OF THE
McBRIDE
HOUSE
about the author Cecilia Back (Oklahoma) and her family have lived in the haunted McBride house for over twenty-five years. From an early age, she has witnessed paranormal events and has studied the subject throughout her life.
CECILIA BACK
G H O S T S OF THE
M c B R I D E
H O U S E A TRUE HAUNTING
Llewellyn Publications Woodbury, Minnesota
Ghosts of the McBride House: A True Haunting © 2009 by Cecilia Back. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, including Internet usage, without written permission from Llewellyn Publications, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. First Edition First Printing, 2009 Book design by Donna Burch Cover photo © Cecilia Back Cover design by Kevin R. Brown Llewellyn is a registered trademark of Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Back., Cecilia. Ghosts of the Mcbride house : a true haunting / Cecilia Back. p. cm. ISBN 978-0-7387-1505-6 1. Haunted houses—Oklahoma—Fort Gibson—History. 2. Fort Gibson (Okla.)— History. 3. Fort Gibson (Okla.)—Social life and customs. I. Title. BF1472.U6B568 2009 133.1'2976682—dc22 2009016500 Llewellyn Worldwide does not participate in, endorse, or have any authority or responsibility concerning private business transactions between our authors and the public. All mail addressed to the author is forwarded but the publisher cannot, unless specifically instructed by the author, give out an address or phone number. Any Internet references contained in this work are current at publication time, but the publisher cannot guarantee that a specific location will continue to be maintained. Please refer to the publisher’s website for links to authors’ websites and other sources. Llewellyn Publications A Division of Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd. 2143 Wooddale Drive, Dept. 978-0-7387-1505-6 Woodbury, Minnesota 55125-2989, U.S.A. www.llewellyn.com Printed in the United States of America
acknowledgments My heartfelt gratitude and thanks go to the staff at Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd. My deepest appreciation goes to Vanessa Wright for her patience and guidance. And to my editor, Karl Anderson, for taking on a difficult task and for being so nice. A special thank-you to Kevin R. Brown for creating the cover design and making the book look exactly like I wished it to. Also an enduring thank-you to my husband, Chris, for encouraging me to write about our experiences and share them with others. And also to my children, Froston and D’Evereux, whom I love very much.
contents Introduction . . . 1 Home Sweet Home . . . 7 Now You See It, Now You Don’t . . . 13 She Wants Her Mama . . . 21 The Man in Black . . . 31 Party Time . . . 39 The Victorian Lady . . . 45 Restoration . . . 51 A New Member of the Family . . . 59 The Little Boy . . . 67 Sightings . . . 73 One Stiff Drink . . . 77 Deck the Halls . . . 83 The Unwelcome Guest . . . 89 Firsthand Accounts . . . 95 Up, Up and Away . . . 105 When Mother Comes Calling . . . 111 Cock-a-Doodle-Doo . . . 119 Ghosts Tours . . . 123 The Medium . . . 135 Bed and Breakfast . . . 147 The Aftershock . . . 163 Making a Run for It . . . 169 Knock, Knock. Who’s There? . . . 173 Pets and the Ghosts . . . 179 Conclusion . . . 187
INTRODUCTION
Whether they take place at a haunted casino in Nevada or a warehouse in New York, a plantation in Mississippi or a stately old castle in Ireland, ghostly activities are fairly universal. Ghosts all seem to share the same notorious habits. They turn lights on and off, and sometimes they thump, knock, tap, or rap. At times they leave a pleasant smell like that of flowers or perfume. Other times they can leave a disgusting smell like that of burned wood, or rotting flesh or matter. They usually open and close doors, and sometimes they even leave people with sensations such as a cold prickling of the skin, cold spots or breezes, or—creepier yet—a feeling of being touched.
Ghosts of the McBride House
Then there are the really noisy ghosts that are considered to be poltergeists. They have a tendency to rearrange furniture or other large items, and they can stop clocks, smash glass, and manipulate lights and other electrical objects. The most common disturbance is the sound of loud footsteps. Regardless of how many times we hear of ghosts and their activities, we are still intrigued and mystified by them. It’s only human nature to be curious about the unknown. However, the one thing I did learn in my twenty-five years studying and researching ghosts is that while they all seem to have the same mannerisms, they still have their own unique personalities, just like they had in life. Living in the McBride House has taught me that our four ghosts are full of life and personality, and they still have a real desire to keep living. Many people who have experienced ghosts only see a shadow or a white mist. With our four ghosts, though, it’s all or nothing. Our ghosts either materialize completely or they stay invisible and taunt. Some people speak of seeing ghosts exit through walls or doors. Once again, not with our ghosts—they love to use the doors so they can make a grand entrance or exit. My ghosts shake, rattle, and roll. My family did not give false names to our ghosts, simply because we didn’t want to strip them of their identities and rightful birth names. I would not appreciate someone renaming me after death, and they probably wouldn’t either. We know that one of our ghosts is named Dr. McBride, and we
Ghosts of the McBride House
refer to the other three as the Victorian lady, the little boy, and the little girl. There are several types of hauntings. One such type is that of poltergeists, which I mentioned earlier. Another type is a residual haunting, which is a recording of past events left behind in the surrounding environment. It is thought to be the most common type of haunting. An example would be a traumatic action or event that occurred in a specific place. The event would cause an imprint due to the powerful emotion, and the imprint is stored in that same spot. The event is then played over and over again, repeating itself. The haunting has no interaction with its physical environment or the living people around it; they are considered to be unintelligent in nature. The last type of haunting is considered to be an intelligent one: ghosts are actually present, and they interact with their physical environment as well as with the living people around them. Sometimes these ghosts are tied to a specific person or location. It is not always clear just why they stay and haunt, but it is speculated that they may have unfinished business or that they do not even realize they have died. It takes a powerful spirit to manifest or show itself in full form. Orbs and balls of light are a much easier form for them to assume, because it requires less energy than manifesting their full form. Then there are those spirits or ghosts that just pass through an area or place; it is thought that they are actually on their way to some other place, but are drawn to the area because of a high level of energy. They appear and
Ghosts of the McBride House
enter a location for a little while, then leave. These are also considered to be intelligent hauntings. The ghosts in the McBride House, as you will see, are examples of intelligent hauntings; they are four disembodied souls looking for attention. They are mischievous and playful at times; at other times they can scare us to death, no pun intended. I always imagine them having a great time laughing at us as we scream and run from them. I believe ghosts are everywhere we go, but they are drawn to people who can sense their presence or see them. Some people go through life without ever sensing a spirit or ghost, and I always wonder why that is. I believe the reason may be that some people are just more in tune to the spirit world around them than others, and I believe there are different levels of being in tune and sensing spirits. Growing up in the McBride House, my children, Froston and D’Evereux, became accustomed to the hauntings. They both became aware of the ghosts at a very early age and adapted quite well to them, under the circumstances. That is not to say that they didn’t get scared at times, because they did, and still do to this day. In fact, we all do. My children are grown now. Froston is away in Texas attending Baylor University, D’Evereux is a junior at Fort Gibson High School and my husband, Chris, is still in medical practice. The ghosts remain the same. In order to understand the background of the McBride House, I have included some of the history of the old mili-
Ghosts of the McBride House
tary fort, since they go hand in hand, both in history and hauntings. The age-old question I’m asked is how I can stand to live in a haunted house. The secret is to stay calm (which is next to impossible at times); have a sense of humor (however, I hesitate to laugh at some of their antics); and have a great deal of patience. At any rate, when it really comes right down to it, there are only two solutions: learn to live with them or move. My family chose to learn to live with them, and this is my story.
HOME SWEET HOME
When my husband Chris first saw the McBride House in June of 1982, it was love at first sight. Chris and I had decided to move to Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, after he completed his medical internship in Florida at the end of July. We selected Fort Gibson as our new home because it was close to our parents, it was full of history, and there were no doctors in the community. Chris was the first to see the inside of the stately old house. He flew from Florida to Oklahoma to find both a medical building for his practice and a house for us to live in.
Ghosts of the McBride House
Froston, our infant son, and I greeted Chris at his return to the Tampa airport. Chris was so excited. “Cindy, I found the most extraordinary house.” He beamed. Then he proceeded to take me verbally through each room of the residence. “I felt right at home the minute I walked into the foyer,” he said. “It’s a great place to raise Froston.” Chris was far more excited about finding the house than his future medical building. I was anxious to see the house. Chris and I both love older homes, and I always wanted one to live in. When we moved to Oklahoma after Chris’s internship, I saw the house for the first time. It was an extremely old home in dire need of a complete restoration, a far cry from living in a new condominium on the beach in Florida. But I had decided to give it the benefit of the doubt. Once I entered the front door, the house took on a completely different character. It was like stepping back in time. The rich hardwood floors, the high ceilings, the beautiful staircase, the original light fixtures, and the large windows with custom-made drapes gave this Federal-style house a charm and beauty all its own. As far as I was concerned, I could overlook the flaws for a while if it meant owning the lovely old house. After purchasing the house, I decided to do some research on it. I was trying to find out everything I could about it and the people who once lived in the old historical home, which I later named the McBride House.
Ghosts of the McBride House
After months of research, I found that Dr. McBride and his wife Mary built the house in 1895. Dr. McBride apparently was a very prominent citizen in Fort Gibson as well as the surrounding communities of Muskogee and Tahlequah. George McBride and Mary Norman were students of the last class to graduate from the Tahlequah Indian Seminary before it burned to the ground. Sometime after that, George McBride went east to study medicine. After he received his medical degree, he returned to Fort Gibson, where his parents lived and owned a hotel. After setting up his practice, George McBride married Mary Norman and decided to build her a house fit for a queen. Dr. McBride purchased land across the street from the old military fort, which was built and established in the year 1824, making Fort Gibson the oldest town in Oklahoma. The fort had many soldiers stationed there beginning with the Dragoons, then the Confederate army and, finally, the Union army. The fort has had three famous men at its post, the first being Zachary Taylor, commander of the fort and later president of the United States. It was here where he first met his future son-in-law, Jefferson Davis, a soldier at the fort who would later become president of the Confederacy. And last was Sam Houston, a resident of Fort Gibson and a frequent visitor to the fort, who would become president of the Republic of Texas. It was here that Houston married his Cherokee wife Tina Rogers. The fort itself has had a very colorful history, and along the way it has accumulated many ghosts of its own. The area
10
Ghosts of the McBride House
was nicknamed the Graveyard of the West because so many soldiers died from diseases or were killed in battle. The piece of land that Dr. McBride chose to build his house on was part of the fort, and there was already a house on it. The head steward in charge of the patients across the street at the army hospital lived there with his family. The head steward was a German immigrant, and apparently he did his job quite well—the military fort has a record of the steward asking permission to return to Germany to care for a sick relative; his request was denied. When the military fort tore down the head steward’s house, George McBride quickly bought the property and began building his home. George McBride selected the best carpenters in the area. He wanted the best talent and craftsmanship. George McBride personally oversaw every single piece of material that went into the construction of the house. He inspected every nail, every board, and every building material, and as a Mason, he added his own special touches to the Victorian house through Masonic symbolism. The house was quite large for the time period and location. It boasted sixteen total rooms. It had and still does have a massive foyer with a fireplace and beveled glass doors. All the floors are wood, cut from the finest lumber and then stained and polished until they were a wonderful display for everyone to admire. The house has two staircases, the main one boasting twenty-one steps and four large square landings. The ceilings are almost fourteen feet high. There are three sets of beautiful wood sliding pocket doors leading into the
Ghosts of the McBride House
11
parlor and dining room from the foyer. The house includes a small music room or sitting room and an alcove. There is also a library with a fireplace. One section of the house, the back section, was built and reserved for servants, and has a staircase leading down into the kitchen. After the house was completed, George McBride hired a butler, a maid, and a cook to care for the home he was so proud of. The one thing that Dr. McBride and his wife Mary did not have, however, was children. Mary McBride desperately wanted a child, so she and George McBride decided to adopt one. They applied to a large adoption agency in Chicago. On the application they requested a two-year-old brown-eyed boy. The McBrides did not have to wait long before they received a letter notifying them that their request had indeed been met. Mary and George were delighted and began preparing for the boy to arrive. Dr. McBride sent a private nurse to Chicago to bring the child to his new home. Upon arriving in Fort Gibson from Chicago by train, the nurse and child boarded a carriage that took them to the McBride house, where the new parents were waiting anxiously. The nurse rang the doorbell, and when George and Mary McBride opened the door, they were surprised to find a twoweek-old, blue-eyed baby girl! They kept her.