Haunted House
March 20, 2009
Yesterday, looking for the location of the Where Is It pictures became a lot like looking for a ghost. But, at the house shown in one of the pictures, if you did happen to see a ghost, you would be at the right location.
Lord Harry Hawcroft, was a skilled blacksmith who lived at 519 Brinkerhoff from 1888 until his death in 1932. And, according to George Ogle and his family, the current owners, Harry still hangs around the house. George has convinced other people, too. This house has been featured in many books and articles about ghosts. It was also a stop on the Santa Barbara Trolley Ghost Tour that ran last year.
The dedicated staff of edhat.com had the pleasure of meeting with Mr. Ogle and his family on Thursday. To be honest, we weren't totally convinced that Harry haunts the house, but were very impressed with the family's knowledge, respect, and enthusiasm for the former resident of their home. And, we definitely believe that they believe.
There's quite a lot of evidence of a ghost in the house. One story involves a night when the family totally cleaned off the kitchen table before bed, only to find a missing diamond earring, and a missing $500 lottery ticket on the table in the morning. There is another story of an eye-witness report by a woman driving by the house who saw a man wearing a white shirt with pearl buttons and a coat, appear in the road.
Lord Harry, when he was alive, was known for his impeccable dress, especially for his ability to keep his starched white shirt clean while blacksmithing. He was also known for wearing pearl buttons (many of which have been found around the yard at 519 Brinkerhoff). Other notable achievements for the man turned ghost are that he forged a 65-foot screw, that he married the most beautiful woman in town, and that he made better hand-tools than anyone alive.
Ed said it was just chance that we picked a picture of Ogle's house for our March Edness picture. We were driving around looking for cool shots, and the gable caught our eye. But, maybe it wasn't chance. Maybe it was Lord Harry willing our way.
Robert Ogle says that this is how he found out about his ghost's identity. One day, for no particular reason, he bought an old photograph at the old Abraxas Bookstore. Later, one of the Hendry brothers saw the picture and told Ogle that the guy in the picture was Lord Harry Hawcroft, and that Ogle was living in his house.
This could be coincidence, but it could also be a shining example of something that we cannot explain.
Identifying the location of the house earned contestants 5 March Edness points.
* See what the Edness contestants guessed for this picture.
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