The Louisville
Ghost Hunters Society Presents "Stories From Beyond"
The
Gray Lady of Liberty Hall
By Sharon Brown
The historic mansion of Liberty Hall lies between Lexington
and Louisville Kentucky, at 218 Wilkinson Street in
Frankfort Kentucky. The address contains the name of the
young general who applied and received a land grant for the
property that is now downtown Frankfort. James Wilkinson
built the town by proceeding to name the streets using names
of friends, famous persons and places.
Wilkinson’s original streets form the boundaries of three of
the four sides of Liberty Hall’s Historic Site.
Wilkinson sold the tract of land to Frankfort resident
Andrew Holmes. Holmes never lived on the property.
Fact: In 1796 Andrew Holmes sold the tract of land to
Kentucky’s first United States Senator, John Brown.
Fact: For the next 41 years this would become the residency
of John Brown.
Fact: The architect is unknown but John Brown designed some
of the house, which is a Federal style.
Fact: The mansion was built in 1796 and remained in the John
Brown family until 1937.
Fact: The main haunting that occurs within Liberty Hall are
not those of John Brown, according to sources.
There have been reports of cold chills, the opening and
closing of doors and strange lights in the house at night.
The spirit belongs to a prim and proper lady dressed in a
gray dress. The story is told that John Brown’s daughter had
passed away. To comfort and support the grieving parents a
relative by the name of Mrs. Varick traveled some 800 miles
from New York. Mrs. Varick was 65 years old at the time and
the journey proved to be too much for her. Three days after
her arrival she had a heart attack and passed away.
Mrs. Varick was not returned for burial in New York but was
buried on the grounds of Liberty Hall. Years later she was
moved to an unknown cemetery. Mrs. Varick is not alone. It
is rumored that Liberty Hall is home to two other spirits
.One of the two spirits was an opera singer that was
performing in Frankfort, in 1805. She came to Liberty Hall
for a party and was never seen again. She was last seen in
the garden.
The last spirit is thought to be of a soldier of 1812. The
young solider had fallen in love with a relative of the
Brown family. He is seen peering into the house from the
outside windows and then sadly walks away.
If you would like to visit Liberty Hall the address is: 218
Wilkinson Street, Frankfort, KY 40601.
Tours are $5.00 for adults. Tours are given March 1st
through mid-December.
Tours are scheduled at 10:30am, 12:00 noon, 1:30 p.m. and
3:00 p.m. on Tuesday through Saturday and at 12:00 noon,
1:30 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Sundays. The garden and grounds
are open seven days a week during daylight hours. Telephone
(888) 516-5101 or (502) 227-2560.
* The
Louisville Ghost Hunters Society Investigations are not always
public, we do confidential investigations of haunted residences which
will not be reported on our website.
If you have a haunted house, or a unexplained phenomenon that you
would like us to investigate - please do not hesitate to contact us,
and rest assured that your investigation will remain strictly
confidential (unless you wish to release our findings to the
public).
The
Gray Lady of Liberty Hall
