October 9, 2015 • 9 mins
Tragic and well-documented ghost story of Chloe, a slave girl said to haunt Louisiana's Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville.
Additional Reading:
The Moonlit Road story about Chloe
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"Chloe, The Slave Girl of Myrtles Plantation" was written and directed by Craig Dominey.
Storyteller: Veronica Byrd
Audio Production: Henry Howard
The Moonlit Road Podcast is a production of The Moonlit Road, LLC.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:02):
(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.) Night has fallen, and the moon is a
glowing golden orb in the black sky.
See how it shines on the dark back
roads of America, and on one road in
particular.
Come with us, and we'll take a walk
(00:23):
down the moonlit road, for the night is
waiting.
And the moon is full.
The Moonlit Road presents episode 50, The Slave
Girl, written by Craig Dominey and told by
Veronica Byrd.
(00:43):
When folks think about the American South, one
image that always comes to mind is the
old plantation house.
Before the Civil War devastated the South, the
plantation homes were about the closest thing America
had to magical European palaces.
But what some folks don't know, or maybe
don't care to think about, is that many
(01:06):
of these plantations were built on the backs
of slaves.
These slaves toiled under the whip of the
white plantation owners, harvesting cotton and sugar cane
for days, weeks, months, and years on end.
Some were literally worked to death, only to
be replaced like an old shoe when the
(01:27):
next boatload of captured slaves came into port.
So while the plantations may have been wealthy
palaces to some, they were places of misery
and death for many others.
So it should come as no surprise that
many of the plantation homes remaining in the
South are rumored to be haunted.
(01:49):
This is the story of one of those
houses.
Back in the 1800s, many plantations were located
north of New Orleans along the banks of
the Mississippi River.
These plantations fueled the national economy with cotton
and sugar cane, and their owners were some
of the richest men in America.
(02:10):
Myrtle's Plantation, located a few miles outside of
St. Francisville, Louisiana, was one of these homes.
It was a beautiful example of Old South
antebellum architecture.
Upon arrival, a visitor would be greeted with
the magical sight of Spanish moss swaying in
the breeze, sweeping wide verandas with ornamental ironwork,
(02:33):
and the sweet smells of pink-blossomed myrtle
trees.
Inside, one would find a lavishly decorated home
in the Gothic style, with ornate plasterwork, European
antiques, winding staircases, and sparkling crystal chandeliers.
Lurking behind all of this beauty and grandeur,
(02:55):
though, hid a very sinister history, which many
believe started with a slave girl named Chloe.
At that time, Myrtle's Plantation was owned and
operated by Judge Clark Woodruff and his wife,
Sarah Matilda.
The Woodruffs had two young daughters, with a
third child on the way.
(03:16):
The judge was well respected in the community
as a man of integrity and a staunch
upholder of the law.
Although he would uphold the law at any
cost, his morals and values left a lot
to be desired.
You see, he held a dirty secret.
Judge Woodruff was a compulsive womanizer.
(03:40):
Whenever he had the opportunity, the judge would
sneak around and have relations with his female
slaves.
Chloe, a slave of mixed blood who served
as governess to the Woodruff children, eventually became
the target of his advances.
Chloe was disgusted with the thought of the
judge having his way with her.
(04:01):
But she knew that if she didn't, he
would probably send her back out into the
fields to toil with the other slaves.
You see, working in the big house was
as close to freedom as a slave girl
could expect at that time.
So Chloe did what she had to do.
But after a while, Chloe began to suspect
(04:23):
that the judge was getting tired of her
and would soon be looking for a new
lover.
Terrified of being sent back to the field,
Chloe began eavesdropping on the family's conversations to
find out if her fears were true.
But one day, the judge caught her, and
he was so enraged that he sliced off
one of her ears.
(04:45):
And from that day forward, Chloe wore a
green turban around her head to hide her
shameful wound.
With the judge now furious at her, Chloe
knew she had to do something fast to
prove her worth to the family.
But what?
Her opportunity came one day when she was
(05:05):
directed to help set up a birthday party
for the Woodruff's eldest daughter.
The judge was away, and his wife and
daughters planned on celebrating the birthday by eating
cake in the dining room.
Chloe came up with a plan.
She crept outside and picked one of the
oleander plants growing beside the house.
She knew that the plant contained a small
(05:27):
amount of poison, which she secretly added to
the birthday cake.
She figured if she made the family sick,
she could nurse them back to health and
prove herself invaluable to the family.
She cared for the children and was careful
only to add enough poison to make them
slightly ill.
As the family ate the tainted birthday cake,
(05:48):
Chloe soon found out she had made a
terrible mistake.
One by one, they dropped their utensils and
began writhing and moaning in pain and agony.
Chloe helped them to their beds and tried
desperately to save them, but it was too
late.
Soon the young girls, their mother, and the
(06:09):
unborn child were dead.
As word spread throughout the plantation, the other
slaves were terrified that the judge would take
his anger at Chloe out on them.
To save their own hides, they knew they
had to do something to prove their loyalty
to the master.
So one night, a lynch mob grabbed Chloe
while she slept and hanged her from one
(06:30):
of the oak trees.
After she died, they cut her down, weighted
her body with rocks, and tossed her into
the Mississippi River.
The judge promptly sealed off the dining room,
and he never used it again.
In later years, the plantation house was turned
(06:51):
into a bed and breakfast, with many visitors
attracted to its beauty and Old South charm.
But visitors and future owners alike would soon
discover they were not in the house alone.
One day, one of the new owners of
Myrtle's Plantation snapped a photo in front of
the house.
(07:11):
When the picture was developed, she could see
a shadowy figure standing near the veranda, her
head wrapped in what appeared to be a
turban.
That night, some of the guests reported hearing
restless footsteps wandering the halls of the house.
Others said they were jolted from their sleep
by a black woman in a green turban
(07:32):
who lifted up the mosquito netting around their
beds as if looking for something.
Soon, other strange incidents were reported in the
house.
Some guests claimed to have seen the images
of small children in the hallway mirrors.
Others heard their names called out from distant
rooms, only to find they were in the
(07:52):
house alone.
And others spotted two playful little girls in
white dresses playing in the hallways, peeking through
the windows, bouncing on the beds, and even
swinging from the chandeliers.
Is the mysterious woman in the green turban
the ghost of Chloe, searching for the judge
who caused her such grief?
(08:13):
Are the mysterious little girls the ghosts of
the Woodruff children, forever trapped in the home
where they died?
We'll leave that up to you to decide.
Or better yet, next time you're in Louisiana,
spend a night in the Myrtle's Plantation near
St. Francisville and find out for yourself.
(08:38):
That concludes this tale from The Moonlit Road.
Be sure to visit our website at themoonlitroad
.com to find out more about our stories
and let us know how we're doing.
The Moonlit Road is produced and directed by
Craig Dominey, recorded and soundscaped by Henry Howard
in beautiful Stone Mountain, Georgia.
Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next
(08:59):
time.
(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.) Night has fallen, and the moon is a
glowing golden orb in the black sky.
See how it shines on the dark back
roads of America, and on one road in
particular.
Come with us, and we'll take a walk
(00:23):
down the moonlit road, for the night is
waiting.
And the moon is full.
The Moonlit Road presents episode 50, The Slave
Girl, written by Craig Dominey and told by
Veronica Byrd.
(00:43):
When folks think about the American South, one
image that always comes to mind is the
old plantation house.
Before the Civil War devastated the South, the
plantation homes were about the closest thing America
had to magical European palaces.
But what some folks don't know, or maybe
don't care to think about, is that many
(01:06):
of these plantations were built on the backs
of slaves.
These slaves toiled under the whip of the
white plantation owners, harvesting cotton and sugar cane
for days, weeks, months, and years on end.
Some were literally worked to death, only to
be replaced like an old shoe when the
(01:27):
next boatload of captured slaves came into port.
So while the plantations may have been wealthy
palaces to some, they were places of misery
and death for many others.
So it should come as no surprise that
many of the plantation homes remaining in the
South are rumored to be haunted.
(01:49):
This is the story of one of those
houses.
Back in the 1800s, many plantations were located
north of New Orleans along the banks of
the Mississippi River.
These plantations fueled the national economy with cotton
and sugar cane, and their owners were some
of the richest men in America.
(02:10):
Myrtle's Plantation, located a few miles outside of
St. Francisville, Louisiana, was one of these homes.
It was a beautiful example of Old South
antebellum architecture.
Upon arrival, a visitor would be greeted with
the magical sight of Spanish moss swaying in
the breeze, sweeping wide verandas with ornamental ironwork,
(02:33):
and the sweet smells of pink-blossomed myrtle
trees.
Inside, one would find a lavishly decorated home
in the Gothic style, with ornate plasterwork, European
antiques, winding staircases, and sparkling crystal chandeliers.
Lurking behind all of this beauty and grandeur,
(02:55):
though, hid a very sinister history, which many
believe started with a slave girl named Chloe.
At that time, Myrtle's Plantation was owned and
operated by Judge Clark Woodruff and his wife,
Sarah Matilda.
The Woodruffs had two young daughters, with a
third child on the way.
(03:16):
The judge was well respected in the community
as a man of integrity and a staunch
upholder of the law.
Although he would uphold the law at any
cost, his morals and values left a lot
to be desired.
You see, he held a dirty secret.
Judge Woodruff was a compulsive womanizer.
(03:40):
Whenever he had the opportunity, the judge would
sneak around and have relations with his female
slaves.
Chloe, a slave of mixed blood who served
as governess to the Woodruff children, eventually became
the target of his advances.
Chloe was disgusted with the thought of the
judge having his way with her.
(04:01):
But she knew that if she didn't, he
would probably send her back out into the
fields to toil with the other slaves.
You see, working in the big house was
as close to freedom as a slave girl
could expect at that time.
So Chloe did what she had to do.
But after a while, Chloe began to suspect
(04:23):
that the judge was getting tired of her
and would soon be looking for a new
lover.
Terrified of being sent back to the field,
Chloe began eavesdropping on the family's conversations to
find out if her fears were true.
But one day, the judge caught her, and
he was so enraged that he sliced off
one of her ears.
(04:45):
And from that day forward, Chloe wore a
green turban around her head to hide her
shameful wound.
With the judge now furious at her, Chloe
knew she had to do something fast to
prove her worth to the family.
But what?
Her opportunity came one day when she was
(05:05):
directed to help set up a birthday party
for the Woodruff's eldest daughter.
The judge was away, and his wife and
daughters planned on celebrating the birthday by eating
cake in the dining room.
Chloe came up with a plan.
She crept outside and picked one of the
oleander plants growing beside the house.
She knew that the plant contained a small
(05:27):
amount of poison, which she secretly added to
the birthday cake.
She figured if she made the family sick,
she could nurse them back to health and
prove herself invaluable to the family.
She cared for the children and was careful
only to add enough poison to make them
slightly ill.
As the family ate the tainted birthday cake,
(05:48):
Chloe soon found out she had made a
terrible mistake.
One by one, they dropped their utensils and
began writhing and moaning in pain and agony.
Chloe helped them to their beds and tried
desperately to save them, but it was too
late.
Soon the young girls, their mother, and the
(06:09):
unborn child were dead.
As word spread throughout the plantation, the other
slaves were terrified that the judge would take
his anger at Chloe out on them.
To save their own hides, they knew they
had to do something to prove their loyalty
to the master.
So one night, a lynch mob grabbed Chloe
while she slept and hanged her from one
(06:30):
of the oak trees.
After she died, they cut her down, weighted
her body with rocks, and tossed her into
the Mississippi River.
The judge promptly sealed off the dining room,
and he never used it again.
In later years, the plantation house was turned
(06:51):
into a bed and breakfast, with many visitors
attracted to its beauty and Old South charm.
But visitors and future owners alike would soon
discover they were not in the house alone.
One day, one of the new owners of
Myrtle's Plantation snapped a photo in front of
the house.
(07:11):
When the picture was developed, she could see
a shadowy figure standing near the veranda, her
head wrapped in what appeared to be a
turban.
That night, some of the guests reported hearing
restless footsteps wandering the halls of the house.
Others said they were jolted from their sleep
by a black woman in a green turban
(07:32):
who lifted up the mosquito netting around their
beds as if looking for something.
Soon, other strange incidents were reported in the
house.
Some guests claimed to have seen the images
of small children in the hallway mirrors.
Others heard their names called out from distant
rooms, only to find they were in the
(07:52):
house alone.
And others spotted two playful little girls in
white dresses playing in the hallways, peeking through
the windows, bouncing on the beds, and even
swinging from the chandeliers.
Is the mysterious woman in the green turban
the ghost of Chloe, searching for the judge
who caused her such grief?
(08:13):
Are the mysterious little girls the ghosts of
the Woodruff children, forever trapped in the home
where they died?
We'll leave that up to you to decide.
Or better yet, next time you're in Louisiana,
spend a night in the Myrtle's Plantation near
St. Francisville and find out for yourself.
(08:38):
That concludes this tale from The Moonlit Road.
Be sure to visit our website at themoonlitroad
.com to find out more about our stories
and let us know how we're doing.
The Moonlit Road is produced and directed by
Craig Dominey, recorded and soundscaped by Henry Howard
in beautiful Stone Mountain, Georgia.
Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next
(08:59):
time.
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