Haunted Hallows’ Eve at The Mount

LENOX – The night began as darkness fell upon a hidden mansion aged yet enduring of a mystical beauty both outside and within its spirited walls. And Edith Wharton and all of her friends were the stars of the evening, as they seemed present, dropping both subtle and blatant cues to some who were sensitive enough to experience ghostly connections.

The Mount’s Halloween Ghost Tour began at 10:30 p.m. on Oct. 31, All Hallows Eve, when it is believed the doorway between the living and the dead opens at midnight. Now 28 souls (four college seniors from RPI, a few sets of couples, a large group in full costume and The Beacon’s reporter) brave enough to fare an evening at Edith Wharton’s said-to-be-haunted country estate left their cars and were led into the old horse stables on the grounds, where nail-biting tales of a hanging and drowning were amidst its spooky spaces.

There in a cold dark room with tall wooden sliding doors and weathered redwood the group was introduced to the estate and to Edith Wharton herself and her accomplishment as one of the most prominent Pulitzer Prize-winning novelists of the era, writing over 40 stories, with The Age of Innocence and The House of Mirth being the most-read. She also entertained such good friends as Henry James, also a well-known writer of the time.

“We’re not here to convince you ghosts exist,” said Robert, a tour guide. “But we would like you to be open to your own experiences here.”

He then showed us the confirmed findings on the estate from the popular show Ghost Hunters, and cider and ghoulish cookies and candy-corn were served.

The stable had quite the eerie feeling being led up the creaky stairway to the loft, where many psychics have been called upon to unlock its mysteries. These psychics told of a hanging. Others have seen floating green lights and red eyes in the dark.

A young girl with child from one of the stable hands was so distraught from the pregnancy she hung herself from the eaves, as well as a possible drowning outside in the nearest well.

Charles Cooke, Mrs. Wharton’s driver, lived in the stable, and it is said his spirit still resides there, as many smell his cigar smoke and out of respect will often say, “Goodnight Charles.”

One woman, who shut down the lights at night, swore he answered back, “Goodnight.”

Next we were led down a winding dirt road and up a steep incline, where dead leaves crunched with each step, to the pet cemetery.

Upon the hill, beneath a full moon, stoney graves stood of the dogs owned by the Whartons and later residents. The pet cemetery location was determined so Mrs. Wharton could see the graves from her bedroom window. She loved her dogs that much.

As we rounded the gardens the profile of the estate stood like a realm to the netherworld with its muted lines and eye-like windows watching.

And soon we arrived at the main house. The entry was nothing like one would imagine a grand mansion’s foyer to appear; in fact it was quite modest, yet symmetrical and inviting. On the wall was written an excerpt from Mrs. Wharton’s 1892 short story “The Fullness of Life.”

She often drew parallels between houses and human characters. She wrote, “I have sometimes thought that a woman’s nature is like a great house full of rooms: there is a hall, through which everyone passes; the drawing room where one receives formal visits; the sitting room, where the members of the family come and go…but beyond that, are other rooms, the handles of whose doors are never turned; no one knows the way to them, none knows whither they lead; and in the innermost room, the holy of holies, the soul sits alone and waits for a footstep that never comes.”

As we were led down the darkened hallways, up and down stairways with only our flashlights to guide us, it made for a hair-raising experience.

Teddy Wharton had a sitting room below Mrs. Wharton’s. It is said he was severely bipolar, even though it wasn’t diagnosed back then. Creeping into its stark whiteness gave it a sterile appearance and the feeling of a hospital space, where people felt confined.

In the small library there are two chairs placed in front of the fireplace, where whispers have been heard and a drawing room where a large print is placed on an easel of a photo taken by a guest in which a mysterious figure seemed to materialize in the picture.

Up another set of stairs we came to a room where an intense feeling of suffocation was apparent to some guests as a man had once passed there.

Edith’s room and Teddy’s room connected, where it was said at one point they could not hide volatile arguments, and there one of the guests saw the large black shadow with red eyes which roams the house at night.

Next it was to the servant’s quarters, where the sweet smell of flowers could only be smelt by few guests.

There were many signs to be sure of ghostly inhabitants, and as a little girl, Edith herself was always afraid of ghosts and the paranormal until she found a way to bring them into her work.

The bewitching hour passed, as did some unexplained happenings by some of the guests. We can only hope those who remain finally find peace.

When leaving the estate a photo was taken where if one looks closely might see in one of the windows the form of a woman dressed in period clothing that appears to be Mrs. Wharton herself, perhaps saying, “Goodbye.”

Posted by Janel M. Harrison on November 8, 2012. Filed under Community Events. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry