SEMESTER COLLECTING PROJECT II HAUNTED HOUSE I was Curator of the LaPorte County Historical Museum for 11 years and I'm sure you have most of the information of the historical places in LaPorte County and the people, the homes, and stories of it so I want to give you a story, a true story of an old home in LaPorte where I lived for many years. How much time do I have to do this?

JG: We have no------

MK: Well, you better turn It off while I look at my stuff down here. On a Spring tour of the LaPorte County Historical Society in May the 9th, 1959, I gave this program and it's about the house that we, our address, we called It 918 I Street, LaPorte, Indiana, and that is where the Medical Center Is now. They destroyed the house. Put the Medical Clinic there. This house was built by Dr. George Andrew for his wife Catherine Andrew and as you all know she lived to be 100 years old. The house was built when she was a young lady. George and Catherine were married in 1944. Years ago she used to have her companion bring her out in a wheelchair but she would never come Into the house because she said she did not like living in it because the house set on a hill and there were no trees and it was either too hot or too cold and very windy. In fact, while the house was being built, a tornado turned it around on its foundation, so the work men bolted the frame of the house together and so far the wind has never been able to even shake the house. Of course all the beams and the butternut woodwork were carved by hand. Catherine Andrew who was one of the founders of the town of LaPorte and this land where they built the house, was part of the Andrew; a, part of the land the Andrews owned In LaPorte County. There have been many owners and many families living in the house and I'm sure without exception, they've all loved the home. Some, however, didn't give it much care. 1944. Years ago she used to have her companion bring her out in a wheelchair but she would never come Into the house because she said she did not like living in it because the house set on a hill and there were no trees and it was either too hot or too cold and very windy. In fact, while the house was being built, a tornado turned it around on its foundation, so the work men bolted the frame of the house together and so far the wind has never been able to even shake the house. Of course all the beams and the butternut woodwork were carved by hand. Catherine Andrew who was one of the founders of the town of LaPorte and this land where they built the house, was part of the Andrew; a, part of the land the Andrews owned In LaPorte County. There have been many owners and many families living in the house and I'm sure without exception, they've all loved the home. Some, however, didn't give it much care. We owned the house from 1904 to 1948. It was purchased by our family from a family by the name of Dunn. During their ownership, they tore down five rooms about the kitchen because they said they had the odor of negro servants. Johnston the hoslter owned the house at one time and he turned it Into a show place. He had carriages drawn by prancing black horses. In the barn were the coachmen's rooms and the walls were papered by pictures from the Police Gazette. When we were young children, my sister and I rigged this room as a playroom and were certainly intrigued with the pictures. Some one of the renters we had scraped the pictures off the wall much to the annoyance of my father. ln some way there was a bell from the kitchen to the coachmen's room. I'm not sure how that worked because of course, there was no electricity in the house. When we bought the house, it did not have any electricity, gas, water, bathroom, and not much of a furnace. We did have a large windmill which pumped water into the kitchen of the house and to a very wonderful system of water pipes all over the yard. You can still find evidence of that system in the yard and we also had several cisterns, and there was a little pump in the kitchen where you could pump the cistern water. We owned the house from 1904 to 1948. It was purchased by our family from a family by the name of Dunn. During their ownership, they tore down five rooms about the kitchen because they said they had the odor of negro servants. Johnston the hoslter owned the house at one time and he turned it Into a show place. He had carriages drawn by prancing black horses. In the barn were the coachmen's rooms and the walls were papered by pictures from the Police Gazette. When we were young children, my sister and I rigged this room as a playroom and were certainly intrigued with the pictures. Some one of the renters we had scraped the pictures off the wall much to the annoyance of my father. ln some way there was a bell from the kitchen to the coachmen's room. I'm not sure how that worked because of course, there was no electricity in the house. When we bought the house, it did not have any electricity, gas, water, bathroom, and not much of a furnace. We did have a large windmill which pumped water into the kitchen of the house and to a very wonderful system of water pipes all over the yard. You can still find evidence of that system in the yard and we also had several cisterns, and there was a little pump in the kitchen where you could pump the cistern water. A large room on the back of the house which we called the glass room had not always been in that location. It had been at the gate and was used as a watch factory. Mr. Frank Morrison, a, he told me that he worked there when he was a very young man and he asked permission to leave to be married. His employer gave him permission provided he would get someone to take his place while he was gone. He did and much to his sorrows, because when he returned from his honeymoon, his employer liked the other man better and Mr. Morrison was out of a job. This man who had the clock factory gave Mr. Morrison a clock as a wedding gift and the Frank Morrison house is right over there by the Methodist Church. A large room on the back of the house which we called the glass room had not always been in that location. It had been at the gate and was used as a watch factory. Mr. Frank Morrison, a, he told me that he worked there when he was a very young man and he asked permission to leave to be married. His employer gave him permission provided he would get someone to take his place while he was gone. He did and much to his sorrows, because when he returned from his honeymoon, his employer liked the other man better and Mr. Morrison was out of a job. This man who had the clock factory gave Mr. Morrison a clock as a wedding gift and the Frank Morrison house is right over there by the Methodist Church.

JG: The yellow house?

MK: That big house right by the Methodist Church, by the Methodist Church parking lot and when they built the house they built their fireplace in the living room. They had a, a, a niche where they have built spaces to hold that clock and that clock's still there. I'm a very good friend of theirs so - a - The grounds were laid out by a man who designed Central Park in New York City. His name was Fredevich hau Ohmstead and he was one of the greatest landscape artists in the United States. And about two years ago, the United States government celebrated the 150th anniversary of his birth and he was written up in papers all over the United States. Wonderful articles. I have a lot of them. He met Dr. George Andrews, the man who built the house. He met him during the Civil War when they were both in Libby Prison and then, and, Mr. Fredevich Ohmstead came to Chicago after the Civil War and he, a, knew where Dr. Andrews was living and he designed the yard. We had three acres in the yard of trees and every tree and every bush that grew in the state of Indiana was planted in that yard. And, a, a, Mr. Ohmstead also laid out Pine Lake Cemetery when he was here. The grounds were laid out by a man who designed Central Park in New York City. His name was Fredevich hau Ohmstead and he was one of the greatest landscape artists in the United States. And about two years ago, the United States government celebrated the 150th anniversary of his birth and he was written up in papers all over the United States. Wonderful articles. I have a lot of them. He met Dr. George Andrews, the man who built the house. He met him during the Civil War when they were both in Libby Prison and then, and, Mr. Fredevich Ohmstead came to Chicago after the Civil War and he, a, knew where Dr. Andrews was living and he designed the yard. We had three acres in the yard of trees and every tree and every bush that grew in the state of Indiana was planted in that yard. And, a, a, Mr. Ohmstead also laid out Pine Lake Cemetery when he was here. Mrs. Kerwin, a little old lady who lived in the only house near us, an old house on a hill to town, told us when the indians were sent out west to a reservation, that was in 1838, they crossed for days through our field, that was a field south of the house, all built up now, we used to find arrowheads there, so I'm sure her story is true. She also told us about the little lake in the pasture back of the house. The Indians called it "came and went" because sometimes it would be large and then it would almost disappear. When we were children, it was a lovely pond and we would spend many hours playing there. Rowboats had been used on the pond at one time and in the story that Mrs. Kerwin, wrote about her experiences in LaPorte, she came here as a little girl with her parents, she spoke about the pond. It was so clear and so, such a beautiful place, Indians camped around It when they were going back and forth. Mrs. Kerwin, a little old lady who lived in the only house near us, an old house on a hill to town, told us when the indians were sent out west to a reservation, that was in 1838, they crossed for days through our field, that was a field south of the house, all built up now, we used to find arrowheads there, so I'm sure her story is true. She also told us about the little lake in the pasture back of the house. The Indians called it "came and went" because sometimes it would be large and then it would almost disappear. When we were children, it was a lovely pond and we would spend many hours playing there. Rowboats had been used on the pond at one time and in the story that Mrs. Kerwin, wrote about her experiences in LaPorte, she came here as a little girl with her parents, she spoke about the pond. It was so clear and so, such a beautiful place, Indians camped around It when they were going back and forth. Johnston the hostler wrote a book called, Twenty Years of Hostting. He had a boat. Mrs. Andrews daughter, Mrs. Sarah A. Shafer wrote, The Day Before Yesterday. It was written about her childhood in LaPorte and so it must have some reference to and recollections of this home. Now she wrote several books and they're very nice books. Some of the Andrews girls had scratched their names and dates on the window pane in the living room. Of course, a tenant in recent years broke that window pane. The little bent pine tree across from the island, we named everything. The driveway around a piece of land. We called that land the island. Now that tree was suppose to be bent by the Indians as a marker on the trail, it was bent like this, you know. Johnston the hostler wrote a book called, Twenty Years of Hostting. He had a boat. Mrs. Andrews daughter, Mrs. Sarah A. Shafer wrote, The Day Before Yesterday. It was written about her childhood in LaPorte and so it must have some reference to and recollections of this home. Now she wrote several books and they're very nice books. Some of the Andrews girls had scratched their names and dates on the window pane in the living room. Of course, a tenant in recent years broke that window pane. The little bent pine tree across from the island, we named everything. The driveway around a piece of land. We called that land the island. Now that tree was suppose to be bent by the Indians as a marker on the trail, it was bent like this, you know. The lilac hedge at the gate was planted years and years ago. In fact, my father had a post card written by Dr. Andrews telling him that the hedge was 75 years old and the card was dated 1907. I believe I gave that card to Dr. Robert Wilcox when the house was sold to him by my sister and me in 1948. One day when I was doing some work in a downstairs closet, and was on a ladder, and I heard something fall on the floor behind me and on Investigating, I picked up two nickels and two pennies. The pennies were dated 1876 and 1877, and the nickels were dated 1867 and 1869. My daughter and I searched the place and could not find where they dropped from, which is certainly very strange because, you can imagine, how many times the closet had been cleaned, washed, and painted in all those years. The 1877 penny was a very rare one, I sold It for $115.00, I wish I'd kept it. One day when I was doing some work in a downstairs closet, and was on a ladder, and I heard something fall on the floor behind me and on Investigating, I picked up two nickels and two pennies. The pennies were dated 1876 and 1877, and the nickels were dated 1867 and 1869. My daughter and I searched the place and could not find where they dropped from, which is certainly very strange because, you can imagine, how many times the closet had been cleaned, washed, and painted in all those years. The 1877 penny was a very rare one, I sold It for $115.00, I wish I'd kept it. Of course the house has a ghost. Now when I was giving this program, we were in the house, and the house had been sold at that time to the Robert Zimmerman's, the paint man, you know, down, you know, the paint and wallpaper man, and his children were there so I didn't want to say too much about the ghost, you know, a, I said, a, why everyone knows about the ghost and its not apparent to all the people who lived in the house, but for our family, it was very real and constantly present. It had one bad habit, it rang the doorbell. Of course the house has a ghost. Now when I was giving this program, we were in the house, and the house had been sold at that time to the Robert Zimmerman's, the paint man, you know, down, you know, the paint and wallpaper man, and his children were there so I didn't want to say too much about the ghost, you know, a, I said, a, why everyone knows about the ghost and its not apparent to all the people who lived in the house, but for our family, it was very real and constantly present. It had one bad habit, it rang the doorbell. You will note the knob on the outside has to be turned in order to ring the bell. Our ghost never had the least trouble making the bell clang-clang. It would ring and ring and when we would answer it and no one would be there. The strange part that is, it would stop ringing when we went to the door, a, when I went back, a, home, it was during the war and in that big room we called the brass room we made a three room apartment. And Nat and his wife lived there. Then I didn't say one word about the doorbell, but she came to me one day, she was practically petrified. She said there was something very funny going on that that doorbell would ring and ring and she'd answer it and nobody would be there. She didn't understand it. Well I told her and from that time on she didn't never answered the door. I had to do it myself. For the sake of those who live here now, I will not go into the other details of a ghostly nature. But I will say they always rather admired us because, a, one never knew what it would do next. Now that, when they sold the house to, a, Doctor Wilcox, we'd been friends always, all through school and he was, he'd been in the house many, many times, and he always wanted to hear, hear that bell completely ring, he owned the house for seven years, and never, heard it ring. When the house was sold to Bob Zimmerman's family, the first night they were in there they heard the noise that we use to always, use to always hear, and I didn't even start the story. It was like, now this Is dumb, I know, I am no big, you know, you can't explain, and I don't know how to explain it. But every once in a while it might be in the day time or, it happened once in the day time with me, or it could be at night you'd hear this terrific explosion, it sounded like, oh, maybe a plane that had broken the air barrier, that could be it, sure. On the first night that Bob Zimmerman was in the house they were getting ready to go to bed, it happened, it frightened them almost to death, almost petrified they didn't know what it was and the next day he want down and asked all the neighbors, and nobody heard anything, they didn't dare to say ghost. And he went out and bought a revolver. Well, I can remember when we were little children living there we hadn't been there very long, but that's before we had electricity or anything my father had that put in, in, water and everything in the house, later but, this was, a, when we just moved there. I remember being awakened in the night by my parents talking and they had to carry a lamp around in their hand and they'd heard this terrible crash. And then it sounded like somebody was being pulled up and down the stairway with chains and all kinds of noises, just terrible noises, and a, of course they were frightened, they didn't know what it was, they never heard such things before. We were sensible people, that surprises people, silly to me, that you can't explain it. You will note the knob on the outside has to be turned in order to ring the bell. Our ghost never had the least trouble making the bell clang-clang. It would ring and ring and when we would answer it and no one would be there. The strange part that is, it would stop ringing when we went to the door, a, when I went back, a, home, it was during the war and in that big room we called the brass room we made a three room apartment. And Nat and his wife lived there. Then I didn't say one word about the doorbell, but she came to me one day, she was practically petrified. She said there was something very funny going on that that doorbell would ring and ring and she'd answer it and nobody would be there. She didn't understand it. Well I told her and from that time on she didn't never answered the door. I had to do it myself. For the sake of those who live here now, I will not go into the other details of a ghostly nature. But I will say they always rather admired us because, a, one never knew what it would do next. Now that, when they sold the house to, a, Doctor Wilcox, we'd been friends always, all through school and he was, he'd been in the house many, many times, and he always wanted to hear, hear that bell completely ring, he owned the house for seven years, and never, heard it ring. When the house was sold to Bob Zimmerman's family, the first night they were in there they heard the noise that we use to always, use to always hear, and I didn't even start the story. It was like, now this Is dumb, I know, I am no big, you know, you can't explain, and I don't know how to explain it. But every once in a while it might be in the day time or, it happened once in the day time with me, or it could be at night you'd hear this terrific explosion, it sounded like, oh, maybe a plane that had broken the air barrier, that could be it, sure. On the first night that Bob Zimmerman was in the house they were getting ready to go to bed, it happened, it frightened them almost to death, almost petrified they didn't know what it was and the next day he want down and asked all the neighbors, and nobody heard anything, they didn't dare to say ghost. And he went out and bought a revolver. Well, I can remember when we were little children living there we hadn't been there very long, but that's before we had electricity or anything my father had that put in, in, water and everything in the house, later but, this was, a, when we just moved there. I remember being awakened in the night by my parents talking and they had to carry a lamp around in their hand and they'd heard this terrible crash. And then it sounded like somebody was being pulled up and down the stairway with chains and all kinds of noises, just terrible noises, and a, of course they were frightened, they didn't know what it was, they never heard such things before. We were sensible people, that surprises people, silly to me, that you can't explain it.

JG: Did anyone ever see a ghost?

MK: Hum?

JG: Did you ever see a ghost?

MK: No they, they put about 8 months ago a real nice article about the house. Oh, because ruh, something, college, her college work you know, paper work and she said that one of the Zimmerman girls did. But I haven't talked to him about it. And one day not to long ago I met Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman and I said umm, are you glad that they destroyed that ghost house, and he said no, but I never, I think it's the worst thing I've ever heard of. To tear down that house. It was beautiful at the time. Now those gorgeous trees they just cut them all you know and destroyed everything. But that's the way, that's progress. Sometimes I don't think to much of progress. But that's how it was. Well, now that's about the extent of the talk I gave I didn't mention that noise because I didn't want to frighten the Dorman children not knowing they had already heard it and Mr. Dorman came right over to me to talk to me, about and he'd, they'd talked about it many times. About their strange things. Well, as I have said I gave this material to a great many students but the best one the best written one was written by Ray Marshall. Mr. Marshall and huh, she tells them, she tells Ella, the same as I did. One, one thing, everybody when the Indians were taken west in 1870 a young Indian girl died and she was buried on the place.

JG: So that's the explanation for it.

MK: That's what I think she's trying to get out..(Laughter) I don't know, but, we always used to laugh about that. But this old Mrs. Curland told me that she was buried there and Mrs. Curland's son, he was a man a lot older than I am, and he told her about it and he said the Andrews family knew where she was buried and they planted a lilac bush over her grave. Now there were many lilac bushes and I never could find just which one it was you know. And uh, this uh, they said uh, Woodrow says the house was linked to the underground railroad. But that is not true. That just wasn't true at ail. We were --, One night, whilst I was staying there I talked to him about it they were awaken by a terrible noise in the kitchen, like somebody had opened the door and thrown a body on the floor. They went out and there was nothing. The door was closed and there was nothing. And uh, well you can't explain it. There's just no way to --, They didn't feel that they were making things up they weren't. But, uh, one night they had guests there in the house when it happened and I can remember them going around with a revolver trying to find what It was.

JG: I don't suppose people laughed about it then, we're laughing about it now and I don't suppose people laughed about it then.

MK: We did.

JG: oh, you did.

MK: We did, it didn't bother any of us. It felt we, in the beginning but we got so use to it you know, ya never know what was gonna happen. You never know what was gonna happen. And it was, it - it was, mostly the same long the same line as far as we were concerned with the terrible crashes and these noises of something being dragged up and down the stairs a lot of noise like it was chains or something and the noise with the body being thrown in, into the house so, uh, we didn't make it up. And then, Mr. Zimmeman had money fall out of the wall too. That wall in the downstairs closet. She had some quarters, and in the landing on the front stairway, the stairway went up and at the top of the landing, way up, this way, and this way you know the landing, and that window up there had been an outside door, big door, but not our outside door big door, and that led into the other part of the house you see, that had been destroyed. And that's where the whole thing had come from, was where, was the, the other side of the house. Above the kitchen and through there. Hum, one of the Zimmerman girls was alone up stairs setting her hair, the doorbell rang, and nobody was there when she answered it. And there were no footprints left in the snow, the top half of the door was a glass window so the second time the doorbell rang the Zimmerman, Zimmerman could see that no one was there. But the doorbell turned to, the same. She locked the door and went back upstairs, later when she came back down the door was standing wide open and snow was blowing inside. There were still no footprints leading up to the house on the steps of the porch. It opened the door that's what's so strange, you know. The Zimmerman's say that the most impressive fact about this ghost is that there was always a feeling of a presence. They say one could be walking down the upstairs hall and be able to tell someone was also walking down behind them. There was a movement heard on the floor and a movement felt in the air, he would turn around to tell a member of the family and nobody was there. Also when someone walked dawn the hall, many of the doors would close as they passed. Well, I never had that happen. Also, we've had knocks on the bedroom doors, when my little daughter was about three years old and put her down for a nap. And she was sound asleep and I heard her calling come in, come in. So I went up to see her and I asked her what was the matter, and she said someone was knocking on the door, and that happened, we've had that happen. Lots of time. So you know. You can't, I - I don't - don't mind him playing. So that's about, that's about it, and uh, and then there was the fella who bought and he didn't take care of it.