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Post by ( MEGAN ) on Jun 22, 2009 12:17:35 GMT -5
While the institution of slavery is indefensible, it nevertheless existed in the antebellum south, and certainly in New Orleans. Madame LaLaurie, it is told, had a particular fondness for the practice, and owned many slaves who were methodically brutalized to keep them "under control." There were many rumors, reportedly fanned by the "jealous Americains" who were systematically excluded from all things truly Creole. Among other things, it was said that in the LaLaurie household, slaves disappeared on a regular basis. A neighbor reported seeing Delphine chasing a slave girl onto the roof of the house with a whip. The child jumped to her death. It appeared that Madame LaLaurie enjoyed her many luxuries at the cost not only of her slaves' freedom, but also of their lives.
On April 10, 1834, a fire broke out in the LaLaurie home, and when the volunteer fireman came to the scene, they discovered the horror hidden inside the facade of gentility. Dozens of slaves were reportedly chained to the wall in a secret attic. Some were in cages, and body parts were strewn about haphazardly. Horrible mutilations had been perpetrated, and some slaves cried out begging to be put out of their pain and misery. The monstrous and insane experiments carried on by Madame LaLaurie were beyond anything imaginable, either before or since. It was a sight that no one in the city could comprehend, and the population was sickened, calling for Delphine to be brought to justice.
But she had disappeared. Some people found evidence that she and her husband fled across Lake Pontchartrain and lived there, while others say she went from there to France, escaping in a horse and buggy on the night of the fire. However, a tombstone bearing her name has been discovered in St. Louis Cemetery No.1, indicating that she died in 1842, and that perhaps her children arranged to have her remains returned here. A mob vented its anger on the home, destroying everything within its walls. For some years after that, it was an abandoned wreck. One window in the house, visible from the street, was sealed over and remains so today. Rumor has it that a slave fell to her death through that window during the rescue attempt on the night of the fire.
The LaLaurie house has had many incarnations before returning to its purpose as a residence. It was a saloon and a girl's school, a music conservatory, an apartment building and a furniture store. The stories began almost immediately. Many have reported seeing the phantom of that young slave girl fleeing across the LaLaurie roof. Agonized screams coming from the empty house were commonplace. Those who stayed there after it became occupied left after only a few days. At the turn of the century, a resident, one of the many poor Italian immigrants who lived in the house, encountered a black man in chains. The entity attacked him on the stairwell then suddenly disappeared. The next morning, most of the other residents abandoned the building.
The bar, "The Haunted Saloon," opened in the 20th century. The owner kept records of the odd experiences of his patrons. Later, it seemed the LaLaurie House did not care to be a furniture store. The owner’s merchandise was often found covered in a mysterious foul-smelling fluid. After staying up to catch the suspected vandals, the owner found the liquid had somehow re-appeared in plain sight, although no one had entered. The business closed.
Animals were found butchered within the house. Delphine was reportedly seen hovering over the infant child of a turn-of-the-century resident, or chasing children with a whip. She also apparently attempted, late in the 19th century and long after she was dead, to strangle a black manservant. Today, people just passing the building on tour report fainting or becoming nauseous, and of course, disembodied screams or wailing are still occasionally heard. Some tourists are able to photograph orbs around the roof area.
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