Mason Locke Weems House - East Columbia
By Randall Chancellor
We used to take care of this historic home in East Columbia, TX. We called it the Craig House, but it is historically referred to as the Weems House. You can read details about it on the historical marker found in the front yard. A couple purchased the home after we cared for it and renovated it on the inside and some on the outside as well. My cousin Kerry and I did a video expose on the couple and their renovation while taking Radio/Televison courses at Alvin Community College.
The couple who purchased it (probably 15 years ago) did a lot of work to it. If you have seen the house and property before they started their renovations, then you would really be shocked to see the property that isn't in this image. It may be worth a drive out there. There used to be an old white barn which would appear off the right side of this image. They tore that down and built a newer wood barn. They also cleared a lot of the forest behind the house. You can kinda see that on the left side of this image. To me, the front doesn't look that much different than when we were taking care of it, but I've seen it since the renovations. The overall appearance of the property has really improved, however.
If I can track down the video that my cousin and I created, I'll post it on YouTube and put a link here, but don't hold your breath. :)
We had some interesting experiences while caring for this home. We spent the night in it a couple of times. This **may** be the home where the story of the Lady in the Gray Taffeta Dress is based, but don't quote me on that. We've never experienced anything directly haunted in there, but I think my mom has had some spooky moments since she's spent a lot of time in the home by herself.
Once an escaped convict was suspected to be in the area. On a visit soon after that,we found a basement window cracked open and evidence that someone had probably been down there. The police soon captured the man in the woods behind the house with a large knife on him. This was especially spooky since my mom spent so much time by herself during the day cleaning and tending to the home.
A lady named Mrs. Craig lived in the home while we were caring for it. When she died, instead of placing her in a coffin at a funeral home, they sat her in a chair in the living room for friends and family to pay their respects. We had a lot of fun sitting people in that chair and then telling them that story. You've never seen someone vacate a chair so quickly. The stairs going down into the basement were pretty spooky as well and lead to many a fun scare.
The basement was a hospital during the Civil War, so I would imagine there have been many deaths in that basement which could really enhance the haunt/ghost factor. But the house was moved from across the street several years after the end of the Civil War, so that vacant lot across the street may be more haunted than the house at its current location.
If I can track down the video that my cousin and I created, I'll post it on YouTube and put a link here, but don't hold your breath. :)
We had some interesting experiences while caring for this home. We spent the night in it a couple of times. This **may** be the home where the story of the Lady in the Gray Taffeta Dress is based, but don't quote me on that. We've never experienced anything directly haunted in there, but I think my mom has had some spooky moments since she's spent a lot of time in the home by herself.
Once an escaped convict was suspected to be in the area. On a visit soon after that,we found a basement window cracked open and evidence that someone had probably been down there. The police soon captured the man in the woods behind the house with a large knife on him. This was especially spooky since my mom spent so much time by herself during the day cleaning and tending to the home.
A lady named Mrs. Craig lived in the home while we were caring for it. When she died, instead of placing her in a coffin at a funeral home, they sat her in a chair in the living room for friends and family to pay their respects. We had a lot of fun sitting people in that chair and then telling them that story. You've never seen someone vacate a chair so quickly. The stairs going down into the basement were pretty spooky as well and lead to many a fun scare.
The basement was a hospital during the Civil War, so I would imagine there have been many deaths in that basement which could really enhance the haunt/ghost factor. But the house was moved from across the street several years after the end of the Civil War, so that vacant lot across the street may be more haunted than the house at its current location.
NOTE " Still trying to locate video "