Daniel and family are in Williamsburg, Virginia for his service in the Va. Assembly. By coincidence, Becky has inherited a mansion in adjacent Oyster Cove, and drives out with Israel to look it over. But the property is not as vacant as it was made out to be.
With a lock on national viewership, 1960's network series required seasonal-related episodes, and this one filled the bill for "DB" during Halloween week of 1967. The plot is strictly follow-the-dots as Becky and Israel encounter every haunted house trope - cobwebs, cats, secret passages, creaky floors, suits of armor, coffins, hollow portraits, etc. (Notably, we never hear much about haunted cabins or bungalows - one wonders if Edgar Allan Poe and co. Devised cursed stately homes in the 19th century as a means of literary attack on America's nouveaux rich.)
Always interesting when Becky is allowed to break free from her 1950's housewife in the 1780's lane, but here its just to take up residence as damsel in distress. She was introduced as a former indentured servant, so not sure how the deceased wealthy relative comes into play here. Cast support mainly comes mainly from Royal Dano, whose rough-hewn looks added much authenticity to period Westerns, and here fits nicely into a prime time chiller as well. A well-dressed Dan comes in late for rescue duty, and that's pretty much it for him. With no tavern to smash up in a brawl, a well-appointed living room will suffice.
Not much of value here re. Dramatized history, but worth noting that the portrait of Uncle Peter looks like that of one of Napoleon's Marshal Louis Davout. Dan is in Williamsburg to debate the "Kentucky Resolution," conceivably a reference to the Jeffersonian attempt to state-nullify the federal Alien and Sedition Act via the "Va. And Ky. Resolves."
Except the Resolves were introduced in 1798 and Ky. Achieved statehood and its own legislature in 1792, hence no political rationale for a Boone trip to Williamsburg. And as well pointed out in the "Goofs" section, Oyster Cove is at least a 3-4 day carriage ride and ferry trip from Williamsburg, not a couple of hours.
Attempts to expand the boundaries of the Western genre are always worth a look, but in this case the lack of period flavor leaves a fairly generic story that could have been plugged into pretty much any prime time series. Too bad; the fairly recent "Sleepy Hollow" series on Fox proved that early American history and the horror genre can be melded quite well.
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