County of house: Hardeman County
Location of house: 418 N. Main St., east side, Bolivar
Original Occupant: Judge Austin Miller
Built: 1849
"Is Magnolia Manor haunted? That has been the subject of much debate by paranormal societies as well as guests at the Magnolia Manor Bed & Breakfast in Bolivar.
'“Over the past 25 plus years this house has been the focus of numerous investigations by many professional and amateur paranormal groups,” said Greg Stacks, son of Elaine Cox Gatti, owner of Magnolia Manor. The Tennessee Ghost Hunters from Nashville were the first to investigate, and The Memphis-Mid-South Ghost Hunters (formerly the Ghost Stalkers of West Tennessee) conclude that Magnolia Manor has more than a few ghosts!
"The Tennessee Ghost Hunters presented Magnolia Manor with a three-star certificate, which is proudly displayed. The Memphis-Mid-South Ghost Hunters have also awarded Magnolia Manor their “Certified Haunted” certificate stating that Magnolia Manor is indeed a haven for spirits and paranormal activity.
'"Paranormal Inc. has included this beautiful home in their film “Ghosts of War.”
"Whether you believe in ghosts or not, Magnolia Manor is a special place filled with history. This classic two-story residence was home to the family of Judge Austin Miller, a prominent lawyer and banker, for over 120 years. He is credited with helping place the southern boundary of Tennessee so that Memphis would be in Tennessee, not Mississippi. Reputedly Miller had a ferry which transported Indians over river and through the swamps. “We found a document where the government paid him $40, which might have been a great deal of money back then,” stated Tom Gatti, Elaine’s husband.
"Judge Miller designed and supervised the building of his “English country home” of Georgian Colonial design. He hired an African American gentleman to oversee the construction of the house, which has 13-inch walls of handmade, sun-dried, red brick; elongated windows framing the original front door, which opens onto a porch with six square wood pillars and a balcony, and brick parapet chimneys. A bronze eagle on the corner of the house is dated 1849.
"The house was used as headquarters for the Union Army by Generals Grant, Sherman, Logan and McPherson during the Civil War and is believed to be the place where these generals planned the Battle of Shiloh. Their portraits hang on the wall of the staircase leading to the second floor of the house.
"Three generations of the Miller family lived in the house until the 1970s. (Since then the house has only been owned by two other families.) Charles Austin Miller, son of Judge Austin Miller, followed his father’s footsteps to become a prominent attorney and later the Secretary of State of Tennessee. One of C.A. Miller’s daughters — Lizzie Lea Miller — was elected State Representative and was the first woman in the history of Tennessee to serve in the state legislature.
"It has been told by the Miller family that during a meal, Mrs. Miller was seated with Generals Sherman and Grant. General Sherman made the comment that he believed “all Southern men, women and children should be exterminated!” General Grant did not hear this comment, but Mrs. Miller did! She was so upset by his remarks that she left the table and went to the back porch to cry. General Grant followed her to see what was wrong. Mrs. Miller told General Grant what Sherman said to her. Grant ordered Sherman to apologize to their hostess at once! Sherman did apologize but was so humiliated by the order he stormed up to his room! As he approached the stair case, he drew his sword from its scabbard and slashed the banister with it. The mark is still visible to this day!
"A more recent story was shared by an overnight guest who used to visit Mrs. Miller. According to the guest, Mrs. Miller told her that Gen. Sherman placed his spurred boot on the dining room table, and the scar may be seen today.
"The house, which qualifies to be on the National Register of Historic Places, has been featured in several magazines like “National Geographic,” “Home & Garden,” on the PBS show “Tennessee Crossroads,” and on HGTV’S “If Walls Could Talk.”
"The current owner — Elaine Cox Gatti — has operated a popular bed and breakfast at Magnolia Manor since 1985. Guests have a choice of The C.A. Miller Master Suite; Annie’s Room; The 1849 Room, which is considered the most haunted of the guest rooms; and The Cottage, if available (some guests stay there for several weeks or months at a time).
"Ghost stories
"Over the years several stories have been reported by guests hearing footsteps down empty halls, bed sheets being tugged on by unseen hands in the night, doors opening and closing by themselves, antique dolls moving or changing position, full body or partial apparitions, photographs and videos with inexplicable anomalies, Electronic Voice Phenomena or “E.V.Ps” and personal experiences too numerous to recount.
"Magnolia Manor is listed in the “Haunted Inns of the Southeast” book.
"This will be the 10th year for the ghost tours at Magnolia Manor.”The tours sell out every year,” said Greg Stacks, Tour Coordinator, who has a personal interest in ghost tours, and the son of Elaine Cox Gatti.
"I asked Greg if he believes in ghosts? “Absolutely!,”says Gregg. “If you believe in the Bible, you gotta believe in spirits. What happens to us in the afterlife interests me.” Gregg told me several incidents in which he was alone at Magnolia Manor and there were unusual occurrences like footsteps in the hallway when nobody else was in the house, and he has heard “stuff move around” when he slept in The 1849 Room.
'"Despite that, Greg’s favorite room at Magnolia Manor is The 1849 Room. “Blue is my favorite color, and the room is decorated in blue, and it has the most comfortable bed in the house, Greg told me. “But it’s also the room that makes my hair stand on end if I am in the house by myself.”
"Elaine and Tom prefer to call the so-called ghosts “apparitions” or “silhouettes.” “They look like someone you don’t know but would like to know,” said Elaine.
"Tom added that an apparition starts at the doorway of their downstairs den, formerly the dining room with original French 1849 wallpaper, and leads to their bedroom door quite often. Elaine added “too often!”
"A lot of people say that The 1849 Room upstairs is the most haunted room in the house. According to Elaine, the most paranormals register the most decibels of activity in this room of the house. “Most of the time the activity is at the door of the bedroom,” she said. Two or three people have left that room because of the activity they sense.
"Not long ago a nice sweet couple stayed in The 1849 Room at the Magnolia Manor, Elaine told me. During the night, Elaine heard a big noise near the stairway. She got up out of bed and went to the stairway where she saw two guests dragging their luggage down the stairs. “You’re not leaving, are you,” Elaine asked? “The gentleman said, “Hell yes, we’re getting out of here!” I asked him what happened, but all he would say was ‘Ma’am I can’t tell you, but we’re not staying here anymore.”
"Tom has another ghost story to share about recent guests in the two upstairs rooms. “A couple from Pensacola, Fla. stayed with us several weeks ago,” he told me. They stayed two nights in the C.A. Miller Suites. The first day they came downstairs for breakfast, I asked how their first night was. The lady told me it was “terrible.” She quickly told Tom that the accommodations were lovely but “somebody kept pulling my hair and pulling the covers up and down all night!”
"The next morning this lady’s brother-in-law asked to see Elaine and Tom privately in the kitchen for a moment. The guest said he could not talk about this in front of his sister-in-law because she was already spooked, but he related this story to Tom:
'“As she and I were talking back and forth, my sister-in-law was standing in the doorway of her suite, and I was sitting on the couch in The 1849 Room. She walked through an apparition and went to the restroom. In addition, there were two women sitting with me on a couch in The 1849 Room,” said the guest.
"Tom told another account of a “spirit” in The 1849 Room: “Several months ago a gentleman from the San Francisco area, who was a history buff in town to visit nearby Shiloh National Military Park, was a guest in The 1849 Room. About 2:30 a.m. he reported that he was awakened by something. When he turned over in the bed, there was a female silhouette in bed with him.”
"When I toured the house with Elaine she told me that “it is always cold in the 1849 suite, considered to be the most haunted room in the house.
'“One day I came into the 1849 room (I’m not very scared of ghosts) to deliver the clean, folded laundry,” said Elaine. “All of a sudden I started to walk over the threshold of the room, and it was cold as ice. I must be crazy, I thought! Now every time I enter this room, I say ‘Excuse me, I’m just here to change the room. Thank you. I will see you later, darling!’”
"It has been said by various paranormals that the child pictured over the fireplace in the 1849 room is part of the family,” said Elaine. “A lady from Nashville looks for children who need to be found. She thinks that this child died, and the painting was done at her death.”
"Elaine and Tom are gracious hosts. Both are excellent cooks. The popular Sweetheart Package, which is offered year-round, includes a guest room and dinner with a choice of steak or Cornish hen in the inn’s private dining room. Breakfast choices include Eggs Benedict, crepes and quiche. When I left their home after the interview, Tom gave me a jar of homemade pear preserves he had made that morning.
"Magnolia Manor entertains 700 to 800 people every year during the Ghost Tours in October. There are usually around 24 people on the tour. They are greeted by Greg or Elaine in the foyer of Magnolia Manor and given a brief history of the house. Then the guests go into the living room where the paranormal groups meet with them and see photographs that these groups have taken over the years and hear audio recordings.
"The tour proceeds through the downstairs of the house. (The upstairs rooms are usually occupied). Then the guests on the Ghost Tour visit the former slave quarters now called The Cottage in the rear of Magnolia Manor. Adeline, a former cook at Magnolia Manor, is a short and stocky ghost sometimes seen in The Cottage. The present owners found her name in some of the writings about the house. According to Greg, psychics picked up on Adeline’s name before the Gattis even knew she existed.
"The guests then board a City of Bolivar bus from which they see and hear about most of the historic houses in Bolivar, and the tour concludes at Polk Cemetery. The entire tour lasts about two hours. The October weekend (starting Oct. 17) and Nov. 1 and 2 tour times are 7, 8, 9 and 10 p.m. Reservations are required. The cost is $22 including tax. Children must be 11 or 12 years old to go on the tour as it is an adult presentation.
"“We get quite a few repeat visitors on the tour every year,” said Tom. “One local gentleman has been on the tour for the last five years. He enjoyed seeing and hearing about new evidence at Magnolia Manor. “Our guests on the tour are fascinated with ghost hunting. It’s big business now!”
carmel cakes
"Notes: For years Elaine has been known for her caramel cakes, which she once baked and sold. Elaine graciously shared this family recipe of Mattie Simpson, her Ashland, Mississippi grandmother. The recipe is well over a century old. What a marvelous autumn dessert to serve after a ghost tour!
"1 box Duncan Hines Butter Cake Mix: Bake as directed.
"Burnt Sugar Icing
"In heavy skillet pour 2 cups granulated sugar. Melt sugar over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to prevent scorching. When sugar is clear brown syrup, remove from heat. Stir in 1 cup boiling water slowly. Return to low heat and stir until syrup is smooth again. Cool. Pour into clean jar. Cover tightly and store at room temperature. Keeps 6-8 weeks. Makes 1 1/3 cups.
"What to know: Magnolia Manor Bed & Breakfast
"Address: 429 N. Main Street, Bolivar, TN 38008
"Phone: (731) 658-6700
"Website: www.magnoliamanorbolivartn.com
"Dates: Oct. 17-18, 24-25, 31 (Halloween Night) and Nov. 1-2
"Time: Tours start at 7, 8, 9 and 10 p.m. and last two hours.
"Number per tour: 24 (the bus will seat 24 people)
"Tour includes: the Magnolia Manor B&B downstairs public rooms, The Cottage behind Magnolia Manor, and a bus ride to see historic homes and visit the Polk Cemetery.
"Cost of Tour: $22 (including tax). May pay in cash or with credit card. Must purchase ticket in advance!
"Age of tour goers: must be 11 or 12 years old
"Call: (731) 658-6700 for reservations, which are REQUIRED." ~ Jackson Sun, by Lyda Kay Ferree, Sept. 27, 2014