Haunted Louisville Part 2: Ghosts of the Conrad-Caldwell House

Theophilus Conrad, the original owner of the Conrad-Caldwell House, died of a heart attack on the staircase, but it’s said he makes ghostly, unexpected appearances to this day. “He sort of appears as a misty apparition and it takes the shape of a man with a goatee and a bowler hat,” said David Domine, author of The Ghosts of Old Louisville. “And he never says anything to anyone. He just shows up and sternly looks at them and does this (wag his finger) as if to say, you shouldn’t be doing this, and then he disappears.”

Conrad’s widow sold the home to the Caldwell family, said Domine. The home later became a Presbyterian retirement home. Kate Meador, the museum’s executive director, said that some believe three women from the Presbyterian home still inhabit the house. “If we move things, they tend to get a little upset,” she said. “So they’ll open doors or move things as well. So we’ve had those instances. And one of our docents will say hello to them in the morning just to make sure she has talked to them.”

Beth Caldwell, a great-granddaughter of the original Caldwells, recalled seeing mysterious lights while she was giving a tour of the home. “Out of the corner of my eye I saw a ball of light go flying by. Now I probably wouldn’t have thought anything about it, but then a second one went flying by.”

In another mysterious occurrence, a housekeeper who was alone in the house heard a voice. “‘Hurry, hurry, close the window. It’s raining outside.’ She went upstairs, the window was open. It was raining in,” Caldwell said. But no one was in the house.

This segment is part of Kentucky Life episode #2105 which originally aired on January 30, 2016. Watch the full episode.

This segment was also included in episode #2110, the Haunted Louisville special, which originally aired on October 29, 2016. Watch the full episode.