Collection All Hallows' Eve Haunts & Traditions
Today, the celebration of Halloween conjures images of costumed trick-or-treaters, sweets, and jack-o'-lanterns; but there was a time when All...
The President's House: A Notorious Haunt for Ghosts
A skull and candles decorate the Blue Room of the White House for a Halloween reception in 2009. The portrait of President John Tyler in the background, whose spirit reputedly haunts the room, adds to the holiday fun.
Americans love ghost stories, and the White House, a large and imposing mansion where things go bump in the night, has been considered a prime spot for the paranormal for many years. The ghosts of William Henry Harrison (the first president to die in the White House), Abigail Adams hanging her laundry in the East Room, and Dolley Madison overlooking the Rose Garden all add to the White House legend. Of course, Abraham Lincoln’s ghost is the most famous of them all and the subject of many Halloween pranks over the years.
You Might Also Like
-
-
Famous Quotes from White House Workers
The whole family [of President Theodore Roosevelt] were fiends when it came to reading. No newspapers. Never a moment was...
-
White House Ghost Stories
1862-1863: Mary Todd Lincoln, grieving over her son Willies death in February, began to participate in spirit circles or seances...
-
Forgotten Ghosts of the White House
Not all White House ghosts are well-known or have been presidents and first ladies. There are also lesser-known spirits like...
-
Jerry Smith
Jeremiah “Jerry” Smith worked at the White House through eight presidencies. Government documents listed him as a laborer, but he took...
-
Murder and Untimely Tragedy: The Haunting of Lafayette Square
Places believed to be "haunted" are often the setting of an assortment of numerous grisly stories. Lafayette Square, the area...
-
The White House Remembered
In 2005, The White House Historical Association released The White House Remembered,Volume 1: Recollections by Presidents Richard M. Nixon, Gerald R....
-
History in the Camera's Eye
Versailles, Potsdam, and other grand relics of power are all imposing architecture and vistas, one always leading to another— Ossa pi...
-
Demon Cat
The “Demon Cat” apparition is one of the best-known ghost stories in Washington, D.C. It refers to an oversized, mena...
-
The Willard Hotel
During the Civil War, the fighting at times came so close to the capital that the Lincolns could hear the...
-
Seances in the Red Room
Death plagues us all: it is the only certainty in life and plays an integral role in the human experience....
-
Things That Go Bump in the Blue Room
Most White House ghost stories revolve around long-deceased presidents or first ladies, such as Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Dolley Madison,...