Nestled on the rocky coast of Massachusetts, Salem is a city steeped with history and legend. Famously known for its witch trials, the historic North Shore seaport also has a dark history of smugglers and deadly fires. It is considered to be one of New England's most haunted destinations. Inside Howard Street Cemetery, the ghost of accused witch Giles Corey wanders among the gravestones. Outside the Ropes Mansion the ghost of Abigail Ropes can be seen peeking out of the windows. The Gardner-Pingree House on Essex Street is host to the spirit of sea captain Joseph White, a man whose murder in 1830 inspired literary giants like Edgar Allen Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Join author and paranormal journalist Sam Baltrusis on a chilling journey through the streets of Salem as he chronicles the historic haunts of the Witch City.
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The most un-haunted house in Salem?
The House of the Seven Gables, formerly known as the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, is arguably the most asked about location in Salem when it comes to the paranormal. Is it haunted? Tour guides are quick to dispel the rumors.
“Nope, haven't heard of any ghosts,” remarks one veteran tour guide walking a large group up the now-famous secret staircase to what is believed to be the structure's haunted attic. Another guide merely said that the house “can get creepy at night.”
Meanwhile, the eyes of the Victorian-era paintings dotting the beloved inspiration for Hawthorne's Gothic masterpiece, The House of the Seven Gables, eerily seem like they're following the group as the tour quietly shuffles from one room to the next.
No way. It's not haunted. Or is it?
Several books on ghost lore list the Turner House as one of Salem's most active. However, some of the information is based purely on conjecture. “Nathaniel Hawthorne, descendent of one of the witchcraft judges, was born in Salem in 1804 and always felt that the home of cousin Susan Ingersoll was haunted,” wrote Dennis Hauck in Haunted Places. “He put his impressions on paper in the famous horror novel whose name the house now bears. The House of the Seven Gables is considered to be one of the eeriest in a town full of haunted houses.”
Other stories suggest that Ingersoll, who inherited the house from her ship-captain father after John Turner III lost the family fortune, has been spotted roaming the house's hallways. According to reports, she eerily peeks out of the windows when visitors are frolicking in the museum's beautifully manicured gardens. Yes, she's supposedly keeping watch over the droves of people touring her former home.
Ghost busted? Learn more about the alleged hauntings of the historic House of the Seven Gables in my new book, Ghosts of Salem: Haunts of the Witch City, and decide for yourself.
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About the author:
Sam Baltrusis, author of "Ghosts of Boston" and "Ghosts of Cambridge," freelances for various publications and is the former managing editor of Scout Magazine in Somerville and Cambridge. He has been featured as Boston's paranormal expert on the Biography Channel's Haunted Encounters and Paranormal State's Ryan Buell's Paranormal Insider Radio. Baltrusis moonlights as a tour guide and launched the successful ghost tour, Cambridge Haunts, and is producing a new tour in Salem.
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