Built in 1894 for Edwin Holland Terrell as a gift for his second wife Lois Lasater. Mr. Terrell's family (namely his nephew) is the family Terrell Hills is named after. Edwin Holland Terrell was a very powerful man. He was heavily involved in San Antonio politics, having run for mayor and lost in 1887. He was a leader in the Texas Republican Party, and served as the U.S. Ambassador to Belgium during Benjamin Harrison's administration. He married Mary Maverick, the daughter of one of the most powerful families in San Antonio in those days. They had six children, but Ms. Maverick took ill and died while in Europe. She never lived in the house on Grayson. It is believed his marriage to Ms. Lasater was of the arranged variety to ensure the Maverick's grandchildren would be well taken care of. It should also be noted, Mr. Terrell and Ms. Maverick had one child who died young, around three years old. In his later years, Mr. Terrell contracted syphilis which was deadly in those days. Towards the end of his life his brain was badly affected by the condition, he wasn't thinking correctly, and had lost mobility...finally, in June of 1910, he attempted to take his own life. It is believed he shot himself in the master bedroom on the second floor...but because of his poor mobility was unable to take a direct shot and it took him ten days to die. He died in the home, and his body was held there for viewing and his funeral. He was surrounded by his family when he died at the age of 61 on July 1, 1910. Mr. Terrell loved his home as he built it to model the castles of Europe, so one theory says he loves the house so much he doesn't want to leave. Cigar smoke sometimes emanates from the library where he loved to read. The main legend involves a woman who is seen in the library, and walking up and down the stairs in high heels. High-heeled footsteps are heard constantly. It's not known who the woman is...possibly Ms. Maverick who watched over her children who lived at the house after she died. Or is it the residual haunting of the traumatic event that eventually led to the death of Mr. Terrell, as some have reported hearing a loud bang, then frantic footsteps as if someone was running to find out what happened. There is also a child (or possibly children), one that plays on the stairs, others (believed to be little girls) play in the third floor ballroom. Mr. Terrell had several daughters.
Present for Investigation...Russell, Bobby, Angelka, Jo Ann, Vanessa, Joey, Tracy, Darrell, & Kendra. IR cameras were set up in the library, master bedroom, master bedroom sitting area, and the ballroom. Things were exceptionally quiet until the team decided to ratchet things up by reenacting the funeral of Edwin Terrell that was held in the large front room. Tracy had been acting strange all night and finally came in to tell us he'd been hearing a whisper in his ear all night. He explained the feelings he was getting and the decision to do the funeral was made. Immediately the reenactment changed the energy in the entire house and a shadow was spotted from behind the group as if someone was watching wondering what was going on. We assumed it was a man in the house, until very late in the investigation Russell & Angelka were conducting an EVP session in the sitting area of the master bedroom where Mr. Terrell is believed to have shot himself...when Russell was addressing a man, a moan was heard out loud. Russell heard it with his naked ear, not on the recorder, and it sounded to be female in nature. Upstairs in the ballroom investigators were sure there was a child playing with them. The IR camera in the sitting room also picked up a strange light anomaly that initially was thought to be a car headlight, but when another was spotted coming back the other way, the team could not explain it. Finally, while in the basement after being directed there by the spirit controlling the ovilus, Bobby & Joey caught something unexplained streak from right to left in front of their camera. The team believes they made contact with three different spirits.