Southside
Hollywood
February 21, 2012
History:
In Surry there is a three story brick mansion that is famous for many accounts of paranormal activity. The mansion is known as Bacon’s Castle in honor of the revolutionary Nathanial Bacon. Bacon was a young plantation owner who became upset over the constant Indian attacks on plantations on the Virginia frontier. So in 1676 he decided to do something about it and attacked the local Indian tribe, without permission of Virginia’s Governor. A governor back then was more on par with a military general of today than what we think of when we see governor. They served as both the voice and the sword of the King of England, so basically their word was law. Well Governor Berkley did not want Bacon and his plantation owner followers to attack the Indians as it could result in a war, which would make Virginia, look bad to the crown, possibly resulting in Berkley losing his job. After Bacon’s slaughter of the Indian tribe Berkley put out a notice for his arrest. Long story short, Bacon took his loyal followers and marched on the capital of Jamestown actually taking the city and exiling Berkley, at one point they actually burned Jamestown to the ground. The only thing that stopped Bacon from becoming the next governor of Virginia was a little tiny parasite. On October 16, at the age of 29, Nathanial Bacon died of dysentery and without their leader, the rebellion crumbled. Many of Bacon’s followers fled rather than face certain execution at the hands of the governor.
Bacon’s Castle was actually built by Arthur Allen, a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. Contrary to popular belief the property didn’t get its name from Bacon himself as Bacon never lived in the house, and many suspect he never even visited the manor. It was named due to the fact that Bacon’s loyalists captured the manor a couple of months prior to Bacon’s death, and the by definition, the manor was used as a fort or castle.
Paranormal History:
The paranormal occurrences at Bacon’s Castle started long before even Bacon’s Rebellion. In 1644 a comet streaked across the sky of Virginia, not long after, there was a terrible Indian invasion that killed numerous colonists. In 1675 another comet was seen over Virginia and many colonists saw it as a bad omen of things to come. Then in the spring of 1676 a terrible plague of locusts swept the colony, consuming all the vegetation in sight. Needless to say the colonists were not surprised at Bacon’s conquest that ravaged the colony only a few months later.
After Bacon’s Rebellion, there came to be many stories associated with the castle. One story is that a young doctor and his wife lived there and they had a love that was something special. There is actually a window in the house with a poem scratched into it that the doctor wrote for his wife. Legend has it that his wife died a tragic death at a young age, leaving him heartbroken.
Another story goes that a young woman and her family lived in the castle. Well the woman fell in love with this handsome well to do army officer. They quickly fell in love, however the soldier had to leave to fight a war, but he promised that on his return he would marry the girl. They wrote beautiful poetry confessing their love to one another the whole time he was gone. However, the girl’s mother passed away before he could return. So when the soldier returned and good to his word proposed, she refused saying that she had to take care of her brothers and grief-stricken father. Needless to say the soldier was heartbroken. The story goes that although he later remarried, the soldier and the girl still wrote letters and poetry to one another professing their love to one another until their deaths.
During the 1800’s a young girl and her family lived in the castle. The girl met and fell in love with the boy that lived across the fields at a nearby manor. However, the girl was forced to meet her sweetheart across the field from her house because her father did not approve. Well one night the girl was returning from meeting her lover late at night. As she ascended the stairs with a candle she slipped and her hair caught on fire. Rather than screaming and waking her father and risking him finding out about her secret trips she ran from the house, across the fields in an attempt to get to her lover. By the time she reached him though she suffered fatal burns and died in her lover’s arms. It is also rumored that the girl’s father saw a comet flash across the sky a few nights before the incident but didn’t tell his family for fear of panicking them.
Paranormal Occurrences:
Stories and experiences have been passed down from generation to generation for more than 300 years. There are constant complaints about strange noises, feelings, and sightings. There is a story of a Baptist preacher who was staying in the castle sometime in the early 20th century. He was up late one night reading when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Something then opened the door to the first floor parlor he was in and he said he felt a presence. Then a rocking chair in the room started rocking of its own accord. He then shouted “get thee behind me Satan” and immediately the rocking stopped and the presence vanished. This leads some to believe that the presence that haunts the halls of Bacon’s castle is of a demonic nature. However many others believe that these occurrences are nothing more than the spirit echoes of Bacon’s soldiers, still attempting to carry on the rebellion after Bacon’s death.
Another story is told by that of a former curator of the castle from 1973 to 1981. He said he was awoken around 3am by the sound of his 2 year old son laughing. When he entered the room his son asked “Daddy, where’s the lady.” When he asked what lady his son responded with “the lady with the white hands, she was tickling me.”
A lot of reports of the paranormal seem to take place in the upstairs portions of the manor. A former owner of the castle said that she would hear footsteps on the stairs late at night. She also mentioned that numerous guests of the castle would complain about horrible moaning in the attic. Loud popping and cracking is also heard frequently throughout the house. Many tour guides say that they will feel a presence or a cold chills.
However, despite this veritable feast of paranormal activity there is one occurrence that stands above the rest. There is an old graveyard, attached to Old Lawne’s Creek Church, a few hundred yards away from the castle. Eye witnesses say that on occasion a “pulsating ball of red-fire” will rise up from the graveyard and soar about 30 feet in the air. No one can explain what this ball of fire is, though many have speculated. There have been theories ranging from scientific manifestations to it being the Prince of Darkness himself. Either way, many witnesses have seen this ball of fire over the years, in the 1930’s a whole church congregation even saw the phenomenon.
There is a story of a young servant boy who would always put off his chores. His mother threatened that the fireball would get him if he didn’t do them in a timely manner. Well the story goes that one day as the boy was coming in from the fields the fireball rose into the sky and chased him. When it caught him the legend says that it touched the top of his head and set it on fire. The boy ran back home on fire and died in his mother’s arms. Shockingly similar to the story of the young lover no?
Some believe the fireball is a manifestation of the poor star-crossed lover as she runs across the field with her hair on fire, or perhaps the young boy. Yet others see it as homage to the comets that foretold the tragedies of early colonial Virginia.
Future Visits:
The castle is currently owned and operated by Preservation Virginia. It has been restored and is currently a museum. General Admission is $8.
*****The Preservation Society in charge of the castle has cited some deficiencies and they are currently in the middle of renovations. As of 2011, the castle is closed to visitors and no date of reopening is listed as of yet.
Works Cited:
The Ghosts of Virginia: Volume 1, Baffling Revelations at Bacon’s Castle, By L. B. Taylor, Jr.
Preservation Society Website: <http://www.apva.org/BaconsCastle/>
True Ghost Stories: Fireballs at Bacon’s Castle, VA, By Traci Poole <http://www.network54.com/Forum/4228/message/990454948/Fireballs+at+Bacon%27s+Castle,+VA>
Wikipedia: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacon%27s_Castle>
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