Stories about Oak Lawn and the mysterious events going on there began many years ago and continue today, although they probably peaked during the 1970's when the house was occupied by the district court and the county office of parole and probation. Clerks and secretaries often reported lights turning on and off by themselves, a coffee pot that would heat up... even when it was unplugged and the sounds of phantom footsteps echoing through unoccupied parts of the building. There were also stories of a rocking chair that moved by itself and of a staff member who came to work early one morning and saw a man through the glass panes of the front door. A check of the building revealed that no one (living, that is) was inside.

Frankly, I find the stories of the coffee pot which heated up on its own to be the most entertaining, especially in light of some of the phenomena that accompanied it. The most commonly reported strange events were the phantom smells of Oak Lawn..... the smells of soup and bacon and eggs that would waft through the building during the day and into the night. It was not the odors themselves that seemed to disturb the staff but the source of them.. or rather the lack of a source. At the time, there were no cooking appliances in the building and no cooking done there at all. Soon, the ghost was dubbed the "cooking ghost" and the smells of various foods became commonplace.

The smells of food were not the only way the ghost chose to make its presence known however. One staff member, who probably had more strange encounters than any other because of the late and solitary hours he worked, reported a number of events like seeing cloth napkins fold and re-fold themselves before his eyes and hearing a number of noises that he could not explain. On one occasion, he believed that he actually saw the ghost itself. He was working late one night and was on his way to the second floor when he noticed what appeared to be a "white haze" out of the corner of his eye. He looked quickly and saw the misty ball of vapor hanging in the air. It was very dense but he could
see the way behind it... and then it vanished. Oak Lawn remains a haunted place today and visitors are able to see it on the Haunted Ellicott City Ghost Tour.

In 1923, the Maginnis family purchased Lilburn and it was during the time in which they lived in the house that the stories of ghostly activity in the mansion began making the rounds in town. It was said that footsteps were heard by the family in the tower, along with many other strange noises which could not be explained. It was suggested that the ghost might be the daughter of Henry Hazelhurst who had spent her final days in the house before dying when giving birth. Tragedy almost struck another family at Christmas time that year, when a fire broke out and much of the mansion was ruined. The place was completely rebuilt, except for one minor change.... when the tower was reconstructed, Maginnis chose to replace the gothic peaks that had been on it with stone battlements. Apparently, this slight change did not sit well with the ghosts of Lilburn, because paranormal activity began to increase, leading many to wonder if Henry Hazelhurst himself might still be lingering behind. The stories of ghosts continued for years and the house was owned by several different families. In the 1960's, it was purchased by the Balderson family who had their own share of supernatural tales about the house. The phantom footsteps continued to be heard and the family dog refused to go into a small room on the second floor hallway. On another occasion, a heavy chandelier in the dining room began swinging back and forth during a party, startling many family friends. The windows in the tower refused to stay closed and at one point, Balderson resorted to tie the windows shut with a heavy rope. By the time he had finished tying the rope and walked outside to see the windows from the exterior of the house, the ropes had already been undone and the windows opened by unseen hands. A housekeeper for the Balderson's claimed to hear a child crying in the house and also to have smelled a man's cigar in the library... even though there was no one else in the room. She also claimed to see several apparitions in the house, including the shadowy figure of a man and a girl in a chiffon dress, walking down one of the hallways. Following the Balderson's tenure in the house, it was purchased by Dr. Eugenia King, who lived there with her son. They also reported problems with the tower windows and a repeat performance of the chandelier in the dining room. An additional occurrence took place when a vase of flowers suddenly turned upside down and emptied itself onto the floor. In 1983, the house was purchased by another family, who restored the house and made some major renovations. They claimed to have no encounters with the supernatural occupants of the house..... and yet by 1988, it was on the market again. The house is private property today, but watch for it to soon be included in the upcoming book, haunted Ellicott City by David Ketchersid and Troy Taylor.

After the Civil War, the lives of the young girls who attended the Patapsco Institute changed drastically. Things were now very different in the south and classes on etiquette and manners did not seem so important anymore. The curriculum at the school made many changes and shortly, its reputation began to suffer. By 1891, the Patapsco Female Institute had closed its doors for good. Later that same year, the building was purchased by James E. Tyson and it was turned into a summer hotel. It was during this time that a large porch was added (since destroyed) and a spacious in-ground swimming pool. The pool has survived, although it is now a weed-choked ruin which lies just off of the current property line of the old building. The building was purchased again 14 years later and named Bern Alwick, after the English ancestral home of the new owner Miss Lilly Tyson. She used the place as a residence for three years before it changed hands again. This time, in 1917, the school was turned into a 50-bed hospital for wounded service men from World War I. It is unknown just how many soldiers may have passed away in the old building but one has to wonder if any of them chose to stay behind in the massive building as time passed on. In the 1930's, the building became known as the Hilltop Theater for a short time, but it saw its last occupants in the 1940's. The last occupant was Mrs. Magnolia Brennan, who later willed the school to her daughter. She, in turn, sold the
house to Dr. James J. Whisman, who willed it to his alma mater, the University of Cincinnati. It was during the time that Dr. Whisman owned the building that he ordered it gutted so that no one would be hurt there. It had become a popular spot for teenagers to visit but even after the work was done, the local police still received disturbance calls from neighbors. Today, the site is accessible as a historic park and has been partially restored for events. It is also an active archaeological site as well. There are tours conducted through the structure and more information is available by calling 410.465.8500. The Institute is also included on the Haunted Ellicott City Ghost Tour.