It looks friendly enough in daylight hours, but at night Rippon Lodge becomes a spooky place. It is one of the oldest houses in the county. In 1911, the Manassas Journal reported, "This house is said to be haunted in so ghostly and sinister fashion that no one will occupy it, and the public road has changed its course to avoid the neighborhood.”
"Many tragic stories are told of Rippon Lodge,” according to the Manassas Journal. “More than one murder is said to have been committed there. A victim of a duel bled to death on the parlor floor.”
According to Inside NOVA, one night, a Boy Scout troop camped overnight on the grounds, and volunteer LouAnn Dorrier set up a tape recorder in the house to see what they’d capture overnight.
“It was 12 hours of foot steps and door closings,” she said.
@maggiemae It's now a county museum and creepy enough at night. It is a lovely place during the day. To the right of the house, there is an avenue of old boxwoods that lead to the wooded family burial plot that is especially creepy at night. My husband took a nighttime tour of the house and grounds last weekend. It was great.
What a spooky story!!! The house is beautiful and love how you have composed your shot!!! The tree behind the house is lovely with its intricate patterns!!! Great shot and a fav!!!
I like your processing here and the flowers in the foreground lead the eye directly to the main subject - this is is a Fav for me. The house looks to be in good condition - is it, despite the stories, occupied?
Beautiful composition and framing, fav. I think it was clever of you to have the house partly screened by the flowers--makes it seem more mysterious. Even so, it doesn't look sinister, and the fact that it doesn't somehow makes the idea that it's haunted seem even more so.
@vstap@agedrunner@vickisfotos@deu49097@olivetreeann@bkbinthecity@tonygig@virtualbrownie@ladymagpie@elisasaeter@carolmw@tosee@berndtheo@vignouse@tristansmum Thank you for your lovely comments and favs! This house is currently owned by our county and is a museum. No one lives there. I know some of the docents who give tours and I have heard some spooky tales about the place. The house is not visible from any of the surrounding roads and, until the county purchased it, renovated it and opened it to the public, the closest I could get was a tantalizing gate with the narrow road beyond leading up the hill into the trees. The county keeps it in beautiful condition, but don't let the fresh coat of paint fool you.
