In the 1920s Dr. Thomas E. McBride acquired the three story home.  Dr. McBride was one of Apopka's first practicing physicians and his wife was a famous pilot and flying instructor. I believe also Dr. McBride was shot and killed through one of the windows in 1978. I could be wrong but I read that famous attorney Clay Townsend purchased the home in 1985 where it was split into four different sections and moved to its current location. Then it was enlarged by about 10,000 square feet and so its name was born due to its plantation type of architecture. 

After the transition and expansion the house was transformed into a restaurant with a Victorian type of Atmosphere. On the site was the Townsend Chapel a remnant of the past which is unpainted and used as storage of the old wood furniture from this historic home. When Clay Townsend purchased the home it was abandoned but he wanted to turn it into a place where civil war reenactments could be performed. But due to the artillery and size of them it had to be moved elsewhere eventually thus closing the restaurant and banquet hall in 1997. Then a couple years after it was turned into a Haunted House for Halloween. They wanted to capitalize on sharing haunted tales and a fake haunted history to draw in visitors with a couple of creative magic show veterans. Eventually that did fail and again the Townsend Plantation remained quiet and abandoned besides its occasional banquets and catered events.

Then recently I believe that that Townsend sold the plantation style looking house to a new owner which wants to turn this place into a gift shop and restaurant. They are going to use the chapel for weddings which in all do honesty this probably is one of the most perfect places to get married at with its old willow trees and a mansion turned into a restaurant with a banquet hall. The restaurant will be called The Captain and The Cowboy which is named after the singing duo in the 1970s or the title of an adult movie back around that time with a sea captain and cowboy. Their will be steak and seafood offered so it most likely is talking more about the movie. Townsend sold this place to the right owner because with all the space here it could have been turned into a bank or even torn down.

Their is alot of rumors and talk that the plantation style house is haunted. The current owners feel that some ghost still linger behind at this house. I feel that alot of the information on the past here is not being revealed I am sure with further research it would be shocking. It is hard to say what happened to the Eldridge family after-all they only stayed in it for roughly 17 years and the McBride's owned it for over 50. But awhile back ago a local radio station stayed at the plantation house for Halloween. They were having a haunted house and workers reported hearing loud bangs in the attic where nobody is allowed to go. Some felt something brush up against them when they were alone here. In the middle of the night their were lights seen in the house, strange sounds and cold spots. In some forms we encountered alot of the same phenomena on our first investigation. We felt watched, felt cold spots, heard a loud noise, heard movement, and two of my investigators seen something ghostly. So is this plantation style house haunted? A big YES!

© By

Rick-AngelOfThyNight