Whereas the Blair Witch is folklore; the happenings at Hell House are well documented and quite disturbing. There are many legends and bizarre stories about Hellhouse and it is up to the reader to choose what to believe. Many explorers visited Hellhouse during the 1980's and 1990's and were alarmed to hear the chanting voices from within the building. There was no electricity so the only light was provided by candles. I personally heard the chanting of the "satanists" and I was pretty shaken by it.
Late one summer evening in 1991 we visited Hellhouse. We parked, grabbed our baseball bats and then walked up the long dark winding driveway. As I approached Hellhouse I was overcome by uneasy feelings. This old, brick building towers above you as you creep silently up the driveway. A few of us, myself included, saw some light within the building, and we crept ever closer to explore. Many of the windows were boarded up, but you could still see through the cracks. I saw the flickering of what I thought was candlelight and then I heard the chanting. Low monotone chanting. Over and over again. I had never been to a satanic ritual but that is what it sounded like. A shiver of fear came over me. A few of us heard the chanting and we wanted to walk back down to the cars. Some of the others couldn't believe it and went to hear for themselves. My friend Jesse even made an attempt to crawl through one of the windows.
After a few minutes many of us were near a state of panic. Someone had seen a light coming around the side of the building and we all started to walk quickly away from the house to the driveway. Then all hell broke loose. It was very dark as we hurried down the driveway. Then, out of nowhere, several black dogs appeared and started barking and then chasing us down the hill. I didn't get a good look at the dogs but I did see one run past me and start chasing my buddy Jesse. As I retell this story now, the events are amusing but, at the time, we were scared shitless. I remember running so fast that I could hear my feet slapping loudly against the asphalt. I ran past Jesse which was rare because he ran track. My heart was pounded, my adrenalin rushing...I ran for my life. Those dogs wanted to take a piece of us back to Rufus, the caretaker. The girls were at the bottom of the hill, they saw us running like hell and they all jumped into their cars. Within seconds we were in the cars peeling out and speeding away from those dogs.
That's when we realized we had left a buddy behind. No one wanted to go back but we had to. We drove back and stopped the car near the driveway, that's when Graham jumped out of the ditch and ran to the car. He was terrified. We sped off and tried to find our friends. We found our buddies a half mile down Bonnie Branch Road and got out of our cars and discussed a plan of action.
We decided we would return to Hell House but instead of going up the driveway we would climb the stone stairs near the train tracks. With bats in hands we sneaked up the stairs. Just as we were about to reach the top BOOM! Someone was shooting at us. It was so fucking loud. I felt the splinters of wood and debris fall. Someone fired a shotgun right above our heads. You thought we were quick running away from those dogs...you should've seen us running down those stairs. We ran so fucking fast that if you had it on videotape all you'd see is a blur. We hauled ass to the cars and took off home. It was a crazy night and we didn't go back until twelve years later, as illustrated below.
Hellhouse has changed a lot since the 1990's. There was a devasting fire and the roof caved in. It is now an uninhabitibal wreck but there is still some majesty left in it. Some of the Maryland Ghost & Spirit websites claim the grounds are haunted. There is a legend that says a monk killed three nuns then hanged himself over a pentagram etched in the floor. Probably bullshit but there is definately something strange about this place. Judge for yourself but take a good look at the photo at the top of this page and think how you'd feel out there all alone late one moonless night.
One final first hand account I have is from a friend of mine Brian. In the late 1980's he claimed to have driven with a friend up the driveway to Hellhouse. As he was turning around he saw two men cloaked in black hoods and capes come running towards his car with pickaxes. As he tried to drive away one of the men drove his pickaxe into the hood of his Camaro. They promptly escaped and never went there again. I never saw the hole in the Camaro's hood. I know this sounds crazy but he was a credible character. I have to believe it was a lie...but part of me wonders.
Hellhouse is often said to be located in Ellicott City, but it is actually located in Ilchester, Maryland. It is mainly ruins now, but ten years ago it was a hub of late night activity. I am not suggesting you go there, but if you do, go at night...
HISTORY
Hell House was formerly known as the Redemptorist St. Mary's College. It functioned primarily as a seminary for future priests. The Redemptorists (a branch of the Catholic Church) built the college on top of a large hill overlooking the Patapsco River and the B&O railroad. There was a stop on the railroad at the foot of the hill. It also overlooks the remains of the oldest railroad bridge in the United States; the Patterson Viaduct.
The Redemptorists bought the land from George Ellicott, a local landholders. The Ellicott Brothers, founders of Ellicott City, were millers by trade and thus owned large tracts of land on the Patapsco River. St. Mary's College functioned for many years and even fielded a football team, some of the scores I found on the internet! There were very few trees on top of the hill in the early days and the priests set up an observatory behind the college named Astral Heights. There is a wonderful photograph of the priests pointing at the heavens at Astral Heights. The Redemptorists have the photograph.
By the 1960's the property had been bought and sold and by the early 1980's the college was purchased to serve as a religious (Buddhist) retreat. The idea never panned out. According to property tax records, Michael Nibali briefly owned the property. The property was then sold to S&S Partnership incorporated in Savage, MD. I have approached them regarding the possible sale of the property but they have yet to respond. From some minor research it appears S&S Partnership acts as a landlord for various properties in the Baltimore area. Many people have spoken of the 'caretaker'. Supposedly the caretaker lived in a small mobile home behind Hellhouse and was there to scare off trespassers. He was certainly effective. The fucking guy shot at me. He missed. One kid wasn't so lucky. (courtesy stubbornlights.com) The caretaker's name is Allen Rufus Hudson. You're famous know 'Rufus'.
Are you still interested in this place? Hasn't it gotten old? Well, I will indulge you. Here a few more websites you can visit to learn more about Hellhouse:
Stubborn Lights - This is the finest website on Hellhouse. Full of scholarly research. It features lots of newspaper articles on the caretaker, his shooting of a teenager, the previous owners and has some wonderful pictures of what St. Mary's College used to look like. It has photographs of the building in 1868, the faculty in 1902, the front entrance, the great fire of 1997,
Lost Destinations - A few more photos but short on any details. It features a long-winded story written by a witch (yawn).
Our Lady of Perpetual Help - This is the Redemptorist order that built the college and ran it as a seminary well into the 20th Century. There is some good historic information on the main page.
Maryland Ghosts & Spirits Assoc. - Check the message board for some similar Hell House stories.
Ghosts.org - More stories posted by the Fraternal Order of Hellhouse Survivors.
Historical Ellicott City - Another story...but I'm skeptical.
Hellhouse site #58 - Not very helpful.
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THANKS
To Stubborn Lights (Ann & Mark) for allowing me to add some perspective on these sights and stories.
Thanks for visiting. Don't vote for Bush, he avoided military service in Vietnam, then went AWOL from the Texas Air National Guard from 1972-1973. Look for yourself.
Feel free to use my photographs for whatever purpose you desire. I'm not into saying shit like "These photographs are copywrited" or "Do not use photos without permission". I took them and they are for you. If you like them great. I hope you enjoyed the site...I just want to spread the news about this place before it's gone. Do what you like, have as much fun as you can, and lead a virtuous life my brothers and sisters...
If you are still bored visit Dystopia - An Intellectual Wasteland
This site is dedicated to Lou Holtz.
