Copyright © 2006-2010
Raymond H. von Bober
All rights reserved.
Please report any broken links to:
webmaster@summerwindmansion.net
Raymond H. von Bober
All rights reserved.
Please report any broken links to:
webmaster@summerwindmansion.net
The gruesome discovery at Summerwind Mansion happened innocently enough. It was during the time my sister had moved in and was in the process of renovating the house.
Ginger and her husband, Arnold were busy in the hallway, cleaning and painting.
Ginger and her husband, Arnold were busy in the hallway, cleaning and painting.
It was safe to say, after being vacant and neglected for nearly forty years, that the bats and mice had found their way into just about every nook and cranny in the old mansion. The drawers under the linen closets were no exception. As Arnold pulled them out, one by one, he went underneath and cleaned out all the debris before the drawers were painted and reinstalled.
He was down on the floor with a flashlight underneath the last cabinet when he discovered a hidden area in the back wall behind the drawer! There was something in there, but he couldn't quite make it out. He would have to get in further. He rolled onto his back and started to pull himself deeper into the small space so he could see. Suddenly, he was scrambling to get out of there!
He was down on the floor with a flashlight underneath the last cabinet when he discovered a hidden area in the back wall behind the drawer! There was something in there, but he couldn't quite make it out. He would have to get in further. He rolled onto his back and started to pull himself deeper into the small space so he could see. Suddenly, he was scrambling to get out of there!
"There's a body in there!" he screamed. Ginger came running from the master suite where she had been painting. Arnold described to her what he thought he saw. It appeared to be a shriveled up corpse jammed in a dead space between the walls! He refused to let Ginger crawl into the space, but after lots of persuasion he agreed to let one of the children confirm what he had seen.
Their oldest daughter crawled into the space, being told there may be the body of a racoon or other animal in there. She used the flashlight and began describing what she was seeing, when suddenly, she let out a bloodcurdling scream!
Their oldest daughter crawled into the space, being told there may be the body of a racoon or other animal in there. She used the flashlight and began describing what she was seeing, when suddenly, she let out a bloodcurdling scream!
"Mom, there's a body in there! And it's not an animal! It's a person!" she exclaimed as she quickly backed out from under the cabinet. "It's old and dried up and all dirty!"
Amazingly, it was decided that they would tell no one! With all the other strange occurrances the family was already beginning to experience at Summerwind, the local "haunted house," they figured nobody would believe them anyway!
The drawer was hurriedly painted and replaced and none of them opened it again! They didn't want to be labeled as "wacky" so they kept their word and their secret. At least now they believed they had found the reason for Summerwind's haunting. Perhaps this was "Mathilda!"
Amazingly, it was decided that they would tell no one! With all the other strange occurrances the family was already beginning to experience at Summerwind, the local "haunted house," they figured nobody would believe them anyway!
The drawer was hurriedly painted and replaced and none of them opened it again! They didn't want to be labeled as "wacky" so they kept their word and their secret. At least now they believed they had found the reason for Summerwind's haunting. Perhaps this was "Mathilda!"
As time passed, the paranormal experiences became overwhelming for the family and they finally gave up on their restoration efforts and called for my father to help them move out. The "official" reasons given were the fact that Arnold had gone mad and lost his business and there was no money left for food or to even heat the mansion. Arnold was committed to a mental institution and Ginger was granted a divorce a short time later. It was never suggested at that time that Summerwind Mansion was haunted!
My father bought the property a couple years later without ever hearing of a hidden corpse. Though after he purchased it, we began to experience many paranormal episodes ourselves. We didn't outright say Summerwind was haunted, but I think we had our suspicions.
My father bought the property a couple years later without ever hearing of a hidden corpse. Though after he purchased it, we began to experience many paranormal episodes ourselves. We didn't outright say Summerwind was haunted, but I think we had our suspicions.
It was during our search for the box containing Jonathan Carver's land grant papers that the subject of the corpse in the wall came up again.
We had searched Summerwind from top to bottom and were finishing up with the linen closets and drawers. Ginger's new husband, George was busy pulling out drawers to examine the spaces behind them.
We had searched Summerwind from top to bottom and were finishing up with the linen closets and drawers. Ginger's new husband, George was busy pulling out drawers to examine the spaces behind them.
When George got to the last drawer, Ginger screamed, "Stop! There's a body in there!"
The three of us, George, my father and I, all froze. Summerwind was normally silent, but now it was oppressively so! I think we all quit breathing! When we finally gathered our wits and questioned Ginger, she finally explained how Arnold discovered the corpse in the wall and that they had never mentioned it to anyone!
Of course, we couldn't believe what we were hearing, so it was decided that I would crawl under the cabinet and check it out. I grabbed a flashlight and began to work my way into the cramped space. There was, indeed, a hidden wall behind the cabinet. But I could see no evidence of a body, human or otherwise! Just plumbing, insulation and debris. Could this have been mistaken for a body? I really didn't think so. We came to the conclusion that there was no corpse in there!
The three of us, George, my father and I, all froze. Summerwind was normally silent, but now it was oppressively so! I think we all quit breathing! When we finally gathered our wits and questioned Ginger, she finally explained how Arnold discovered the corpse in the wall and that they had never mentioned it to anyone!
Of course, we couldn't believe what we were hearing, so it was decided that I would crawl under the cabinet and check it out. I grabbed a flashlight and began to work my way into the cramped space. There was, indeed, a hidden wall behind the cabinet. But I could see no evidence of a body, human or otherwise! Just plumbing, insulation and debris. Could this have been mistaken for a body? I really didn't think so. We came to the conclusion that there was no corpse in there!
My sister was almost hysterical! She was convinced that we thought she was crazy! Both Arnold and her oldest daughter had described a body, now it was gone!
It dawned on us then that Summerwind Mansion had a split personality! This particular day the house seemed friendlier and less eerie than usual. We believed that when it again became eerie and forbidding, the corpse would reappear.
It dawned on us then that Summerwind Mansion had a split personality! This particular day the house seemed friendlier and less eerie than usual. We believed that when it again became eerie and forbidding, the corpse would reappear.
Such was the enigma we came to know as The Carver Effect. One minute Summerwind seemed large, spooky and haunted, the next it appeared small, cheerful and friendly! One never quite knew what to expect. The powerful spirit of Jonathan Carver was able to regulate the mansion's personality to fit his needs! Even today there is a pervasive unnatural stillness that surrounds the ruins. Summerwind Mansion may be gone, but the entities that inhabited it are still present!
