Cool story, one to tell around the fire on a cold and dark winter night.
But why did the cat and dog avoid the fireplace? Okay, that's just a pesty English teacher pointing out the hole in the story, but it does need some explanation.

Hi, Pidge; I know I can't tell a tale like Gandle, but this is the first time I've ever tried to write it down. I really don't know why the pets avoided the hearth on that side of the fireplace, although there was -occasionally- a distinct and measurable cold spot; but both animals were consistent in avoiding it, while directly in front and the opposite hearthside were considered prime sitting areas.

We also never solved the mystery of the closing door, in spite of living in the house for 2 years.

It's been more than 40 years, but I admit to still wondering what else happened in that house, that either the realtor wasn't aware of, or was too discreet to mention.

And I am reminded that "there are more things in Heaven and Earth..."

I believe firmly that houses are either friendly or troubled. I've lived in both. This house, even being so old is warm and friendly. The only troubled spot is the tiny foot deep closet next to the fireplace in the master bedroom. It is cold and dank and ominous. It's not used for that reason, and a piece of furniture sits in front of the door now.

The most troubled house in which our family lived was the one we occupied in S.W. France. It too was an old, old structure. Meldy's mention of animals avoiding certain rooms or areas of houses causes me to mention this house. We had a courtyard between the house proper and an addition built on to the house, only accessible by crossing the courtyard. Our poodle was petrified of those rooms and would not enter them under any circumstances, no matter how hard one demanded it of her. Neither would the cat. Our floors were of tile and nightly one could hear something dragging down the long corridor from the front door, and likewise on the ceiling of my parents' bedroom. No, there was no upstairs. Strange images sometimes showed up on photographs taken in the house, and on one occasion it was a hand superimposed upon my hand as I held a wine glass. On several occasions items flew off shelves and crashed to the floor. One was a heavy glass pitcher on a solid wood armoir in our kitchen. No, nothing bumped it, and it had to raise over a lip on the top to have fallen off. It did. Doors sometimes opened/shut themselves as well. I would never go into the house proper at night without someone being there with me. I spent more than one night in the front sunroom with the lights all on when left alone there.

The house was located up a long private drive with an iron gate leading directly to the seashore. There were also tall stone fence walls on the periphery of the property. IOW, very secluded. The windows all had heavy iron shutters to fasten against the weather. IOW, a beautiful old farmhouse with high creepiness potential.

Mother nicknamed the pesky presence Napoleon, and jokingly invited it to come to America with us when we left. She shouldn't have. Our next home was a huge old brick Victorian and several really spooky things happened there. It scared one of my boyfriends so badly, he would never enter the house unaccompanied again. LOL. And he was an "unbeliever". When we left the state, it was NOT invited to our next home and the more unpleasant "happening" I'd have associated with its presence ceased. Although other more benign things continued to occur at other homes.

Meldy, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or offend you in any way. But I DID want to know about that fireplace and that door! I keep wondering just how many people died in that house or maybe what dastardly things happened.

I don't think I've ever lived in a haunted house, at least that I knew of at the time, but I did grow up in a big, old farmhouse, the first section of which was built in the 18th century. I used to wonder at how much history that house had witnessed, how many people were born, lived, and died in it, what kinds of families lived their, what bad and good things had occurred in it. If those walls could have spoken.............

I think I've mentioned before that the house I currently live in is shared with a spirit. His name is Todd, he was the teenage son of the previous owners and died at the hands of a drunk driver. This is the only house Todd ever lived in, so it just seems natural that he remained here.

Todd has a wicked sense of humor, as we found out shortly upon moving in. He likes to turn things on and not let us turn them off. First it was the lights. DS was only 4 when we moved in here and would complain that he couldn't turn off the lights. At first, I thought he really couldn't turn them off, but soon found out that although he flipped the switch, the lights would just come back on. And sometimes they'd go off and on over and over again. Then it was the TV. We'd turn it off, and it would come right back on. When he refused to let me turn off the vacuum cleaner, I called the electrician. Although the XDH was a great electrician, I just knew there was some hidden problem and a "real" electrician would find it. Nope, there was nothing, the wiring was perfect and he had no problem turning things off.

Then we started hearing noises in the attic. I thought for sure we had squirrels or birds up there, so I sent the XDH up for an inspection. Nope, no squirrels, no birds. But whatever was up there was running the length of the attic, making enough noise sometimes that the dogs would pace the length of the hall, following the noise, the hair standing up on the back of their necks, growling.

One day I came home from work to find one of my dogs sitting in the front lawn. I was shocked, couldn't figure out how he got out, all the doors were closed and all the animals were inside when I left for work. When I entered the house, the cats were both there, all the doors were shut, but my other dog was gone. I searched the neighborhood for her, couldn't find her. Later that evening, my neighbor came over and told me that she was sitting in her dining room when she saw my cat in her backyard. She picked up the cat and came over to return here when she noticed the door to my driveway was wide open. We never use that door since it opens into my laundry room, and then into my kitchen through another set of doors. She had her husband come over and go through the house, thinking that we had been burglarized, but he didn't see anything out of place. So they put the cat back in and shut the door. I told her one dog was missing, and then started telling her about the strange things that were happening, hoping she'd be able to tell me if the previous owners ever had any problems. Her husband just looked at her and said "sounds like Todd never left, he always had the house lit up and everything on...remember?" Then they told me about Todd.

Well, I had a little talk with Todd. Told him that I would gladly share this house with him since it was "home" to both of us, and that I liked a good joke as much as the next person, but he was not to do anything to harm anyone, and if my electric bill soared sky high, he was going to be in BIG trouble! I guess I had enough lectures when I was a teen that I knew how to dish out a good one, his pranks lessened after that.

Todd still pulls a good prank every once in a while, like making loud rock music pour out of the stereo during a hurricane when all the electricity is out, or driving DS nuts by turning the lamp off and on repeatedly when he's watching a good show. And some days he'll drive the dogs nuts by open and slamming shut the cupboard doors. His best one was putting a bunch of easter basket grass above the drop down steps to the attic...when DS open it up, all the grass tumbled down on his head! I had tears rolling down my face at that one! I guess he's like any teen and just needs some attention sometimes.

What's really neat is that the first spring we spent in this house, the dogwood tree in the front yard bloomed. That dogwood tree was planted by Todd's soccer team as a memorial to him, and it had never bloomed. Todd's parents wanted to remove the tree and take it with them, it was hard for them to say good-bye, but decided to leave it as long as I would let them hang a bird feeder on it. Well, when that tree bloomed, it was magnificent. I called them to tell them and they rushed right over, took numerous pictures, and stood in the yard crying. They took it as a sign from Todd that it was ok to say good-bye. In the 9 years I've lived here, that tree has only bloomed twice, and both times his parents have come to see it.

Maryanne

Pidge, you didn't upset me at all. I just don't have any answers to the questions, which is probably due to the events being factual rather than fictional.

At least Calliope and MaryAnn have also had 'experiences.' Living in this area, there is always a good bit of talk about ghosts, especially those of the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. But when we get right down to it, I don't know anyone [in person] who has actually had *any* sort of ghostly experience with those historical ghosts. To be honest, if there hadn't been so many other people involved over that 2-year period, I would wonder if we had overlooked some obvious explanation of the cold - OTOH, I do recall the very peculiar feeling of passing my hand across the invisible but frigid column and thinking, no one's going to believe this! If I get to come back as a spirited influence, I certainly hope it evidences as more than a column of cold :)

I've told my story before, but maybe there are some who have not read it.

Our old house is one of the warm, welcoming ones Suzy was talking of. I felt welcome the minute I set foot inside. However, I do think something is there.

One evening my daughter's dog started looking at the door into the dining room and growling. She kept it up all evening and refused to go through the doorway that evening. At different times I have had a lap cat start to stare at the same doorway, all slanty-eyed and very alert. Sometimes it would be two cats at the same time. When it happens, I am very careful NOT to look. If I ever saw something, I would never feel the same about the house I love!

There are also smells, like a non-frequent powdery sweet scent and often cigarette smoke. No one has smoked in the house since we've lived there -- over 15 years.

I live in a 1700 farmhouse precivil war.I live fairly close to Gettysburg battle fields.we had many things happen here.Like for instance My daughterand I were in basement doing crafts.we heard someone walking upstairs.I said I better go look dads home.I went up doors were locked no one in the house.I called DH.He said no Im in Maryland.
another time we were away my son was here.We had 2 labs at the time.He too was in basement.He said it sounded like someone running through the upstairs.He said dogs ran to top of stairs,barking.He came up doors locked no one here.
I think about a year ago I think I saw what appeared to be an elderly lady in back bedroom one night.Hubby just laughs.But if I close my eyes I can see her plain as day.
While restoing the home a painter said a few times he heard footsteps on stairs .He went and looked but saw nothing.We have a deed with a Col.George Himes of the battle of Gettysburg owned this house in 1822.

I've run across stories of the people who used to own my house as well. One little girl who lived here died of a kidney disease. She was laid out in the living room, as was the custom then for showing before her burial. The family who were living here circa the 1830s were from Virginia. The typhoid fever hit the area hard, and he lost his wife to it and eventually some of his children. I ran across a woman who was a descendant of this family on the inet. She said after trying to make a go of life in what was then a very wild territory,the bulk of the family just eventually packed up and headed back East.