How to build a haunted house : the history of a cultural obsession / Caitlin Blackwell Baines.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Blackwell, Caitlin, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Haunted houses.

Haunted houses--History.

haunted houses.

Physical Description:

302 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Edition:

First Pegasus Books cloth edition.

Other Title:

Haunted house : the history of a cultural obsession

Place of Publication:

New York : Pegasus Books, 2026

Summary:

"A cultural history of the phenomenon of the 'haunted house' as seen through art, architecture, and ghost stories. What makes a house haunted? Why do some buildings conjure up a reputation for being particularly creepy, while others leave us unmoved? Barring the possibility of a looming afterlife, what are the particular features, contexts, and histories that lend a building the dreaded identity of haunted house? How to Build a Haunted House tours some of the world's most famously spine-chilling structures in search of answers. From Medieval Scotland to Enlightenment-era London; Victorian suburbs to pre-Civil War Louisiana, Blackwell Baines, an expert in Gothic art and architecture, will explore that specific set of ingredients that captures our imaginations and contributes to our collective understanding of the eternally eerie. After all, whether a staunch skeptic or paranormal enthusiast, we all know a haunted house when we see one."

Contents:

Strawberry Hill House : the birth of 'gloomth'

Chillingham Castle : besieged from within

Borley Rectory : new haunts for old ghosts

Hampton Court : the ghosts of fame

The Myrtles Plantation : enslaved by a haunted history

Raynham Hall : the death of the English country house

The Amityville Horror : ghosts on film

The Winchester Mystery House : the architecture of a haunting

Global ghosts : the haunted house at home and abroad

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

9798897100781

OCLC:

1574792092

Publisher Number:

90104394553