HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
An 1807 National Historic Landmark designed for Ohio's first governor, where visitors report seeing his apparition inside the house and on the grounds.
847 Adena Rd, Chillicothe, OH 45601
Research updated September 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$
Admission fee for guided tours; see Ohio History Connection website for current pricing and seasonal hours.
Access
Limited Access
Historic mansion on a hill with sloped grounds; portions of the house have steps and narrow passages.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1807 · National Historic Landmark · Benjamin Henry Latrobe Architecture · Thomas Worthington — Ohio Governor and Senator · Federal Period Ohio History · Ross County
Adena Mansion sits on a ridge west of Chillicothe, completed around 1807 for Thomas Worthington (1773–1827), who served as one of Ohio's first two U.S. senators and later as the state's sixth governor. Worthington named the estate after the Adena culture, the prehistoric Indigenous people who had built mounds throughout the Ohio River valley.
The house was designed by Benjamin Henry Latrobe, then the leading architect in the young republic and the same designer responsible for work on the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington. The resulting structure is a two-story, Federal-period stone house with a distinctive central wing and symmetrical flanking dependencies. The interior has been preserved and interpreted as a furnished period house, with much of the original furniture remaining on site.
Worthington died in 1827. The property passed through several owners over the following century before the state of Ohio acquired it in the early 20th century. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1961 and is today managed by the Ohio History Connection, which operates it as a public historic site open on a seasonal schedule.
The house and grounds include a formal garden restoration and outbuildings from the early 19th century, providing a relatively complete picture of a prosperous Federal-period Ohio estate.
Sources
The most frequently described phenomenon at Adena is the apparition of Thomas Worthington himself. Visitor accounts, collected in regional haunted-Ohio surveys, describe a figure matching his description moving through the parlor and other formal rooms, as well as appearing on the sloped grounds outside the mansion. In most accounts, the figure is seen clearly before vanishing without interaction.
The other recurring detail involves Worthington's personal chair in one of the main rooms. Staff and visitors have reportedly found it moved from its known position on multiple occasions, with no explanation that accounts for the movement between visits.
Haunted Hocking, a regional site documenting Ross County paranormal lore, has compiled multiple independent visitor accounts of these experiences. The mansion's remote hilltop setting, furnished interior, and well-documented original occupant make it a plausible anchor for the kind of place-memory folklore that attaches to significant historic homes throughout Ohio.
Notable Entities
Tour the 1807 Federal-style mansion designed by architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe for Ohio governor Thomas Worthington. The house is a National Historic Landmark operated by the Ohio History Connection. Visitor accounts over the years describe Worthington's apparition appearing inside the rooms and on the surrounding grounds, and report that his personal chair moves on its own.
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