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On the edge of downtown Tuscaloosa, a stuccoed brick mansion with a three-story tower has spent nearly two centuries changing hands — plantation home, school, warehouse, and now event venue. Along the way it picked up one of Alabama's most durable ghost stories: a widow, a box of missing candles, and a fire that fire crews could never find.
Who Built It
The house was built in 1837 for Dr. John R. Drish, a Virginia-born physician who had settled in Tuscaloosa in 1822. In 1835 he married Sarah Owen McKinney, a wealthy widow, and the two built a mansion at the center of a roughly 450-acre plantation. Like most substantial homes of the era in the region, it was built with enslaved labor — skilled artisans whose plasterwork can still be found throughout Tuscaloosa.
Architecturally, the house is considered one of Alabama's most distinctive blends of Greek Revival and Italianate design. Before the Civil War it was substantially remodeled: a three-story brick tower was added, columns changed to the Ionic order, and cast-iron side porches installed.
The Legend of Sarah Drish
According to local legend recorded in Kathryn Tucker Windham and Margaret Gillis Figh's 1969 book 13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey — in a chapter titled “Death Lights in the Tower” — Dr. Drish died in 1867 after a fall down the staircase, some tellings say while drunk. Sarah is said to have held his wake in the tower and kept the ceremonial candles for her own funeral. When she died in 1884, so the story goes, the candles could not be found.
Dr. Drish's and Sarah's deaths are documented historical facts; the specific details of the fall, the missing candles, and Sarah's dying wish come down through local storytelling and Windham's folklore collection rather than contemporary written records.
What is well attested is the “death lights” legend that followed: soon after Sarah's funeral, residents reportedly saw a blaze of light in the tower and called the fire department, which found no fire. Similar reports recurred over the following decades.
From Plantation House to School to Warehouse
The property passed to the Tuscaloosa Board of Education, which opened Jemison School in the building in 1906; it operated as a school until 1925, then became a parts warehouse for decades. In 2015 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places as “Jemison School–Drish House.”
Can You Visit Today?
Yes, with caveats. Purchased in 2014 and restored, it now operates as a private event venue for weddings and corporate gatherings, not a walk-in museum. Those interested should contact the venue directly about tours or public events. The exterior, including the tower, is visible from the street.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Drish House ghost story documented in a real book?
Yes — it appears in Kathryn Tucker Windham and Margaret Gillis Figh’s 1969 book “13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey,” a documented published source rather than pure oral legend.
Can you visit the Drish House today?
It now operates as an event venue, making it one of the more accessible haunted sites covered on this site.
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