The May-Stringer House

The Haunted May-Stringer House in Brooksville, Florida

The May-Stringer House was built in 1855. It’s said to be haunted by the ghost a 3-year-old girl named Jessie Mae who died in the house. The house has seen many deaths over the years and several bodies have been buried on the property. Jessie Mae is not the only specter who haunts this historic landmark. There are many other ghosts said to walk the halls making the May-Stringer House one of the most haunted places in the country.

Death and Sadness at the May-Stringer House

John L. May was the original owner who built the four-room home for his wife Marena and 2 daughters in the 1850s. He succumbed to tuberculosis 3 years after moving in. His wife and family remained in the home through the Civil War. Marena married a Confederate soldier named Frank Saxon after the war. Marena died while giving birth to the new couple’s daughter Jessie Mae.

Sadly, 3 years later, Jessie Mae passed away from unknown causes. There are several graves on the property. John May, Marena and Jessie Mae, as well as the infant son of Frank and Marena, are all buried on the property.

Frank Saxon sold the home to Doctor Sheldon Stringer who expanded the home dramatically into what’s regarded as a mansion today. The good doctor served patients and it’s been said used the home as something of a sanatorium to patients suffering yellow fever and smallpox.

Ghosts of the May-Stringer Home

With so many deaths and an abundance of sorrow, the home has the perfect making for a horror story. It’s said that ghostly happenings began very early after the deaths of the children. During the expansion of the home, children’s giggles and laughter were heard when no child was around. Reports of mists, ghostly shapes and cold spots have been reported and the crying of a baby is heard from time to time.

Florida’s most haunted place?

This is said to be one of Florida’s most haunted homes. Investigators have set up camp often. An angry spirit called “Mr. Nasty” was apparently a shooting victim of Doctor Stringer’s and he can be quite active now and then. He supposedly hung himself in the attic after his wife cheated on him years ago and now he does not tolerate women in the house.

With many spirits, a great sadness, and a sordid history, the May-Stringer House is definitely a top haunt spot, to say the least.