Right now, most people are focused on the White House for one reason – who’s going to be the next president. But, you know me – I am focused on it to talk about the ghosts of the White House.
That’s right, one of the most famous houses is America is reportedly haunted. Over the years, visitors as well as staff and residents have reported seeing ghosts and experiencing strange phenomena in the White House.
The White House became livable for presidents in 1800, with John Adams being the first to move in. Since then, every president has lived in the White House and some people claim past residents still live there.
One of the most frequently seen ghosts is that of Abraham Lincoln, maybe due in part to the tragedy that befell him. Some believe that Lincoln even dreamed about his own fate. Supposedly, the president had a dream shortly before his assassination where he made his way to the East Room after hearing noises. He found several people gathered around a body. When he asked a soldier who was dead, the soldier said, “The president is dead.” It is said that Lincoln even told his wife Mary of this dream.
His ghost has been seen or his presence felt by many famous people including royalty. Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands reportedly answered her door after hearing a knock, saw Lincoln’s ghost, and then promptly fainted. Even Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover, and Harry Truman have claimed to have heard rapping on their bedroom doors that could not be explained. Was it Lincoln?
(This image by Thomas Le Mere is in the public domain because its copyright has expired.)
The wife of President Calvin Coolidge saw the ghost of Lincoln in the Oval Office, staring out the window towards the Potomac. Winston Churchill said he saw the ghost of Lincoln standing by a fireplace in a bedroom. President Reagan’s daughter Maureen said she and her husband saw Lincoln’s ghost several times. She also said their dog refused to enter the Lincoln bedroom. Others, such as Eleanor Roosevelt and Carl Sandberg, just felt a presence of the great president.
Stay tuned tomorrow to find out who else haunts the White House.