Waverly Plantation Mansion – Haunted Mansion in West Point, Mississippi

Nestled deep in the Mississippi countryside stands Waverly Plantation Mansion, a stunning antebellum masterpiece frozen in time. This Greek Revival architectural wonder has captivated visitors since 1852 with its extraordinary octagonal cupola and self-supporting spiral staircase. The mansion rises four stories high, each level revealing secrets of the Old South and the spirits who refuse to leave. Waverly’s grandeur makes it one of Mississippi’s most photographed historic homes, but its beauty masks darker stories within.

The mansion earned its haunted reputation through decades of tragedy, loss, and mysterious occurrences reported by countless witnesses. Paranormal investigators rank Waverly among the South’s most actively haunted locations, with phenomena documented in nearly every room. The spirits here aren’t shy about making their presence known to visitors who dare explore its corridors. Former owners, slaves, and Civil War soldiers are believed to walk these halls long after their deaths.

What makes Waverly particularly unsettling is the intensity and frequency of supernatural encounters experienced by both skeptics and believers. Guests consistently report identical experiences in specific rooms, lending credibility to the haunting claims that surround this property. The mansion’s isolation amplifies the eerie atmosphere, especially after darkness falls across the surrounding cotton fields. Tour guides have documented so many paranormal events they’ve stopped being surprised by ghostly interference during visits.

Historical Background

Colonel George Hampton Young commissioned Waverly’s construction in 1852, sparing no expense to create his dream home. The project took ten years to complete, finally finishing in 1862 as the Civil War raged across the South. Young employed skilled craftsmen who created architectural features that remain engineering marvels even by modern standards. The mansion’s four-story cupola floods the interior with natural light through an innovative design that was revolutionary for its time.

Colonel Young accumulated vast wealth through cotton production, operating one of Clay County’s largest and most profitable plantations. His estate sprawled across thousands of acres worked by enslaved people whose suffering built the Young family fortune. The mansion became the social centerpiece of Mississippi aristocracy, hosting elaborate balls and political gatherings before the war. Young’s pride in his creation was evident in every imported marble mantle and hand-carved detail throughout the home.

Tragedy struck the Young family repeatedly within Waverly’s walls, beginning with Colonel Young’s death in 1880. His wife Lucy passed away in 1885, followed by other family members who died in the mansion over subsequent decades. The property remained in Young family ownership until 1913 when financial difficulties forced its sale to outside parties. During the early 1900s, the mansion fell into severe disrepair as owners came and went without resources for maintenance.

The Snowden family purchased Waverly in 1962, discovering the mansion in a state of near collapse. Robert and Donna Snowden dedicated their lives to restoring every architectural detail to its original glory. Their restoration work took decades and revealed hidden spaces, forgotten belongings, and evidence of the mansion’s turbulent past. The Snowdens documented strange occurrences from their very first night in the house, experiences that continued throughout their ownership.

Civil War soldiers used Waverly as a field hospital and temporary headquarters during Mississippi campaigns of the 1860s. Blood stains discovered beneath later flooring suggest surgical procedures and deaths occurred within the mansion’s elegant rooms. Confederate and Union forces both occupied the property at different times, bringing violence and death to its doorstep. Local historians believe at least seven soldiers died inside Waverly’s walls from battle wounds and disease.

Paranormal Activity Summary

Visitors to Waverly Mansion consistently report seeing full-bodied apparitions moving through rooms on all four floors. Shadow figures appear most frequently on the main staircase and in the second-floor bedrooms where family members once slept. These dark forms move with purpose and intelligence, often seeming to observe visitors before vanishing into walls. Multiple witnesses have photographed these shadow entities, capturing inexplicable dark masses in otherwise well-lit spaces.

Disembodied footsteps echo through empty hallways at all hours, following patterns suggesting someone climbing or descending the famous spiral staircase. The sounds of children laughing and running come from upper floors when no children are present in the building. Doors slam shut with tremendous force despite the absence of wind or drafts within the climate-controlled mansion. Heavy furniture has been discovered moved from its proper position overnight, relocated by unseen hands during closed hours.

Electronic equipment malfunctions constantly at Waverly, with cameras, phones, and recording devices draining batteries within minutes of entering certain rooms. Cold spots materialize suddenly in localized areas, dropping temperatures by twenty degrees or more without explanation. These frigid zones move through rooms as if an invisible presence walks past living visitors. Sensitive individuals report overwhelming feelings of sadness, anger, or fear in specific locations throughout the property.

The scent of roses, perfume, and pipe tobacco manifests without any physical source, particularly in the main parlor and master bedroom. Visitors smell these phantom fragrances most strongly near the fireplace in Colonel Young’s former study on the first floor. The aroma of cooking food occasionally wafts from the mansion’s historic kitchen despite no one preparing meals there. These olfactory phenomena often accompany visual apparitions, suggesting spirits attempting to manifest through multiple sensory channels.

Guests frequently report the sensation of being touched by invisible hands, particularly on the second and third floors. Women especially experience gentle tugs on their clothing or hair as they explore bedroom areas. Some visitors feel distinct pressure on their shoulders as if someone stands directly behind them. These physical encounters rarely feel threatening but leave witnesses deeply unsettled by the undeniable presence of something otherworldly.

Ghost Stories & Reports

Colonel George Hampton Young himself is believed to be the mansion’s most frequently encountered spirit. Witnesses describe seeing a tall man in Civil War era formal attire standing near the windows overlooking the front grounds. He appears most often in his former study, sometimes sitting in the chair where he conducted plantation business. The Colonel seems particularly active when visitors discuss Waverly’s history or the restoration work that saved his beloved home.

Lucy Young, the Colonel’s wife, manifests as a woman in an elegant Victorian dress moving between second-floor bedrooms. She’s often accompanied by the scent of rose water and the sound of rustling silk fabric. Multiple guests have reported a maternal female presence in the nursery room, believed to be Lucy checking on children long deceased. Her apparition appears solid and lifelike until witnesses approach, at which point she fades into transparency before vanishing.

The spirit of a young girl named Eliza has become one of Waverly’s most documented paranormal residents. She died in the mansion during a yellow fever outbreak in the 1870s when she was only eight years old. Visitors hear her giggling in empty upstairs rooms and find small handprints on mirrors and windows throughout the house. Eliza seems playful rather than frightening, often moving small objects and toys left in her former bedroom by sympathetic guests.

Tour guides tell of a Confederate soldier who appears in full uniform standing guard near the mansion’s front entrance. His apparition looks so realistic that guests have mistaken him for a historical reenactor until he vanishes mid-conversation. This soldier reportedly died in the mansion while recovering from wounds sustained at the Battle of Okolona in 1864. His presence feels protective rather than malevolent, as if he continues his duty to guard the property even in death.

A dark, menacing entity lurks in Waverly’s basement areas where enslaved people once worked and lived in deplorable conditions. This presence feels distinctly different from the Young family spirits, radiating anger and centuries of accumulated suffering. Visitors to the basement report overwhelming feelings of dread and the sensation of being watched by hostile eyes. Some witnesses have seen dark figures lunging toward them in basement corridors, causing several guests to flee the lower level in terror.

Staff members consistently report encounters with a woman in a long black dress who appears in third-floor windows. She looks down at the grounds below as if waiting for someone who will never arrive. Local legend identifies her as a Young family member whose fiancé died in the Civil War before they could marry. Her mournful energy permeates the third floor, where unexplained sobbing has been recorded on multiple occasions by paranormal investigators.

The mansion’s kitchen area hosts the spirit of a cook who worked at Waverly during the plantation’s peak operation. Visitors smell food cooking and hear the clatter of pots and pans when the kitchen stands completely empty. This presence seems focused on her work, rarely acknowledging the living who witness her phantom activities. Some guests report seeing a full apparition of an African American woman in period clothing working at the hearth before she dissolves into nothingness.

Most Haunted Spot

The second-floor master bedroom where Colonel and Mrs. Young slept generates the most intense paranormal activity throughout the entire mansion. Visitors report feeling invisible hands pushing them toward the doorway as if urging them to leave this private space. The temperature in this room fluctuates wildly, sometimes dropping thirty degrees within seconds before returning to normal just as quickly. Full-bodied apparitions appear most frequently here, particularly near the antique bed where both Colonel and Mrs. Young eventually died.

The bedroom’s energy feels heavy and oppressive, causing some guests to experience difficulty breathing or sudden onset headaches. Electronic equipment fails more consistently in this room than anywhere else in the mansion. Photographs taken in the master bedroom frequently show orbs, light anomalies, and misty figures that weren’t visible to the naked eye. Even hardened skeptics admit to feeling unwelcome in this space, as if intruding on something intensely personal and private.

Tour guides report that the master bedroom door often locks itself from the inside despite having no working lock mechanism. Objects in the room rearrange themselves overnight, with furniture found moved several feet from its designated position. The four-poster bed’s coverlet is sometimes discovered rumpled as if someone had been lying on it after the mansion closed. These physical manipulations suggest intelligent haunting rather than residual energy, with spirits actively interacting with their environment and asserting territorial claims.

Can You Visit?

Waverly Plantation Mansion operates as a historic house museum open to the public for guided tours throughout most of the year. The property is privately owned but welcomes visitors who want to experience its architecture and learn about its haunted history. Standard historical tours run regularly during spring and fall months when weather conditions make the experience most comfortable for guests. The owners have embraced Waverly’s paranormal reputation while maintaining respect for the property’s historical significance and architectural importance.

General admission tours cost approximately twenty dollars per person for a comprehensive ninety-minute guided experience through all accessible floors. Special paranormal investigation tours are offered on select Friday and Saturday evenings throughout the year at premium pricing. These after-dark experiences allow ghost hunters to use their own equipment and spend extended time in the most actively haunted areas. Private group bookings can be arranged for families, paranormal investigation teams, or historical societies wanting exclusive access.

Photography is not only allowed but actively encouraged throughout Waverly Mansion, with guests often capturing unexplained anomalies in their images. The owners maintain a collection of visitor photographs showing orbs, light phenomena, and shadow figures that guests have submitted over the years. Video recording is permitted during tours as long as it doesn’t disrupt the experience for other visitors. Many paranormal investigators have produced compelling evidence at Waverly using various detection equipment and recording devices during their investigations.

Regular historical tours typically run Thursday through Sunday from 10 AM to 4 PM during peak seasons. Hours may vary during winter months or due to special events, so calling ahead is strongly recommended. The mansion occasionally closes for private events or maintenance work essential to preserving the historic structure. Paranormal tours begin after 8 PM and run until midnight, offering the full haunted experience in darkness when spirit activity reaches its peak.

Best Time to Visit

Paranormal activity at Waverly Plantation intensifies dramatically during late evening hours, particularly between 9 PM and 2 AM. The spirits seem most willing to interact with visitors after darkness falls across the property and modern distractions fade. Overnight investigations produce the most compelling evidence of intelligent haunting, with EVP recordings and visual phenomena occurring with remarkable frequency. The mansion’s isolation becomes complete after sunset, creating an atmosphere where the boundary between past and present feels dangerously thin.

October through December yields the highest concentration of paranormal experiences according to documentation maintained by current property managers. Something about autumn and winter seems to energize the spirits, possibly connected to anniversary dates of deaths or significant events. The anniversary of Colonel Young’s death in November consistently produces heightened activity throughout the mansion’s four floors. Many investigators specifically request investigation dates during these months, knowing their chances of capturing evidence increase substantially during this period.

First-Hand Accounts & Eyewitness Reports

Robert Snowden documented his family’s first night at Waverly in 1962, describing footsteps crossing empty rooms above their heads. He recorded hearing doors opening and closing when his family huddled together in first-floor rooms during that frightening introduction. Donna Snowden later wrote about seeing a Confederate soldier standing in the cupola looking toward where battle lines once formed. The Snowdens never denied or downplayed the paranormal activity, instead embracing it as part of Waverly’s authentic history and character.

A paranormal investigation team from Memphis recorded electronic voice phenomena in the master bedroom during a 2008 overnight investigation. Their recording captured a man’s voice clearly stating “This is my house” in response to investigators’ questions. Temperature readings taken simultaneously showed a fifteen-degree drop in the exact location where the voice originated. The team’s lead investigator described the experience as the most compelling evidence he’d encountered in twenty years of paranormal research.

A bride who rented Waverly for her 2015 wedding reception reported seeing a woman in Victorian dress standing in the ballroom during the celebration. She initially assumed the figure was a historical reenactor hired by the venue until the woman walked through a solid wall. The bride’s photographer captured several images showing unexplained light anomalies and what appears to be a translucent figure near the staircase. These wedding photos have since been featured in multiple paranormal publications analyzing the evidence they contain.

Tour guide Jennifer Morrison publicly shared her experience of being pushed by unseen hands while leading a group through the third floor. She felt distinct pressure on her back propelling her forward toward the staircase in front of multiple witnesses. Morrison described the presence as insistent but not violent, as if something wanted her to leave that floor immediately. She continues working at Waverly but refuses to enter certain rooms alone after that unsettling physical encounter.

A television news crew investigating Waverly’s haunted reputation in 2012 captured shadow figures moving across their camera footage. Their equipment malfunctioned repeatedly despite being professionally maintained and tested before arrival at the mansion. The sound technician recorded unexplained voices whispering in empty rooms that weren’t audible during the actual filming. The resulting news segment brought national attention to Waverly’s paranormal activity and significantly increased visitation from ghost hunting enthusiasts.

Paranormal Investigations & Findings

Multiple professional paranormal investigation teams have conducted extensive studies at Waverly Plantation over the past three decades. The mansion has been featured in regional paranormal television programs and documentary films exploring Southern hauntings. Investigators consistently document electromagnetic field fluctuations, temperature anomalies, and electronic voice phenomena throughout the property. The sheer volume of evidence collected at Waverly places it among the most thoroughly documented haunted locations in Mississippi.

Thermal imaging cameras have captured human-shaped heat signatures in empty rooms where no living person stood during filming. These thermal anomalies move through spaces and appear to interact with investigators asking questions through spirit boxes. One investigation team recorded over forty separate EVP responses during a single night, suggesting multiple entities occupying the mansion simultaneously. The intelligent nature of responses indicates conscious spirits rather than simple residual energy replaying past events.

Spirit box sessions in the master bedroom have produced conversations where entities answer questions with contextually appropriate responses. The name “George” comes through repeatedly when investigators ask who owned the mansion during its construction and early years. Female voices respond when questions address Mrs. Young or household management topics from the plantation era. These communication sessions have helped investigators piece together which specific spirits haunt different areas of the four-story structure.

Paranormal researchers using full-spectrum cameras have photographed light anomalies invisible to the human eye but detectable on specialized equipment. These mysterious lights move intelligently through rooms rather than drifting like dust particles or insects would naturally behave. Some photographs show what appear to be partial human forms materializing in mid-air before dispersing into nothingness. The consistency of these captures across multiple investigation teams using different equipment strengthens the validity of Waverly’s supernatural claims.

Safety Warnings & Legal Restrictions

Waverly Plantation Mansion is private property where trespassing is strictly prohibited and actively prosecuted under Mississippi state law. All visits must be arranged through official tour bookings with property owners who maintain the site. The mansion’s remote location means no casual drop-in visits are possible, and uninvited guests will be removed by local law enforcement. Respecting these boundaries protects both the historic structure and the property rights of owners who generously share their home with the public.

The mansion’s age means certain structural considerations require visitor attention, including uneven flooring and steep historic staircases. The spiral staircase demands careful navigation, especially when ascending or descending to the cupola’s fourth level. Guests with mobility concerns should discuss accommodation options with tour staff before booking their visit. The basement areas remain off-limits during standard tours due to structural concerns and ongoing preservation work in those historic spaces.

Paranormal investigation participants must sign liability waivers acknowledging the unpredictable nature of overnight ghost hunting experiences. The psychological intensity of paranormal encounters at Waverly can overwhelm sensitive individuals or those unprepared for genuine supernatural contact. Investigation groups must provide their own first aid supplies and emergency contact information before beginning after-hours sessions. The mansion’s isolation means emergency response times may be slower than in urban locations, requiring investigation teams to practice appropriate caution.

All visitors must respect the historic furnishings, artifacts, and architectural features throughout the mansion during their experience. Touching antiques or sitting on historic furniture is prohibited to preserve these irreplaceable pieces for future generations. The property owners request that paranormal investigators avoid aggressive provocation methods that might damage the respectful atmosphere they’ve cultivated. These guidelines ensure Waverly remains accessible to future visitors while protecting its historical integrity and the peaceful coexistence with resident spirits.

Nearby Haunted Places

Pickens County Courthouse – Haunted Courthouse in Carrollton, Alabama

📍 32.3 miles

Witch Dance – Haunted Sacred Ground in Starkville, Mississippi

📍 33.7 miles

Gaineswood Plantation – Haunted Mansion in Demopolis, Alabama

📍 83.7 miles

Merrehope Mansion – Haunted Mansion in Meridian, Mississippi

📍 84.4 miles

The Tutwiler Hotel – Haunted Hotel in Birmingham, Alabama

📍 98.3 miles

Sloss Furnaces – Haunted Industrial Site in Birmingham, Alabama

📍 99.3 miles