This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: papafrankh Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.missouri.counties.jackson/3476.2.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Vaile Mansion Though this old building has no accounts of recent hauntings, it is said that at one time it was so ominous that passersby would cross the street rather than walk in front of the old home. Built by Colonel and Mrs. Harvey Vaile in 1881, the 31-room mansion includes nine marble fireplaces, spectacular painted ceilings, flushing toilets, a built-in 6,000-gallon water tank, and a 48,000-gallon wine cellar. Reportedly, some time after Mr. Vaile built the mansion he encountered some trouble when he was accused of mail fraud and potentially faced a jail sentence. The despondent Mr. Vaile began to deteriorate and went a little crazy. Vaile Mansion Mrs. Vaile, mortified over the accusations, took an overdose of morphine and killed herself in 1889. Later Mr. Vaile was exonerated but, alas, it was obviously too late for his wife. Mr. Vaile lived for another five years and never remarried. Supposedly the mansion was haunted by Sylvia Vaile, as she was often reported as having been seen looking out the windows after her death. According to one legend, when she died, her husband could not part with her so he buried her on the front lawn in a glass-topped coffin set flush with the ground. However, neighborhood protests finally forced him to give his wife a more conventional burial. We, at Legends of America, talked to the people working at the Vaile Mansion in the spring of 2004, who not only looked at us like we were insane, but denied that Mrs. Vaile was ever buried on the property. (Who knows?) After Mr. Vaile died in 1894, the home became an inn for a brief period. Then it was used as a private asylum and sanitarium. A mineral water company, the Vaile Pure Water Co., operated from the site soon after the turn of the century. Later it became a rest home for the aged. Acquired by Roger and Mary Mildred DeWitt in the 1960s, the home was saved from destruction. It was given to the citizens of Independence after the death of Mrs. DeWitt in 1983. Today the mansion is operated as at 1500 N. Liberty. It is open to the public daily from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.