 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
|
The Myrtles Plantation was built in 1796 by General David Bradford and called
Laurel Grove. He lived there alone for several years, until being pardoned for his
role in the Whiskey Rebellion in 1799. He then moved his wife Elizabeth and their
five children to the plantation from Pennsylvania. One of Bradford's law students,
Clark Woodruff (or Woodrooff) eventually married Bradford's daughter, Sara
Mathilda, in 1817. After the death of David Bradford in 1808, Clark and Sara
Woodruff managed the plantation for Elizabeth Bradford. They had three children:
Cornelia Gale, James, and Mary Octavia.
In July of 1823, Sara Woodruff died from yellow fever. Clark Woodruff continued
to manage the plantation with his mother-in-law. In July of 1824, James died of
yellow fever as well, and his sister Cornelia Gale succumbed to the disease in
August of that year.
When Elizabeth Bradford died in 1830, Clark Woodruff and his daughter Mary
Octavia moved to Covington, Louisiana, and left a caretaker to manage the
plantation. In 1834, Woodruffe sold the plantation, the land, and its slaves to
Ruffin Gray Stirling. Woodruff eventually died in New Orleans in 1851. It is said
that one day the doorbell rang. Clark answered the door. The man at the door
shot him. So then he went up seventeen steps and died on the seventeenth step.
His picture hangs on the wall next to the seventeenth step. His footsteps are
reportedly heard by some visitors.
Stirling and his wife, Mary Catherine Cobb, undertook an extensive remodeling of
the house. When completed, the new house was nearly double the size of the
former building, and its name was changed to The Myrtles. The Stirlings had 9
children, but five of them died young. Stirling died in 1854 and left the plantation
to his wife.
In 1865, Mary Cobb hired William Drew Winter to help manage the plantation and
as her lawyer and agent. Winter was married to Mary Cobb's daughter, Sarah
Mulford. Sarah and William Winter lived at the Myrtles and had six children, one
of whom died from typhoid at the age of three. Although the Winters were forced
to sell the plantation in 1868, they were able to buy it back two years later.
In 1871, William Winter was shot by an unknown man on the porch of the house
and died. Sarah remained at the Myrtles with her mother and siblings until 1878,
when she died. Mary Cobb died in 1880, and the plantation passed to Stephen,
one of her sons. The plantation was heavily in debt, however, and Stephen sold it
in 1886 to Oran D. Brooks. Brooks sold it in 1889, and the house changed hands
several times until 1891, when it was purchased by Harrison Milton Williams.
Over the next several decades, the land was split up and owned by various
Williams heirs. In the 1950s, Marjorie Munson owned the house itself. Munson
apparently noticed odd things happening around the house and began to
question neighbors about its history. This is possibly the beginning of some of
the legends surrounding the Myrtles. The plantation changed hands several more
times and was restored in the 1970s by owners Arlin Dease and Mr. & Mrs.
Robert Ward. At some point the house changed hands again, being bought by
James and Frances Kermeen Myers. The Myerses apparently believed the house
was haunted, and it began to be featured in books and magazines about haunted
houses. Frances, publishing as Francis Kermeen has written a book about the
Myrtles and its supposed haunting. The house is now a bed & breakfast and
offers historical and mystery tours, and is owned by John & Teeta Moss. It is
listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Touted as "one of America's most haunted homes", the plantation is supposedly
home of at least 12 ghosts. It is often reported that 10 murders occurred in the
house, but historical records only indicate the murder of William Winter.
Possibly the most well known of the Myrtles supposed ghosts, Chloe (sometimes
Cleo) was reportedly a slave owned by Clark and Sara Woodruff. According to
one story, Clark Woodruff had pressured or forced Chloe into being his mistress.
Chloe and Clark were caught by Sara Woodruff, and Chloe began to listen at
keyholes, trying to learn what would happen to her. Other versions of the legend
have Chloe listening in at keyholes to learn news of Clark Woodruff's business
dealings or for other purposes. After being caught, either by Clark or Sara
Woodruff, one of her ears was cut off, and she wore a green turban to hide it.
After having her ear cut off, Chloe supposedly baked a birthday cake containing
oleander leaves, which are extremely poisonous. The various legends diverge as
to why she did this, with some saying she was getting revenge on the Woodruffs
and some saying she was attempting to redeem her position by curing the family
of the poisoning. According to the legends, her plan backfired. Only Sara and her
two daughters ate the cake, and all died from the poison. Chloe was then
supposedly hanged by the other slaves, either as punishment or to escape
punishment by Clark Woodruff for harboring her.
The historical record does not support this legend. There is no record of the
Woodruffs owning a slave named Chloe or Cleo. The legends usually claim that
Sara and her two daughters were poisoned, but Mary Octavia survived well into
adulthood. Finally, Sara, James, and Cornelia Woodruff were not killed by
poisoning, but instead succumbed to yellow fever. Regardless of the factual
accuracy of the Chloe story, she supposedly haunts the plantation.
The mirror.There are a variety of other legends surrounding the Myrtles. The
house is reputedly built over an Indian burial ground, and the ghost of a young
Indian woman has been reported. During the Civil War, the house was ransacked
by Union soldiers, and legend claims that three were killed in the house.
Supposedly, there is (or was) a blood stain in a doorway, roughly the size of a
human body, that will not (or would not) come clean. Other legends say that
cleaners have been unable to push their mop or broom into that space. However,
there is no record of any Union soldiers having been shot on the Myrtles property.
A mirror located in the house supposedly holds the spirits of Sara Woodruff and
two of her children. According to custom, mirrors are covered after a death, but
legend says that after the poisoning of some of the Woodruffs, this particular
mirror was overlooked. The uncovered mirror reportedly trapped the spirits of
Sara and her children, who are occasionally seen or leave handprints in the
mirror. These handprints may have been left by workers replacing the glass or
resilvering the mirror.
The plantation is also reportedly haunted by a young girl who died in 1868,
despite being treated by a local voodoo practitioner. She supposedly appears in
the room in which she died, and has been reported to practice voodoo on people
sleeping in the room. There is also a ghost who reportedly walks, staggers, or
crawls up the stairs and stops on the 17th step. Some have said that this is
William Winter, the victim of the only reported murder in the house. Alternate
versions of his murder claim he managed to walk or crawl up the stairs, and
collapsed in his wife's arms on the 17th step. However, this version of the story
is contested. There have been other reports of odd sounds, but they generally do
not have legends attached to them.
Laurel Grove. He lived there alone for several years, until being pardoned for his
role in the Whiskey Rebellion in 1799. He then moved his wife Elizabeth and their
five children to the plantation from Pennsylvania. One of Bradford's law students,
Clark Woodruff (or Woodrooff) eventually married Bradford's daughter, Sara
Mathilda, in 1817. After the death of David Bradford in 1808, Clark and Sara
Woodruff managed the plantation for Elizabeth Bradford. They had three children:
Cornelia Gale, James, and Mary Octavia.
In July of 1823, Sara Woodruff died from yellow fever. Clark Woodruff continued
to manage the plantation with his mother-in-law. In July of 1824, James died of
yellow fever as well, and his sister Cornelia Gale succumbed to the disease in
August of that year.
When Elizabeth Bradford died in 1830, Clark Woodruff and his daughter Mary
Octavia moved to Covington, Louisiana, and left a caretaker to manage the
plantation. In 1834, Woodruffe sold the plantation, the land, and its slaves to
Ruffin Gray Stirling. Woodruff eventually died in New Orleans in 1851. It is said
that one day the doorbell rang. Clark answered the door. The man at the door
shot him. So then he went up seventeen steps and died on the seventeenth step.
His picture hangs on the wall next to the seventeenth step. His footsteps are
reportedly heard by some visitors.
Stirling and his wife, Mary Catherine Cobb, undertook an extensive remodeling of
the house. When completed, the new house was nearly double the size of the
former building, and its name was changed to The Myrtles. The Stirlings had 9
children, but five of them died young. Stirling died in 1854 and left the plantation
to his wife.
In 1865, Mary Cobb hired William Drew Winter to help manage the plantation and
as her lawyer and agent. Winter was married to Mary Cobb's daughter, Sarah
Mulford. Sarah and William Winter lived at the Myrtles and had six children, one
of whom died from typhoid at the age of three. Although the Winters were forced
to sell the plantation in 1868, they were able to buy it back two years later.
In 1871, William Winter was shot by an unknown man on the porch of the house
and died. Sarah remained at the Myrtles with her mother and siblings until 1878,
when she died. Mary Cobb died in 1880, and the plantation passed to Stephen,
one of her sons. The plantation was heavily in debt, however, and Stephen sold it
in 1886 to Oran D. Brooks. Brooks sold it in 1889, and the house changed hands
several times until 1891, when it was purchased by Harrison Milton Williams.
Over the next several decades, the land was split up and owned by various
Williams heirs. In the 1950s, Marjorie Munson owned the house itself. Munson
apparently noticed odd things happening around the house and began to
question neighbors about its history. This is possibly the beginning of some of
the legends surrounding the Myrtles. The plantation changed hands several more
times and was restored in the 1970s by owners Arlin Dease and Mr. & Mrs.
Robert Ward. At some point the house changed hands again, being bought by
James and Frances Kermeen Myers. The Myerses apparently believed the house
was haunted, and it began to be featured in books and magazines about haunted
houses. Frances, publishing as Francis Kermeen has written a book about the
Myrtles and its supposed haunting. The house is now a bed & breakfast and
offers historical and mystery tours, and is owned by John & Teeta Moss. It is
listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Touted as "one of America's most haunted homes", the plantation is supposedly
home of at least 12 ghosts. It is often reported that 10 murders occurred in the
house, but historical records only indicate the murder of William Winter.
Possibly the most well known of the Myrtles supposed ghosts, Chloe (sometimes
Cleo) was reportedly a slave owned by Clark and Sara Woodruff. According to
one story, Clark Woodruff had pressured or forced Chloe into being his mistress.
Chloe and Clark were caught by Sara Woodruff, and Chloe began to listen at
keyholes, trying to learn what would happen to her. Other versions of the legend
have Chloe listening in at keyholes to learn news of Clark Woodruff's business
dealings or for other purposes. After being caught, either by Clark or Sara
Woodruff, one of her ears was cut off, and she wore a green turban to hide it.
After having her ear cut off, Chloe supposedly baked a birthday cake containing
oleander leaves, which are extremely poisonous. The various legends diverge as
to why she did this, with some saying she was getting revenge on the Woodruffs
and some saying she was attempting to redeem her position by curing the family
of the poisoning. According to the legends, her plan backfired. Only Sara and her
two daughters ate the cake, and all died from the poison. Chloe was then
supposedly hanged by the other slaves, either as punishment or to escape
punishment by Clark Woodruff for harboring her.
The historical record does not support this legend. There is no record of the
Woodruffs owning a slave named Chloe or Cleo. The legends usually claim that
Sara and her two daughters were poisoned, but Mary Octavia survived well into
adulthood. Finally, Sara, James, and Cornelia Woodruff were not killed by
poisoning, but instead succumbed to yellow fever. Regardless of the factual
accuracy of the Chloe story, she supposedly haunts the plantation.
The mirror.There are a variety of other legends surrounding the Myrtles. The
house is reputedly built over an Indian burial ground, and the ghost of a young
Indian woman has been reported. During the Civil War, the house was ransacked
by Union soldiers, and legend claims that three were killed in the house.
Supposedly, there is (or was) a blood stain in a doorway, roughly the size of a
human body, that will not (or would not) come clean. Other legends say that
cleaners have been unable to push their mop or broom into that space. However,
there is no record of any Union soldiers having been shot on the Myrtles property.
A mirror located in the house supposedly holds the spirits of Sara Woodruff and
two of her children. According to custom, mirrors are covered after a death, but
legend says that after the poisoning of some of the Woodruffs, this particular
mirror was overlooked. The uncovered mirror reportedly trapped the spirits of
Sara and her children, who are occasionally seen or leave handprints in the
mirror. These handprints may have been left by workers replacing the glass or
resilvering the mirror.
The plantation is also reportedly haunted by a young girl who died in 1868,
despite being treated by a local voodoo practitioner. She supposedly appears in
the room in which she died, and has been reported to practice voodoo on people
sleeping in the room. There is also a ghost who reportedly walks, staggers, or
crawls up the stairs and stops on the 17th step. Some have said that this is
William Winter, the victim of the only reported murder in the house. Alternate
versions of his murder claim he managed to walk or crawl up the stairs, and
collapsed in his wife's arms on the 17th step. However, this version of the story
is contested. There have been other reports of odd sounds, but they generally do
not have legends attached to them.
Famous Image of "Chloe" Possible Apparitions The Famous Mirror
