Clark Woodrooff who was a law student under Bradford, took a fancy to Bradford’s daughter, Sarah Matilda, who went by the name Matilda. After David’s death Clark asked Elizabeth for permission to marry her underage daughter. Elizabeth granted that permission and on November 19, 1817 they were married. Together they had three children, Cornelia Gale, James and Mary Octavia. This happy family would be broken up by the death of (Sarah) Matilda on July 21, 1823 when she succumbed to yellow fever. By this time yellow fever was quite a large epidemic in New Orleans and every family was feeling it’s effects. Clark continued to manage the plantation for his mother-in-law Elizabeth, while she helped him with his three children. It wouldn’t be long till his only son James would die (July 15, 1824) of yellow fever. then almost two months to the date (September 16, 1824) his oldest daughter, Cornelia Gale would too die from yellow fever. {Note: Most of the time when they talk about the two children that died (were poisoned) at the Myrtles they say it was two girls, this was not the case}
With his mother-in-law getting up in age. Clark purchased Laurel Grove from her on May 25th, 1825, and stayed there till Elizabeth died in 1830. He then left the plantation and became a judge over District D which was in Covington, Louisiana. On January 1 1834 Woodrooff sold the Laurel Grove to Ruffin Grey Stirling. Later Clark would move to New Orleans where he served as judge until his death.
Ruffin Grey Stirling was a very wealthy man and owned many plantations on both sides of the river. Stirling had a large family so remodeled the main house to what we see there today. Besides adding to the size of the house he increased plantation land from 600 acres to over 15000 acres.
Ruffin Grey died from consumption on July 17, 1854 leaving his wife to manage his vast holdings. At this time she took in William Drew Winter to help manage the plantations for her. Through these duties he fell in love with her daughter Sarah and they were married on June 3, 1852. After they were married the Myrtles became their family home. They had several children. By the end of the civil war William found himself bankrupt. Even though he regained the use of the plantation it had been sold to a holding company out of New York City.
On January 26, 1871, while going over a Sunday School lesson with his son in the men’s parlor, William heard a man ride up on horseback and called out wanting to talk with the attorney. When he went out to see who this was that was calling he was shot dead on the gallery . This was reported in the Point Coupee Newspaper. E. S. Webber was the man suspected of firing the fatal shot. William’s wife, Sarah, died seven years latter on April 16, 1878 from what they believed was a broken heart.
In February of 1881, The Myrtles was purchased for $3000 cash in a Sheriff Transfer by Sarah’s Brother Steven Stirling. In 1889 the plantation was sold to Harrison Williams. His family owned The Myrtles till 1955 when they divided the plantation land among the Williams family heirs and the plantation home with ten acres was sold to Marjorie Munson. The house had been empty for several years and had gotten in real bad shape. It wouldn’t be completely restored until the 1970 when Arlen Dease purchased the Myrtles. The color scheme and the furnishings that can be found in the house today can be contributed to him.
Up until the late 70’s when the house was purchased by a couple from California, James and Frances Kermeen Meyers, there were no reported stories of ghosts haunting the halls at The Myrtles. It wasn’t to long after they moved in that all the stories we hear today started. There have been several owners since and the stories just continue to grow. Looking back over the history and putting it up against their stories you can see discrepancies. First There is no record of there ever being a slave woman owned by Woodrooff names Chloe. Even if there were the story of her poisoning the Judges wife and children can be proven false by their recorded deaths from yellow fever. The January article in the Point Coupee Democrat tells how William Winter died on the side porch not on the seventeen step at told by tour guides. Even their famous mirror that is said to hold the trapped spirits of Sarah and the two Woodrooff children did not appear at the house till Arlen Dease purchased the mirror at an antique shop in the French Quarter.
If you take a Mystery tour at The Myrtles you will see the stories and events change all the time. Always being fluffed and added to to give the house a better reputation. They will tell you that the Smithsonian Institute came out there and set up all kinds of equipment and after a week came back to say that The Myrtles is one of the most haunted houses in America. After talking with people from the Smithsonian, they told me that they have never done a study of ghostly happenings at the Myrtles and that isn’t something they even do. When questioned about this the people at the Myrtles will say, Oh did I say Smithsonian, I meant National Geographic.