The second episode of Files of the Unexplained explores the Ghosts of the Myrtles Plantation. There have been many unexplained occurrences in the Myrtle plantations to date, which many people are seeking answers to. It has become a tourist attraction for people who are intrigued by the paranormal activities. However, the plantations have a very sad history of slavery, which has to be better understood from the perspectives of the experts who have studied the house thoroughly. Is there any truth to the folklore revolving around the Myrtle plantation? Did the tourists really experience paranormal activities at the residence? Let’s find out!
Spoilers Ahead
What Is The History Behind The Myrtle Plantation?
Over the past 40 years, the Myrtle Plantation has been an area of curiosity for paranormal activities. The caretaker, Hester Eby, while showing around the Myrtles plantation, said that it was one of America’s most haunted homes that was located in St. Francisville, Louisiana. The dolls placed in the house were also said to change positions at times. Hester stated that the house was built in 1796 by General David Bradford (who had led the Whisky Rebellion in Pennsylvania). He came to Louisiana to arrange for his daughter’s marriage with Judge Clark Woodruff. Later, when Clark Woodruff took over the plantation after getting married to Sarah, the name of the house was changed from Laurel Hill to Myrtles because of their love for crepe myrtle trees.
Did The Visitors Have Any Paranormal Experiences?
Denise Kidder had been taking a tour around the house, taking pictures, which were all stated to be blurry, and she had also captured an image of a woman inside a mirror at the house. According to Hester, during a house visitation, a little girl was seen talking to someone, asking if they were hungry. There were several other guests who were said to have caught sight of a young apparition named Chloe. There were reports of many visitors seeing unknown figures walking around the house in period clothes.
David Young, a paranormal investigator who had come to examine the paranormal activities inside the house, along with his wife, is said to have had strange experiences. He had seen the windows vibrating the moment he stepped inside the house. In one of the pictures he clicked, he captured a creepy little girl climbing out of the window. He had also had terrifying experiences of seeing swooshing chandeliers and someone grabbing his ankle from under the bed. However, all the films that he had made at the house were mysteriously burned.
What Was The Folklore About Chloe?
Mary Thompson, a frequent guest, said that there used to be a slave girl, Chloe, living in the house in the early 1800s. It is said that Judge Woodruff took in a house servant (a Black woman) whom he had been abusing.
Troy Taylor, a writer and researcher, is of the opinion that Chloe was traumatized, but she took all the abuse to avoid working on plantations (worst of all). One day she was caught eavesdropping on the family, and her left ear was cut off as a punishment. It is said that she then plotted to make herself important to the family again. Chloe baked a cake for the judge’s elder daughter and put poison in it. Some are of the opinion that she poisoned the cake as revenge, and others say that she did so to make them sick so she could nurse them and make them realize her worth. When Sarah had the cake, she was said to be pregnant, and she immediately passed away along with her other children. When Chloe confessed to her crime, she was hung, and her body was thrown into a river. However, records stated that Sarah had died of yellow fever, and the following summer, her children had also died from the same disease. Later, Judge Woodruff sold the house to the Sterling family, who had also faced tragedies there (only 4 of their 9 children survived). The house had many stories and had been sold and resold many times.
Are The Paranormal Stories True?
Dr. Karen Stollznow researched the area and came to the conclusion that the folklore kept changing with time and that there was no authenticity to the stories. She stated that the folklore was a part of the house, and it was more important to focus on the sad history of the house than just on the paranormal activities. In the 1950s, when Marjorie Munson took over the plantation, she must have heard about the story of Chloe, and that must have stuck with her, bringing out stories of the ghost in the “green turban” on the Myrtles plantation.
What Opinions Did Morgan Moss Have?
Morgan Moss, the owner of the property, stated that his family purchased the property in 1992 because they didn’t care much about its history. He said that his mother had taken pictures of the property to re-insure it for next year. After she submitted the pictures to the insurance company, they called and said that there was a person in all the pictures. He strongly believed in the presence of the supernatural on his property!
Do The Folklores Signify The Struggles Of The Slaves On The Plantation?
As per John Bardes, a history professor, the Myrtle plantation is part of a 200-year-old history of the time when White-skinned Americans were trying to make profits out of plantations. They forced their wills upon the enslaved people to grow cotton, but when the industry collapsed in the early 20s, the White Americans were enraged and wanted to maintain their supremacy over the people of color. This violence has been carried forward, and as a result, racial violence is still an active problem in America. John further stated that a diary of a planter at the Myrtle plantation had been found. It recorded the torture of 100 slaves on the plantations. They were kept under inhumane conditions and tortured on a regular basis. Many people are opposed to the idea of tourism on plantations, as real people were tortured and lost their lives there.
Final Words
There is a lot beyond explanation about the Myrtle plantations, and its history is completely unclear. We can’t just jump to conclusions by listening to folklore about the place! It is possible that stories of paranormal activities are just a part of the facade to maintain the tourist inflow at the place. However, the experiences of all the visitors cannot completely be ruled out! There may be some truth to the stories heard, but the constant additions to them make it hard to get a hold of the real history of the property. The apparitions that remain at the property are just figments of the trauma over the inhuman tortures that some people faced at the hands of the so-called superior race during those times.
