Goodwin Manor: Halloween Edition

October 31, 2017

Located in the historic district of Downtown Greensboro, Georgia sits a beautifully restored 19th Century Antebellum style home, Goodwin Manor. With its rich history since 1908, this house is full of delicate woodwork, antique furnishings, and plenty of Southern charm.

Owners, David Goodwin Kopp and his wife Janice have the home that has been in the family for over 100 years. In 2010, the Goodwin Manor opened its doors as a bed and breakfast as well as an event space.

Though the manor is a beautiful retreat for visitors, some of those visitors have claimed to experience “guests” during their stay.

One woman who stayed at the Goodwin Manor said that she experienced a door suddenly slamming behind her. When she checked for air flow, she said there weren’t any vents in the area or anything that would have caused the door to shut that quickly. She also experienced a voice whispering “goodbye” to her while she was in the bathroom.

Although Goodwin Manor owner, David, is not an avid believer in ghosts, a couple of encounters couldn’t be ignored. One experience was when he was walking up the staircase on a warm day and a huge gust of cold air went right beside him. There were no air vents or open windows to cause the cold breeze. The second experience happened around 6 a.m. one morning when the chandelier in the dining room flickered on and off for about five minutes and has never done it since.

The craziest story comes from a recent guest who stayed at the Goodwin Manor during Hurricane Irma. Ron Stamey, who also didn’t believe in the paranormal, had a crazy encounter during the stay with his wife. Here is his story:

“My wife and I were running from Hurricane Irma in Florida and a friend got us reservations at the lovely Goodwin Manor. We stayed from Friday until Tuesday. The storm passed through on Monday and took the power with it. David went and purchased flashlights for us to get around. With nothing to do we went to bed early. I had been asleep for about 4 hours and I awoke. Laying in bed for about 2 hours, I was wide awake. I put my hands up to my face and it was so dark I could not see them. The power was out all over town and the street was blocked, therefore no car lights shining. All of a sudden, I saw this tall slim light with small tree like limbs with tiny, bright, shiny lights over her. The figure resembled a very tall thin lady holding a flashlight shining toward the floor. When she walked close to the foot of the bed (I could hear footsteps) I called to my wife sleeping next to me “Honey, is that you?” Her reply was with a snore. My vision disappeared near the window. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep much the rest of the night. I’m 75 years old and I’ve laughed at a number of friends that told me of Paranormal experiences, but, I’m a believer now.”

With the reports of the experiences and the Halloween season upon us, we decided to check it out for ourselves. Being the only guests that night, we were able to do some exploring throughout the home.

We first toured the house to get a feel for the different rooms and layout so we knew our way around. We also decided to try and speak to the spirit that resides in the Goodwin Manor. We even walked around with an EMF app (that’s what they use on Ghost Busters, right?) to see if we could experience anything. The owner booked us for the Magnolia room on the second floor which is said to be the room where most activity has occurred.

Throughout our stay at the Goodwin Manor, we never experienced anything spooky, but we absolutely enjoyed the beautiful atmosphere of the house. If a spirit resides in the Goodwin Manor, it’s not a harmful one. It’s a stunning bed and breakfast that we recommend to anyone who is looking for a quaint, relaxing getaway.

The morning after our stay, we enjoyed a delicious, homecooked breakfast with David who was kind enough to share his stories and history of the house. Originally owned by David’s grandparents and then David’s aunt, he wanted to keep the house alive.