THE HORRIFIC HISTORY OF
BUCKOUT ROAD

Some of Buckout Road's most fascinating urban legends include the execution site of three witches, severed heads in mailboxes, and curse of Native American sachem Pathungo which allegedly is the cause of numerous area plane crashes and suspicious fires.

Despite the MANY fascinating stories surrounding Buckout Road, perhaps the most well-known, is the tale of the notorious Albino House. The story, which has survived for generations, begins with a young couple who experienced car trouble near the small guest house on John Barrymore's former estate. The boyfriend exits the car to inspect the problem. Moments later, the girlfriend hears three thumps on the car's roof. In horror, she leaves the vehicle and sees her boyfriend's feet dangling inches above the car, his body hanging from a tree. The couple is then executed and devoured by a family of cannibal albinos. Variations of the story have circulated over the years. In some versions of the story, the albinos are also midgets. While the details may slightly change, the main thing people remember is that if you pull up in front of this particular Buckout Road house and honk your car horn three times, then a clan of cannibal albinos supposedly appear and attack.

While the story of a cannibal albino family sounds completely absurd, there is some factual basis to the tale. The main house on the estate, known as Old Well Farm, was constructed in 1830 by military captain John Quincy Adams Buckhout, who lived in the sizable 12-room homestead with his wife, Elizabeth Ann. She was the daughter of John Foster, the owner of Pine Tree Farm just down the street. The Buckhouts had four children. Nancy passed away before her second birthday, Isaac, who died when he was 19, John, and Mary. After patriarch John Q.A. Buckhout passed away in 1889, Mary inherited the estate.

In August 1931, two friends and their girlfriends were driving home to White Plains from Mt. Kisco when their vehicle experienced difficulties. Driver Maynard Taylor pulled up on Buckout Road and stepped out to attempt repairs on the motor. While parked in front of the house, a coupe without lights pulled up behind the disabled vehicle. Suddenly two men appeared from behind Taylor's car. One pressed a revolver against Taylor's back while the other bandit covered Taylor's friend Ernest Greenland who sat inside the car. "Stick up your hands and hand over all the money you've got," one of the gunmen commanded. "You dames, keep quiet," he barked at the nearly hysterical girls in the backseat, later identified as Margaret De Buono and Ella Hansen. The gunmen stole $121 (approximately $4,000 today) from the four victims. One of the bandits then eerily remarked, "this is what depression does to you." With the revolvers still pointing at the four White Plains youths, one of the holdup men said, "stay here for ten minutes and don't make any noise." The pair leaped into the coupe, and with the lights still off, escaped into the darkness.

The robbers became known locally as "The Depression Bandits." Some believe that locals created the story of cannibal albinos as a cautionary tale to keep their children away from the woodsy back road, which had a growing reputation for crime and danger.

Regardless, in the years ahead, numerous murders occurred on Buckout Road.

Years later a rumor began that serial killer Albert Fish lived at the estate. Fish was one of America's most brutal murderers. He preyed on children and ate their remains. The police arrested him in 1934, and he was sentenced to death at Westchester County's Sing Sing Prison. There has not been any substantial proof that Fish lived on Buckout Road, but some people insist he did. In any event, the cannibal aspect of the urban legend perhaps stemmed from Fish's association with the property.

Some believe that various circus performers including albinos lived at the house. While no evidence supports this, the first sole proprietor of an American circus, Hachaliah Bailey, married a girl who grew up on Buckout Road. Bailey's circus was based in Westchester and numerous performers did live in the area including a famous midget performer named Admiral Dot. Dot and his wife Lottie both worked for P.T. Barnum and eventually opened a hotel in downtown White Plains. While unsupported, this may be where the midget part of the cannibal albino story originated from.

Residents of the area have recalled that during the 1970's, the Moses family resided in the house. While not an albino, Mr. Moses, apparently had pale skin and a white afro. For whatever reason, locals tormented the family. The family's son was bullied so much that in the late 1970's he changed his name. On April 20, 1984 the 29-year-old was found dead in his Dodge Dart, parked near his family’s home on Buckout Road. The police found him in the front seat of the car with a shotgun in his left hand and a shotgun wound in his chest.Sadly, this was not the only resident of the estate to commit suicide.

The house was allegedly haunted. People have claimed to see various ghosts including a man appearing in the rafters. Others have sighted the ghost of Mary Buckhout roaming the property, perhaps looking for her lost children. Both "The Albino House" and "Old Well Farm" were destroyed by fire in 2008. It's unclear whether the fire was caused by the curse of Native American sachem Pathungo or local arsonists. The police made no arrests.

For more , check out the new book New York's Scariest Street - Buckout Road.