Springer Castle – Highlands Ranch Mansion

John W. Springer was a man of impeccable family and background. His family was of German descent and traceable back to 1089. Reputation was what he strove for his entire life. A scandal involving drugs and promiscuity with his second wife, Isabelle Paterson, must have just about unhinged him. For a complete scenario on this escapade, read Dick Kreck’s book, “Murder at the Brown Palace.”

As a postscript, Isabelle died in April of 1917 in the Pauper’s Hospital, Blackwell’s Island, NY. This was a mere six years following her divorce from Springer. Alcohol and narcotics now ravaged her former beauty.

Regarding the haunting of the Springer Castle, most prominent is the ghost of Julia Kistler, daughter of the fifth owner, whose father abandoned her for his stepsons. There are claims that her figure has been seen silhouetted in her bedroom on days the castle was known to be vacant, and several workers throughout the upper halls have heard her soft, anguished sobs.

Other odd incidences have occurred in the castle. Several years back, the mammoth clock in the great hall was heard to chime during a meeting, although the mechanism has been out of order for years.

Caroline Smith, docent and president of the Highlands Ranch Historical Society, reports a day when, waiting for a group of school children, she suddenly smelled a strong bouquet of flowers, although there were none in the building. Later, a mother commented on the aroma as well.