The Haunting Of Frances Farnum Part 1

Frances Farnum came from a wealthy family. She was her fathers favorite. When the family mansion was built, Mr Farnum had pink paint imported from France, knowing that his sweet daughter loved the color.

In time, as girls do, Frances fell in love with a boy named Hanford. They would spend their days after school on the banks of the Genesee river, dreaming of their future together.
One day, Mr. Farnum told his lovely daughter Frances, that she was going to marry a rich man from town...Edwin Hall. Frances pleaded with her father not to make her... and told him of her plans to one day marry Hanford. Mr. Farnum wouldn't have his business plans ruined over a poor boy, so he forbade Frances to see him. Frances and Hanford continued their love in secret, through romantic letters delivered by the house maids. Hanford left to attend law school intending to impress Mr. Farnum with his degree when he returned. They were not going to let anything stand in the way of their love.

Frances's jealous sister, Antoinette, found the letters and turned them over to Mr. Farnum. He devised a plan to ruin the love between Frances and Hanford. One day a letter arrived for Frances, from Hanford. He no longer wanted anything to do with her. A letter was also sent to Hanford from Frances, telling him she was in love with Mr. Hall and planned to accept the proposal from him.

When Hanford returned from college in the spring, Frances saw him on the street. He did
not even look her way. Frances was devastated and finally agreed to marry Mr. Hall.

As the wedding plans were being made, Frances discovered that jealous Antoinette had seduced Mr. Hall. Even so, her family still expected them to marry.

The eve of the wedding, Frances decided she would not be forced to live in a loveless marriage. Late on the blustering cold evening in December, she left her room and went to the edge of the icy Genesee river.

The next day Frances was found dead in the water. Her family told locals that Frances was
possibly depressed and It was assumed that she jumped into the icy waters while in a religious craze, and drowned.

There were rumors about town that Frances had possibly been reprimanded by her father for refusal to marry Mr. Hall..and he had accidentally killed her out of rage. It was even heard that maybe jealous Antoinette who was in love with Mr. Hall, had drowned her sister on purpose. But in those days there was no local coroner, and police were owned by the dominant political party. Mr. Farnum owned most of the town and was recently an elected official. No investigation was done, and the word of the family was accepted.

Antoinette was happy to take the place of Frances. She married Mr. Hall shortly after the death of her sister. The newlyweds took over the Pink mansion and eventually had a daughter, Louisa. At around age two, she wandered out of the home late in the night and was found the next morning drowned in the fountain at the Pink Mansion.

Antoinette was sure that her sisters evil spirit was behind this. So sure in fact, that when she had little Fannie, she took safety measures. Her daughter was put in the tower of the pink mansion, watched by a nanny 24/7. Antoinette also demanded that a candle burn day and night as to keep her sisters evil spirit away.

As Fanny, grew into a woman, she and her husband took over the mansion. The had a little girl, who they named Beatrice. One sunny summer day, Antoinette and Fannie were weeding the gardens of the Pink Mansion. As they walked by the water fountain a horrible discovery was made. Little Beatrice had fallen into the well and drowned.

A few months later Mr Hall hung himself inside the Pink Mansion. He knew that his daughter and granddaughter had died because of his betrayals to Mary Frances, and lies about the truth.

Antoinette lived to be old, and was forever haunted by the notion that her sister was the cause of her heartaches. She never accepted any responsibility for her own sins.

Hanford never forgot his true love, Frances Farnum. In time he married and had children, and was a successful lawyer and poet. "Pauline" was one of his most famous poems, telling the tale of love and deceit in his younger years under fictitious names. Many other of his poems also referred to his lost love.

Frances forever lives in the pink mansion, her angry spirit forever trapped there waiting for her love to come back and steal her away.

********************Please check in at a later date, as I will be adding part 2 to the story. While this is the haunting tale I heard as a child, I will be providing factual information about the life and death of Frances Farnum. This will include extensive research into the family and its history...and evidence backing the theory that Frances may have been murdered.