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Welcome to America’s Haunted Road Trip
Introduction
Ghost Hunting 101
NORTHERN NEW JERSEY
CHAPTER 1 Roxana: The Ghost of Mead Hall
Higher education and the supernatural make for a well-rounded degree at Drew University in Madison. Roxana’s ghost appeared to two firemen the day of the great fire in Mead Hall.
CHAPTER 2 Ladies in White
Two white-clad spirits frequent the sites of their respective deaths, one in Newark’s Branch Brook Park and one along Riverview Drive in Totowa. The legends differ, but for ghost hunters the thrill of these two atmospheric drives is the same.
CHAPTER 3 The Ghost of Rose City
It’s not unusual to see a young girl making her way home from baby-sitting, except when she’s the ghost of Jeanette Lawrence, who was brutally murdered in 1921.
CHAPTER 4 Lambert Castle
Erected by Catholina Lambert, the “Silk Baron,” on Garret Mountain in Paterson, Lambert Castle offers stunning views as well as chance encounters with ghosts from Revolutionary War days.
CHAPTER 5 The Whistling Swan Inn
Victorian comfort and style abound at the Whistling Swan Inn, plus other remnants from the Victorian era. No, that’s not a maid waving from the upstairs window—it’s a ghost.
CHAPTER 6 The Stanhope House
A long-standing watering hole and gathering place along the Morris Canal, Stanhope House has seen its share of incarnations and houses some wayward spirits. However, its history of operation on the Morris Canal has created some long-lingering specters. From the ghost singing in the control booth to the “helper” ghost who hid the workman’s hammer, Stanhope House is home to the blues with shades of “ecto-gray.”
CHAPTER 7 Bell’s Mansion
The legend of the haunted porcelain doll may shock listeners around the campfire, but take a closer look at this now top-notch restaurant’s high turnover of busboys, and you’ll find a ghost maintaining her eternal dinner reservation.
CHAPTER 8 Shades of Death Road and Ghost Lake
Most people today think the odd name of this Warren County road relates to the canopy of trees during the summer months and the risk in navigating its fog. However, a history of murder and disease truly define it. Ghost Lake has its romantic and ghostly tales as well.
CHAPTER 9 You’re a Good Ghost, Charlie Brown
Charlie Brown’s Steakhouse in Hackettstown has more than one floor to dine on and more than one ghost to dine with: a little boy ghost and the ghost of the young pregnant woman who drowned herself in the tub when it was a functioning hotel.
CHAPTER 10 Washington Theatre
Sure, you can see the latest movies at this historic theater, but take some time to explore its vaudeville stage days and the ghosts who still perform on what is now backstage.
CHAPTER 11 The Yellow Frame Presbyterian Church
The ghost of Joseph Thomas has been causing trouble since church members, fearing a smallpox outbreak, exhumed his body from the Yellow Frame Cemetery. Nearby residents report flickering lights and phantom organ music coming from the church late at night.
CHAPTER 12 The Changewater Murders
The sad tale of these murder victims survives today because their killer was never found and brought to justice. Visiting their grave sites in Washington, one can tell these people are not at rest and you’re not alone.
CHAPTER 13 Ringwood Manor
Situated on scenic Skyline Drive, Ringwood Manor’s lovely estate grounds are the perfect place to take the family for a picnic. Tour the manor, but be warned: don’t dawdle upstairs, or the ghost of Mrs. Hewitt takes offense.
CHAPTER 14 The Hermitage
This gorgeous Gothic home in Ho-Ho-Kus was treasured by its last owner, Mary Elizabeth Rosencrantz. She suffered in order to keep the home and willed it to the state upon her death in 1970. Some would argue that Mary Elizabeth has refused even in death to let go of her beloved Hermitage.
CHAPTER 15 The Ghost of Centenary College
The ghost of Tillie Smith has been seen on the campus grounds and in her old dormitory, as well as at Union Cemetery in Hackettstown. She was murdered in 1886 while defending her honor. Her ghost still seeks to protect the female students on campus.
CHAPTER 16 The Publick House
A good meal and quaint ambiance pale in comparison to the ghostly guests seen in the barroom or to the remains of the former owner buried out back.
CHAPTER 17 Haunted Hobart Manor
This elegant manor, which dates to 1877, is primarily home to William Paterson University’s administrative offices now, but the ghost of Mrs. Hobart still makes her rounds as a hostess.
CHAPTER 18 The Halls of Morristown: Acorn Hall and Macculloch Hall
Acorn Hall’s beautiful Italianate design and Macculloch Hall’s massive brick Federal-style mansion exemplify the grandeur of historic Morristown. Tour highlights include the history, artifacts, and possibly some spectral residents.
CHAPTER 19 The Bernardsville Library 124
Phyllis Parker has a library card on file here, but she was long dead before she ever acquired it. Her story is one of the many tragic moments of Revolutionary War history.
CHAPTER 20 The Fox and Hound Tavern at the Lebanon Hotel
Originally the Lebanon Hotel, this restaurant is serving up delicious entrees and more than one kind of spirit from its two bars.
CHAPTER 21 The Spy House
One of the most haunted sites on the Eastern Seaboard, the Spy House is home to several ghosts. From epiphanic séances to ghost children playing on the grounds, a tour of the Spy House can be most unsettling.
CHAPTER 22 The Ghosts of Scotch Plains
The Baptist Church Cemetery is a hub for the paranormal in the quaint town of Scotch Plains, where a car accident, bus crash, and attempted murder-successful suicide could explain several ghost sightings.
CHAPTER 23 Pattenburg House
A tavern and inn since 1872, Pattenburg House is home to the ghost at the bar and a ghost on the third floor who makes her presence known.
CHAPTER 24 The Raritan Library
Are the library’s claims of haunting just a media stunt, or are they driven by the deeds of resident spirits? A respected psychic and one unnerved little boy would argue for the latter.
CHAPTER 25 Blood Lane and Suicide Tower
A midnight drive up “Blood Lane” in the Watchung Reservation is still a teenage favorite on the full moon. If you survive the ride, you can head across the reservation to Suicide Tower to witness the ghost of its namesake.
CHAPTER 26 Welcome to the Hotel Belvidere
Missing tools, the unexplained sounds of jangling keys, and a former boarder who doesn’t want to leave mark life at the Hotel Belvidere.
CHAPTER 27 Harry’s Road House
The ladies’ room carries a tinge of sadness, and the ghost of a crying woman. She grieves for her young daughter, who was murdered here in 1910.
CHAPTER 28 Bus Crash Ghosts
The Garden State Parkway’s tragic bus crash on Christmas Eve 1998 has left some ghostly travelers still waiting to arrive in Atlantic City.
CHAPTER 29 The Ghost of Baltus Roll
Baltus Roll was tortured and killed on a cold winter’s night in 1831. To this day people have witnessed his ghost on the Galloping Hills Golf Course in Kenilworth. Some claim that his spirit charges through the Watchung Reservation on horseback or appears near his grave in the Presbyterian Church cemetery in Westfield.
CHAPTER 30 The Proprietary House
Once a royal governor’s palace, now a museum and office space rental, the Proprietary House has the ghost of a little boy and a Revolutionary War soldier, and a very busy ladies’ room.
CHAPTER 31 Liquid Assets
Heavenly bodies of dancers aren’t the only entertainment at this premiere gentlemen’s club in South Plainfield, which may be the only haunted gentlemen’s club in North America. The amorphous body circulating the parking lot begs for a closer look.
CHAPTER 32 The Cranbury Inn
Known today for its fine dining and beautiful wedding receptions, the Cranbury Inn is still regarded as a major stagecoach stop by a man who died while falling off a coach there in 1796. The ghosts of a longtime female boarder and slaves on the Underground Railroad round out the cast.
CHAPTER 33 Burlington County Prison Museum
Does the ghost of Joel Clough still haunt the prison’s dungeon, where he was kept before being hanged for the murder of his mistress? Or is it just a residual haunting that continually replays?
CHAPTER 34 The Cape May County Historical Museum
Museum staff can tell you stories about more than just the artifacts on display. You’ll hear about lights that come on by themselves, phantom footsteps and giggling, and a curiously musical wind-up doll.
