The Mark Twain house resides on a perfectly mowed lawn, with a straight path-way leading you to the front door of the house. Before you’re even allowed to enter, you must go down the staircase and into the neighboring modern-like building and buy a ticket for the nighttime Ghost tour. There you will be greeted by a staff member who stands alone, waiting for the entire group to silence themselves. The tour guide holds up an antique looking candle encased in a glass box, to guide the way to the main entrance of Mark Twain’s beautiful mansion.
As you walk outside, you can see the house painted in a brassy red, with intricate designs around the circumference of the house, while glass windows are perched up high, with candles waiting to greet you as you come through the door.
Taylor and I first experienced the Mark Twain house in the middle of March, while the wind howled, and the night grew colder by the minute. We stood outside as the tour guide gave a simple summary of the Twain family and who they were. She shared with us what the tour would be like, and how we might encounter someone who was a part of another life.
As we walked to the entrance, I began to feel a cold chill run through the back of my spine. My heart started pumping, and Taylor and I looked at each other in confusion… What were we about to get ourselves into? The door creaked open, and the group filed in one after the other. We stood in the center of the main entrance, where the lights had been dim as if candles were the only source of light available. The main staircase stood still as it had wrapped on the first, the second, and also on the third floor, with a carpet coating covering the wood.
The woman had welcomed us into the house and showed us the library, and the dining, which had been connected to the living room. As we huddled into the living area, Taylor and I had made our way into the back of the group, standing between the dining room and the living area. Moreover, at the other end of the dining room, there was a closed door which was the entrance into the slaves quarters. As I stood still listening to the woman talk about Twain and his paranormal lifestyle. Just then, Taylor stopped listening to the tour guide and had focused on something other than the present conversation. She had snapped her head to the dining room entrance (while we were still in the living area), while holding a look of confusion stood still on her face. She tapped my shoulder anxiously and told me to stay still, and listen. I tried to drown the tour guide out, as i listened carefully to what sounded like a woman talking to another person. Her voice was monotonous, but had been rather low (like Alto low), and Taylor and I couldn’t explain it. Before we labeled it paranormal, we had to make sure it wasn’t just our imagination or another person. All of the sudden, the voiced had returned in the similar brassy tone, as we quickly raised our hand to ask the tour guide several questions. We had said that we just heard a woman talking behind the door of the slaves quarters, and we asked her two questions. 1.) Is anybody else here? 2.) Is there another tour happening? After we asked the two questions she had replied with a NO as we entered into the dining room. and at this moment… Taylor and I were still in shock.
After we had moved into the Dining Room where more encounters had begun. Taylor and I had heard footsteps going back and forth, where it was a fact that Mark Twain was someone who never really sat down to eat dinner. He would always pace back and forth on the hardwood floor of his guests. This is another mystery that Taylor and I cannot solve…
Through the night we also heard noises of door handles jingling, which would occur on a different floor than we were on. On the third floor that evening, Taylor also felt extremely sick to her stomach. Instead of saying with the group she had to sit down to relax. Her stomach was in knots and her face was flustered. She was confused, and had just wanted to leave the floor as quickly as she could. As we headed to the slaves quarters next, Taylor looked at me and said “Dean… I feel fine.” Now we don’t know what to put this under, because Taylor could have 1.) Been extremely sensitive to the EMF readings in the house or 2.) She was experiencing something paranormal.
I would highly recommend visiting this house, because it is drenched in history, relating to Mark Twain and his family, but also to the residents who lived their after he did. It use to be the home to boys at an academy. You can go to the Mark Twain House website to look up ticket information, but make sure to get tickets for the night tours. They are totally worth it. If you can’t make it to the house. look up the past episodes from Ghost Hunters and watch the evidence they have found. Experience this place for yourself… you will not leave without some type of paranormal experience. Remember to keep you mind open, and your ears available to the world around you. Mark Twain might be closer than you think.
Haunted World 