ArtRojasDesign

In this latest episode, Zak, Nick and Aaron head down to Louisiana to investigate the Myrtles plantation; a site that has had plenty of owners and plenty of deaths. However, with so many differing stories even the current owners can’t separate the fact from the fiction. All the accounts begin with, "according to legend". Since we’re talking about a home that’s been around since 1796 it’s no surprise records are missing and mystery surrounds everything that happened there.

The most talked about legends involve a girl named Chloe, a voodoo priestess, a little girl named Kate and a man named William Winter who supposedly died on the 17th step of the staircase.

Chloe was a slave girl and mistress to Clark Woodruff and after being jilted she sought revenge by poisoning his children. This resulted in her being hanged for murder in front of the house. That’s the "popular" story anyway.

Kate contracted yellow fever and died at the age of three. Her father had a slave from another plantation brought over to try and save her. It’s believed "Cleo" tried a voodoo ritual, but Kate still died and Cleo was subsequently hung. Kate is listed in the death records, but the Cleo portion is another part of the "legend".

Again, these are unsubstantiated stories. There is no tangible evidence as to what really happened. I do believe that all legends have a basis in truth and given the time period it’s not hard to believe all of this could have happened, but we may never know the truth.

I will also point out one other thing before we hit the investigation. I take locations like this with a grain of salt. They’re obviously trying to promote a tourism business with tours, gift shops and their bed and breakfast. Saying the place isn’t haunted will clearly impact business. Makes me a touch suspicious of how these kind of things play out.

Anyway, the investigation.

They start things off with some voices on the stairs that might refer to the death of William Winter. He supposedly died on the stairs and there might be a female voice talking about the events. Additionally, there is some commotion around the doors that lead into the parlor. The guys feel the doors are being rattled and believe they capture a black mist walking behind the chairs in the opposite room. Did they manage to grab a dark mass in the parlor?

There are some bumps, bangs and perhaps some knocks in response to Zak asking a question, but placing a ball on the stairs gets the whole team excited. To try and make contact with the many children of the house they put a ball on the steps. Right as they ask the kids to kick it, the ball moves and falls down the stairs. And it seems to take off with a fair bit of speed to. So we have to ask, did a child come along and kick the ball or did it simply roll down on it’s own?

The stairs have carpet so perhaps not that easy to simply fall on it’s own.

Nick walks past the ball on his way up the stairs and nothing happens.

But right at they say something it falls. In one shot the ball looks perched right on the edge of the step. In another shot it looks a bit further back. Taking that in account they try a few experiments to match the speed and path it originally took.

The original seems to go a lot faster, so what do we have here? Did it simply fall off the lip of the stairs or was it actually touched, or rather kicked by a spirit? My first reaction is that it fell. Gravity got a hold of it and the ball rolled down the stairs. But does the speed match? And why on the stairs, why not just on the floor? Should this be considered evidence?

It’s claimed the Myrtle Plantation is one of the most haunted placed in America. I find that hard to believe. Sure, there are plenty of stories, but they’re just that, stories. People get all worked up over mistreatment of slaves, voodoo, child deaths and the idea that those kids are still playing around the house. The mirror is all but discounted by matrixing which means people see something and it sets their mind racing so by the time they walk around the house I have no doubt they’re seeing and hearing things. It’s not like this investigation was riddled with voices, shadows, movement or other forms of hard evidence. The house seemed relatively quiet. They do capture some interesting things, but I don’t think the ball is solid evidence, nor do I think there are enough events to really justify this place as one of the most haunted places around.

I would love to see more of what this place has to offer, but for right now it’s just coming across as some interesting ghost stories.

Myrtles Plantation

Other Articles of Interest:

• Deep South Paranormal – Dead on the Bayou – S01E06 – Season Finale
• Ghost Adventures – Thornhaven Manor – S08E10
• Ghost Adventures – Brookdale Lodge – S07E09
• Ghost Adventures – Excalibur Nightclub and Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery – S07E02
• Paranormal Lockdown – S02E11 – Scutt Mansion
• Ghost Adventures – Return to Tombstone – S10E09
• Ghost Adventures – Yost Theater and Ritz Hotel – S08E05
• Ghost Adventures – Heritage Junction – S09E06
• Ghost Adventures – Museum of the Mountain West – S15E10
• Unsolved Mysteries: Ghosts – Rating 4 out of 5