The Haunted White House

The most famous address in America–1600 Pennsylvania Avenue–is also perhaps America’s most famous haunted house. Many people have reported hearing noises and even seeing ghosts. Continue reading to learn more about two most famous ghosts of the White House

Andrew Jackson’s Ghost

In 1828, Andrew Jackson became president and moved into the White House with his wife Mary Todd Lincoln. In the early 1860s, Mary Todd Lincoln believed strongly in ghosts and often tried to communicate with the spirits of her dead sons. The Rose Room, Jackson’s bedroom while he was president, is believed by some to be one of the most haunted rooms in the White House. Jackson’s ghost also showed up in the White House letters of Harry Truman, America’s 33rd president. In June 1945, Truman wrote to his wife Bess of the spooky quality of his new residence: “I sit here in this old house reading reports, and working on speeches–all the while listening to the ghosts walk up and down the hallway and even right in here in the study.”

Abraham Lincoln

By far the most reported ghost in the White House over the years has been the ghost of the celebrated 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. Grace Coolidge, wife of President Calvin Coolidge (1923-29), was the first person to say she saw Lincoln’s ghost. According to her, the tall and thin former president was standing looking out a window of the Oval Office, across to the Potomac River. Lady Bird Johnson, wife of President Lyndon Johnson (1963-69), reportedly felt Lincoln next to her one night while watching a television program about his death.