It’s a sad tale, like it usually is. Sherman Carmichael writes about the ghost story in his Mysterious Tales of the North Carolina Piedmont book, and the tale can also be found online.
Around 1885, a young North Carolina woman, Eolene Davidson, in Northampton County, was returning from a summer trip to New York. During her northern stay, Ms. Davidson fell in love with a lawyer, James Lorrene. Lorrene asked for her hand in marriage, but Eolene had promised to finish out her college years at Chowan Baptist Female Institute, now known as Chowan University in Murfreesboro.
The man agreed, but the pair decided they would make it official once she graduated. Eolene had promised her father that she would attend college, as it was his request, and her parents always tried to prepare the young woman for the future.
Eolene returned home after her first year and would soon meet James again during the summer. The following year, Eolene returned to school but fell ill in mid-October with a fever. Everyone was hopeful that she would make a speedy recovery, but Eolene passed away on Halloween night.
Today, Freshmen and women are told the story of the Lady in Brown, who is said to still walk the walk floors. Many say you can hear the rustling of her silk brown dress, and she continues to haunt the dormitory where she lived.
Written By: John G. Clark Jr.
