MOSCOW: Riverboat Gamblers Play The Spate House

MOSCOW:

RIVERBOAT GAMBLERS PLAY THE SPATE HOUSE

Moscow is an Ohio River town, a survivor of numerous floods. The river has brought tremendous devastation to the town through the years. At one point in its 181-year history, it was a major steamboat builder and it also hosted many steamboat passengers including gambles and card sharks.

The center of the gambling in Moscow was the Spate House. This mansion has hosted many people including Marquis de Lafayette and Louis Philippe, King of France. The Spate House also hosted many undesirables. Steamboats used to tie up on the old hand laid stone landing, which extended in front of the Spate House. Some of the gamblers weren't very honest and were known for their cheating. At least 3 times or more, gunplay took over when someone was caught cheating or owed someone money. Killing took play on the 2nd floor. One night a man was shot and killed. His body was secreted up the hill behind the town and buried. The man was the master of his poodle dog, which wouldn't quit barking. The dog was put into a burlap sack and thrown into the river.

Since that night barking has been heard in the house when it was unoccupied. The late Gladys Duncan told the incident when she was sitting by herself in the living room of the house and heard a dog barking upstairs. The sound came down the stairs, passed through the front door and faded over the riverbank. Later while a friend was visiting, he told Gladys that he saw a little red dog sniffing around the wall. Gladys didn't see anything. Her friend described it as a red poodle.

One day in the 1950s, the Ohio River was rising and people were trying to move the furniture out of the Spate House. One of the tables wouldn't fit through the doorway, so the legs had to be dismantled. By the time we got back from putting the tools away, the table was back inside the house, with its legs back on! The men finished the job and swore they would never go back in the house again.

In October of 1978 Lynn Maloney visited the house and recalls cold spots following them around the house. In October of 1986 the air in the village was calm until, behind the spate house alone, a powerful wind suddenly hit which was so strong it bent some of the trees.

Shortly after that incident, a man visited the spate house. He says, “ The lights in the basement go off and on during night like a strobe light and the TV will come on blaring loud in the middle of the night when no one is downstairs. My dog has been acting unusual too. It sleeps during the day and roams the hallway at night barking at the unseen. Then I felt someone watching me at night.

Why would a beautiful home have trouble keeping live owners? It certainly has no trouble keeping its uneasy spirits sheltered, waiting for future unsuspecting owners.


	MOSCOW: RIVERBOAT GAMBLERS PLAY THE SPATE HOUSE Moscow is an Ohio River town, a survivor of numerous floods. The river has brought tremendous devastation to the town through the years. At one point in its 181-year history, it was a major steamboat builder and it also hosted many steamboat passengers including gambles and card sharks. The center of the gambling in Moscow was the Spate House. This mansion has hosted many people including Marquis de Lafayette and Louis Philippe, King of France. The Spate House also hosted many undesirables. Steamboats used to tie up on the old hand laid stone landing, which extended in front of the Spate House. Some of the gamblers weren't very honest and were known for their cheating. At least 3 times or more, gunplay took over when someone was caught cheating or owed someone money. Killing took play on the 2nd floor. One night a man was shot and killed. His body was secreted up the hill behind the town and buried. The man was the master of his poodle dog, which wouldn't quit barking. The dog was put into a burlap sack and thrown into the river. Since that night barking has been heard in the house when it was unoccupied. The late Gladys Duncan told the incident when she was sitting by herself in the living room of the house and heard a dog barking upstairs. The sound came down the stairs, passed through the front door and faded over the riverbank. Later while a friend was visiting, he told Gladys that he saw a little red dog sniffing around the wall. Gladys didn't see anything. Her friend described it as a red poodle. One day in the 1950s, the Ohio River was rising and people were trying to move the furniture out of the Spate House. One of the tables wouldn't fit through the doorway, so the legs had to be dismantled. By the time we got back from putting the tools away, the table was back inside the house, with its legs back on! The men finished the job and swore they would never go back in the house again. In October of 1978 Lynn Maloney visited the house and recalls cold spots following them around the house. In October of 1986 the air in the village was calm until, behind the spate house alone, a powerful wind suddenly hit which was so strong it bent some of the trees. Shortly after that incident, a man visited the spate house. He says, “ The lights in the basement go off and on during night like a strobe light and the TV will come on blaring loud in the middle of the night when no one is downstairs. My dog has been acting unusual too. It sleeps during the day and roams the hallway at night barking at the unseen. Then I felt someone watching me at night. Why would a beautiful home have trouble keeping live owners? It certainly has no trouble keeping its uneasy spirits sheltered, waiting for future unsuspecting owners.