Est. 1854 · Greek Revival Architecture · Antebellum Putnam County History · Civil War Era Georgia
Panola Hall was constructed in 1854 for Henry Trippe on North Madison Avenue in Eatonton, the county seat of Putnam County in central Georgia. The Greek Revival design — four prominent columns across the facade, a symmetrical two-story plan, and a wide front porch — made it one of the most imposing private residences in the region at the time of its construction.
During the Civil War, the building's grounds reportedly concealed Confederate soldiers using tunnels and a hidden room beneath the brick grotto patio — a claim that circulates in local tradition, though documentary evidence is limited.
In 1891, Dr. Benjamin Hunt, a native New Yorker who had come to Putnam County after marrying Louisa Prudden of Eatonton, purchased Panola Hall. The Hunts undertook Victorian-era modifications to the structure and conducted general restoration of the property.
The Haunted Eatonton Ghost Tour is presented annually by the Georgia Writers Museum in partnership with The Arts Barn. The museum's address is 109 S. Jefferson Ave., Eatonton, GA 31024, and is the tour's departure point. Eatonton has been described by regional media as 'the second most haunted town in Georgia,' a claim driven largely by the concentration of pre-Civil War structures in its downtown district and the documented investigation activity around those properties.
Sources
- https://visiteatonton.com/haunted-eatonton-ghost-tours/
- https://news.monroelocal.org/eatonton-the-second-most-haunted-town-in-georgia/
- https://www.georgiawritersmuseum.org/hauntedeatonton/
ApparitionsVisual phenomena
The legend of Sylvia has circulated in Eatonton since at least the 1870s, according to accounts that trace to the Hunt family, who moved into Panola Hall in 1891. The story centers on a young woman forced into an unwanted marriage, dressed in a white hoop dress with a rose in her hair. On the day of the wedding, while music played below, she attempted to flee through her second-floor bedroom window. In the attempt, she stumbled against a large trunk near the window; the heavy lid closed on her, trapping her. Her family, believing she had escaped, boarded the room. Her body was not discovered until later.
Sightings have accumulated since the 1870s. Witnesses describe a woman in a white hoop dress — consistent in appearance across accounts — seen in the second-floor bedroom or hallway, or looking out the window from the living room. The apparition is described as shy and silent rather than frightening.
The Southeastern Institute of Paranormal Research has conducted a formal investigation of Panola Hall and the other sites on the Haunted Eatonton tour route, and their findings are incorporated into the tour's presentations. The Georgia Writers Museum, the institutional organizer of the tour, treats the Sylvia legend as Eatonton's signature haunting.
Notable Entities
Sylvia (alleged)