Many hauntings tend to be associated with human tragedy; although, this isn’t always the case. However, the Old County Courthouse has had its share of tragedy. There is said to be possibly six entities haunting the old Polk County courthouse, but in order for us to understand the paranormal activities that have occurred here, we must first indulge in the courthouse’s rich history.
At first sight, you probably would not imagine this beautiful majestic courthouse to have spirits roaming its hallways. With its spectacular grand facade and gleaming tower, the idea could make one apprehensive to even conclude that it may be haunted, let alone by six ghosts. My intentions are not to convince the reader of such; instead, I would like to invite you to judge for yourself, based on the history that this courthouse has experienced throughout the years.
The City of Bartow is located just 39 miles east of Tampa and 50 miles southwest of the greater Orlando area. Bartow was originally established in 1851 and is also known as the “City of Oaks and Azaleas.” Bartow can trace its roots to Fort Blount and Reidsville when the city was later renamed Bartow in 1862 in honor of Francis Bartow, the first Confederate brigade general to die in combat during the American Civil War.
Three courthouses have stood on the same square, bounded by East Main and Davidson Streets, Broadway and Central Avenue. On June 15, 1867 the county commissioners awarded the contract for construction of its first courthouse to John McAuley of Fort Meade for a sum of $3,800. A second structure was erected in 1883-4, built by J. H. Thompson, at a cost of $9,000. The present building, erected in 1908-9, was designed in the Classical Revival style by E. C. Hosford, and built by Mutual Construction Company of Louisville, KY at a cost of $83,900. This courthouse is still in use as a museum and historical library.
Our first investigation involves an event in the town’s history that occurred all the way back in 1886.
Who were the Mann brothers?
By 1885, there was not a single saloon in Polk County; however, with a multitude of new settlers from the North where prohibition was not as popular, the majority of registered voters from Lakeland, Bartow and Fort Meade now agreed to have seven saloons established in the area. One of those saloons opened in Bartow in 1885 by Johnson, Daniels & Co., yet before this occurred, the proprietors employed Dan and Lony Mann to gather up enough signatures for the pro-saloon petition in exchange for a share of the profits. However, things would not proceed as simply as that. (See Canter Brown Jr.'s Florida's Peace River Frontier)
Dan Mann had a propensity for alcohol, a hotheaded temper and had fled town after a knife fight with his brother-in-law, nearly killing him. On May 15, 1886 the two brothers, who owned a 20 acre orange grove in Winter Haven, returned to collect their dues, only to be refused payment by the saloon proprietors. The Mann’s had threatened the saloon keeper and angrily dispatched off to the local store and purchased a package of .32-calibre cartridges for their guns. The men then went back to the saloon to take things into their own hands. The town Marshal, W.S. Campbell, was summoned to stop the odiously tempered men and to arrest them. While the two men resisted, “Happy Jack” McCormick, a night watchmen, dashed at Dan’s buggy to seize it. In a heat of rage, Lony pulled out his pistol and shot Jack McCormick in the left ear nearly killing him. Marshal Campbell was not so fortunate: Dan had shot him in the heart, killing him instantly. The Mann brothers fled.
Sheriff R.P. Kilpatrick summoned a posse of men to capture them. Meanwhile, a half mile out of town, the Mann’s buggy hit a tree stump, overturned, and as a result, the crash seriously injured one of the brothers. They were later spotted by T.S. Hull who held them until the posse arrived and returned the men to Bartow to await their punishment.
Crowds gathered around the 1883 courthouse, vociferating and screaming “Lynch them. Kill them.” Cantor Brown states in his Florida’s Peace River Frontier, that “crowds grew more violent when the Marshal’s wife and young children were brought to view ‘the [Marshal’s] dead corpse lying in the street.’”
The Sheriff was notified that the Mann’s would be lynched by the angry crowd-- a mob of two-hundred embarked for the city jail. Within hours, the Mann’s were transported to a nearby oak tree on Main Street located in front of the old 1883 courthouse. The angry mob began to string up Dan when Lony suddenly attempted to escape but was subsequently gunned down, hung and displayed in front of the courthouse. Allegedly, the bodies were later hung from the second story inside the old courthouse for several days.
Today, in the rotunda area of the courthouse, the staff and some visitors have reported feelings of despair as well as strange cold spots. Apparitions of two men roaming about the courthouse are believed to be the Mann brothers.
Another incident occurred in the basement boiler room when an explosion took the life of a male operative who was working in one of the four rooms. Many employees and museum visitors have reported unearthly and agonizing screams, but much to their dismay, there have been no explanation as to the source of these activities. Some suspect it’s a residual haunting of the unfortunate man’s disembodied spirit reliving his tragic demise in the explosion.
On the first floor in the criminal courtroom, many have experienced unexplained cold spots, although, it is inconceivable to identify any supernatural beings who might occupy this room. Many criminals have been inscribed in the books of the old courthouse’s roster, including those who faced life sentences or even death.
Flickering lights and cold spots have been observed in a room containing ancient Native American artifacts housed on the first floor. An apparition of a young lady wearing a white antique dress has been observed by many people near the second floor bathrooms and on the third floor. She could be one of several women who had a strong attachment to the building, but it is not clear who she is or why she haunts the old building.
The Murder of Judge Chillingsworth
During the early morning of June 15, 1955 two men broke into the circuit judge’s oceanfront home in Manalapan, Florida. The judge and his wife Majorie were bound, assaulted, and then dragged to a boat on the beach. The two men tied weights on Marjorie Chillingworth and threw her into the turbulent ocean water. The judge, though bounded, jumped overboard into the water attempting to save his wife. When he was caught, the men attached an anchor to him and then watched as he sank beneath the waves.
One of the killers, Floyd “Lucky” Holzapfel, described the judge’s last words: “Remember, I love you," while his wife replied, "I love you, too," before she was discharged into the ocean. Holzapfel and Lincoln were tried in the old courthouse, along with Joseph Alexander Peel Jr. (once West Palm’s only municipal judge), who would later be charged with organizing the murder.
In the original section of the 1909 courtroom, cold spots are felt and people have claimed feeling something grazing against them. It is believed that the source of this presence might be that of Judge Chillingsworth. It is rumored that the judge watches from the front of the courtroom as his accused killers are repeatedly sentenced, reliving his tragic event. Many years later, it has been said that seaweed was found inside the courtroom where the trial once occurred.
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