1889 McInteer Villa

The History of The 1889 McInteer Villa

John McInteer was born in Ireland in 1827 and came to the United States alone as a boy. He settled first in Philadelphia and later in Indiana, where he learned the trade of harness making. Hearing of the opportunities existing in the West, he moved to Kansas in the early 1860's. First setting up home in Doniphan County, John McInteer started a small shop in Atchison where he manufactured harnesses and saddles. His products became known for their workmanship, and he did a great amount of business with wagon trains plying the overland trails. His business was so successful that he had to enlarge his facilities and manufacture his products on a large scale. The wealth he accumulated from his business was invested in real estate in Atchison and nearby St. Joseph, MO. He also erected a number of business blocks in Atchison.

The McInteer Villa is one of Atchison's most unique residences. Built in 1889-1890 for John McInteer, a pioneer businessman of Atchison, KS. The large, impressive brick residence was constructed at an estimated cost of $14,000. The architect has not been identified, but the builder was Owen E. Seip, a long-time Atchison contractor.

John McInteer's first wife, Alice died in 1892. He married his second wife, Anna Conlon, a widow with three sons, in 1895. After McInteer's death in 1902, Anna continued living in the home until her death in 1916. During her ownership, the house was home to large numbers of her Conlon relatives, including many children. After 1916 until about 1925, her brother, Judge Charles J. Conlon, a prominent Atchison lawyer, and his family made it their home.

For the next 25 years it was a rooming house. In 1952 the McInteer Villa was purchased by Ms. Isobel Altus, a retired professional violinist and an eccentric, according to her Atchison neighbors. She lacked the financial resources to follow through on her desire to restore the house and in 1969, shortly before her death, she sold it to George Gerardy, who had started to rehabilitate it. The McInteer Villa is still one of the most unusual and picturesque houses built in Atchison.

There have been nine documented deaths in the house. McInteer’s first wife, Alice, died in 1891. He married his second wife Anna Conlon in 1895. John McInteer died in 1902; Anna continued to live in the house until her death in 1916. From around 1916 to 1925, Anna’s brother, a prominent lawyer, Charles J. Conlon lived there with his family. He shot himself in the head with a 22 caliber in the right side of his head. He was 34 year-old-at the time of his suicide in 1922. Between 1924-1952, this building was run like a boarding house called the J.N. Arthur apartments. In 1952, the building was bought by Ms. Isobel “Goldie” Altis who was an accomplished violinist. She dressed in black and hardly ever ventured from her home. Neighborhood kids called her a witch due to her outfit and the house, “The Witch’s House.” Shortly before her death on December 15, 1969, she sold the house to George Lee Gerardy. She was found dead in a chair near the fireplace by neighbor, Dorothy Bond. Her physician said that she probably died of natural causes and had been dead for 24 hours or more.

    Know Deaths in the House

  1. Alice McInteer (first wife), died in December 1891
  2. Anna Conlon (Anna’s mother) 1898
  3. John McInteer, died July 17th 1902
  4. Anna McInteer, second wife of John McInteer, died December 9th 1916 (aged 57–58)
  5. Charles Donovan (Anna’s son), committed suicide in 1922
  6. 4 day old infant girl 1924
  7. Isobel "Goldie" Altis, died from natural causes on December 15, 1969
  8. George Gerardy, hung himself in the attic in 2006
  9. Thelma Gerardy, died in 2011

EVP Recordings

NOTE: In the videos below; we took the EVP recordings and converted them from MP3 format into MP4 videos, and placed a text describing the responses from the spirits so you can read them, and posted them on YouTube. If you would like to read the text responses from the spirits, you can watch the videos shown below in full screen mode or on YouTube.

Headphones highly recommended.

Slideshows & Investigation Videos