Do you believe in ghosts? I’d like to but I’m still unsure. I tend not to believe in anything that can’t be proven by science or religious doctrine. Here are several ghost stories that claim to have been “proven.” I’m yet to be convinced.
The Ghost of Abraham Lincoln is said to have haunted the White House right up until extensive remodeling during the Truman administration. Theodore Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover and Harry Truman have all claimed to have heard unexplained knockings on their bedroom doors and claim it was Lincoln’s ghost; Calvin Coolidge's wife claims several sitings at the Oval Office window; Eleanor Roosevelt’s maid claims to have seen him sitting on a bed pulling off his shoes; Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands answered his knock at her door and Winston Churchill also exchanged greetings with him. Eleanor Roosevelt and Carl Sandburg, Lincoln’s biographer, both claim strong senses of his presence near the window of the Oval Office whilst the Reagans’ dog refused to enter the Lincoln bedroom and often stood outside the room barking.
Another ghost story supposedly proven is the ghost of Archer Avenue. Resurrection Mary was killed when struck by a car on Archer Avenue in Justice, Illinois, whilst hitchhiking her way home after dancing at the O. Henry Ballroom. Today she stops you on Archer Avenue asking you to take her to a certain location, she then tells you to stop when you reach Resurrection Cemetery. Apparently she has long blonde hair and blue eyes and wears a white dress.
In August 2008 millionaire businessman and his family had to leave recently purchased Clifton Hall in Nottinghamshire. They heard screams in the hallways, saw mysterious figures in bedrooms and blood spots appeared on his baby’s clothes. His wife found a girl glued to the television set at about 5 in the morning whilst her daughter was found fast asleep in her own room. This is a ghost story supposedly proven because a paranormal investigation team said the hall was the "most active" place they had ever seen.
This is the inspiration behind Stephen King’s The Shining. Staff members hear lots of noises in the grand ballroom when it is empty and hear loud childish giggles in the hallways when there are no children around. Guests have claimed ghosts enter their rooms to watch them sleep. Although the TV program Ghosthunters was able to provide rational explanation for some of the paranormal shenanigans, none of the sounds of the ballroom could be explained, leading those who believe to claim this to be a ghost story proven.
The ghost of Kate Morgan haunts the Hotel Del Coronado in California. She was found dead 11/29/1872, a few days after checking in. Ever since, guests say they hear noises from one particular room and lights switch on and off by themselves. The death was alleged suicide but has been the source of great speculation and the subject of many books. The story of Kate Morgan appears on many lists of ghost stories supposedly proven, but in 2008, the Hotel removed all references from their website and stopped general circulation of their book. Other books remain in circulation.
This plantation in St. Francisville, Louisiana, is said to be home to at least 12 ghosts, the most famed of which is Chloé. There are a couple of stories as to why Chloé haunts the Myrtles. One is that she liked to eavesdrop and in punishment for catching her one day, her owner cut off her ear. She retaliated by trying to poison him but ended up killing his wife and daughters instead. Chloé was killed by fellow slaves who were annoyed with her. The other is that she was forced into being the plantation owner’s mistress. This is a pretty rubbish story really. Chloé was supposed to have been owned by the Woodruff family but there is no record of any slave called Chloé or any derivation in their inventory and also one of the daughters supposedly killed lived well into adulthood.
The second wife of Henry VIII was beheaded in 1536 and her ghost is said to haunt the St Peter as Vincula chapel of the Tower of London where she is buried. She’s in good company, because as she wanders the Tower with her head under her arms, she could bump into Henry VI, Lady Jane Grey, the Princes in the Tower and Margaret Pole, another woman beheaded on the orders of Henry VIII. Anne Boleyn is also said to leave the Tower to wander the streets of London.
Whilst writing up these ghost stories supposedly proven, I found my skin covered in goose pimples a couple of times. Still, I’m not convinced yet. Are you?
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