Haunted Richmond – A Handful of Richmond Ghosts, Part 2

Continued, because Richmond has so many cool ghost stories that we just can’t stop.  We told you about the Executive Mansion ghost, and about the ghosts at The Old Stone House, but we left out some of the most famous Richmond ghosts of all.  Not to deprive you, here you go.

The Church Hill Tunnel

In the early 1870′s, the C & O Railway decided to build a tunnel underneath Church Hill.  Makes sense, getting from one end of the Hill to the other, without having to go around, but the tunnel was wrought with troubles from the beginning.  Building the tunnel proved easier said than done.  See, Church Hill was not situated on top of bedrock, like most of the other hills that C & O built tunnels through.  Instead, our hills are filled with blue marl clay.  This made construction a nightmare, and about ten workers died trying to build the tunnel.

The tunnel always had seepage problems, but in 1925 the railroad wanted to utilize it, so they decided to go in and repair and reinforce the tunnel.  On October 2, 1925 the tunnel collapsed on a work train and killed at least two, if not more workers.

When the collapse happened, the men were in total darkness, with debris falling all around them.  They screamed and cried out, but some never found their way out.  The tunnel was sealed in 1926, burying the work train and whatever bodies that went undiscovered.

For years, at the beginning of October, residents and visitors swore they could hear a ghostly train whistle coming from the sealed up tunnel.  Other times, people have heard the cries coming from the men who were trapped, faint and muffled cries of men who died long ago.

Hollywood Cemetery

The Richmond Vampire

One spooky aspect of Hollywood Cemetery is closely tied to the Church Hill Tunnel collapse.  Rescue teams reported coming upon a man who was hunched over one of the tunnel victims.  He was not dressed like a railway worker.  When he stood up, the people said that he had blood around his mouth, and that two fangs protruded from his mouth.  The legend says that the man fled, with people chasing after him.  He reportedly fled all the way to Hollywood Cemetery (that’s a looong way) and disappeared into a tomb marked W.W. Poole.  The door was locked, and the people who chased the bloody-mouthed man couldn’t get the door open.  They asked the cemetery caretaker to open the doors, but he refused.  From this came the legend of the Richmond Vampire.

The legend of the Richmond vampire, of course, is oral history, and three is, of course, a rational, and non-vampire explanation, but that’s no fun, is it?  We’ll save that for a different post.

The Ghost Dog

I’ll report this story as I heard it from an ancient Oregon Hill resident back in 1994.  This woman told me that the cast iron dog stood outside of the drugstore and soda shop on the corner of Laurel and Main.  Other reports said that it stood out front of a store on Broad Street.  Either way, a little neighborhood girl would come to the store and pet the statue and talk to it just as if it were a real dog.

There was a flu epidemic in 1892 and the little girl’s body was interred at Hollywood Cemetery.  The owners of the store where the statue of the dog had stood donated the dog to look over the little girl’s grave.  People have said that the dog emanates a menacing air when someone steps too close to the girl’s grave, and that at night, you can hear the sound of a dog running around the cemetery, panting.

Ellen Glasgow

Ellen Glasgow was a Richmond native, and a novelist who wrote twenty novels and won the Pulitzer Prize for Literature in 1942.  She died in November of 1945, and one of the instructions in her will was that her two beloved dogs who had died several years before be dug up from her back yard and buried with her.  Her wishes were fulfilled, and nighttime visitors to the cemetery swear they can hear small dogs roaming around the cemetery at night.  Are they hearing Ellen Glasgow’s dogs, or the dog that protects the little girl?

Civil War Ghosts

Over 18,000 Civil War veterans are interred at Hollywood Cemetery.  11,000 are unknown soldiers, fallen in the battle of Gettysburg.  Legend has it that during a full moon one can hear moans coming from the pyramid – moans from soldiers who will never find rest because their deaths went unrecorded.  Others will tell you that it’s possible to hear such sounds in broad daylight, and that even in the bright summer sun a chill can run down your spine that will, for that moment, make you believe in ghosts.

Read Part one of Richmond Ghosts

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Haunted Richmond – A Handful of Richmond Ghosts, Part I

Halloween is fast approaching.  Whether you’re going to someone’s house for a party, to a bar, or some to The Canal Club for the Taboo Dead Sexy Halloween Party, hopefully you have something fun planned for this year.  Part of your plans might also include a Haunts of Richmond Tour- something I’ve always wanted to do but have still never done.  So, this post is NOT a review of the Haunts of Richmond Tour people, since I’ve never been (though I totally plan to someday), but it IS a post about some of my favorite Richmond ghost stories.  We live in one haunted-assed town, did you know that?

The Governor’s Mansion Ghost

Now, despite what you think, I’m probably never going to be Governor.  I know, I know.  I’d make a fabulous politician (sarcasm) for our state.  Try to control your disappointment.  Because I’m probably (PROBABLY) never going to be Governor, I will likely never encounter the first ghost on our list.  That’s why it’s first.  Also, because there is no scary, chilling, and compelling back story to the ghost who haunts the Executive Mansion.  Nobody’s figured out who the ghost is.  That’s why I thought I’d start with it, see?  It’s the least satisfying.  But bear with me, because it’s a pretty cool story.

In 2006, USA Today ran an article about the alleged Executive Mansion ghost.  They site a radio show moment when then-Governor Tim Kaine was asked if he’d experienced paranormal experiences at the Executive Mansion and he bluntly answered to the affirmative.  According to the article, he shared the fact that the phone in the family quarters would ring every Thursday at the same time, but then nobody would be there.  That, to me, sounds like a prank caller, not a ghost, but other inhabitants of the mansion have seen more compelling evidence.

For instance, the first lady during the early 70′s – Anne Holton – reported that a portrait would mysteriously move from room to room.  A little creepier.  I like it.  The best stories, however, come from longer ago.  A skeptic would say that a mischievous housekeeper might be to blame, but I’ll believe it was ghostly.  Dial back to the 1890′s when Gov. Philip McKinney actually SAW a ghost of a young lady.  That’s what I’m talking about.  There have been other sightings of the spectral young lady, but nobody has identified her.  Stay tuned, because some blog writer might be taking a trip to the library pretty soon…

The Old Stone House

Home to the Edgar Allen Poe Museum, Poe is probably not one of the ghosts who haunts the Old Stone House.  The house is, after all, the oldest original building in Richmond.  Some books tell me that Poe may have never set foot in the house, though he did live in Richmond for a number of years.  The ghosts that have been spotted in this very old (1740) building and its grounds are varied.

Some people do speculate that Poe’s spirit has visited the house, since the museum contains so many of his personal items.  Whether it is Poe himself or not, a dark shadow has been spotted in the garden.  This shadowy figure has also been photographed.  Is it Poe?  Or some other disturbed figure haunting the grounds?

Since the house is a popular wedding venue, the courtyard garden has been photographed extensively.  Image the surprise of the bride and groom, upon seeing their wedding photos, not being able to recognize children present at their wedding reception.  Many couples have reported a blonde-haired boy and girl between the ages of five and seven appearing in their photos, though nobody on their guest list fit that description, and nobody at the reception remembered seeing them.  It is thought that they are ghosts of the children who inhabited the house when it was first built.

The most entertaining story of an odd occurrence at the Old Stone House happened recently.  The museum’s gift shop received a shipment of Poe bobble-head novelty dolls.  The gift shop worker opened the box to see what was in it, but left it behind the counter with all the dolls still in the box.  She set the alarm and left for the day.  The next day, after disabling the alarm (which had not been disarmed since the previous day), the attendant walked into the gift shop to find that all of the dolls had been removed from their boxes and placed in a line in front of the counter.  The dolls’ individual boxes were packed inside the outside shipping carton.  Neatly.  How creepy, yet fun, is that?

Check out part 2 of Richmond Ghosts!

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Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse And Wine Bar

Here is a post from George, aka The Good Wine Guru, about his experience at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar.

Recently I had the opportunity to attend a media dinner at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar here in Richmond as they wanted to show off some of their new Fall menu items.  Having never been to Fleming’s I was excited to say the least.

Before the meal began, we were offered a cocktail, the Stoli Bombshell.  In support of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Fleming’s is offering this cocktail, with 100% of the sales benefiting the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade.  Whether you’re a pink cocktail drinker or not, it’s a good cause I think we can all get behind.  As for the cocktail itself – I don’t typically drink sweet drinks, and I’d be lying if I said I would order this again, but I can understand the appeal of it.

A mixture of Stoli Vanil vodka, lime juice, and sugar free raspberry preserve, the cocktail only has 99 calories, but with almost no taste of alcohol in it, it would be incredibly easy to over-indulge in these and regret it the next morning.  That being said, the sales go to a good cause, so I do encourage anybody visiting Fleming’s to order one.

The first item from the menu we tried were the Lump Crab Louis Wraps, paired with a 2007 Sanford Chardonnay from Santa Barbara County.  The wraps were comprised of butter lettuce with avocado, bacon, egg, tomato, lump crab meat, and some chives with a thousand island vinaigrette, and were, quite frankly, delicious.  These were a great way to start the meal and are definitely an appetizer I would recommend.

The wine was lightly oaked, and was a perfect compliment to the crab meat and the vinaigrette.

Next on the menu was the Salmon Nicoise Salad, paired with the 2008 Conundrum from California.  The Salmon Nicoise consisted of perfectly broiled salmon filet with roasted Yukon potatoes, French green beans, truffled deviled eggs, roasted sweet baby peppers, all with a lemon-balsamic vinaigrette.  The entire plate was delicious, but my favorite part of it was hands down the truffled deviled eggs.  I would eat an entire plate of those if you put them in front of me and while I’m sure I would regret it later, I would love every minute of it while indulging.

The Conundrum was a perfect pairing for this.  While the exact make up of the Conundrum is kept a mystery, I got floral notes that I associate with Viognier and Vidal Blanc.  This was another perfect pairing and a wine that any guest should consider if ordering seafood at Fleming’s.

The third item on our menu was a Roasted Mushroom Ravioli paired with a 2007 Shug Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast.  The ravioli was stuffed with portobello and shiitake mushrooms and topped with a porcini butter sauce.  I’m hit or miss on mushrooms, especially as the key ingredient, but this was definitely a hit.  The earthy flavors of the meal were perfectly complimented by the earthiness of the Shug Pinot.  Between the Roasted Mushroom Ravioli and the Lump Crab Louis Wraps it’d be real easy to make a meal out of appetizers, and one you wouldn’t regret having.

For our fourth course we moved into steak, something I had been looking forward to.  A peppercorn steak paired with a 2006 Faust Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley, the steak was cooked to perfection with a nice crust of cracked black and white peppercorns with a side of Fleming’s proprietary “F17″ steak sauce.  I tried the steak both with and without the steak sauce and while I’ve always been a believer in steak standing on its own without sauce, there’s nothing wrong with this sauce.

Adding a bit of zing to the steak, the F17 sauce was unlike any steak sauce I’ve tried before, and one that I’d love to bottle and keep at home.  The Faust Cabernet Sauvignon was nice and full-bodied, holding up great to the bold flavors of the crusted steak.

Next we moved into a showcase of Fleming’s Fall Prix Fixe menu.  For $39.95 a person, you can enjoy a three course meal at Fleming’s this fall, and believe me, it’s definitely a great deal.

We were first offered the Veal Osso Bucco served on creamy risotto with roasted autumn vegetables.  The meat just fell off the bone and melted in the mouth.  I know people have ethical concerns about veal, and I’m not going to get into a pro or con debate on veal here, but I do know that this was some of the best veal I’ve ever had and I certainly didn’t need the knife that was provided.

We also tried Oysters Rockefeller, which had been baked with a sambucca-laced creamed spinach and topped with shaved parmesan cheese and bacon bits.  Much like mushrooms, I’m hit or miss on oysters, but this was another hit.  These are a great appetizer for the prix fixe menu and one I think I could even talk my wife into, who is very much against oysters.

Finally we had dessert.  I typically don’t make it to dessert, but when presented with a trio of creme brulee, well sometimes you just have to soldier on.  Three small creme brulees, a chocolate, a banana, and a vanilla, were presented, and I have to say, all three were spectacular.  I don’t eat a lot of chocolate, but I would have loved to have another serving of the chocolate creme brulee, and the banana one had just the right amount of sweetness to let you know you were eating dessert without being over done.

The entire dinner was nothing short of amazing, and I would be remiss if I didn’t also compliment the wait staff for doing a great job.  We were also fortunate enough to meet the Operating Partner, John Van Peppen, and the Executive Chef Partner, Jay McManus.  Both were incredibly gracious and are clearly passionate about what they do.

I could probably ramble on for several more pages about how much I enjoyed Fleming’s, but what it really comes down to is whether you should go and try their new menu.  The answer is a resounding yes.  If you have a Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar in your area, you should absolutely go and try their new fall menu, the Prix Fixe menu, and even give the Stoli Bombshell a try during October to help raise money for a good cause.

I want to thank John Van Peppen, Jay McManus, and the entire Fleming’s Richmond staff for an amazing meal and I do hope you’ll go and visit them very soon.  I know I plan to.

Related articles

• Which is better beer or wine? (frommyexperience.com)
• Top 10 Menu Blunders (toptenz.net)
• Raw Fish with Rice (eatinginrichmond.com)

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