Ghosts of the McBride House: A True Haunting

by Cecilia Back

What is it about the McBride House that serves as a beacon to the dead? Built in the oldest town in Oklahoma by physician George McBride in 1895, this Victorian home is rife with ghosts from the past. Ghostly parties at 2:00 a.m., spirits calling family members and houseguests by name, dolls that talk even after the batteries have been removed...The Back family has been subjected to impossibly bright lights, loud crashing noises, weird shrieks―even ominous odors such as decaying matter. Each ghost in the McBride House has a personality of its own, including one entity whose antics are downright terrifying. But instead of fleeing, the Back family remained and gradually got to know their "spirited" residents. This is their story.

Genres: Paranormal, Ghosts, Nonfiction, Horror, Supernatural, Family

216 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2009

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried pushing through but I just couldn't finish this seemingly easy read. The book really could have used an editor or a co-author who is more familiar with storytelling.

I also found it harder to believe that a 4 year old child spoke in coherent, complex sentences ("Mother, who was the man that walked down the stairs and went into our bathroom?") than I did their house being haunted.

[Peyton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was an easy read. You can tell the author isn't really an...author? She's just a normal woman who wrote about her experiences living in a haunted house. I think if I tried to write a book, it would come out the same way!

If you are interested in the history of Oklahoma or Civil War history, you would probably enjoy this book. If you are a total skeptic and poo-poo the idea of ghosts, don't bother.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good book, but it is not a normal spooky true paranormal read. It is about ghosts that live in the house of the author and how her and her family coped with them. The book lagged at times and I just read it to get through it. Giving it 3 stars for effort.

[Morgan Wyatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a gift, an enjoyable one.

Ms. Back writes in a fresh, matter of fact way that makes reading easy. Her honest reveal of her fears and troubles of living in a haunted house makes it more realistic and believable. This is a short, fun read that I would reccomend.

[Jessi · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely great, quick read! I live about 15 miles from this house and had heard rumors about it that gave me delicious chills! I was so excited when the library got a copy of this book by a woman who lived in the home for 25 years. Her ex-husband stills lives there now, but sadly the home is in desperate need of repair. Unfortunately, repairs are most likely to not happen unless some brave souls decide to make it work even with the problems that will most surely arise. Apparently Dr. McBride, original builder and still active resident in the home is not much of a fan of people changing his beautiful home. Many of the original pieces are still part of the house, but remaking it with the completely same materials is next to impossible and Dr. McBride seems to take offense to this. Past experiences in restoration proved difficult and workmen were often scared off the site from the scary ghost boy who kept looking out the windows at them!
It's such a creepy tale, but one of love as well! The family loved the home and began to think of their 4 ghosts as part of the family, too. They defended them, showed them off, conversed with them and were scared by them! I think it's a fantastic read, one that I finished in hours and tomorrow I am going to drive to see the house in the flesh! Supposedly, drive-by stalkers sometimes see a face of one of the ghosts peeking out the window. I surely hope to see one! My friend knows the owner, so I will do my best to get a personal tour one day!! I loved reading about this family's personal experience with such a famous, beautiful, historical home.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it. It was interesting to read about someone living with that kind of thing day to day. Some stuff, though...

I'd read a journal entry before (online) by someone who grew up in a haunted house. They had two ghosts, one child and one adult, and it seemed odd when Back would talk about seeing the ghosts, and their 'cold, sharp eyes' or however she put it, when the LJ entry, while mentioning very similar incidences (actually seeing the ghost, or one episode where the ghost was throwing things at someone) had much more toned-down reactions. Back's account of her reactions come across as a little exaggerated at times, I guess. Maybe they were trying to make the ghosts seem scarier to provide readers with a thrill?

Also something completely irrelevant to the story - a couple of times she mentions the bedrooms in the house, like her husband having the masters suite, and her moving from what was her room to the pink room... is this like Southern U.S. thing? It just seems really weird to me, like something from the 1800s...

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting first hand account of the supernatural goings on in her family's home. Haunted by the original owner, a Victorian woman and two children, the family learned to live WITH the ghosts despite the fear they feel at times at their antics. Easy read - read in one evening.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love ghost stories and this was a good one! True story of a family living in an old mansion that they come to find is haunted, really haunted... and they still live there.

[Casey]

Really hard to put down. I definitely enjoyed it.

[Whitewash]

Excellent! Has Been added to my collection.

[Della Tingle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book from the first page to the last. Now, I have absolutely no clue if it’s true or all made up! 😆 However, real or fake, this book was so very enjoyable!

I looked the McBride House up online and found that it is currently unoccupied. While author Ceceilia Back and her family lived in the home for more than twenty-five years, they do not currently reside there. This book was written in 2009, and Back mentioned more than once that the house was in need of refurbishing. It’s a big, old house, and my assumption is that the Backs simply couldn’t afford to redo the home. Today, it is reported to be an absolute eyesore, all boarded up and falling apart, which is very sad to hear! I would LOVE to visit it!

YouTube has a video by @easternoklahomalibrarysyst7765 titled, “McBride House,” with Dr. Back. It’s from four years ago and shows the exterior of the house…definitely boarded up and sad looking. 😥 (The video was interesting to me as I enjoyed the book so much!)

[Bexa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is written very simplistic, which is okay, but doesn't allow you to truly be drawn into the narrative. She does do things chronologically, which I appreciate, though sometimes it is hard to determine that because she never really refers to years or ages all that much. Besides the ghosts, which you can believe or not, I think was really pulled me out of the story is the name of her kids. I mean, Froston is a mix of dog, and D'Evereux is a southern plantation, which just seem weird things to name your kids after. I know I have weird choices myself, but it jarred me every time I read one of their names. That's a really petty thing to be annoyed by, but that's my opinion. They seem to have made their life in the house work.

[Kirsten · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall, this was an easy-read and a great first book to start off a new book club. There was lots to discuss, even when most of the book club couldn't finish reading it. The book is not well written. The author's own telling of her and her family's daily life with the ghosts was confusing in how wishy-washy they reacted to everything. I definitely wouldn't recommend it unless you enjoy reading haphazardly written material.

[Ashley · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was BORING. Despite repeatedly stating that the author and her family felt like "her ghosts" were a part of the family and they got along quite well, the stories she tells throughout this overlong, less than 200 page book, I got quite the opposite feeling. It felt more like a brag book.

I can't feel sorry for someone who boohoos over the fact they can't afford copper shingles to go with their expensive haunted house.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a fun, quick read. At several points in the book I got the sense that the "ghosts" were a pretty big source of profit for this family, and their conversations had me rolling my eyes several times. It had some spooky moments to make up for the annoying ones. Definitely a light fun read if you don't take it too seriously.

[Diana Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend gave me this book and I loved reading it. The author's stories about the ghosts will give you chills and a couple of laughs. She has a great attitude about living in a haunted house. I find the book fascinating and written in a good storytelling way. I find her believable! I also google mapped the house. I won't be staying there anytime soon!

[Alexandra Foster · Rating 4 out of 5]

I tremendously enjoyed this book. No, it’s not hair raising at every turn and flip of the page, but it’s immensely enjoyable to read the story of this family as well as of their dead housemates. Definitely well worth the time to read it!

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know why this book isn't rated higher. Is it Shakespeare? No. But it's a well-told story of some spooky goings-on. I found myself not wanting to get out of bed for fear of what was hiding beneath it!

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! I’m a total believer in ghosts and found this book riveting!

[Ginny Grzech · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just didn't really like this book. It was just okay. The story just seemed to jump around a bit and I just had a hard time wanting to finish it.

[Sarah - All The Book Blog Names Are Taken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a terrible account, but not the best I have ever read. See my full review over on my blog: https://allthebookblognamesaretaken.b...

[Alison Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creepy tales of what it is like to live in a house that is truly haunted. I have so much respect for the family to live there after 25 years of dealing with paranormal phenomenon.

[Ramona Lott · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book

It felt like I was there and I could smell the doctors cigars and the ladies perfume. Loved the kids. The families pets

[Meg Sprague · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book and hearing about all the ways the ghosts appeared in the house and played tricks on the family.

[Cassie Grave · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read and interesting.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book. on the one hand, I enjoy reading about the experiences of those living in a haunted house. On the other hand, this family wavered between frightened and indifferent. Further reading suggests they may no longer live there. As always, I wish more history of the alleged hauntings would be revealed.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the spirit of Halloween I have a yearly ritual where I read as many ghosts and paranormal books as possible in the month of October. I get a kick out of discovering new authors and rereading some old classics. This book is like many other books that describes a family's personal encounter with a ghost. The family purchases a home that seems almost too good to be true and realizes rather quickly that the home is not what they wanted. The author is recounting a first hand experience of her personal encounters with the entity and paints a picture of daily terror. She describes furniture being moved, seeing full apparitions, finding ghost children in her house, and living in perpetual fear of non-living beings.

I really struggled with this book and made a genuine attempt at liking it. I wanted to give the author the benefit of the doubt, but honestly do not believe this is a true recollection of a haunting. I say this since many of her situations border on the outlandish and unrealistic. An example is her and her husband hearing ghosts parties late at night that would last until the early hours of the morning. Children appearing and disappearing before her eyes. The author also states that she is able to communicate with the spirits and feels that at times she was able to have an almost normal conversation with them. I personally believe that the author believes she has had some profound experiences, but I just cannot accept the story as true. I say her book is filled with heavy embellishments and creative exaggerations. I feel it is more fiction than fact and believe the book's title should state that it is based off a true encounter. I feel that the title is somewhat misleading and not accurate. If you like ghost stories in general than I would check this book out at the local library, but other than that I cannot recommend this book.

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

S.O.S. Same ole... I felt like screaming as I read how tranquilly this woman lived with her ghostly pals- "Heard it!" This was too unbelievable. Too well told. Nothing was really shown. It could have easily been a transcript for a reality show of ghosts. All it was missing was the same ole Lifetime movie network husbands much too expected response of , "You need rest, take some pills, you're losing it." I found it to be like a net flix film: slow, dragging, nearly pointless. If it really did frighten her as she often plain stated, why did she leave her kids alone in rooms or allow neighbor children to wander the house alone? Why did it sound so dull, slow and peaceful valley in supposedly scary situations. Still, it is one more place I need to someday visit in my paranormal tours.

[Lissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for ghost stories, so I was eager to read this book. The author details her experiences in the "McBride House," which is a house built by Dr. McBride in the 1800s at Fort Gibson. The house, the author says, is haunted by four ghosts - a young boy, a young girl, a woman, and Dr. McBride himself.

The writing style is what really bogged down this book. The conversations are horribly stilted; no one really talks that way. I found myself having to slug through the book, hoping that it would become more readable and enjoyable as I progressed. It didn't. At the hands of someone who was talented in prose, this could have been an interesting book. As it is, it's quite boring.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An amusing little collection of stories about the four ghosts who live in her 1895 Victorian home. From ghostly parties at 2 a.m., cigar smoke and other smells, both tolerable and intolerable, to toys that work without batteries and appliances that work without being plugged in, I would find the situation would get on my nerves after a while. However, the author has figured out a way to go with the flow while living in this spectacular house -- between this book and conducting house tours, she's capitalized on her haunts which I'm sure helps. If you can't lick 'em, join 'em! Definitely a C-.