A truly haunted house.
A few weeks ago, while driving around the countryside, I passed by the "Spirit House" in Georgetown, NY. No, it's not a bar or liquor store, but was built as a meeting place for the Spiritualist society in the mid-19th century. Timothy Brown was a farmer who settled in Georgetown in the 1850s. Between 1864 and 1868 he designed and built his unique house based on a vision he received in a dream. He and his family lived in the first floor of the house. On the second floor he built a large room in which to hold his Spiritualist meetings. The Spiritualist movement was very strong in Central New York. After a few years, in order to accommodate the crowds, Brown bought an empty Presbyterian church, had it moved to his property, and attached it to the back of his house.
The Spiritualists believed that a medium could make contact with the spirits of the dead by conducting a séance.
For a time, the Spirit House was a busy gathering point of Spiritualists. It is reported that one of the mediums who came to the Spirit House to conduct a séance had a notebook containing information obtained from local cemeteries. Once their fraud was discovered, the residents of Georgetown became distrustful of the Spiritualists who visited the Spirit House, and the house’s heyday as a spiritual center was over.*
1.
This is an 1879 engraving of the house from a Spiritualist magazine, The Banner of Light.
2.
There are 4 pilasters on the front and each side of the house, made with a scalloped texture.
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4.
The triple-layered cornice with odd turned pendants and bandsawn scrollwork was created based on Brown's dream.
Brown did all of the carpentry himself, recreating the vision from his dream. He believed that square corners in rooms could trap spirits, so all the rooms in the house had rounded corners. The closets in the house were considered "safe havens" for the spirits.
Brown built his Spirit house with a concave roof which channeled all the rain water into a large pipe in the center of the house. Today the house sits empty. In recent years, the house has not been well maintained. The roof and central drain pipe deteriorated, and water pouring down into the center of the house has done considerable damage.
*Read More: The Legend Of The Georgetown Spirit House ~ CNY Paranormal | https://lite987.com/georgetowns-spirit-house-cny-paranormal/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral
The Spiritualists believed that a medium could make contact with the spirits of the dead by conducting a séance.
For a time, the Spirit House was a busy gathering point of Spiritualists. It is reported that one of the mediums who came to the Spirit House to conduct a séance had a notebook containing information obtained from local cemeteries. Once their fraud was discovered, the residents of Georgetown became distrustful of the Spiritualists who visited the Spirit House, and the house’s heyday as a spiritual center was over.*
1.
This is an 1879 engraving of the house from a Spiritualist magazine, The Banner of Light.
2.
There are 4 pilasters on the front and each side of the house, made with a scalloped texture.
3.
4.
The triple-layered cornice with odd turned pendants and bandsawn scrollwork was created based on Brown's dream.
Brown did all of the carpentry himself, recreating the vision from his dream. He believed that square corners in rooms could trap spirits, so all the rooms in the house had rounded corners. The closets in the house were considered "safe havens" for the spirits.
Brown built his Spirit house with a concave roof which channeled all the rain water into a large pipe in the center of the house. Today the house sits empty. In recent years, the house has not been well maintained. The roof and central drain pipe deteriorated, and water pouring down into the center of the house has done considerable damage.
*Read More: The Legend Of The Georgetown Spirit House ~ CNY Paranormal | https://lite987.com/georgetowns-spirit-house-cny-paranormal/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral