“Then away out in the woods I heard that kind of a sound that a ghost makes when it wants to tell about something that’s on its mind and can’t make itself understood, and so can’t rest easy in its grave, and has to go about that way every night grieving.” –Mark Twain
Huckleberry Finn knew about ghosts, and his creator, American literary treasure, Samuel Clemens, better known by his pen name Mark Twain, loved to tell a good ghost story.
Between 1874 and 1891, Mark Twain lived in this stately Hartford home with his wife and three daughters. During his stay in Hartford, Twain penned some of his greatest works including Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. Mark Twain called his years in this home the happiest and most productive years of his life.
By 1891, financial problems forced Twain to move to Europe so he could earn money on a speaking tour. While overseas, tragedy struck the family. In 1896, Twain’s beloved daughter Susy died from meningitis. The family thought it would be too difficult to live in their Hartford home again without Susy, so the mansion was sold in 1903. The building later served as a boarding school, library, and then a museum dedicated to Mark Twain.
The most prominent ghostly figure in the home today is that of a young woman in a long white dress who has been seen gliding along the hallways, stairways, and hovering in Susy’s former bedroom. We can only speculate that this is the spirit of Mark Twain’s daughter returning to the place she was happiest. In addition, several guests, staff, and investigators believe that George Griffin, the family’s butler, still makes his appointed rounds in the house. Several employees of the museum acknowledge that there’s a spirit to the building, and they often feel like they’re not alone inside.
You’ve seen this place on Ghost Hunters now investigate for yourself! Legend Trips is the first group to be allowed inside to hold an event like this. Don’t miss it!