Every Halloween, haunted houses pop up throughout the United States. Sometimes they set up shop in an old warehouse, a cornfield, or a gymnasium. Yet, it’s rare for a commercial haunted house to open up in a real haunted house.
Yet, that’s the case for the Paxton Manor in Lessburg, Virginia, where a haunted house exhibit was held for over a decade. Visitors swore they experienced more than just the typical haunted house antics — could they be right?
Virginia is home to all kinds of spiritual and spectral activity, with some of the most intense activity taking place within the historic town of Williamsburg. To learn where history and hauntings intersect and see the landmarks for yourself, book a ghost tour with Williamsburg Ghost Tour tonight.
Is Paxton Manor haunted?
Many people have had unexplainable experiences at the Paxton Manor. There are many theories about who haunts the old mansion. The most popular stories involve spirits who chose to stay at the manor, or those who have been unable to leave. These include:
- Civil War soldiers
- Rachel Paxton, the original owner of the home
- The orphans who once lived on the estate
With strange occurrences being reported for decades, it seems that whoever has latched onto the home isn’t leaving anytime soon.
The History of the Paxton Manor
In the 1870s, the United States was in the process of rebuilding. The Civil War had just ended in 1865 and had been extremely costly for all states in the U.S., in lives and in funds. Many American families had lost loved ones, property, and their savings. This all meant that when the 1870s came around, people didn’t have surplus money to spend on buying goods or building new properties.
Most people didn’t, anyway. That didn’t include Charles R. Paxton, an industrialist from Pennsylvania and president of the Bloomsburg Iron Company.
Charles and his wife Rachel decided they were going to build a grand new manor in Leesburg, Virginia, mere miles from the site of one of the deadliest battles in the entire Civil War. They purchased a lot containing 765 acres of land and set about finding the right person to design their home.
The couple hired architect Henry C. Dudley to design their 32-room summer home, which spared no expense or luxury. The massive house was outfitted with all the latest technology, including central heating, hot and cold running water, and gas lighting.
The features and fixtures were also second-to-none, with stone mantels and a grand staircase that put the neighboring manors to shame. The house was called Carlheim, but it was known as the Paxton Manor locally.
Yet, despite the way they came off, the Paxtons weren’t vain people. The opposite, in fact: they invited their neighbors and the local residents to parties and celebrations in their new manor. They were quite well-liked by the Leesburg community, but the couple didn’t get to enjoy their new friends for long.
Less than a decade later, Charles passed away, leaving Rachel and her daughter the only residents of the massive home.
Turning Tragedy into Kindness
By 1882, Rachel Paxton was a widow and single mother. However, her heartbreak wouldn’t stop there. In a few years, Rachel also lost her only daughter, leaving her without any close family.
Rather than let the grief overwhelm her, Rachel decided to do something good with her lack of kin. When she died in 1922, Rachel left 50 acres of her property to be dedicated to building a home for orphaned children.
Her wishes were carried out, and a children’s home was built and operated on the property for close to 50 years. These children are said to be some of the spirits who still haunt the mansion to this day.
Who Haunts Paxton Manor?
Over the years, the host of spectral events have been attributed to several different groups of people. The most common experience, however, has to do with a certain high-pitched laughter heard around the property.
The Orphaned Children
Many workers and guests at the Paxton Manor have reported seeing children skipping through the halls of the mansion, only to disappear a moment later. Others have heard children’s laughter or felt a gentle push against them, almost as if a child were playing a prank.
Rachel Paxton
Others believe that the fairy godmother herself, Rachel Paxton, is behind the strange happenings at the manor. Perhaps she wanted to return to the place where she spent her last happy years with her husband and daughter. Or maybe she just wants to be close to the children she helped long after her death.
Civil War Ghosts
While the mansion was constructed after the Civil War, many believe that soldiers were killed on the property of the Paxton family. With nowhere else to go, the soldiers’ spirits have converged on the manor, where they’ll hide objects or make items disappear altogether.
The stories of the hauntings at Paxton Manor became so well-known that a nonprofit organization saw an opportunity to take Rachel Paxton’s vision to the next level.
Shocktober
Starting in 2010, Shocktober was a month-long haunted house experience that took place within the old Paxton Manor. The event was put on as a fundraiser for The Arc of Loudoun, a nonprofit advocacy organization for people with disabilities and their families.
Volunteers would donate their time and get all made up to follow that year’s theme, which often involved zombies or tales about the hidden underground caverns beneath the mansion.
Though it only received a few hundred visitors in the first few years, word of the attraction quickly grew, and people began flocking to the real haunted house from all over the country. In fact, from 2010 to 2021, the attraction raised over $3.5 million for the nonprofit.
While some people simply wanted to be immersed in a state-of-the-art haunted house experience, many sought out Shocktober because they had heard whispers of people experiencing real otherworldly events while at the mansion.
While the haunted house was said to be capped at a “PG-13” level of scary, people reported hearing footsteps in parts of the mansion that didn’t seem to be connected to the show. Others said they were touched when no actors were close by.
Sadly, Shocktober recently celebrated its last event, as the space is now being used for other purposes. But we can’t imagine that the loss of the haunted house event will stop any spirits from continuing their own haunted tradition.
Haunted Williamsburg
Williamsburg is practically dripping with spooky sites and landmarks due to its pivotal role in the Civil War. With thousands of soldiers drawing their last breath in and around the town, there are locations all through the city that have tales of spirits and ghosts linked to them.
From buildings converted into Confederate hospitals to a church that is haunted by a former preacher’s wife, there are plenty of spectral places to explore. To see them for yourself, book a ghost tour with Williamsburg Ghost Tour tonight.
If you want to learn about haunted manors and mansions built by influential Americans, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. For more articles about Williamsburg haunted sites, Colonial spooky tales, and other Civil War-era lore, be sure to check out our blog.
Sources:
- https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/state-pride/virginia/abandoned-place-story-leesburg-va
- https://williamsburgghosttour.com/
- https://www.dhr.virginia.gov/historic-registers/253-5020/
- https://theclio.com/entry/25368
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/micheleherrmann/2021/10/13/heres-how-a-haunted-house-in-virginia-has-become-an-annual-happening/