Image: Ashton Villa

Description: Ashton Villa — landmark villa and historic house museum in Galveston, southeast Texas. An 1859 Italianate style residence, that served as the local Confederate and then Federal military headquarters for Texas during the Civil War. Mediterranean style architecture. European materials. Ashton Villa Mansion is a, 3 story, palace-like structure, built by a proud, wealthy hardware businessman, James Brown, who believed in showing his wealth. This royal residence thought to be the first all brick home built in Texas, was fit for royalty and took 4 years to build from 1861 to 1865. The showplace of this glorious Italianate Villa was and is the ornate, formal living room, called The Gold Room, located near an alcove, within the spacious every day living room. There is a grand, center stairway that connects the floors, with the customary landings on each floor. Ashton Villa is sometimes called the "most haunted building in America" mostly due to it's most notorious resident Miss Bettie Brown, James Brown's daughter. Bettie Brown grew up in an atmosphere of abundance of wealth, material goods, and extreme privilege. She was referred to by many during her time as the "Texas Princess." She spent most of her time collecting beautifully expensive objects and hosting grand parties. The ghost of Bettie Brown is reputed to have been seen standing in the Gold Room and heard playing the piano like at one of her famous music recitals. A chest of drawers purchased in the Middle East standing in Bettie Brown's day room reportedly locks and unlocks. spontaneously though the key has been missing for years. Ceiling fans have been known to turn themselves on. One bed refuses to stay made. No matter how many times a day the sheets are straightened, they end up rumpled anyway. Bettie's ghost has been seen at the top of the grand staircase.
Title: Ashton Villa
Credit: Own work
Author: Jim Evans
Usage Terms: Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
License: CC BY-SA 3.0
License Link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
Attribution Required?: Yes