As many of you know, we managed to get inside one of the most famous area landmarks, Elijah McLeans Restaurant last last year for a ghost hunt. As far as I know, I believe we are the first ghost hunters to be allowed officially inside to make contact.
Working on the new book about Washington Ghosts, which will be out before Halloween, I had been doing a lot of research on this mansion. Aside from the amazing history of the family, there are a plethora of stories from people working there about the spirit activity. During the research, I came across a story from the 1870’s in which a local school teacher, Louisa Falls, accused the doctor of making advancements and promises to marry her which he did not keep.
While today, in most places, the woman would have been believed and, as we saw from the recent trial (and yes, it was a public trial without the benefit of judge or council), of Judge Brett Kavanaugh, the man will be destroyed whether any evidence exists or not. However, at this time and in spite of the good works she had done in caring for her sick mother, teaching school and working within the church, the woman was considered a “trollop” or, as was said in the July 25th, 1875 edition of the St. Louis newspaper The Daily Globe-Democrat,
“There is a touch of pathos in the story that comes from an interior Missouri town, concerning the botherment of a certain Dr. Elijah McLean at the hands of an absurd female schoolteacher.”
“…defending himself in an action of Breach of Promise to marry one Louisa Falls, a whimpering virgin of 35.”
”…and as to the embraces and labial ding, they were all the work of the said plaintiff, who entered him into a darkened room and then and there took said liberties with him.
“It is the old, old story, dating back to the disastrous apple-picking in the Garden of Eden, and repeating itself anew almost every day in the world.”
While working in the front parlor with Danielle Grotewiel, who runs the ghost tours of downtown Washington, we made contact with a spirit claiming to be Louisa Falls, and she had a different story to tell.
Of course, I can’t say with any certainty that we really were speaking to the ghostly girlfriend, or what we were told was true. However, whichever spirit we did speak with had strength of conviction, or a lot of power to not only cross or separate the rods, but set off the K2 meter and, at one point, cross the room in a mist form upon request.
Keep watching for the next book, which will be about the hauntings of Washington.
Spookstalker 