The Haunted World
The Sallie House
Welcome to Field Notes from the Beyond!
This month on Beyond the Human, you can hear us talking about our experiences at the Sallie House in Atchison, Kansas, where we led public investigations from 2014 – 2019. During that time and in the years before, we investigated that house for over 250 hours, including both public investigations and private. We have over 1000 hours of evidence from that time. You can see some of what we caught on our Patreon page. In this “Haunted World”, we decided to give you some history about the Sallie House, beginning with the family who built it.
The Finney’s
In 1866, Michael Cromen Finney, originally from County Cork, Ireland, purchased two lots in Atchison, Kansas, where he had been living in the downtown area for 10 years, lot 9 on the map below where he would build the Sallie House, and the adjacent property (lot 10). The Finney’s lived in and owned the property known as the Sallie House longer than any other family. The house was continuously owned by a member of the Finney family until 1939.
While the house was being built, it is believed that the Finney family lived in the basement. By 1871, the family was more than likely living in the completed house. On September 27, 1872, Michael C. Finney died in the house at 10:00PM; the funeral was held in the house a few days later. He was predeceased by one child who died in infancy and left behind a wife (Catherine or Kate), two sons (James and Charles), a daughter (Agnes), and one son on the way. His youngest son, Richard Finney, was born on May 25, 1873. He barely survived a year and died on September 29, 1874. Michael’s eldest son, James, built the house next door in 1879.
In 1881, James deeded his house to his mother and moved to St. Louis, Missouri. James worked first as a city salesman for L. M. Rumsey Manufacturing, dealing in hardware and plumbing supplies, where he eventually became one of the best posted men in his line. Agnes Finney made several trips to St. Louis, probably to visit with her brother who also frequently visited Atchison.
In 1882, Charles C. Finney became a bookkeeper for Dr. Dan Holland, and later his office assistant. Charles’ decision to study medicine was made at the suggestion of Dr. Holland. Charley Finney, as he was called in the papers, was also an accomplished figure skater. On December 27, 1883, Charley Finney and Miss Florence Guerrier won gold medals for best couple skaters. For some reason, Charley fell out of favor in the sport and in 1885, was barred from participating in a competition (see news clipping below). In his obituary, he was described as an expert skater who frequently dressed as a female and appeared on the ice billed as “Miss Colby of Baltimore,” skating so gracefully that few spectators knew his identity as a man.
On October 27, 1887, Charley and a man named W.S. Anderson exchanged blows over an accusation that Finney had stolen his sister-in-law’s purse from a dentist’s office. At the time the purse disappeared, there were only two men in the office, Charley Finney and a stranger. Neither gentleman was accused at the time. It was only later that Anderson went to the dentist’s office and accused Finney. When Charles heard that he had been accused, he went to Anderson’s store and asked him to retract his statement. Words were exchanged, and Finney struck Anderson over the head several times with a heavy cane. Anderson’s father, who was present, drew a revolver. Finney was not arrested at the time because Anderson feared that if he pressed charges, Finney would have his father arrested in retaliation. The next day, both Finney and Anderson were arrested for disturbing the peace and fined $10.
In 1894, Charles received his medical degree from Beaumont Hospital Medical College in St. Louis. Upon his return to Atchison, Charles opened his office in the Martin building at Fifth and Commercial. During his long practice, he was associated with Dr. William Bogle, Dr. Virgil Morrison, and, for several years before his retirement, with his son, Dr. Charles H. Finney.
On June 26, 1899, the house next door to the Sallie House that James had built, was deeded to a woman named Johanna Barnes. Johanna was a recently divorced mother of three, with another child on the way. Before moving into the house, Johanna had been institutionalized in the state hospital in Topeka for mental instability. Judge Sceva ordered her taken to the state hospital after she was brought before him. His verdict was rendered on the evidence of her neighbors, which showed that she was violently insane, with a pugilistic tendency. On July 13, 1899, Johanna’s son, Frank Wright Barnes was born.
On February 18, 1900, James K. Finney died at 10 p.m. at the Evergreen hospital in Leavenworth, Kansas. He had been in the hospital for eight or nine months suffering from paresis of the brain, also known as neurosyphilis.
On November 9, 1904, Charles Finney married Louise Zibold, daughter of Herman and Rosa Zibold, and in 1905 they moved into the house they had built on the other side of his childhood home.
On April 18, 1906, Johanna Barnes deeded James Finney’s house to his sister Agnes Finney. Johanna and her children moved to Kansas City, Missouri. She remarried her husband, Frank Barnes, Sr., and took up residence at 330 Park Avenue in Kansas City. On September 24, 1906, Frank Wright Barnes, their son, died from carbo monoxide poisoning. Johanna had apparently attempted suicide by turning on the gas in a downstairs room and napping on a cot with Frank. They were both overcome by fumes, but she survived.
Charles H. Finney was born on February 17, 1907 to Charles C. Finney and Louise Zibold, and in 1913, Charles C. Finney was elected Mayor of Atchison. Also in 1913, Agnes Finney married William True, an engineer for Burlington Railroad. By 1916, after a scandal arose over the selling of alcohol at the Eagles Lodge, Charles Finney was forced to step down as mayor in a plea deal with the state’s attorney.
That same year in December, William True suffered a stroke while vacationing in Wyoming with Agnes. Agnes brought him back to Atchison where he would receive better medical attention. William True died on May 4, 1918, at 7 p.m. at 508 N 2nd St, after spending three days unconscious. Catherine Finney died a month later on June 14th at the home her son James had built for her, next door to the Sallie House. Charles had been treating her for gangrene in her foot; she died from septicemia.
Agnes Finney True lived in the Sallie House for the remainder of her life. For a time, she took in boarders, probably to help pay for expenses. She died on November 28, 1939, at midnight in her home. According to her obituary, she had been ill for several months before her death. Her brother Charles died on March 24, 1947, in Topeka.
The Pickmans
Tony and Debra Pickman moved into the Sallie House during the winter of 1992. At the time of their move they were not aware of any paranormal phenomena that may or may not have occurred in the house. Their first paranormal experiences in the house started out small with cold spots and lights dimming, but slowly escalated to moving objects and physical attacks.
The Pickmans lived in the house for two years. During this time the family was featured on the television show Sightings. They also attempted multiple house cleansings trying to rid the house of activity. After two years of fighting, the family finally decided enough was enough and moved out. Their story is the first report of paranormal activity at the Sallie House.
Sallie
The first mention of an entity named Sallie came about in the early 1990s. At the time, the Humbard family moved from 504 N 2nd St. to the Sallie House. It is reported that the daughter in the family, Heather, had an imaginary friend she called “Sallie.” Heather later identified a sketch by Tony Pickman (see below) as a drawing of her friend.
The first time the Pickmans came to agree on the name of an entity residing in the house took place after a co-worker of Tony’s referred his sister Barbara Connor, who reportedly has psychic abilities, to visit the house. While in the home Barbara was able to communicate with a little girl who called herself Sallie. Barbara reported that Sallie was seven years old and suffering from pains in her stomach and hand, and had a toothache. Sallie also thought that Debra Pickman was too bossy and had too many rules. Barbara cautioned the Pickmans about leaving their baby alone because, like living children, Sallie may unintentionally harm their son, Tyler. It was at this time that the drawing Tony Pickman had drawn after having a strangely vivid dream was said to be that of the spirit Sallie.
Eventually, the Pickmans’ story gained public attention and the television show Sightings showed interest in the paranormal phenomena taking place in the house. On a third visit with the Pickmans, the Sightings team brought with them well-known psychic Peter James. During his visit he sensed that three people had died in the house, possibly referencing the deaths of Michael Finney, William True, and Agnes Finney True.
He also believed that there was some medical circumstance connected to their deaths. This could be a reference to Charles C. Finney who was a surgeon and a prominent figure in Atchison at the turn of the century. He also treated William True during his final days at the house. Agnes was also known to have had long-standing medical issues prior to her death.
Peter James also was drawn to a cemetery and a particular gravesite that was discovered to be that of Sallie Isabelle Hall, who died in February, 1905.
Sallie Hall was an African American woman born in 1871 who lived in a home in an alley north of the Sallie House (just east of 2nd and Mound). Her age and ethnicity do not match the sightings shared by the Pickmans and several other individuals who have reported seeing Sallie. Hall, according to her obituary, gave birth to fourteen children, only four of whom survived past birth. Many deaths surrounded the Hall family, but a connection to the events at the Sallie House has never been established.
While Sallie Hall did not live in the house, there was one family who lived in the home and had a connection to the name Sallie. In December of 1948, the Mize family moved into the house and lived there for a short time. Sarah Margaret Mize, the family’s daughter, reportedly went by the name Sallie; however, she was still alive at the time of the Pickmans’ experiences. (Note: We cannot say whether or not she is still alive today.)
The most popular story about Sallie’s life says that, sometime around the turn of the century, she was rushed to home of the local doctor, presumably Charles C. Finney, after a night of abdominal pain. The surgeon quickly realized that the crying child was suffering from appendicitis and began preparing for an emergency appendectomy. It is said that the doctor started the surgery before Sallie was completely sedated and she ultimately died during the operation. This story, although well-known, was reported as false by Debra Pickman on the Sallie House website in 2008 (www.thesalliehouse.com; this site is not currently active). There is no historical record of this ever occurring, nor of Dr. Charles Finney ever practicing medicine out of his home other than to treat family members.
If you would like to know more about what the Pickmans experienced, we highly recommend Deborah Pickman’s book, “The Sallie House Haunting: A True Story”, published by Llewellyn Publications in 2010.
If you want to know more about the paranormal activity that goes on in the house and our investigations of it, tune in to Beyond the Human!
This day in paranormal history…
August 18, 1634: French Jesuit Priest Urbain Grandier is found guilty of magic, malficence, and possession; he is later burned at the stake.
August 19, 1692: Five people are executed in the Salem Witch Trials.
August 20, 1890: Birth date of H.P. Lovecraft, author of such masterpieces as The Call of Cthulhu, At the Mountains of Madness, and The Cats of Ulthar. He defined the subgenre of cosmic horror.
August 21, 1955: During the night of August 21, and into the early morning hours, 5 adults and 7 children claim that aliens attacked their Kentucky farmhouse, causing them to hold them off with gunfire for four hours. The claims brought numerous law enforcement officers from local, state, and military installations to investigate the farm house, though no evidence specific to aliens was found. These events became known as the Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter or the Hopkinsville Goblins Case.
August 22, 1930: Canadian Bigfoot researcher René Dahinden is born in Switzerland. He was a major advocate for he Patterson-Gimlin film and co-wrote the book Sasquatch/Bigfoot: The Search for North America’s Incredible Crature. The French Canadian Bigfoot hunter in 1987’s Harry and the Hendersons is based on him.
August 23, 2006: Ed Warren, famed demonologist and paranormal investigator, dies.
August 24, 1954: A photo of the UFO is captured at Nystrup in Denmark. It was found in 2022 in an envelope marked "not to be published" at the local newspaper.
Defining the Paranormal
General Studies
Religion - Belief in the existence of the supernatural and the behaviors for dealing with it
Ghosts & Hauntings
Vertical Afterimage - Frederic WH Myers' name for a residual haunt, described as a memory left behind in a place where there was a release of strong emotions
Cryptids
Living Fossil - Imperfect term that describes living animals who phenotypcially resemble animals from the fossil record; also used to describe animals previously thought to be extinct, but found alive
Aliens & UFOs
Ufology - The study of UFOs
Non-Human Entities
Obsession - Obsessive and irrational thoughts of which the afflicted is unable to free themselves, usually dark or negative thoughts, sometimes leading to suicidal ideation
Psychic Abilities
Precognition - Knowing about future events
Magic
Amulet - A consecrated object used for protection, good luck or health
Coming Up Next
Next Week in Field Notes from the Beyond: Get some tips about investigating UFOs!
Next Month on Beyond the Human: The Medical Mystery known as Morgellons Disease
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2025 Paranormal Research Symposium of the Association of Paranormal Study
Date: Saturday, August 23
Time: 8:00am - 5:00pm
Place: Gettysburg, PA
What we will be presenting: Indigenous Paranormal and Supernatural Phenomena in Pennsylvania - Sean M. Daley, Ryan T. Goeckner, Christine M. Daley
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We are a group of scholars interested in understanding paranormal, supernatural, and anomalous phenomena from an academic perspective. We want to document and validate experiences people have and study them in a rigorous way to bring credibility to these phenomena. Join us for our monthly podcast Beyond the Human and follow us on Spotify, Instagram, and Patreon to learn more about who we are, our methods, and what we want to learn!