This project was really fun. I learned a lot I wouldn't have otherwise. All the research I found was really interesting and a good learning experience. Concluding this blog, my reaction to it would be that the White House is truly haunted. I haven't found any stories claiming it's false but a lot that tell about why it is haunted. If I were to visit the White House someday, I would hope to get the full-on ghost experience. Who knows, maybe someday it will happen.

My evidence on the White House being haunted is pictures and just the stories I have read. A lot of people have said they have seen ghosts at the White House. The ghosts aren't mean they are just there visiting their old memories. The pictures on the left are the most clear pictures I have found. They are from the reconstruction of the White House from the 1950's. On the right there is an image that is transparent. It could be a ghost or it could be a blurred image of when he walked in and moved trying to leave. You decide.

pennstateprs.com. Web.October 27, 2010. <http://forums.pennstateprs.com/index.php?showtopic=8108>

During my research, I found a few stories that stuck out to me.  One being Andrew Jackson. Employees of the White House have heard laughing in his room when nobody was in there and believe it to be the ghost of Andrew Jackson. "In 1865, Mary Todd Lincoln reported encountering Jackson's ghost “swearing up a storm”.'(Hauck) I'm curious now to hear other stories of this. Is he coming back from some things people do, or does he just show up occasionally..something to think about. The next thing would be the Rose Garden. Dolley Madison arranged a big rose garden in the west wing of the house. When she passed, Ellen Louise Wilson, didn't want it around anymore so she ordered workmen to dig it up. Dolley Madison's ghost was seen by the workmen as they were starting the renovations. They ran from the site because they were so frightened by her.(wikipedia) Today Dolley Madison's original garden still blooms and is outside of the Oval Office, bordering the house. I guess this means don't mess with a womans garden! An interesting thing I found is called the Washington Demon Cat--"Washington D.C.". It is said that the only time the cat is seen, is when a national disaster is about to happen. It was reportedly seen a week before the 1920's stock market crash and again before the JFK assassination.(Evans) My favorite White House ghost is Abraham Lincoln. It's not just because he is the most reported, or one of the most famous presidents, but because why he "haunts". During Honest Abe's term, his son, Willie Lincoln, died in the Green Office. Lincoln and his wife attended many seances to try and reconnect with him. From what I have read, it seems like he is a friendly ghost. He isn't like some of the other ghosts who come running with a torch in their hands. He's been seen standing in the Oval Office looking out at the Potomac with his hands clasped behind his back, sitting on the bed in the Lincoln bedroom pulling off his boots, and standing by the fireplace. It looks like he is just keeping watch of his old home. There have been so many people say they have seen his ghost but not one person said it was a bad experience. Sure people have been scared, its a ghost, who wouldn't be?! But if I were go to the White House one day, that's the ghost I would want to" run into".

 actual picture

close up

Hauck, Dennis William. "White House Ghosts". haunted-places.com Web. October 22, 2010.

<http://www.haunted-places.com/WhiteHouseGhosts.htm>

Evans, Diane. "Haunings and Ghosts: The Presidential Ghosts at the White House". suite101.com. September 30, 2010. Web. October 22, 2010.

< http://www.suite101.com/content/hauntings-and-ghosts--the-presidential-ghosts-at-the-white-house-a290019>

"White House and the Presidents Park" wikipedia.com. Web. October 22, 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reportedly_haunted_locations_in_Washington,_D.C.>

The construction of the White House first started in 1792 and ended in the 1800's. In 1814 (during the War of 1812), the British soldiers set the White House on fire. In 1929 during Herbert Hoover's presidential time, it was also caught on fire. Later in Harry S. Truman's term, most everything but the third floor was renovated to fix the damage. The White House is still used for Presidents and their families. It has a total of 132 bedrooms, 35 bathrooms and 6 levels. This huge house got its nickname from Theodore Roosevelt in 1901. The White House is believed to be haunted mostly from presidents who have passed on, but there have been cases of people seeing other ghosts. Here is a picture of the White House from the 1800's.



Diana L.M.I. Dawson. "The Haunting of the White House." googobits.com. June 7, 2005. Web.

 October 20, 2010. <http://www.googobits.com/articles/555-the-haunting-of-the-white-house.html>.

"Reportedly haunted locations in Washington, D.C." wikipedia.com. October 19, 2010. Web. October 20, 2010. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reportedly_haunted_locations_in_Washington,_D.C.>.

I have researched the White House in Washington D.C., to see if it is truly haunted. In blogs and websites, people say they have seen a ghost, apparition, or transparent of the presidents, their family members or people somehow connected to the White House. I haven't read one where people thought it was a myth.  I chose the White House because of this statement. From everything I have read, it is sounding more and more true to me. By all the research I have done, nothing has told me it isnt true. There are TONS of stories about people going on tours of the White House and seeing ghosts. I'm curious to see how my findings turn out.