One year ago, I briefly lived in a house that stands on a small piece of what used to be the Niels Petersen Ranch in Tempe. The ranch-house, built in 1892, still stands and has been beautifully renovated, as it is on the National Register of Historic Places. It might not be haunted (or it might - who knows) but the house clearly has a very interesting history. Additionally, the former owners are buried on-site, which adds a definitively macabre atmosphere. The house fascinated me so much a year ago that I wrote the longest status update I've ever posted on my personal Facebook, along with 6 photos I took with my cell phone while out for a walk. As historic buildings usually do, the sight of this old mansion put me into a very deep, reflective mood. Today, Facebook reminded me of this post in my "memories" and I thought I would share. Though I no longer live there, the house still interests me a great deal, especially as the man who built it helped to form the city of Tempe, which happens to be my favorite city when it comes to researching its history. In fact, even though I don't live near the house anymore, I am currently writing a paranormal novel that takes place on the former ranch. I have no evidence that the house or the surrounding properties are haunted in real life... but the history of the location itself is incredible to think about either way.
This house has piqued my interest since I moved here. It's all just so fascinating to me. Life, death, and history. These people died almost a hundred years ago. The man who helped build the city of Tempe, and his second wife (I wonder where the first wife is buried). After all that time, their remains are still here -- in the middle of a park, which in itself is quite macabre. The house they built in 1892 still stands, but it's all that's left of their 320-acre ranch, which, in addition to this park, is now home to a freeway, medical centers, a multitude of restaurants, banks, and lots of houses including the one I live in. It's crazy to think that I live on their ranch! When I look at their house and graves, I can't help but try to picture their lives and what it was like for them back then. Life was so different in that time period, and yet people lived just like we do... they had families, circles of friends, jobs and homes and emotions. They laughed and cried and sang and cooked dinner and were just like us; but we never had a chance to know them. They died long before we were born. Things like this old ranch house and these gravestones are the only evidence that they ever existed, and a hundred years from now, those things will be the only proof of our existence as well. Future generations will look back in curiosity the same way I do, and wonder who we were and how we used to live. At least I hope they will! I have always enjoyed trying to picture the way people lived so long ago. But because this family was important to the history of Tempe, I've been able to learn a lot about them, which is unusual... Normally when looking at old buildings, I have no answers to the questions of who built them or who lived there, what they did for a living or how big their families were, or who they were at all, so this is a rare case of actually having some info. We all know cemeteries are undeniably awesome, but the fact that these people are buried in the backyard of the house where they used to live makes it all seem much more macabre to me... and a thousand times more interesting!!!
