Longwood Mansion – Haunted Mansion in Natchez, Mississippi

Longwood Mansion stands as America’s largest octagonal house and its most famous unfinished dream. The palatial estate towers six stories above the Mississippi landscape with its distinctive Oriental Revival architecture. Construction began in 1860 under the vision of wealthy cotton planter Hattie and Dr. Haller Nutt. The outbreak of the Civil War halted construction forever, leaving the upper floors as exposed brick shells. Only the basement level was completed and inhabited by the heartbroken Nutt family. Today, visitors report ghostly hammering sounds and the apparition of Dr. Nutt himself wandering his incomplete masterpiece.

The mansion’s tragic history makes it one of Mississippi’s most compelling haunted locations. Dr. Nutt died in 1864 from pneumonia, broken-hearted over his unfinished home and lost fortune. His widow Hattie and their eight children lived in the basement rooms for decades. The family endured poverty and despair within walls meant for grandeur and celebration. Paranormal activity has been documented by countless visitors, tour guides, and investigation teams over the years.

Historical Background

Construction on Longwood began in 1860 when Dr. Haller Nutt commissioned renowned Philadelphia architect Samuel Sloan. The ambitious design called for 32 rooms spread across six floors with a Byzantine-inspired dome. Dr. Nutt had amassed enormous wealth from his cotton plantations spanning Louisiana and Mississippi. He envisioned Longwood as the crown jewel of antebellum Southern architecture. The estimated cost of $150,000 made it one of the most expensive private residences ever attempted.

Samuel Sloan sent skilled craftsmen from Philadelphia to construct the unusual octagonal structure. These Northern workers laid the foundation and erected the massive brick walls throughout 1860 and early 1861. The exterior shell was nearly complete when tensions between North and South reached their breaking point. War erupted in April 1861, changing everything for the Nutt family forever. The Philadelphia craftsmen abandoned their tools and fled back North, fearing they’d be trapped in Confederate territory.

Dr. Nutt desperately tried to continue construction using local laborers and enslaved workers. The Confederate government had seized much of his cotton, destroying his cash flow. His attempts to remain neutral and maintain business relationships with Northern contacts made him suspect to both sides. The Union Army eventually confiscated or burned most of his cotton crops. By 1864, Dr. Nutt was financially ruined and emotionally devastated by his impossible dream.

Hattie Nutt moved her family into the only finished floor in the basement level in 1862. The nine basement rooms became home for a family that had expected palatial luxury. Dr. Nutt died on June 15, 1864, at age 48, never seeing his vision completed. Hattie lived in those basement rooms until her own death in 1897. The family retained ownership until 1968 when the Pilgrimage Garden Club acquired the property. Longwood opened to public tours, preserving both its completed basement and hauntingly empty upper floors.

Paranormal Activity Summary

The most frequently reported phenomenon at Longwood is the sound of phantom construction work. Visitors and staff regularly hear hammering, sawing, and footsteps from the unfinished upper floors. These sounds occur during both daytime tours and evening hours when the mansion is closed. Tour guides have investigated the noises countless times, finding no living person present. The sounds seem to come from multiple locations simultaneously, suggesting several phantom workers remain at their posts.

Cold spots plague certain areas of the mansion despite Mississippi’s warm climate. The basement dining room experiences sudden temperature drops of 15 to 20 degrees. Visitors often report feeling watched or followed through the completed rooms. Electronic devices frequently malfunction inside Longwood, with cameras draining batteries instantly. Cell phones turn off without explanation and won’t power back on until visitors leave the property.

Shadow figures appear regularly in photographs taken throughout the mansion. A tall male silhouette matching Dr. Nutt’s stature appears in the rotunda area. Female apparitions in period clothing manifest in the basement parlor and bedrooms. Visitors describe feeling overwhelming sadness wash over them in specific locations. Many people report sudden nausea or dizziness when entering certain rooms. The feelings vanish immediately upon stepping back outside.

Objects move on their own accord in the furnished basement rooms. Chairs rock without anyone sitting in them, particularly in the parlor. Picture frames tilt at odd angles after staff has straightened them. The scent of roses fills rooms where no flowers exist. Tour guides smell cigar smoke in areas where smoking has never been permitted. These olfactory phenomena occur most frequently in Dr. Nutt’s former study area.

Ghost Stories & Reports

Dr. Haller Nutt himself is the mansion’s primary resident spirit. Dozens of witnesses have seen a well-dressed gentleman in 1860s attire wandering the unfinished upper floors. He appears solid and three-dimensional until witnesses realize his clothing is from another era. The apparition walks through the exposed brick rooms, seemingly inspecting the abandoned construction. He occasionally stops and looks upward at the dome, his face expressing profound sorrow.

One tour guide named Margaret documented an encounter with Dr. Nutt in 2003. She was locking up one evening when she heard footsteps above her head. Margaret called out, thinking a visitor had hidden to stay after hours. A man’s voice responded, “I’m still waiting for them to finish.” When Margaret climbed the stairs, she saw a figure in a gray suit disappearing around a corner.

Hattie Nutt’s spirit appears most often in the basement dining room and master bedroom. Witnesses describe a slender woman in a black mourning dress sitting in the rocking chair. Her face appears aged and careworn, matching descriptions of Hattie in her later years. She rocks slowly while staring at the doorway as if waiting for someone. When approached, she fades away like dissipating fog. Some visitors report hearing a woman’s soft crying coming from the master bedroom late in the afternoon.

The phantom Philadelphia craftsmen make their presence known through auditory phenomena. The hammering sounds follow distinct patterns consistent with 19th-century construction techniques. Witnesses hear multiple hammers working in rhythm, suggesting a full crew. The sawing sounds come from the second floor where workers were cutting lumber when war erupted. These ghostly laborers seem determined to complete the job they abandoned 160 years ago.

A particularly disturbing entity haunts the unfinished tower staircase leading to the dome. Visitors report being forcefully pushed while climbing these stairs. The invisible force shoves people backward, creating genuine danger of falling. Three separate visitors have reported bruises appearing on their shoulders after feeling hands grip them. One woman in 2015 photographed her shoulder, showing distinct finger-shaped marks. The identity of this aggressive spirit remains unknown, though some speculate it’s a worker who died during construction.

Children’s laughter echoes through the basement rooms despite no children being present. The Nutt children endured their formative years in these cramped quarters. Witnesses hear playful running footsteps in the hallways connecting the basement rooms. Toys have been found moved from their display positions overnight. A small handprint once appeared on a dusty windowpane in a locked room. Staff photographed it before cleaning, noting its size matched that of a young child.

Most Haunted Spot

The rotunda beneath the great dome is universally considered Longwood’s most actively haunted location. This circular space spans all six stories with exposed brick walls rising toward the unfinished dome. The acoustics create an eerie echo chamber where phantom sounds amplify and distort. Dr. Nutt’s apparition appears here more frequently than anywhere else in the mansion. Visitors report overwhelming feelings of despair and loss when standing in the rotunda’s center.

The temperature in the rotunda drops dramatically without warning, even on sweltering summer days. Multiple paranormal investigation teams have recorded temperature fluctuations of 25 degrees within seconds. Electromagnetic field detectors spike to maximum readings in this space. Visitors frequently experience physical sensations including dizziness, nausea, and pressure on their chests. Photography in the rotunda produces an unusually high percentage of anomalous images. Orbs, light streaks, and shadow figures appear in photos even when nothing was visible to the naked eye.

Can You Visit?

Longwood Mansion is open to the public for tours year-round. The Pilgrimage Garden Club maintains the property and conducts regular guided tours. Standard admission costs $20 for adults and $10 for children under 18. Tours run Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM with the last tour starting at 4:00 PM. Sunday and Monday tours are available during peak spring and fall pilgrimage seasons.

Guided tours last approximately 45 minutes and cover the furnished basement rooms and rotunda. Tour guides share both historical information and paranormal accounts during the experience. Photography is permitted throughout the mansion for personal use. Flash photography is discouraged in rooms with antique furnishings to prevent light damage. Special paranormal investigation tours are offered during October with advance reservations required.

The mansion is closed on major holidays including Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. Group tours for 15 or more people can be arranged with advance notice. Private after-hours tours for paranormal enthusiasts can be scheduled for an additional fee. These special evening tours allow more time in the most haunted areas. Visitors must stay with their tour group and cannot wander the property independently.

Best Time to Visit

Paranormal activity at Longwood occurs throughout the day but intensifies during late afternoon hours. The period between 4:00 PM and 6:00 PM produces the most frequent apparition sightings. Dr. Nutt’s spirit appears most often during the last tour of the day. October and November bring heightened supernatural activity, coinciding with Dr. Nutt’s period of greatest despair. The anniversary of his death on June 15 consistently produces unusual phenomena.

Overcast days seem to amplify the phantom construction sounds heard in the upper floors. Visitors report more intense experiences during Mississippi’s muggy summer months when the contrast with cold spots becomes more pronounced. Thursday and Friday tours statistically produce more paranormal encounters than other weekdays. The mansion is most active during Natchez’s Spring and Fall Pilgrimages when many costumed interpreters are present. Some theorize the period costumes may trigger stronger spirit manifestations by recreating the mansion’s original era.

First-Hand Accounts & Eyewitness Reports

A visitor named Robert Chen documented his 2018 experience in a detailed blog post. He photographed the rotunda and later discovered a transparent figure on the third-floor landing. The figure wore clothing consistent with 1860s fashion and appeared to be looking downward. Robert had seen nothing with his naked eye while taking the photograph. He submitted the image to three photography experts who confirmed no digital manipulation or camera malfunction.

Tour guide Sandra Williams shared her experiences in a 2016 newspaper interview. She described hearing her name whispered while alone in the basement preparing for tours. Sandra also reported finding Dr. Nutt’s study door standing open on multiple occasions after locking it. The door has a functioning 19th-century lock that cannot open without the key. She keeps detailed logs of unusual occurrences and has documented over 50 separate incidents.

A paranormal investigation team from Texas visited in 2019 and captured compelling audio evidence. Their digital recorders picked up a man’s voice saying “never finished” in the rotunda. The voice appeared on three separate recorders simultaneously during a quiet period. Team members also reported being touched by invisible hands while exploring the unfinished second floor. One investigator’s jacket was tugged forcefully enough to tear a button loose. The team classified Longwood as genuinely haunted based on their findings.

Local historian Martha Reynolds has researched Longwood for over 30 years. She interviewed dozens of former tour guides and staff members about their experiences. Martha documented accounts of phantom piano music coming from the basement parlor. The Nutt family piano remains in that room, but witnesses hear it playing when no one is near. The music consists of simple melodies popular during the Civil War era. These auditory phenomena occur most frequently during early morning hours before the mansion opens.

Paranormal Investigations & Findings

The Southern Spirits Paranormal Research team conducted a comprehensive investigation in October 2017. They spent 12 hours in the mansion using thermal cameras, EMF detectors, and audio recording equipment. The team documented 17 separate instances of unexplained electromagnetic field spikes in the rotunda. Their thermal imaging camera captured a human-shaped heat signature moving through an unfinished second-floor room. The signature measured approximately six feet tall and maintained form for nearly 30 seconds before dissipating.

Electronic Voice Phenomena captured during that investigation produced startling results. Investigators asked questions while recording in Dr. Nutt’s basement study. Playback revealed responses including “my house,” “cold,” and “waiting.” The voice patterns matched historical recordings of American Southern males from the 1860s period. Audio analysis confirmed the voices did not belong to any investigation team members. The recordings have been archived and remain available for public review.

A regional television station filmed a Halloween special at Longwood in 2020. The production crew experienced multiple equipment failures throughout the night. Camera batteries drained within minutes despite being fully charged. The crew brought backup equipment which also malfunctioned inexplicably. During filming in the rotunda, several crew members simultaneously heard hammering sounds from above. The audio equipment recorded these sounds, confirming they were not mass hallucination. The special aired with genuine footage of the crew’s frightened reactions.

Safety Warnings & Legal Restrictions

Visitors must remain with their tour groups at all times for safety and legal reasons. The unfinished upper floors contain unstable structures, exposed nails, and construction debris. Access to floors above the basement requires special permission and safety equipment. Trespassing on the property outside tour hours constitutes illegal entry and carries legal penalties. Local law enforcement regularly patrols the grounds due to previous trespassing incidents.

The stairs leading to upper floors are particularly dangerous due to their age and exposure. Rotted boards and loose railings present serious fall hazards. The Pilgrimage Garden Club maintains liability insurance but prohibits unauthorized access to hazardous areas. Visitors who violate safety restrictions will be immediately removed from the property. Anyone injured while trespassing or violating tour guidelines assumes full personal responsibility. Medical assistance is limited due to the mansion’s remote location on extensive grounds.

Local Legends & Myths

One persistent legend claims Dr. Nutt buried gold on the grounds before his death. He supposedly hid Confederate gold and family valuables to protect them from Union troops. Treasure hunters have illegally searched the property for decades despite no historical evidence supporting the claim. Some believe Dr. Nutt’s spirit wanders the mansion because he cannot rest until revealing the treasure’s location. This legend has inspired numerous trespassing incidents and illegal excavations over the years.

Another local story suggests one of the Philadelphia craftsmen died falling from the dome during construction. No historical records document such an accident, but the tale persists among Natchez residents. This legend attempts to explain the aggressive entity that pushes people on the tower stairs. Some paranormal enthusiasts believe this fallen worker blames Southern sympathizers for his death. The story has been repeated so many times that even some tour guides reference it. However, architectural historians maintain that no construction fatalities occurred at Longwood.

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