Is Fairlawn Mansion and Museum Haunted?

Fairlawn Mansion and Museum

Ghosts of orphans and phantoms of former owners purportedly haunt this Wisconsin mansion

Ghost Stories of
Fairlawn Mansion

  • Ghostly laughter has been heard in the basement
  • Child-sized shadow figures have been spotted around the mansion
  • Smells of phantom cigar smoke are noted in certain rooms
  • Cold spots are reported throughout the mansion
  • The apparition of a servant girl has been seen
  • A grandfather clock kept on the stairs chimes at strange times
  • Pictures on the wall have been tossed off by unseen forces

Barons & Orphans:
History of Fairlawn Mansion

A mansion is always better when it comes with a story. Regardless of how many rooms or how much square footage an old manor has, it’s the stories that fill those spaces that matter most of all.

In Superior, Wisconsin, the largest old mansion in town is also home to some of the community’s most impactful stories.

After years of planning and work, Fairlawn Mansion was fully restored by 1999 and reopened to the public as a museum.
With its deep history and shifting roles, some say Fairlawn Mansion still echoes with the spirits and stories of its past residents.

Fairlawn, a sprawling Victorian mansion, has graced the edge of Lake Superior for over 130 years. In that time, its historic halls have collected some truly remarkable tales. Stories of business magnates, wayward orphans, and historic preservationists color Fairlawn’s history.

Now a museum, visitors can take in those stories while touring through the home’s wood-lined corridors. If they’re lucky, tourists may hear Fairlawn’s tales from the best source of all: its ghosts.

Timeline of Fairlawn Mansion and Museum's History

Swipe or use timeline points to see Fairlawn Mansion and Museum through the years

Martin Pattison's spirit has been known to knock down paintings he doesn't like in his former bedroom at Fairlawn Mansion.

1891

Fairlawn Mansion’s broad framework sprouted up in Superior in 1891. The mansion was the brainchild of local lumber baron Martin Pattison, so no expense was spared bringing Fairlawn to life. When it was finished, the mansion included 42 spacious rooms for Pattison and his family. Pattison was dedicated to the lumber industry that made him rich, and decorated many rooms with different woods his business bought and sold. The stately mansion cost $150,000 when it was finished, which would be over $5,000,000 today.

Some of the ghost stories reported at the haunted Fairlawn Mansion stem from Fairlawn’s time as an orphanage.

1918

Pattison and his family enjoyed Fairlawn Mansion’s many luxuries well into the 1900s. Martin died in 1918, and soon after, his remaining family looked beyond their expansive Superior estate. Martin’s widow, Grace, donated the mansion to the Superior Children’s Home and Refuge Society in 1920. The society brought an upheaval of change to Fairlawn, converting the home into an orphanage. The first of Wisconsin’s orphan wards arrived at Fairlawn that same year.

A local legend claims two orphan girls drowned in the basement pool and now haunt Fairlawn Mansion.

1962

For over forty years, Fairlawn Mansion operated as a northern Wisconsin orphanage. In that time, an estimated 2,000 orphans and wards of the state passed through Fairlawn’s walls. And over the years, many of the home’s old luxuries were lost to updates, renovations, and other necessary changes. By the time the orphanage closed down in 1962, Fairlawn’s beautiful Victorian interiors seemed lost forever. But, community support and long-term efforts would soon bring new life to the historic home and orphanage.

Witnesses of the spirit of a servant girl in Fairlawn Mansion will often feel a sudden chill in the air, in any location in the house.

1999

After the orphanage closed, the city acquired Fairlawn for eventual restoration and reuse. The planned restorations would take decades to come to fruition. But, by 1999, Fairlawn had largely returned to its old glory. Today, Fairlawn Mansion is open as a history museum. The lower floors are fully restored and the upper floors are kept in orphanage-era appearances. And along with maintaining rooms from all its different eras, Fairlawn may also keep a few phantoms from its varied past.

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Is Fairlawn Mansion Haunted?

One Fairlawn mystery is the ghost of Martin Pattison. Considering he invested so much into building Fairlawn, Martin is an entity often assumed to still linger today. A common claim associated with Martin’s ghost is the smell of cigar smoke around the house.

The ghostly apparition of a servant girl from Fairlawn Mansion's history has been seen doing chores throughout the residence.
A frequently reported ghost sighting at Fairlawn Mansion involves the spirit of a servant girl in 1800s-era clothing.
Visitors of the haunted Fairlawn Mansion have heard disembodied children’s laughter and seen small shadow figures in the basement.

Martin was a well-known cigar smoker in life, and may have kept the habit well into the afterlife. Wisps of spectral smoke and the tell-tale stench of cigars are regularly noted by tourists at the mansion today.

But, Martin doesn’t just spend his afterlife smoking.

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Fairlawn’s Ghosts Are Like Clockwork

Martin Pattison’s phantom is also said to be the cause of some strange clockwork at Fairlawn. On the mansion’s main staircase landing, a large grandfather clock keeps the time.

Normally set to chime every fifteen minutes, staff often leave the clock’s chime off.

Though staff usually turn the chimes off on the grandfather clock in Fairlawn Mansion, the clock has been known to chime randomly on its own.
Martin’s ghost at Fairlawn Mansion may be connected to a grandfather clock on the mansion’s main staircase landing.

But at strange times and for unexplainable reasons, the clock will chime.

Sometimes, the chimes are said to go on and on for minutes before suddenly stopping. Could this be Martin, making himself known?

Visitors and staff of the haunted Fairlawn Mansion often report the distinct smell of cigar smoke throughout the mansion.

Martin’s Picky Phantom

Martin’s upstairs bedroom is said to be another paranormal hotspot at Fairlawn Mansion.

Pattison’s ghost can apparently get a little picky about what kinds of things decorate his room. In one report, an unseen force tossed a large painting off Martin’s bedroom wall shortly after it’d been hung up.

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One of the most talked-about spirits at Fairlawn Mansion is believed to be Martin Pattison himself.

Ghostly Orphans in Superior

Numerous other reports of haunted happenings at Fairlawn come from the mansion’s orphanage era. One popular piece of lore says a pair of orphan girls drowned in the mansion’s basement pool, and now haunt the space. There has never been any uncovered historic record of this event, and it is largely considered a local myth today. Additionally, the basement pool is not part of usual tours around the mansion.

Still, staff and others lucky enough to be allowed access to the pool have noted unexplainable activity. Most commonly, children’s disembodied voices and laughter are purportedly heard in Fairlawn’s basement. Child-sized shadow figures have also sometimes been spotted frolicking around the mansion.

Visitors of Fairlawn Mansion today can tour the richly restored lower floors and explore the upper levels, which remain in their orphanage-era state.

The Mansion’s Dutiful Servant Ghost

Another ghost story at Fairlawn Mansion deals with the specter of an unknown servant girl. Many stories swirl around this ghost girl’s identity, but none have been found to have any historical backing. Regardless of who the girl is, many ghost stories about her tell the same tales.

A servant girl’s vivid apparition, complete with late-1800s attire, can reportedly be seen doing chores throughout the mansion. She has appeared so clearly in the past that some tourists have approached to ask her questions, only to watch her disappear before their eyes. Witnesses say that whenever the servant girl is nearby, a cold chill will hang in the air on whatever floor she is on.

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Fairlawn Mansion:
Superior’s Haunted Museum

Fairlawn Mansion remains dedicated to preserving and restoring Martin Pattison’s one-of-a-kind home. The estate is one of Superior’s most popular museums, and one of the city’s most eye-catching shoreline sights.

Anyone interested in touring the museum simply needs to stop in during their open hours for tour information. Alternatively, you can book one in advance through Superior Public Museums. Fairlawn also hosts numerous talks and other programs throughout the year.

Fairlawn Mansion, located in Superior, Wisconsin, has stood as a lakeside landmark for over 130 years.

Ghost hunts are not part of Fairlawn’s current, formal tour or experience offering. But, the mansion occasionally hosts flashlight tours exploring spooky lore, often around Halloween.

So if you’re on the hunt for something paranormal in northern Wisconsin, put a tour of Fairlawn Mansion on your itinerary. While Wisconsin is home to many historic mansions, Fairlawn’s phantasmic tales make it something truly superior.