Est. 1903 · Considered Oklahoma City's first mansion · Anchor home of the Heritage Hills Historic District · Listed on the National Register of Historic Places (1970) · Unusually intact original furnishings preserved by the Perry family · Operated as a house museum by Preservation Oklahoma since 2003
Henry Overholser arrived in Oklahoma City shortly after the 1889 Land Run and quickly became one of its most prominent developers, building opera houses, hotels, and commercial blocks across the young capital. In 1903 he completed the three-story Chateauesque mansion at 405 NW 15th Street as a home for himself, his wife Anna Ione Murphy Overholser, and their daughter Henry Ione, born in 1905. The house — with its slate roof, hand-painted canvas wall coverings, stained-glass windows, and original Belgian and French furnishings — was an architectural statement that helped attract Oklahoma City's wealthier families to what is now the Heritage Hills Historic District.
Henry Overholser died in 1915, but Anna continued to live in the mansion with their daughter until her own death on April 29, 1940. Henry Ione later married David Perry, and the couple lived in the home until David Perry's death in 1969. Remarkably, the Perrys preserved nearly all of the original furnishings, fabrics, and artwork, leaving the mansion as a rare intact record of turn-of-the-century domestic life in early Oklahoma City.
In 1972 the property was acquired by the Oklahoma chapter of the American Institute of Architects through Historical Preservation Inc., then transferred to the State of Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Historical Society managed the site from 1982 to 2003, and since 2003 day-to-day operations and tours have been run by Preservation Oklahoma. The Overholser Mansion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and remains one of the most intact Gilded-Age mansions in the Southern Plains.
Tours and public events are temporarily closed during restoration. Previously listed programs include regular guided tours, public programming, and a seasonal ghost-history program titled 'History & Haunts at the Overholser,' organized in cooperation with the Oklahoma Historical Society.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overholser_Mansion
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Ione_Murphy_Overholser
- https://www.overholsermansion.org/
- https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=OV001
- https://www.okhistory.org/calendar/event/history-and-haunts-at-the-overholser/
- https://okcfox.com/news/local/ghostly-tales-haunt-overholser-mansion-in-halloween-edition-of-red-dirt-riches-tour-haunted-house-spooky-season-trick-or-treaters-henry-anna-overholser-woman-white-dress
- https://www.405magazine.com/okcs-haunted-mansion/
- https://www.ghostsandgetaways.com/blog-1/the-ghosts-of-oklahoma-/city
Apparition of a woman in a long gown (associated with Anna Overholser)Phantom piano notesFootsteps on upper floorsCold spots and sudden temperature dropsReported figure in period men's dress (less consistent)
The most-told story at the Overholser Mansion centers on Anna Ione Murphy Overholser herself. According to KFOR and OKC FOX reporting on the museum's 'History & Haunts' program, staff and visitors describe a woman in a long flowing gown — sometimes referred to as wearing a Gibson Girl hairstyle — glimpsed in the upper hallways or peering from the third-floor turret windows. Tour coordinators have publicly characterized the reported presences as benign, with one telling KFOR that 'they love visitors.'
Beyond the apparition, reported phenomena include phantom footsteps on the upper floors, the occasional piano note when no one is at the keyboard, rustling fabric, and door sounds — most often during evening tours and private rentals. Cold drafts and unexplained temperature drops are described in the master bedroom and along the upper corridors, with the third floor most consistently flagged as the most active part of the house.
A second, less specific figure described as a 'gentlemanly' man in period dress is sometimes associated with Henry Overholser, though sources are thinner on him than on Anna. The previously listed 'History and Haunts at the Overholser' evening program is currently unavailable while tours and events are closed for restoration; check with the museum about the partnership and schedule once the program resumes.
Notable Entities
Anna Ione Murphy Overholser (1870-1940)Possible figure associated with Henry Overholser (d. 1915)
Media Appearances
- KFOR — 'They love visitors,' tour coordinator on Overholser ghosts
- OKC FOX — Red Dirt Riches: Ghostly tales haunt Overholser Mansion
- 405 Magazine — OKC's Haunted Mansion?