The ghosts of Rowan Oak
Michelle Lady
Issue date: 10/31/06 Section: Arts & Entertainment
There's something mysterious about Rowan Oak, the house of the late world famous author William Faulkner.
Walking down the pathway of tall cedar trees toward the 160-yearold house (which looks a lot like something out of a scary movie) is something many people would consider creepy, especially at night.
"I'll tell you, walking down the cedar alley at night is pretty spooky, and it's only natural that you would probably experience something in a house this old," said William Griffith, the current curator of Rowan Oak.
As you walk up the path, you cannot help but notice a huge magnolia tree with draping branch leaves that reach all the way to the ground to your left. Although the magnolia tree itself is just a normal tree that you could see anywhere throughout the state, it is what is buried under the tree which sets it apart.
The house was built in 1844 for Colonel Robert Sheegog and his family, including his wife Mary and their eight children (three girls and five boys). It is one of the Sheegog daughters who is buried under the magnolia tree.
According to William Faulkner, who bought the house in 1930, the daughter's name was Judith. Faulkner told many stories about the young Judith who supposedly died in the house.
Faulkner's niece Dean Faulkner Wells wrote down the stories of Judith in her book "The Ghosts of Rowan Oak." In the book, Wells said that Judith died from jumping off the balcony of the house and was then buried under the magnolia tree.
Wells said that on several occasions, Judith would come in the house and you could hear her walking around in her room. Faulkner also described hearing the piano play the Chopin Waltz, but as he would go downstairs to check, no one would be there.
According to Griffith, there was never a Judith Sheegog, but rather a woman named Julia Sheegog. Griffith also said that he has never seen anything weird at the house, but he described a picture taken from Mrs. Faulkner's bedroom to be interesting. The picture was taken in January 2002, right before the house was renovated.
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