Cooperative Living October 2016 - 16

CoverStory | Story and Photos by Audrey T. Hingley, Contributing Writer
History and Hauntings
Mysterious goings-on add spice to heritage-rich settings in Virginia.
I
n a state filled with historically significant sites, it's not
surprising that nearly 200 places in Virginia claim ghostrelated
goings-on. History, legend and public fascination
with ghosts all contribute to " ghost tourism " in Virginia.
Here are four Virginia sites overflowing with history -
and, some say, ghosts.
(Above) Originally built in 1747 as Quantico Church's vestry house, the Weems-Botts House was used
by both George Washington's first biographer Mason Weems and attorney Benjamin Botts, who used
it as a law office while defending Aaron Burr, former vice president under Thomas Jefferson, at Burr's
famous treason trial. (Top right) " Mary's Room " : Mary Merchant lived here until age 18. Many ghost
legends revolve around the Merchant family, who owned the home for 100 years. (Bottom right) Erica
Bridges, assistant director of the Weems-Botts House.
Weems-Botts Museum, 3944 Cameron Street, Dumfries, Virginia
Dumfries is home to the WeemsBotts
Museum, a 1749 house originally
built as a church vestry house. Named
for Mason Weems, George Washington's
first biographer, and Benjamin Botts, an
attorney who served on Aaron Burr's
defense team during Burr's infamous
1804 treason trial, the building was
used by Weems as a bookstore and by
Botts as a law office. The nonprofit
Historic Dumfries Virginia, Inc.,
oversees the property, which is owned
by the town of Dumfries and leased to
Historic Dumfries. It opened to the
public in 1974.
Although assistant director Erica
Bridges says " the entire location is
haunted, " many ghost stories revolve
14 | Cooperative Living | October 2016
around the Merchant family, who owned
the house from 1858-1968.
The house has been featured on TV's
My Ghost Story and will be included in a
2017 episode of the Travel Channel's The
Dead Files.
But legend doesn't always equal reality:
some say Mary Merchant, who died in her
20s, was kept in a room at the house and
fell down stairs to her death. Not true,
Bridges says.
" The upstairs bedroom on the
Victorian side of the house we call Mary's
Room, and she did live there until age 18.
But she was sent to Western State Asylum
in 1901 and passed away in 1906, " she
explains. " She was diagnosed as having
'epileptic dementia'; as far as we know,
she died from tuberculosis. "
Bridges says some of the 16,000
people who visit annually have
reported " apparitions, shadow people
and EVP (electronic voice phenomena)
collected on digital recorders. "
The museum hosts nighttime " Ghost
Walk " tours every weekend in October;
visitors must call ahead to book a tour.
Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for
students for the Ghost Walk tours.
Ghosts notwithstanding, Bridges
says visitors can expect " a lot of great
history ... people go away feeling they
have learned something new. "
www.historicdumfries.com
(703) 221-2218
www.co-opliving.com

http://www.historicdumfries.com http://www.co-opliving.com

Cooperative Living October 2016

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