13 - Ghosts and Family Legends: The Old French Gentleman's Story

I step tentatively into a dark upstairs bedroom in what is known as America's most haunted house. The room closes in on me, heavily... waiting.I'm alone in the dark, the only light filtering through the lacy curtains from the street lamps below. I feel a wave of melancholy wash over me as I sit down on the creaking wooden floorboards. I switch my recorder on and set it on the floor beside me."Violet, are you here?"Hello and welcome to your weekend hauntwith Spook Lit, an audiobook club by dreary dendrophileI’m your host Lyns, and I’ll be reading aloud our spooky stories. Thank you so much for being here. I really hope you enjoy.Thank You & UpdatesFirst, I want to thank you for all the feedback you've given me about this book and the podcast format. I really appreciate it. After today, we only have three chapters remaining in this book! That's bananas. I'll be reaching out soon with a list of potential options for our next book, and I'd love your opinions. If you have any ideas, feel free to share them in the comments or send me a DM.This Week's StoryThis week in Ghosts and Family Legends, we're reading "The Old French Gentleman's Story." I apologize in advance - even though I studied how to pronounce every French word, I most certainly butchered them all. Please don't come for me! Our author Catherine Crowe painstakingly gathered stories in several languages, and I'm trying to do her work justice. Thank you for your patience.Family Curses & The Whaley House InvestigationOur story this week reminded me of family curses and the fascinating history of the Whaley House. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to investigate the Whaley House in Old Town, San Diego, California.The Cursed FoundationThe house was built on land that had previously been used for executions, most notably that of Yankee Jim Robinson, who was hanged there in 1852. Thomas Whaley was present at the execution and later built the house on the same spot.“Being built on the county’s execution grounds, people believed the house was cursed even before several deaths took place there. Time Magazine wrote, “Its earliest ghost was ‘Yankee’ Jim Robinson, who was hanged on the site in 1852.” It is said that people watched him struggle for more than half an hour before Robinson finally died, according to Whaley House Tour Guide Shep.” – UCHS CommanderThe Whaley Family TragediesAfter the family moved in, they experienced a series of deaths and tragedies inside the house, including a child who died of scarlet fever and another who accidentally ingested poison. Multiple deaths and misfortunes plagued nearly every family member who lived there, leading to the theory that something malevolent was tied to the house.The story that stuck out to me was that of Violet Whaley, who married a cheating con man attempting to use her for her family inheritance. She divorced him, but later died by suicide because of the scandal.My Encounter with VioletI heard that Violet's spirit is mostly felt in her room, but occasionally she wanders into the family theater. I felt a deep sense of sadness in her room and spent a lot of time sitting there quietly, speaking to her softly and listening for responses. Her story was very upsetting to me on a personal level, and I was hoping to make a deeper connection.When I introduced myself, she (or somebody) sighed heavily into my recorder. A few minutes later, when I asked "Is anyone here?" she responded "Yes." (I'm including those EVPs in the podcast audio - let me know if you think I'm mistaken or if you hear anything else.)The Theater EncounterAfter a while, I moved to the theater at the end of the hallway. As the Whaley House museum explains: “Besides being the Whaley family home, it was also San Diego’s first commercial theater, the second county courthouse, and a bilingual general store. The home became such an integral part of the community that it was later the focal point in a battle between Old Town residents and New Town residents.” - The Whaley House MuseumA few of my fellow investigators were setting up mag light flashlights for communication. We'd been having good luck getting responses through the lights on the stage. While I was instructing someone on how to set up the mag light, you can faintly hear a voice whisper "Thomas" in the background, presumably referring to Thomas Whaley or Thomas Whaley Jr. being present in the theater. I'll include this EVP audio as well.Meeting the Whaley Family Spirits (including Dolly the Dog!!)The best part came later in the dining room while we were talking to Mrs. Whaley via dowsing rods. Another investigator sitting on the floor in the doorway said she felt a nudge on her back. We asked Mrs. Whaley if their family dog, Dolly, was in the room, and the rods pointed to the same doorway. I was dying to meet the animal spirits in the house, and that night we got visits not only from Dolly but also from Winks the cat!During our debrief, another investigator mentioned she'd been scratched. Right as that was happening, the Ovilus spit out the words "scratch" and "nails." Holy smokes! I was surprised by this encounter - all the spirits seemed super chill and friendly to me.Final Thoughts on the InvestigationI honestly didn't know much about the history of the Whaley House before I came. I saw an episode long ago on Celebrity Ghost Stories with Regis Philbin about the house, and that's about it. I had a 5:00 AM flight the next morning, so I booked a last-minute late night ghost hunt at the Whaley House rather than booking a hotel for the night.I'm not sure if I would have gone had I done more research on the history, but I definitely don't regret it. I really enjoyed meeting everyone at the Whaley House, and the investigation was perfect. The host was incredibly respectful and knew the spirits well, including their preferred tools and methods. The other investigators were all strangers to me, but they all seemed to have a lot of integrity, and I enjoyed meeting them.The spirits were incredibly active and the house felt very much loved and cherished, despite its infamous past. I was so grateful they took the time to talk to us. I'd be more than happy to spend another night in that house, preferably solo.What’s Lurking on Spook Lit:Next week: We continue Ghosts and Family Legends with "The Swiss Lady's Story." Only three chapters left!Until then, thank you for listening to Spook Lit. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments.Want to join the book club?Support Spook Lit for just $2.50/month* Get full access to all audiobook chapters* Receive new episodes with original text photos* Help keep independent media hauntingCan’t swing a paid subscription?Recommend dreary dendrophile on Substack or send a one-time donation to support the podcast and join the club!Credits:Special thanks to: The Whaley House and Derby-Pendleton House for hosting this after-hours paranormal investigationAudiobook: Ghosts and Family Legends by Catherine CroweChapter: "The Old French Gentleman's Story"Music: "Horror Spooky Piano" by Nikita Kondrashev on PixabayArtwork: Jeff BentLinktree: https://linktr.ee/drearydendrophileAll Spook Lit Audiobooks are public domain.Hauntingly yours,dreary dendrophile Get full access to dreary dendrophile at drearydendrophile.substack.com/subscribe