Hauntings at the White House

It’s nearly Halloween. In keeping with the spooky holiday, it’s time to talk about the ghosts that allegedly reside in the White House, from Presidents to felines. 

Abraham Lincoln

One of the White House’s most famous residents isn’t in a hurry to leave apparently. The ghost of Abraham Lincoln has been reported ever since his tragic death in April of 1865. Though Lincoln did not die in the White House, he spent some of last hours at the fated residence and lay in repose there.

Residents heard strange noises and often felt a presence, though nobody else was there. An employee named Jerry Smith shared his sighting of Lincoln in 1903. It wasn’t until the 1920s that any resident claimed to see Lincoln’s ghost in the flesh. That person was Grace Coolidge, who is said to have seen Lincoln’s ghost staring out of the Yellow Oval Office, which he used as a library in life, as though he was regarding a battle.  

Sightings of Lincoln became more frequent during WW2, and wasn’t just limited to staff or residents. Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands was visiting the White House, having fled her home country after the German occupation, when she received a knock at the door. She answered and in front of her was Lincoln in his suit and hat. The Queen fainted in shock, but was surprised when the Roosevelts didn’t seem too shocked when she told them.

Another infamous encounter happened during the time period. A naked Winston Churchill, having just got out of the bath in the Queens’ Bedroom, saw the transparent figure of Lincoln leaning against the mantelpiece, deep in thought. Lincoln turned to see Churchill, who said that he quipped ‘Mr. President, you seem to have me at a disadvantage.’ The deceased President smiled and disappeared. Churchill then refused to stay in that room again.

Eleanor Roosevelt felt his presence when working, and said it felt as though he was approving of her work. The Roosevelts’ dog Fala barked at what they believed was his ghost. The frequency in which Lincoln appeared during the war years is indicative of the belief he appears at times of national crisis. 

The Lincoln Bedroom is the central hub for ghostly activity. Both Harry Truman and his daughter Margaret were woken up by raps at the door on separate occasions. Truman also credits mysterious sounds for the reason he got the White House checked during his tenure, leading to massive repairs. Rex, the Reagans’ dog, barked at the room, the only one he would never enter. Other witnesses are said to have seen him in the bedroom. The Reagans’ daughter Maureen and her husband David reported seeing a figure in there.

The ghost of Lincoln hasn’t been reported since the 1980s, ever since a worker saw him at the top of the stairs. 

Willie Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln isn’t the only member of his family to linger in their former home. Willie Lincoln, the president’s third son, died of typhoid aged only eleven in 1862. His ghost has been reported since the decade following his death, ever since a Grant employee is alleged to have spoken to him. Little Willie treated the White House as his playground and seems to not have wished to leave. 

His presence was felt during the Taft administration, but the President himself flew into rage when he heard the stories, threatening to fire anyone who repeated the stupid rumours. During the Eisenhower years, the daughter of the Belgian ambassador played with a child whom she later identified as Willie.

The final report came from the 1960s. First Daughter Lynda Johnson is said to have seen and spoken to Willie, but she later said that it was an untrue rumour. 

Abigail Adams

The ghost of America’s second First Lady is said to wander the White House- history buffs will know that the Adamses were the first to occupy it. Abigail is said to wander around the East Room with an armful of laundry, which is said to smell. She was also seen on two occasions, one in 1974 and 1994, where there were helicopter accidents. Some believe she appears in times of great crisis much like Lincoln does.

Andrew Jackson

America’s most temperamental president is said to be still present. It’s said that he lays in the Queens’ Bedroom, laughing loudly. Mary Lincoln said that she heard his ghost stomping and swearing- not a surprise really. 

William Henry Harrison

William Henry Harrison was the first President to die in office, and one of the two to actually die in the White House (the other being Zachary Taylor, as well as First Ladies Letitia Tyler, Caroline Harrison and Ellen Wilson). Harrison can apparently be found hanging out in the attic, still probably annoyed that he only lasted a month in office. 

Dolley Madison 

Dolley Madison was supremely popular in life and in death, she’s hanging around. It’s said that during the tenure of Edith Wilson, the First Lady asked that the Rose Garden be moved. The workmen hadn’t done anything when the ghost of Dolley Madison came out, angry as anything. The Rose Garden remained. Funnily enough, there’s an almost identical story from two decades later at Windsor Castle. Workmen under Edward VIII were removing trees planted by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert when the ghost of the former monarch came out, wailing and waving her arms. 

Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson can apparently be heard playing the violin in the Yellow Oval Room. Nerd.

John Tyler 

John Tyler can apparently be heard proposing to his second wife, Julia Gardiner, in the Blue Room. 

Frances Cleveland

Frances Folsom Cleveland became the nation’s youngest First Lady aged twenty-one in 1886. She had been out of the White House for fifty years when she died in 1947. There have been reports of her haunting the Blue Room, where she married Cleveland. 

David Burns 

A man named David Burns initially owned the land that White House is on. It’s said that a voice in the Yellow Oval Room can be heard loudly declaring ‘I’m Mr. Burns.’ Burns apparently was angry about the government having his land. 

Anna Surratt

In 1865, a boarding house owner named Mary Surratt was one of the conspirators hanged after Lincoln’s assassination. Historians still debate as to how much she knew. Either way, before the execution, her daughter Anna came to the White House to plead for her mother’s life. This was rejected, and Anna lay sobbing on the stairs, kindly comforted by President Johnson’s daughter Martha. Despite efforts by the judges who had condemned the other conspirators and other campaigners to spare Mary’s life, she was hanged. In 1869, Anna received permission from the administration to rebury her mother in consecrated ground. Still, poor Anna is said to haunt the White House, appearing every anniversary at the door to beg for her mother’s life. 

British Soldier 

No, not Sharpe or Poldark. 

A soldier from the War of 1812 is alleged to have died in the blaze that he started. He reportedly still tries to set a bed on fire.

Black Cat 

One of the ghostly residents of the White House is one of the furry kind. A black cat is seen around days of great sorrow and tragedy, such as Lincoln’s assassination and the Wall Street Crash. It’s an ordinary looking cat that grows huge when spotted, and inspires fears in those it sees. 

Good kitty. 

Noises and bumps in the night 

Residents of the White House have heard strange sounds and bumps in the night (and day) for decades. Presidents Grant and Theodore Roosevelt were particularly vocal about their belief that it was something supernatural. President and Mrs. Obama have said that they frequently hear strange noises in the night. The Bush twins had a freaky encounter, which Jenna recounted:

‘My phone rang, it woke us up in the middle of the night. We had a fireplace in our room, and all of a sudden we started hearing, like, 1920s piano music, as clear as day, coming out of the fireplace. I jumped in Barbara’s bed, we were both awake. The next week, we heard the same thing but opera. And we talked ourselves out of it, but then I said to a guy, Buddy, one of my favorite men in the world, who still works at the White House. I said, ‘Buddy, you wouldn’t believe what we heard last night.’ And he goes, ‘Oh, Jenna, you wouldn’t believe what I’ve heard.’ It’s haunted! It’s scary, but they came with all good intentions. They were friendly ghosts.’

Sceptics will say the White House is a very old building and that it will creek- whilst supporters will use the same argument. 

The ghosts of the White House tend to wander too. Dolley Madison is said to haunt the Octagon House- commonly seen as one of DC’s spookiest locations- as well as the Cutts-Madison House where she spent her final years. You can also apparently find Lincoln around D.C., Jefferson in Monticello and Jackson at the Hermitage. 

The living residents have also had interest in the supernatural. Mary Lincoln famously held séances in order to contact her late son Willie, something Jane Pierce did just over a decade earlier. Edith Wilson and Florence Harding consulted with a medium, who apparently successfully predicted President Harding’s early death. Nancy Reagan famously used an astrologer to protect her husband. 

As Halloween comes, let’s wonder if the ghosts of the White House will come out to play- whether you believe it or not. Who is the presidential ghost you’d most like to meet?