ST. LOUIS – Nestled in the heart of St. Louis, the Bissell Mansion, built in the early 1800s, has garnered the attention of St. Louisans and paranormal enthusiasts alike.

But after years and a change of owners, a new chapter is unfolding for the mansion—as it’s about to be featured on the latest episode of HGTV’s “Scariest House in America.”

In 2018, the mansion’s murder mystery dinner drew Kyle Wheeler and his wife, Aleha Jane, to the 6,000-acre property. However, due to the dinner’s popularity, it was difficult for the couple to get tickets.

“We couldn’t get tickets, and they were sold out,” Kyle Wheeler said. “And, unfortunately, for the owners of the Bissell Mansion, they closed down in 2020 and in a few years, they put the house on the market.”

The couple, however, would end up being reintroduced to the mansion. But this time, instead of being guests at the property, they would be owning it.

“We were just like, ‘Why don’t we buy it?’ We can’t get tickets, so why don’t we buy it? It will be fun to fix up. And that’s kind of where we’re at,” Kyle said.

The couple purchased the Bissell Mansion on Oct. 18, 2024. The moment Kyle and Aleha Jane stepped inside the mansion, the pair felt a connection to the property. 

But the two would eventually begin experiencing paranormal activity.

The man in the window

Kyle Wheeler shared that when he and contractors were in the process of reconstructing the mansion, employees believed they saw a figure appearing from one specific window. 

“The (contractors) came running in the house,” Kyle said. “They said, ‘Who is that guy in the window?’ They were like, ‘Did you let somebody in the house?’ We walked around the house, trying to find somebody and we didn’t find anybody.”

The workers described the figure as a tall man who was wearing all black. That specific window is a common spot where people report seeing a ghost, according to the Wheeler couple.

The bar that once was

In a conversation with his father, Kyle recounted past paranormal incidents at the Bissell Mansion’s restaurant in the early 1970s. Kyle told FOX 2 that former employees had issues in which wine glasses would randomly disappear.

And when the wine glasses were discovered, they were broken.

“They never figured out what it was,” Kyle told FOX 2. “They just assumed it was something paranormal—that’s actually the first memory I had of this place.”

According to the couple, paranormal activity around the Bissell Mansion occurs at night. 

“I don’t feel paranoid, but my wife (Aleha Jane) does,” Kyle told FOX 2. “Whenever she’s right here with me, she’s right by my side. If I leave the room, she’s right next to me. So, I don’t really get nervous, you know?”

A new chapter

Honored to be featured on HGTV, the Wheeler couple views their role as stewards of the house, as they aim to restore the mansion. 

“My wife and I—we would like to bring back the murder mystery dinner theater, but we’re going to do it a little bit different,” Kyle said. “We would like to open the second floor up to guests to stay the night.”

Renovating the property will take time; however, if the couple wins the $150,000 prize from “America’s Scariest House,” it will accelerate the restoration process.

“There are so many people who stop by when we’re out in the yard, and they tell us how much they’ve enjoyed the place. I feel that (the Bissell Mansion) is everybody’s house,” Kyle said. “So it actually brings me a lot of joy.”

The Bissell Mansion appears on Season 2, Episode 2 of HGTV’s “Scariest House in America” on Sept. 26, 2025.