on this site more than 200 years ago may still continue to resonate today. A boarding school or orphanage (sources differ) stood here that was destroyed by fire. Five young boys lost their lives and they still play throughout the courtyard and hallways of this hotel. Sheila Turnage notes the experience of a night manager who was diligently working at his desk when he realized he was being watched. Looking up he saw the heads of a group of children trying to peer above the top of his desk. The children vanished moments later.
Sources
Asfar, Dan. Ghost Stories of Louisiana. Auburn, WA: Lone Pine Publishing, 2007.
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunters Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Taylor, Troy. Haunted New Orleans. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2010.
Turnage, Sheila. Haunted Inns of the Southeast. Winston-Salem, NC: John F. Blair, 2001.
Starling Magikal Occult Shop
1022 Royal Street
If you care to test drive any of the ghost hunting equipment available for sale here, the Starling Magikal Occult Shop offers its own ghosts. In a 2015 article, the shop’s co-owner Claudia Williams noted that staff and patrons of the shop hear disembodied voices and feel the touch of invisible fingers. Objects occasionally move around on their own accord as well.
Sources
Lopez, Kenny. “Want to hunt ghosts? Here are the tools you’ll need…” 26 October 2015.
LaLaurie House
1140 Royal Street, private
Of the myriad haunted houses throughout the South, few have captured the public’s attention more than the hulking LaLaurie Mansion that looms over the intersection of Royal and Nicholls Streets. While the structure itself is significant historically and architecturally, it’s the legends of the atrocities that took place here and the ghosts from those events that draw crowds of tourists. Though the house is not open to the public, the legend still draws people here.
In 1831 this property was purchased by Delphine LaLaurie, the wife of Dr. Leonard Louis LaLaurie. Madame LaLaurie had been married and widowed twice before her marriage to the good doctor and she had five children by her previous husbands. After construction of the mansion in 1832, LaLaurie took up residence and became a central pillar to New Orleans society.
LaLaurie Mansion, 2011 by Reading Tom, courtesy of Wikipedia.
The legend goes back to a fateful report of a fire in the kitchen here April 10, 1834. Firefighters arrived to discover the kitchen in flames and an elderly slave cook chained to the stove. She admitted to setting the fire as a suicide attempt to prevent her being sent to attic from which she said no one ever escaped. A mob that had gathered broke their way into the slave quarters and soon discovered the mutilated remains of “seven slaves, more or less horribly mutilated … suspended by the neck, with their limbs apparently stretched and torn from one extremity to the other” as the New Orleans Bee described the events the next day. While the mob remained to destroy the house and grounds in anger, Madame LaLaurie and her family fled the city. No one ever faced justice for the cruelties inflicted on the slaves here. While this is the most commonly related legend about the house, there is quite a bit of controversy.
As the story has captured the imagination of many, it has found its way into books dating back to the late 19th century, film, television and even video games. Most recently, the legend of Madame LaLaurie was woven into the plethora of local legends in the story arc of American Horror Story: Coven. Portrayed by Kathy Bates, Madame LaLaurie is a simpering racist weighted down with a curse of immortality placed upon her by the immortal Voodoo Queen, Marie Laveau. Researchers looking into the legend in recent decades have revealed that Delphine LaLaurie’s reputation may have been targeted as part of a smear campaign.
Do the spirits of slaves still stalk this lovely mansion? Legends relate that former residents here encountered some horrific spirits, though there are few recent stories. Writer and psychic Kala Ambrose tried to commune with the spirits while standing outside of the house recently. While she stood there a number of curious tourists inquired if this was the famous LaLaurie House. A short time later when she placed her hand on the wall of the house a passing ghost tour group took photographs of her. She didn’t contact anything out of the ordinary, perhaps the house is now just haunted by tourists.
Sources
Ambrose, Kala. Spirits of New Orleans. Cincinnati, OH: Clerisy Press, 2012.
Caskey, James. The Haunted History of New Orleans: Ghosts of the French Quarter. Savannah, GA: Manta Ray Books, 2013.
Delphine LaLaurie. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Accessed 10 June 2016.
N.B. This article was edited and revised 30 April 2020.
This article is part of my series, Street Guide to the Phantoms of the French Quarter, which looks at the haunted places of this neighborhood in a street by street basis. Please see the series main page for an introduction to the French Quarter and links to other streets.
Chartres Street
Chartres Street, which is often pronounced CHAR-terz or CHAR-trez, was named for the Duc de Chartres in 1724 and is among several of the earliest streets in town. Initially, Chartres only ran from Canal Street to Jackson Square. From Jackson Square to Esplanade, the street was called Condé.
Mahogany Jazz Hall Burlesque and Absinthe House 125 Chartres Street
The building that now contains the Mahogany Jazz Hall is on the right of this photo under the sign of Don Juan’s (which formerly occupied this space). Photo 2007, Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
This 19th century building served as a boarding house for many years during which two tenants committed suicide. In 1892, a laborer was shot to death in front of the building with his murderer escaping into the dark of night. These deaths may contribute to the building’s haunted reputation with patrons and staff witnessing shadowy figures, hearing disembodied whispers, and feeling the cold touch of hands from the other side.
Sources
“Murder in New Orleans.” The Daily Commercial Herald. 22 November 1892.
Pinheiro, Maria. “Four little-known paranormal hotspots in New Orleans.” Malay Mail Online. 11 October 2016.
204 Chartres Street
204 Chartres in 2007. The building on the left was still Crescent City Books at this time. Photo by Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Formerly the home to Crescent City Books, one of the more prominent second-hand bookstores in the city, this late 19th century commercial building is apparently haunted by ghosts on every floor, including the specter of a young boy on the first floor. An investigation by the New Orleans based International Society for Paranormal Research (ISPR) identified a number of children’s spirits on the first and second floor as spirits that may also haunt Le Petite Theatre de Vieux Carré on St. Peter Street. Other spirits were discovered on the third floor and attic.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans, Revised Edition. Gretna, LA: Pelican, 2016.
Montz, Larry and Daena Smoller. ISPR Investigates the Ghosts of New Orleans. Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2000.
W New Orleans – French Quarter 316 Chartres Street
Formerly the Hotel de la Poste, the W Hotel is made up of a collection of old buildings many of which are occupied by their own collections of spirits. ISPR investigated the hotel in July of 1996. On the second floor of the hotel, investigators encountered the spirit of a white woman in her 30s who may be causing some activity there. In another section of the building which may have once held slave quarters, the spirits of three enslaved children were discovered. A middle-aged enslaved man, Gerald, was found by the group near the hotel’s parking garage, which may have been the site of stables were this man labored.
Montz, Larry and Daena Smoller. ISPR Investigates the Ghosts of New Orleans. Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2000.
The Bottom of the Cup Tearoom
327 Chartres Street
Since 1929, The Bottom of the Cup Tearoom has served as one of New Orleans’ psychical landmarks. The tearoom popularly featured psychics who would read the tea leaves left at the bottoms of customers’ teacups. Over time, the shop has added other forms of divination and psychic readings including tarot cards to its menu. While the shop’s second location (open from 1972-2003) at 734 Royal Street possessed the well-known spirit of Julia, there are no documented ghost stories associated with this building, though Jeff Dwyer has noted that the spirit may have moved to the shop after the closure of the Royal Street location. A quote from the shop’s manager indicates there may be some activity there, telling Country Roads Magazine, “There’s a lot of history ground into this neighborhood. Each decade leaves its traces and emotional resin, which helps us tune into the intuitive mind.”
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans, Revised Edition. Gretna, LA: Pelican, 2016.
McGunnigle, Nora. “The Bottom of the Cup.” Country Roads Magazine. 21 September 2018.
Williams Research Center 410 Chartres Street
The Williams Research Center occupies one of three campuses that houses parts of The Historic New Orleans Collection, which preserves and collects historic items and archives covering the history of the city and the region. The largest items in this collection are a number of historic properties including the building that houses the research collection. Built in 1915, this Beaux-Arts structure originally housed the Second City Criminal Court and the Third District Police Station. The Historic New Orleans Collection purchased the building in 1993 after it had been vacant for many years.
The renovation of this structure required gutting the interior at which time construction workers began to have odd experiences. These included hearing the slamming of cell doors, despite the doors having been removed, and seeing apparitions of police officers in old-fashioned uniforms.
Montz, Larry and Daena Smoller. ISPR Investigates the Ghosts of New Orleans. Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2000.
Napoleon House
500 Chartres Street
An early 20th century postcard showing the Napoleon House. Postcard published by A. Hirschwitz.
Built in 1797, this home was significantly expanded for early mayor, Nicholas Girod, who served from 1812-15. According to local lore, offered it as a refuge for Napoleon after he was exiled from France. While he died before he could travel, the house still bears his name. In 1834, some thirteen years after Napoleon’s death, his former physician, Dr. Antommarchi, opened a free clinic in the building, thus continuing its association with the deposed emperor. During the Civil War, wounded soldiers were treated in a hospital that operated on the second floor. In 1914, the Impastato family acquired the property and opened the restaurant and bar that remains in operation.
The over 200-year old history of the building has left spiritual activity. Some stories speak of a Confederate soldier who is seen to stroll the Chartres Street balcony before vanishing or hiding. Another story tells of an old lady who is spotted sweeping on the second floor. While yet others have witnessed the apparition of an enslaved woman in the courtyard.
Over the years, guests and staff have been surprised by lights turning off and on, sometimes on request. During a renovation of the building in the mid-1990’s the spirits expressed their displeasure with a heavy and oppressive feeling throughout. Bartenders also reported that bottles would occasionally fall from their perch behind the bar during this time. A paranormal group that investigated the building recently noted several entities on the property including a young lady in the courtyard who may have died in an accident and an old sailor who drinks at the bar late at night.
Sources
Bailey, Shan. “Strange ghosts: Drinking sailor, sweeping lady haunt the Napoleon House.” NOLA Weekend. No Date.
Brown, Alan. The Haunted South. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2014.
New Orleans Pharmacy Museum (La Pharmacie Francais)
514 Chartres Street
When Louis Dufilho opened his pharmacy here in 1823, this was the first licensed pharmacy established in the country. Dr. Dufilho operated his business here for some 35 years before retiring and selling his business to Dr. Joseph Dupas. Many sources suggest that Dupas performed medical experiments on slaves, especially pregnant slave women.
The view looking down Chartres Street. From the left, the buildings are the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum, Hotel Ste. Helene, and the Napoleon House. Photo 2008, by Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Tour guide Katherine Smith suggested in her book, Journey Into Darkness: Ghosts and Vampires of New Orleans, that Dupas also treated wounded soldiers here during the Civil War. Perhaps the pain and death from the medical experiments and the soldiers being treated have left a mark on the energy of this building. Some visitors have reported being suddenly overcome with nausea while others have encountered a figure in a brown suit and white lab coat that may be the spirit of Dr. Dupas.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Oldfield, Eileen. “Things that go bump in the haunted pharmacy.” Pharmacy Times. 30 October 2014.
Smith, Katherine. Journey Into Darkness: Ghosts & Vampires of New Orleans. New Orleans, LA: De Simonin Publications, 1998.
Chartres House (Gally House)
540 Chartres Street
The large building occupying this corner of Chartres and Toulouse Streets is sometimes known as Keuffers Building. Built sometime after 1830, the building was intended to house businesses on the first floor with apartments on the second and third floors. If you walk alongside the building on Toulouse Street, you can see the separate slave quarters at the back of the building. Some passersby have noticed a young lady peering from the upper windows on this side of the building, despite the fact that these rooms were vacant at the time. Venture into the parking lot off Toulouse Street and look at the first small window. Tour guides will point out this window and encourage visitors to plunge their hand in. Some visitors have felt the feeling of their hands being grasped by small hands. Jeff Dwyer notes that these hands may belong to slave children who were housed in this room.
The Gally House in the 1930s as photographed by Frances Johnston for the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS). Courtesy of the Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
Recently, the Chartres House restaurant, which opened originally in the former Reynes Mansion (see below) across the street, relocated into the majestic Gally House.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Reynes Mansion (formerly the Chartres House)
601 Chartres Street
Originally built as a residence for the Reynes family following the Great Fire of 1788, this home was eventually occupied by the popular Victor’s Café in the late 19th century. Known as a hangout for artists and bohemians, Victor’s was a favorite of the writer William Faulkner.
An apartment located on the second-floor was the scene of a shooting death in the 1970s. The young man who lived there is supposed to have been involved in drugs. Following his death, the building’s owners had trouble renting the apartment as prospective tenants often detected bad energy and some became physically ill while touring the apartment.
The Reynes Mansion in 2008, when it was still the Chartres House. Photo by Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
This building was occupied by the Chartres House restaurant until it relocated across the street to the Gally House (see above).
Muro, Maria. “Haunted Eats.” New Orleans Living. 9 October 2012.
Bosque House
617 Chartres Street, private
The Bosque House in 2011. Photo by Elisa.rolle, courtesy of Wikipedia.
This classic late 18th century Creole townhouse was built to replace a home destroyed in the Great Fire of 1788. Legend holds that this fire started on this site. Don Vicente Jose Nuñez, the army treasurer, owned the house at this site where curtains caught fire from a candle on the family’s personal altar on Good Friday. Tradition prohibited the ringing of bells on this most holy day and the priests of St. Louis Church would not allow the church’s bells to be rung to alarm the citizens. The fire eventually destroyed the church and nearly 900 other buildings in the city. Residents of this private home have heard the sounds of muffled bells. Perhaps better late than never?
Sources
Klein, Victor C. New Orleans Ghosts III. Metarie, LA: Lycanthrope Press, 2004.
Smith, Katherine. Journey Into Darkness: Ghosts & Vampires of New Orleans. New Orleans, LA: De Simonin Publications, 1998.
The Cabildo
701 Chartres Street
The younger twin of The Presbytère, The Cabildo was constructed to replace the city hall that was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1788. Of all the buildings in this city, this building has witnessed more important historic events than any other. Within the walls of the Cabildo the Louisiana Purchase was finalized in 1803. During the building’s time housing the Louisiana Supreme Court, the case of Plessy v. Ferguson was heard before it headed to the U.S. Supreme Court where it enshrined the concept of “separate but equal” into American racial law. The building became a part of the Louisiana State Museum in 1908.
The Cabildo, 1936, by Richard Koch for the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS). Courtesy of the Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
While this building served as a seat of government for many years, a prison once stood behind it (see my entry on Pirate Alley for more information on this structure) which may explain the presence of a young soldier. Legend holds that the young man was imprisoned in the prison and, after a trial before a military tribunal, was summarily executed in the courtyard. Some of the museum’s staff and visitors have felt the sensation of someone rushing past them. Others have seen the pathetic form of a soldier in a ragged uniform.
Sources
The Cabildo. Louisiana State Museums. Accessed 2 June 2016.
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
St. Louis Cathedral
Jackson Square
Interior of St. Louis Cathedral by Carol M. Highsmith. Courtesy of the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
The Grande Dame of New Orleans, St. Louis Cathedral has stood at the sacred heart of this city since the construction of the first church on this site in 1718. The current building was originally constructed between 1789 and 1794 and heavily reconstructed in the mid-19th century. Legend holds that the black-robed form of Father Antonio de Sedella, often known by his French moniker, Père Antoine, appears during the Christmas Midnight Mass. The specter of this most beloved of curates appears to the left of the altar holding a candle.
Sources
Brown, Alan. The Haunted South. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2014.
“Our History.” Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis. Accessed 2 June 2016.
The Presbytère
751 Chartres Street
The Presbytère, 2007, by Infrogmation. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
The Presbytère is one of the pair of buildings flanking St. Louis Cathedral. Originally constructed in 1791 to match The Cabildo, this structure was known as “Casa Curial” or “Ecclesiastical House,” and provided housing for the Capuchin monks who ran the cathedral. In 1911, the building was taken over to house the Louisiana State Museum. The museum houses two permanent exhibits: one commemorating Hurricane Katrina and the other celebrating the city’s Mardi Gras traditions. While visiting the museum should you see a tall and slim maintenance man in a dark uniform with curly brown hair, be assured that you have just seen a ghost.
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
The Presbytère. Louisiana State Museums. Accessed 2 June 2016.
Muriel’s Jackson Square
801 Chartres Street
Originally built as a grand residence for the noted Destrehan family (who also owned haunted Destrehan Plantation found along the famed River Road), the building that now houses Muriel’s partially burned in the Great Fire of 1788 that ravaged the city. Supposedly, the burned house was purchased by Pierre Antoine Lepardi Jourdan who restored the home but sadly lost it in a card game. Not willing to simply leave the home, he quietly resigned to the second floor where he committed suicide in what is now known as the Séance Lounge.
Muriel’s in 2008. Photo by Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
At least this is the story that is commonly told about this building. It is even included on the restaurant’s website. According to a 2013 blog post entitled, “The ‘Ghost’ of Muriel’s Restaurant,” this story is partially bunk. The blog notes that the current building was constructed sometime around the turn of the 20th century after the house on that site was torn down. While the history may not match up to the legend, there still may be paranormal activity with staff and visitors hearing knocking from inside the brick walls of the Séance Lounge, and disembodied voices, while encountering shadowy figures throughout the building. In order to keep some of the activity at bay, the restaurant maintains a special table for the ghost of Monsieur Jourdan.
Sources
Brown, Alan. The Haunted South. Charleston, SC: History Press. 2014.
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
“Our Ghost.” Muriel’s Jackson Square. Accessed 2 June 2016.
Tipping, Joy. “Ghost trails and Halloween haunts in New Orleans.” Dallas Morning News. 23 October 2008.
Hotel Provincial
1024 Chartres Street
Hotel Provincial in 2019. Photo by Infrogmation, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Like many hotels throughout the quarter, this hotel consists of an amalgam of different buildings, each with different histories. The 500 building seems to be the one with activity. The building was constructed on a site that was originally occupied by an Ursuline Hospital. It was here that the wounded from the 1814 Battle of New Orleans were treated. During the Civil War the buildings on the site were commandeered for use as a military hospital. That building burned and was replaced by the current structure. Guests and staff have, according to tradition, encountered bloodstains that disappear before their eyes, wounded soldiers in the rooms and corridors, doctors and nurses in bloodstained clothing, and one unlucky security guard using an elevator had the doors open to reveal the scene of a Civil War era surgery.
Sources
Brown, Alan. The Haunted South. Charleston, SC: History Press. 2014.
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
One of the oldest buildings in New Orleans, the old Ursuline Convent has survived hurricanes, fires, and the nuns have provided aid during plagues and epidemics. It’s no surprise that their old convent would house spirits. According to Jeff Dwyer, the spirits of Ursuline sisters have been seen gliding throughout the building while the spirit of a Civil War era soldier has been seen in the garden. (For a couple photos of the Old Ursuline Convent see my entry here.)
Sources
Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2007.
Beauregard-Keyes House
1113 Chartres Street
See my entry, “Creepiness on Chartres Street,” for an in depth look at the history and hauntings of this famous home.
Le Richelieu Hotel
1234 Chartres Street
Housed in two buildings, one dating from 1845, the other from 1902, the Le Richelieu Hotel occupies the site where five French patriots were executed in the late 18th century. The spirits of these five men may still reside here. For further pictures see, “A Handful of Haunts—Photos from New Orleans.”
The feast is done, the table has been cleared, the guests have left, the spirits have quietly returned to their rest, and the veil between our world and the next has been restored. This season has been great for articles about the haunted South so, I’m wrapping up this Southern Feast of All Souls with a look at some of the new (to me) haunted places that were covered in the news media.
Colby Building 191 North Foster Street Dothan, Alabama
An investigator from Circle City Ghost Hunters said of the Colby Building in downtown Dothan, “Somebody once upon a time put their heart and soul in the building.” Perhaps that soul is still here. According to an October 29th article in the Dothan Eagle, this group investigated the building after numerous reports of paranormal activity in the building surfaced.
The Colby Building, 2015, by Michael Rivera. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
While working on my recent book about haunted Alabama, I had a heck of a time trying to find anything on the Dothan area. As the seventh largest city in the state by population, there should be more information on hauntings in the area, sadly there was nothing reliable. Therefore, I was rather excited to see this article appear. The Colby Building was built in 1938 as a J.C. Penney’s Department Store and has since hosted a number of businesses. The building was redeveloped by a private/public partnership in 2008 and currently houses two restaurants, Colby’s on North Foster Street and Bella’s in the back of the building on West Troy Street.
Employees and guests have had experiences in the building including things moving on their own and seeing figures. Others have had their names called and the employees have nicknamed the spirit “’Rachel’ because all kinds of crazy stuff happened.” (I’m presuming this a reference to the television show Friends.) The owner of the restaurants was delighted to host an investigation when Circle City Ghost Hunters inquired about investigating there. The article notes that the activity is explained by a story involving the death of a young woman on the building’s third floor in the 1950s.
N.B. As of 2019, it appears that Colby’s has closed, though Bella’s remains open.
Sources
Ingram, Debbie. “Plans unveiled for $2.4 million Penney building project.” Dothan Eagle. 18 August 2008.
Suntan Arts Center (Don Vicente Building) 3300 Gulf Boulevard St. Pete Beach, Florida
Adjoining the Don CeSar Beach Resort, a palatial pink Jazz Age dream, is the Don Vicente Building which was built just prior to the grand hotel to serve as offices during the construction. Over the years, the building has seen many incarnations serving as offices for the hotel, a bank, and even a firehouse. The building has housed the 50 year old Suntan Arts Center for many years. The center provides classes and support for the local arts community.
The center hosted a ghost tour this year highlighting the paranormal activity that has been experienced in the building. For many years people here have encountered the spirit of a man in a white suit. As this building did serve as an office for Thomas Rowe, the hotel’s founder, this spirit has been identified as him. During an investigation of the building in 2013 by SPIRITS of St. Petersburg, the group got a response when Rowe’s name was mentioned. Besides Mr. Rowe’s white-suited spirit there may be other spirits here as well.
Sources
“Self-guided ghost tour departs from Suntan Arts Center.” TBN Weekly. 28 September 2015.
SPIRITS of St. Petersburg Paranormal Investigation Group. “Report for Suntan Arts Center.” Accessed 8 November 2015.
Porter Hall Mercer University Macon, Georgia
Porter Hall, a residence hall on the campus of Mercer University, one of the oldest private universities in Georgia, possibly has something mysterious residing on its fourth floor. One student reported that she “heard things like chairs being dragged across the pine, like a hard pine floor.” The fourth floor is not accessible to students and used for storage. Reportedly, only the dorm’s resident advisor has access. When students complain of noise from that floor, the resident advisor will check it out and find the floor empty of living beings.
Westover Terrace (private) 905 West Main Street Richmond, Kentucky
When the current owners of Westover Terrace began restoration on the house after they acquired it in 1995, the house was severely dilapidated and vandals had defaced parts of the interior. A pentagram had been painted upstairs, walls and windows had been smashed, and the mantelpieces and radiators had been stolen. Local kids occasionally prowled the creepy house in search of ghosts in this former funeral home. The new owners did not realize they acquired ghosts with this magnificent 1881 home.
As work progressed, the owners and contractors began to have odd experiences including loud crashes and bangs that sounded like sledge hammers being used and heavy furniture being moved. The voice of a little girl was heard asking workers what they were doing and warning them on occasion. While doing repair work on a staircase, one particular board was removed several times. After the owner used a hydraulic nail gun to attach the it, the board disappeared entirely. When the owners finally moved into the home in 2005, the activity seemed to quiet down. Evidently, the ghosts are pleased with the renovations. This is a private home, please respect the owners’ privacy and observe the house from the street.
Green Light Bridge Green Light Road Winnsboro, Louisiana
An article about Louisiana hauntings from the Shreveport Times highlighted this very interesting location near Winnsboro in Franklin Parish in the northeast portion of the state. The origin of the road’s odd name has been lost to history, but is possibly related to the paranormal green light that is supposed to emanate from underneath the bridge and along the banks of the stream here. The article does not name the creek, but after looking at Google maps, it seems that the road only crosses one stream, Turkey Creek, in its course from LA-15 to its termination at Dummy Line Road.
The possible reasons for the odd green light are varied. A church once existed on one side of the creek and sometime in the mid-20th century a man was hung from a tree in front of the church. A fatal car accident that occurred here may be related to the activity as well. A woman lost her life when her car crashed into a tree. There is also speculation that the woman was frightened by the mysterious green light.
Sources
“’Haunted’ Louisiana: Tales of Terror from Shreveport and beyond.” Shreveport Times. 30 September 2015.
Librarians at the Glen Burnie Regional Library have been spooked by something within this 1969 library for many years. Odd sounds have been heard by staff when they have closed the building at night while books have been pushed to the floor by unseen hands. Staff called in the Maryland Ghost Trackers to investigate. During the investigation, the investigators made contact with a number of male spirits who are apparently hanging around and enjoy making a bit of trouble now and then.
Ole Tavern on George Street 416 George Street Jackson, Mississippi
There are several ghosts still patronizing the Ole Tavern on George Street according to a Halloween article from Jackson, Mississippi news station, WAPT. The article highlights a recent investigation of this establishment by the Mississippi Paranormal Research Institute. Employees of the popular eatery have had several eerie encounters with a few possible spirits here.
One employee saw a woman sitting at the bar one morning as he opened up. He had just removed the padlock from the door when he saw the woman. Realizing that no one was in the building, the employee returned to his car until someone else arrived. This spirit is believed to be the spirit of a prostitute who once worked in the building and committed suicide here in the 1970s. The investigation produced evidence that this woman may remain in the building with some other spirits.
Sources
“Ghost hunters seek answers from ‘Bitter Hooker.’” 31 October 2015.
I recently had an inquiry from a friend who’s a student at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia regarding a “haunted road trip” he and his friends want to take next month. After consulting my resources, I’ve devised a suitable tour of the area’s numerous haunts.
This tour makes a circle through the Shenandoah Valley, beginning and ending in Winchester. It heads south on I-81 towards Staunton with a few stops along the way. After Staunton the tour heads east to include the famous Exchange Hotel in Gordonsville before returning to Winchester. The tour includes a range of haunted places from historic homes to government buildings, churches, battlefields, commercial buildings, cemeteries, a train depot, a former mental hospital and a cave. Some of these locations are open to the public while a few are private and should only be viewed from the street.
N.B. This article has been reworked a bit and I have begun separating these cities into their own distinct articles.
Winchester
The Winchester section of this article has been broken off into its own, separate article, “The Wraiths of Winchester.”
Middletown
1797 WAYSIDE INN (7783 Main Street) This building sits at the core of history of this small town. The motley of old buildings forming the tavern were built over a period ranging from the 18th century through to the late 19th century. The oldest portion of the building, containing Larrick’s Tavern, may have been constructed around 1750. The road in front was once part of the Great Wagon Road—the road used by settlers pouring into the American “backcountry.” In this area, the Great Wagon Road was originally a Native American trail called the Great Indian Warpath and used by a multitude of Native American tribes including the Cherokee.
In 1797, this collection of buildings became an inn for the many travelers passing on the road. Leo Bernstein, the garrulous personality who took over the inn the latter half of the 20th century, would always claim that this inn was the oldest continuously operating inn in the nation. There does seem to be a good deal of truth behind his claim. It is known that this inn was in operation as war raged up and down the valley during the Civil War and that the inn served both sides.
Wayside Inn. Photo 2008, by DwayneP, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Like most buildings in the area, the inn has a number of Civil War related spirits, though there is the possibility that the inn may have been haunted before that time. Lord Fairfax, who had been given much the land in the area, did live nearby and died in Winchester (he’s buried at Christ Episcopal Church) is claimed as the spirit that moans on a nightly basis in the oldest portion of the inn. Bernstein describes the space in Sheila Turnage’s Haunted Inns of the Southeast, “Upstairs is about a three foot space. There was a set of steps going up there. The straw is still there.” The loft is located just above one of the bars and Turnage mentions that people gather to listen for the moan at 11:30 PM nightly.
Besides odd moans, the inn is home to numerous other spirits and employees and guests have witnessed much activity. Objects have moved on their own accord, a dishwasher had his apron untied repeatedly by unseen hands, and full apparitions have been seen including those of Civil War soldiers. Paranormal investigations have captured much evidence including EVPs of horses whinnying and photographs featuring specters.
WAYSIDE THEATRE (7853 Main Street, now closed) The sad fate of the Wayside Theatre echoes the fate of so many theatres throughout the country. The company was established in 1961, by Leo Bernstein, the owner of the Wayside Inn just down the street. The summer stock theatre provided training for actors such as Susan Sarandon, Peter Boyle, Kathy Bates and Donna McKechnie. After a precipitous drop in revenue, the theatre closed its doors in 2013.
The building was originally constructed as a cinema and it is from this period that the theatre’s ghost may come from. “George,” is supposedly the spirit of an African-American man who either worked in the theatre or was a caretaker at some point. His spirit is said to haunt the stage, balcony and basement of the building.
CEDAR CREEK AND BELLE GROVE NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK (Belle Grove, 336 Belle Grove Road) Historically and architecturally, Belle Grove is one of the most important houses in the region and listed as a National Historic Landmark. It is currently owned and operated by the National Trust and most sources state that the docents are discouraged from talking about the spirits which still reside here.
Belle Grove, 2013, by AgnosticPreachersKid. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
The history of Belle Grove begins in the late 18th century with the land being acquired by Isaac Hite, the grandson of Jost Hite, a German immigrant and one of the early pioneers in this area. Construction of the house began in 1794 and ended in 1797. The house remained in the Hite family until just before the beginning of the Civil War when it was bought by John and Benjamin Cooley. The first of two ghost stories begin with this family. Not long after acquiring the house, Benjamin Cooley married a local woman named Hetty. Not long after her arrival in the home, Hetty became the subject of ire from one of the slave woman working there.
Though the details are unclear, Hetty was attacked by the slave and her beaten body was thrown either into the smokehouse or the icehouse on the property. Hetty’s spirit reportedly returns frequently and has been seen throughout the house. According to two sources, she actually let a deliveryman into the house one afternoon after the home had been closed for the day. The deliveryman was returning the antique carpets which had been removed for cleaning. After arriving late, he was let into the house by a woman in a period dress who did not speak but only gestured to where the carpets should be placed. When the staff discovered the carpets had been returned and put in place, they called the cleaning company who put the driver on the phone. They were shocked to hear about the woman who let him in.
A few years after Mrs. Cooley’s death, the estate became the scene of the Battle of Cedar Creek. During that battle, Major General Stephen Ramseur of North Carolina was gravely wounded. He was taken to a room at Belle Grove where he passed away the following morning surrounded by some of his former classmates from West Point from both armies including George Custer. This scene was witnessed by a gentleman some years ago. While idly passing through the house, he glanced into a room to see a group of Civil War soldiers in both blue and grey standing around someone in a bed. Later, when he asked who had been presenting the tableaux that day, he was informed that nothing of the sort was taking place in the house.
Employees have told various paranormal writers that voices and other odd noises are regularly heard in the house, while singing is heard in the slave cemetery on the property.
Early on the morning of October 19, 1864, Confederate General Jubal Early launched an attack upon Union forces camping in the area. These forces under General Sheridan (who was headquartered at the Lloyd Logan House in Winchester, see stop #3H) had spent their time clearing the Shenandoah Valley of Confederates. Known as “The Burning,” this period included the destruction of much of the area. Early’s early morning attack was one of the last chances for Confederates to stop the decimation of the valley.
While Early’s attack was initially successful in beginning to route the Federals, Sheridan, hearing the sounds of battle from Winchester, jumped upon his horse and made a triumphant ride to Middletown to rally his troops to victory. At the end of the day, Early’s forces had been driven from the field.
The stories of spirits on this battlefield began not long after the battle ended. These stories included spectral soldiers on the battlefield both singly and in groups and even stories of headless horsemen. Michael Varhola notes, however, that the gentlemen he met working in the visitor’s center, refused to answer his questions about the battlefield being haunted.
Grottoes
Formations within Grand Caverns. Photo 2010 by P199. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
GRAND CAVERNS (5 Grand Caverns Drive) From the oldest continuously operating inn in the country to the oldest operating show cave, Grand Caverns has been open for tourists since 1806. I’ve covered this cave and its ghosts in a blog entry here.
New Hope
PIEDMONT BATTLEFIELD (Battlefield Road) Outside of New Hope, near the community of Piedmont, is an open field that was the scene of a battle, the 5th of June 1864.
Around 5 AM, June 5, 1996, a group of reenactors camping on the southern edge of the battlefield were awakened by an unusual ruckus: the sounds of wagons approaching. In an effort to greet the approaching wagons, a few of the reenactors stepped towards a nearby fence. The sounds, the creak of wagon wheels, the tinkle of chains, the clop of horses hooves and their whinnies, increased for a moment as they apparently neared the awed witnesses then they suddenly ceased. Some of those present later discovered an overgrown trace or wagon road in the woods near the spot where they’d heard the sounds. It is believed that this road may have been in existence at the time of the battle.
Of course, there’s no way to know if the sounds were related to battle or simply spiritual residue from the road’s history. Either way, the reenactors will likely tell this story for years to come.
Staunton
Like Winchester, Staunton has a myriad of haunted locales and a ghost tour. Black Raven Paranormal presents a handful of different tours; see their website for further information.
MRS. ROWE’S FAMILY RESTAURANT (74 Rowe Road) This popular restaurant has been investigated twice in the past few years after employees and guests have had run-ins with spirits. In addition to activity in the building’s attic and basement, the back dining room and men’s room have reportedly had activity. Two local news articles describe the activity as ranging from full apparitions to employees being touched.
DeJARNETTE CENTER (located behind the Frontier Culture Museum, 1290 Richmond Avenue, the center is closed and private property though one of the tours offered by the Ghosts of Staunton tours the grounds, don’t ask for further information at the Frontier Culture Museum, they can’t tell you much of anything) There’s a good deal of misinformation about this location. Of course, mental and psychiatric hospitals tend to be haunted, along with other medical facilities. Among those with a paranormal bent, there is a tendency to exploit these types of places and often repeat misinformation.
DeJarnette Center. Photo 2011, by Ben Schumin, courtesy of Wikipedia.
With the DeJarnette Center, there is a tendency to confuse it with Western State Hospital, which also may be haunted. Though their histories are intertwined, these are two separate facilities. Western State was founded early in the 19th century to handle the overflow from the Williamsburg Hospital which handled the insane and mental cases. The complex that once house Western State has recently been converted into condominiums called The Villages at Staunton.
During the first half of the 19th century, Western State was under the aegis of Dr. Joseph DeJarnette, a revolutionary figure in the field of mental health. His controversial legacy included institutionalizing a eugenics program that forcibly sterilized numerous patients throughout the state.
This facility opened in 1932 originally as the DeJarnette State Sanitarium, a private pay unit of Western State. The state assumed control of this facility in 1975 and renamed it the DeJarnette Center for Human Development. The facility experienced severe budget cuts starting in the mid-70s and continuing until the patients were moved into a newer, smaller facility adjacent to Western State in 1996. Since 1996, the site has been abandoned and waiting for the wrecking ball. Countless ghost stories have been told about the facility, though few have actually been published.
DOWNTOWN STAUNTON Like downtown Winchester, Staunton has a number of haunted places, though the information on them is not as readily available (as opposed to Winchester with Mac Rutherford’s book on its hauntings). I imagine many of these locations will be presented on the Ghosts of Staunton tour.
STAUNTON COFFEE AND TEA (32 South New Street) This building was the scene of a homicide in August of 1951. Elmer Higgins, a heavy gambler who lived in an apartment on the building’s second floor was shot in the head, execution-style. The murder remains unsolved and it is believed his spirit remains on the premises.
AMTRAK STATION (1 Middlebrooks Avenue) There has been a train station on this site since 1854. The first station was burned during the Civil War while the second station was destroyed April 28, 1890 by train. The New York Times described the event, “This morning about 3 o’clock a railroad wreck occurred at the Staunton (Chesapeake and Ohio) Station. The vestibule train, due here from the west at 1 o’clocl was two hours late. About 3 o’clock it came whirling on at a speed of seventy miles an hour, the engine having the appearance of a sheet of fire…As the train reached the passenger station the rear sleeper careened, striking the platform covering, tearing away the iron posts, and demolishing the whole platform structure.”
Staunton Amtrak Station. Photo 2009, by Ben Schumin, courtesy of Wikipedia.
The train was carrying members of a traveling operatic troupe out of Cincinnati, Ohio. The only death to occur was one of the company’s singers, Miss Myrtle Knox who was badly mangled by the accident and bled to death.
Myrtle’s sad spirit has been spotted on the platform wearing a nightgown. Women with long blonde hair have had their hair tugged and it is believed that Myrtle’s spirit may be to blame for that as well.
An old rail car at the depot once contained a restaurant. Visitors to the station have seen odd lights, shadows and heard voices around the old Pullman car. Along the tracks the apparition of a Civil War soldier has been seen. A Confederate soldier was walking these tracks after having a bit too much to drink at a local saloon. He was hit by a train and killed.
THE CLOCK TOWER BUILDING (27 West Beverly Street) This 1890 structure has been the scene of at least three deaths. Two early deaths on the premises, which was originally constructed as a YMCA facility, include a heart attack and a young woman who fell down a coal chute. Recently, someone fell to their death from the third floor in a possible suicide. These spirits are still said to linger in this old building.
MARY BALDWIN COLLEGE (Intersection of Frederick Street and New Street) According to the National Register of Historic Places nomination form for this college’s main building, Mary Baldwin is the oldest women’s institution of higher learning associated with the Presbyterian Church. The school was opened in 1842 as the Augusta Female Seminary. In the midst of the Civil War, Mary Baldwin and Agnes McClung, former students of the seminary were appointed as principals. They would serve the school through the latter half of the 19th century and Mary Baldwin’s contribution would be recognized in 1895 when the school was renamed for her. The spirits of Mary Baldwin and Agnes McClung may remain on campus along with a few other assorted spirits.
In the old Main Building, one of the first buildings constructed on campus, a male spirit named Richard likes to occasionally cause trouble. McClung Residence Hall, just behind the Main Building includes the rooms where Baldwin and McClung lived during their tenure here. Students living there have reported the spirits of both women, with one student even waking up to find a white figure hovering over her as she slept. The Collins Theatre, located inside the Deming Fine Arts Center, also features a spirit, possibly that of one of Mary Baldwin’s most illustrious alums, the actress Tallulah Bankhead. The spirit in the theatre is known to mess with the stage lights.
Gordonsville
Exchange Hotel, 2008, by Rutke421. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
CIVIL WAR MUSEUM AND EXCHANGE HOTEL (400 South Main Street) The Exchange Hotel has, in recent years, become one of the Southern meccas for ghost hunters. Opened on the eve of the Civil War, this hotel became one of the premier hospitals for the wounded during the Civil War. With so many deaths here, it’s no wonder that the place is crawling with ghosts. In one of my early blog entries, I’ve covered this location. At one time, the museum offered ghost walks, but I can currently find no information about these. This haunting was also covered on the Biography Channel show, My Ghost Story, first season, episode six.
Sources
Abram’s Delight. Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. Accessed 19 September 2014.
Armstrong, Derek Micah. “A true ghost story.” The News Virginian. 22 October 2012.
Ash, Linda O’Dell. “Respect the spirits, ‘Ghost Hunters International’ star Dustin Pari tells Wayside Inn paranormal investigators.” The Northern Virginia Daily. 7 November 2011.
Austin, Natalie. “Local ghost expert shares stories of the supernatural.” The Northern Virginia Daily. 30 October 2004.
Brown, Beth. Haunted Plantations of Virginia. Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2009.
Rutherford, Mac. Historic Haunts of Winchester: A Ghostly Trip Through the Past. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2007.
Shulman, Terry. “Did ghostly soldiers pay reenactors a courtesy call?” The News Leader (Staunton, VA). 10 July 2004.
Smith, Morgan Alberts & Marisol Euceda. “The Ghosts of MBC.” Up Hill and Down. January/February 2003.
Stanley, K.W. “The history of Western State and the Dejarnette Sanitarium.” The News Progress. 20 May 2008.
Toney, B. Keith. Battlefield Ghosts. Berryville, VA: Rockbridge Publishing, 1997.
Tripp, Mike. “DeJarnette’s ugly, complicated legacy.” The Daily News Leader. 22 March 2014
“Trying to get a glimpse of a ghost at Staunton’s Mrs. Rowe’s.” News Leader. 24 June 2012.
Turnage, Sheila. Haunted Inns of the Southeast. Winston-Salem, NC: John F. Blair, 2001.
Varhola, Michael J. Ghosthunting Virginia. Cincinnati, OH: Clerisy Press, 2008.
Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission Staff. National Register of Historic Places nomination form for the Cedar Creek Battlefield and Belle Grove. 24 April 1969.
Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission Staff. National Register of Historic Places nomination form for Mary Baldwin College, Main Building. 26 July 1973.
Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission Staff. National Register of Historic Places nomination form for the Winchester Historic District. April 1979.
In the past two months, a number of locations in the South have been investigated and written up in local media.
Antiques and Uniques Collectibles 7 Aviles Street St. Augustine, Florida
In the old quarter of one of the oldest cities in the country, it’s no surprise that ghosts are found everywhere. The building housing this small antique store is a quaint, commercial structure with a balcony that overhangs the sidewalk. Painted a bright, gay yellow, the color gives no clue to the spirits that lurk within. According to a historian quoted in Elizabeth Randall’s Haunted St. Augustine and St. John’s County, part of the building was originally built as a jail, specifically a drunk tank, in the late 19th century. The building was enlarged and has mostly been used as a commercial building throughout the 20th century and into the 21st.
Aviles Street from Constitution Plaza, 2014. Antiques and Uniques Collectibles is the yellow building on the left side of the street just under the sign. Photo by Michael Rivera, courtesy of Wikipedia.
According to an article by paranormal investigator and writer Jamie Pearce for Historic City News, the building houses several spirits including a spectral cat. Pearce states that, “the last time we investigated, five members of my team heard two distinct ‘meows’ inside the store, a store with no cats.” Other spirits, including two possible children, are known to occasionally raid the refrigerator and play with toys. The store’s owner captured video of the refrigerator door opening and closing on its own accord.
Sources
Pearce, Jamie. “Make some paranormal friends on Aviles Street.” Historic City News. 24 August 2014.
Randall, Elizabeth. Haunted St. Augustine and St. John’s County. Charleston: History Press, 2013.
Beauvoir 2244 Beach Boulevard Biloxi, Mississippi
In 2005, when Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast, many of the homes along Beach Boulevard—which look out to the Gulf—sustained extensive damage with some being swept away completely. Beauvoir, the last home of Jefferson Davis, the former president of the Confederacy, sustained terrible damage. Some outbuildings were swept away and others damaged severely while some 35% of the museum’s collections were lost. By 2008, the 200th anniversary of Davis’ birth, the house had been restored and reopened to the public.
Even after the hurricane’s extensive damage, the spirits have remained. While paranormal investigation groups have lobbied unsuccessfully for years to investigate the estate, a recent shakeup in the museum’s administration finally allowed Mississippi Gulf Coast Paranormal (MGCP) to investigate over a weekend earlier this month.
Beauvoir, 2010. Photo by Altairisfar, courtesy of Wikipedia.
According to articles regarding the investigation, paranormal activity is a very common occurrence at the stunning antebellum home. One paranormal investigation team member stated that while full-body apparitions are a rarity elsewhere, they’re quite normal here. They continued saying that a staff member in the house “sees Jeff Davis a couple times a week standing in the main hall.” In addition to the former president of the Confederacy, apparitions of Davis’ wife, Varina, and his daughter, Winnie, have been captured on film. In addition, a Confederate soldier is commonly encountered on the grounds by staff and visitors alike.
The MGCP investigation apparently captured a few occurrences the first night of the investigation including a rocking chair rocking on its own accord in Davis’ bedroom and many hits on the team’s K2 meters. It will likely be a few weeks before all the video and audio is thoroughly reviewed.
Ochs, Patrick. “Ghost hunters return for Round 2 at Beauvoir in Biloxi.” The Sun Herald. 9 August 2014.
Ochs, Patrick. “We ain’t afraid of no ghosts: Paranormal group investigates Beauvoir.” The Sun Herald. 7 August 2014.
T’Frere’s Bed & Breakfast 1905 Verot School Road Lafayette, Louisiana
I’ve previously covered the “Little Brother’s” House a few years ago when I started this blog. For background information, please see my previous entry here. I was delighted recently to see that an investigation of this house was recently carried out.
Louisiana Spirits Paranormal Investigations, who has methodically investigated haunted places throughout the state of Louisiana, were granted access to investigate T’Frere’s recently after 9 years of trying to get permission.
Like the investigation at Beauvoir, a few minor things happened, the result will not be available for a few weeks.
Sources
Coen, Chere. “Ghost hunters search for inn’s oldest ‘resident.’” IND Monthly. 18 August 2014.
Ponseti, Valerie. “Ghost Hunt at T-Frere’s.” KATC. 17 August 2014.
Demopolis Public Library 211 East Washington Street Demopolis, Alabama
N.B. This article was edited and updated 13 February 2019.
Triangle Brewing Company 918 Pearl Street Durham, North Carolina
The South has always had a tradition of alcohol-making: from the bourbons of Kentucky and whiskies of Tennessee, from modern micro-breweries to the backwoods moonshine that was created when legal liquor production was outlawed. With the rise of Southern wine-making and micro-breweries, many of these businesses have taken to occupying historic structures alongside ghosts.
At some point in the past, a man in Durham, North Carolina died and his body was dumped in a trash bag. When renovations were conducted in the old warehouse that now houses Durham’s Triangle Brewing Company, the human remains were found in a trash bag partially buried in the floor of the basement. Time had taken a toll, leaving only bones and teeth which could not be identified by the Durham Police Department. Not even a date could be established for the remains.
Presumably, the remains were buried in a local cemetery, though with spirited libations and good cheer, the anonymous man is now celebrated as the “patron saint” of a brewery and it may still be his spirit that rambles about the building. According to the spirit’s page on the brewing company’s website, he’s a good sort of spirit who occasionally whispers, moves things, and knocks darts off the dart board. The owners of the brewery have decided to keep him on and have dubbed him “Rufus.”
When he gets a bit rowdy, they pour a beer down the drain to sooth his antics.
Unfortunately, the Triangle Brewing Company will be closing with one last toast in April. Hopefully, Rufus will find a new home.
Sources
Rufus. Triangle Brewing Company. Accessed 23 April 2014.
Shaffer, Josh. “Durham brewery celebrates 7 years of Rufus the sudsy specter.” The News-Observer. 16 March 2014.
Talon Winery Tasting Room 7086 Tates Creek Road Lexington, Kentucky
Unlike the anonymous spirit spreading cheer around the Triangle Brewing Company, Talon Winery’s resident spirit has possibly been identified: none other than famed Lexington transvestite, Sweet Evening Breeze.
James Herndon—known best as “Sweet Evening Breeze” or “Miss Sweets”—is considered “the city’s most colorful character.” The transgender blog, TransGriot, states that Herndon “often wore makeup, occasionally performed or appeared on Main St. on Saturdays in drag, and was apparently quite effeminate. Long before there was RuPaul, Lexington’s Sweet Evening Breeze was titillating and gaining respect from the locals.” The biographical sketch ends by stating that Herndon “cut a path as an openly gay man, drag queen, and possibly a transgendered person.”
In an article from LEX18, Lexington’s NBC affiliate, Herndon is described—somewhat incorrectly—as “a man who liked to wear wedding dresses back in the 1950s.” The article quotes the owner of the winery, “if they go to the stairway that’s where they see the white wedding dress with the dark hair.”
According to what little history that can be found on the winery, the house was built in the 1790s, quite possibly by Isaac Shelby, the state’s first governor. Of course, some of the previous owners have remained in the house and staff reports that children have been seen peering from the windows of the house.
Sources
“Agritourism and wine: A natural pairing.” Agritourism Monthly. February 2014.
