Spooky house brightens couple's lives

Kevin and Debbie Schearf's house might be scary, but don't lose your head.

They just might put it on display for all the world to see.

The Schearf's home at 425 N. High St. is one of the most famous houses in Jackson -- if not for its history, then for its Halloween decorations. The three-story Victorian brick house, highly visible on U.S. 61, was built in 1890. Since 1998, the Schearfs have given the old house an old-school haunting.

Seven lifelike mannequins, some of them animated, peer out of windows. They are the more traditional Halloween haunters -- there's Mr. and Mrs. Frankenstein, a headless man, a werewolf, a witch and a vampire.

"We'd have more if we had more windows," Debbie said.

Hidden from view inside the house, an oscillating fan and fishing line give Dracula life as he raises his cape.

A record player spins a decapitated man's head around and around.

Fog will soon spew from the cauldron in front of the front-porch witch.

Halloween has always been Debbie's favorite holiday, but Kevin has caught the fever as well. The decorating takes weeks to complete and the couple changes it up every year.

"When we first moved here, we had 12 kids come on Halloween," Kevin said. "The first year we started decorating, we ran out of candy three times."

Kevin and Debbie say they do the decorating for fun.

"I like to see the kids in their costumes. They're so cute," Debbie said.

bmiller@semissourian.com

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