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Thomas Nelson House

Categories
Haunted Places

Date of Establishment

Thomas Nelson was well-known though out the 1700s, the house, York Hall, was built in 1730. It now sits on the corners of Main Street and Nelson Street in the historical Yorktown, Virginia.

Name & Location

York Hall became the home of Thomas Nelson, who was an influential merchant before becoming a general in the Revolutionary War, as well as the 3rd governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. He was also known for signing the Declaration of Independence.

Physical Description

York Hall sits on a large property that has been greatly changed from both the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. The grand home was built in Georgian style, simple and balanced in appearance. Made of red bricks with decorative molding under eaves, the home stands three stories tall. It’s trimmed with small white windows all around the up to two stories.

Origin

In 1766 Nelson inherited the house from his father, he raised his family within the home for many years. During the siege of Yorktown Nelson found that Cornwallis and his British troops were taking refuge in Nelson’s family home. He became so enraged he had the house bombed leading to many lost lives. In addition to the Revolutionary War sieges, the house later went on to experience the horror of the Civil War where it was a hospital to care for soldiers. Having so many badly injured the floors and attic were rumored to be stained with a repugnant odor for many years following. In later years a site was found of a second house on the Nelson property, it appeared destroyed by cannon fire as well as holding more British graves.  

Mythology and Lore

The Nelson House has no shortage of supernatural experiences from having such a bloody past. To this day caretakers of the home and grounds experience ranges of supernatural contact with the spirits roaming the grounds. There is a stairway off-limits to visitors because of a soldier’s spirit violently claiming the space. In the twentieth century, reports came of doors to the stairway slamming or being whipped opened violently. Rooms seem to shake, something crashes into the sideboards frequently, and dishes are sent flying to the floor.

There is also the spirit of a British soldier who fell in love with his nurse but died from his wounds before they could be together. Witness have reported seeing his ghost in the attic window covered in blood and waiting for his love to come back. He is also rumored to be the maker of haunting footsteps, cold spots, lights flickering, and objects being moved. There is also a woman’s spirit reported to be sobbing on the 3rd floor and attic of the home; many believe it could be the soldier’s lover and others a family member that cared for the spirits and home after the war.

All across the Nelson grounds, witnesses have reported seeing figures of men dressed in red dashing and ducking behind trees. Some report just seeing the figures of soldiers walking the grounds as if on patrol. Along with the soldier like figures, there is a healthy dose of other spirits roaming the grounds. Visitors and caretakers report various styles of clothing, ages, and genders to these spirits; as well as supernatural experiences. Some seem to be friendly and visiting the house, some like to play tricks, others are darker, but the Nelson House remains one of the oldest haunted places in America today.

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Tomb of J.B. Legare

Categories
Haunted Places

Date of Haunting

The haunting began in 1852 after death within the Legare family.

Name/Name & Location

Julia Legare also is known as J.B. Legare was visiting other members of the wealthy Edisto Island family in Charleston, South Carolina.

Physical Description

The tomb was made of reddish stone and sat inside of the Presbyterian Church grounds with a metal fence surrounding it. Inside of the tomb, you can see 3 tombstones and what looks to be a stone bed on the floor.

Origin

The Legare family lived on Edisto Island during the mid-1800s for some time and becoming a wealthy local family. In 1852 the 22-year-old daughter Julia fell ill and slipped into a coma, and eventually was pronounced dead later. Her legend begins after being entombed in her family’s mausoleum crypt for almost 15 years.

Mythology and Lore

                When Julia fell into the coma her heart and respiratory rates dropped so low the doctors were not able to detect them. This was because of the poor medical equipment they had during this time. The physician declared Julia dead and informed the family. They began to arrange final rites for her at the Edisto Island Presbyterian Church for later that afternoon to lay Julia to rest. She was taken to the Church to await the ceremony, and the tomb was opened and prepared.

                In the 1800s the ceremonial activities were conducted at a rapid pace as they didn’t have embalming fluids yet. So poor Julia was buried the same day as she died after her loved-ones had time to pay their respects to her. Then she was taken from the church to the mausoleum and placed within the crypt. A large marble door was securely closed and locked to secure her final resting place. After 15 years another family death required the Legare family to open their family crypt again. This is when the family realized their horrible and tragic mistake. Julie’s remains were found crumpled at the foot of the mausoleum door; she had been buried alive. It is believed that she awoke from her coma entombed and tried to escape, but sadly couldn’t. The family had her re-entombed within the crypt and the door resealed so she could rest again.

                When they returned to visit her, they found the tomb door would be open, a clergyman at the church would close the tomb again yet the same thing would happen. This happened over decades to elders of the church. They used chains, unbreakable locks, and even called in industrial machinery to seal a door into place. All of them would be open and or unhinged from the mausoleum, the original door still lays broken around the entry to her tomb. Mediums from all over believe she would never allow a door to be sealed so that no one would ever suffer her fate again. The church stopped putting doors on the mausoleum out of hopes her spirit would be able to rest knowing the tomb is safe. Visitors to this day can visit the grounds, some have reported an essence near the tomb. Others have captured pictures that cannot be explained by the caretakers of the cemetery.

Is there anything we missed about the Tomb of Julia Legare? Let us know in the comments section below!

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Tornit

Date of Discovery

While the actual date of discovery is unknown, due to the historically oral tradition that it originated from. It is said that these creatures have existed in story-form since before the Bering Land Bridge, which dates back at least 20,000 years.

Name

The Tornit is likened to the Bigfoot or Sasquatch of the contiguous United States, as well as parts of Canada. It is the Alaskan counterpart, known well in the Inuit culture, that goes by the names of Tornit, Alaska Bushman, or simply Bushman.

Physical Description

More suited for an arctic climate, it resembles the Bigfoot quite a bit in its visage, like giants who are ape-like in demeanor with longer arms and a body covered in a thick dark brown hair, or fur. It stands an intimidating seven feet tall and possessed a strength that was infamous amongst the Inuit people.

Origin

The Tornit stems from the Inuit culture, an indigenous culture of the arctic circle, but since there is no written history of this culture before the late 1800s, only the cultural anthropological studies done on the Inuit tribes during that time can be relied upon for information on their origin. We see that most of the accounts of these stories coming from Newfoundland and Labrador, which reference the modern-day Baffin Bay in Greenland.

Mythology and Lore

They were feared as brutish thieves and killers, although there is some folklore where they were painted as being shy, making themselves scarce, and doing their utmost to avoid encounters with the Inuit people. In the most popular versions of the oral tales, storytellers would talk of these hairy giants that would stalk their villages until nighttime, to steal their food and kayaks—the most important things that these communities possessed. They also spoke of how these creatures would murder villagers who may have gotten in their way.

There are stories that depict the Tornit species as being these murderous villains that they were known widely to be, but there were also stories that spoke the opposite of their character. Alternate versions of the tale suggest that the Tornit would get away with their thievery, but would be tracked back to their own villages where all of the Tornit present, male, female, and any children would be slaughtered by the individual native who had the most stolen from him.

Never to be confused with being an overly intelligent species of humanoid, the overall idea of them can be considered oafish in nature, but not necessarily murderous so much as protective, defensive, or vengeful creatures—possessing only the baser instincts of survival. In certain regions where the Inuit tribes thrived, there were still less popular stories where Tornit and native women intermarried and lived peacefully with those who came and went within their territory.

Modern Pop-Culture References

While not necessarily modern in nature, these books convey the stories of the Inuit people that these creatures originated from.

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Tupilaq

Date of Discovery

The date of origin in Inuit mythology is never clearly known, as this culture used these folklores to pass down enriching and enlightening aspects.

Name

The Tupilaq is also known to be spelled tupilak and tupliait, in Inuit traditional tales.  

Physical Description

Tupilaqs were made in secret and with materials that did not preserve well, but after European visitors became curious about native legends the Inuit began carving representations into whale teeth. Because Inuit cultures are far from being alike the legends do share some similarities. All taking on a haunting appearance or a walurs-like body structure.
            – Igloolik:
                        The Tupilaq is an invisible ghost-like being, the only shaman could see and scare away from running the game off from the area. This Tupilaq acts more like a dead person’s soul restless acting to avenge.
            -Caribou Inuit:
                        The Tupilaq is an invisible being, with a mix match of body parts from different species (chimera-like creature). Only shamans of the settlements could battle away this creature with the help of spirits.
            -Copper Inuit:
                        The Tupilaq flaws more closely to the half-man, half-demon goat from Christianity’s “Devil”.
                       

Origin

In Inuit religion, the Tupilaq is a monster created by witchcraft or shamanism to avenge or destroy for its creator. In tradition, they are created using materials; bone, hair, and or skin from animal or small child’s corpse.

Mythology and Lore

Once created and given life the Tupilaq was placed into the ocean or sea to seek out its target and destroy them. However, tempting this may seem a warning comes with it, if its mission is failed it shall turn to destroy its creator instead. Legends also state that other practitioners that are stronger than you can also send the Tupilaq back hunting the blood of its creator as well.
When the Christian missionaries arrived in the early 1700s, many Inuit were forced to convert leaving their legends like this to be bundled under “Devil’s” work. This did not make the stories however, instead, the mythology became stronger and more well known

Index

Mythical Creatures Catalogue
Science Nordic



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