TAMPA, Fla. — The May-Stringer house in Brooksville, Florida is considered one of the most haunted houses in the state. Ghost hunters have come from all over, recording all kinds of paranormal activity. Some have even reported seeing spirits or hearing strange sounds.
Tammy, our tour guide, has absolute nerves of steel. She has been a volunteer at the house for six years, and she says she was a little skeptical of anything paranormal before working there. However, her experiences in the house have changed her opinion.
The original house was built in 1856 and it was a four-room structure. It featured a parlor, which was often used for special events like weddings, or even funerals. The other rooms included a dining room and two bedrooms.
John May, the owner of the property, built the house for his wife, Marena, and their daughters, Matilda and Annie. However, two years after the house was finished, John died of tuberculosis, leaving behind a widowed Marena.
Tammy adds Marena later got remarried to a confederate soldier, and they married in the parlor room on Christmas Day in 1866. Marena, and her new husband, Frank Saxon, had a newborn baby boy who died five weeks after he was born. Marena later died in childbirth for their second child, Jessie Mae.
Jessie Mae survived childbirth but died three years later from unknown causes. John, Marena, Jessie Mae, and the infant son of Frank and Marena are all buried on the property.
Inside the house, there is a staircase. Prior to the house having additional rooms built, this particular staircase sat on the outside of the house. Tammy says a lot of people have experienced paranormal activity on the staircase, including herself.
“There was one day where I was setting up for a ghost tour, and I was with my partner Autumn. I thought she had gone up the staircase to turn the lights on until I turn and see her in the gift shop in the back of the house. I asked, ‘Did you not just go up the stairs?’” Tammy described. “She said ‘No, I’ve been here the whole time.’ Then we started hearing noises on the staircase.”
The house also features a strange addition of a doctor’s office. However, this would not have been strange back in the 1800s.
After Frank Saxon sold the home, it eventually made its way to Dr. Sheldon Stringer. He added 10 rooms to the house, making it the size it is today. One of those rooms served as an office for his medical practice.
“It was common for doctors to run businesses out of their homes. In those days, you didn’t go to the doctor for a checkup. The common cold was probably serious back then,” Tammy explained.
While we are not sure what exactly went on in his office, Tammy says amputations and all kinds of surgeries could have taken place in the home.
The second floor of the home hosts the children’s room, along with a bedroom shared by Dr. Stringer and his wife. It is also the room where some spirits supposedly hang out.
“There is another spirit that likes to hang out in here, we call him James. He was a World War One soldier. He was a guest who was staying with the family for a while. As the stories go, he was heartbroken because his fiancée had married someone else,” Tammy said.
Tammy describes James as being a playful and protective spirit. He also tends to gravitate toward younger women, possibly because of losing his fiancée.
“We have a couple of girls that don’t like to go in certain areas of the house because it makes them uncomfortable, and they’ll actually ask James to walk with them,” Tammy described.
Tammy has also had a few personal experiences with James.
“I was just sitting here, telling him 'thank you, I love being here, I love the house, thank you for letting us in your home,' and it took me a few weeks to actually go back and listen to [the recording] because I was still kind of skeptical at the time. About halfway through, you could hear this deep sigh, like someone had taken a deep breath. You could tell it wasn’t me, because when I’m talking, the phone was far enough that you couldn’t hear my breath that loud. Somebody was saying something, but you couldn’t tell what it was,” Tammy explained.
She later used a speaker hooked up to her phone, and she says she heard the sound of a woman’s name. While Tammy isn’t sure who’s name was said, she suspects it could be James saying his fiancée's name.
One of the most “haunted” locations in the house is the attic. Tammy says it is where many paranormal investigators love to hang out.
“We believe this very possibly could have been the servant’s quarters during the Stringer years, or even during the renter years as a playroom or kid’s room,” Tammy said.
It is also home for many spirits like Gary, who is attached to a trunk inside the room. He is also nicknamed ‘Mr. Nasty’ for his colorful language.
“He’s very moody, sarcastic, he’s a prankster, and some people want to be afraid of him, but I don’t believe he’s a demonic spirit,” Tammy explained.
On the way out of the house, our crew did experience some potential paranormal activity. You can watch the full encounter in the video below.
If you would like to visit the home, the Hernando Heritage Museum offers historical tours as well as ghost tours. During the Halloween weekend, the house has been converted into a “haunted house” for you to walk through.
You can find more information about dates and times for activities on their website.