Sam Baltrusis - Ghosts of Boston: Haunts of the Hub

Published by Haunted America

A Division of The History Press

Charleston, SC 29403

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2012 by Sam Baltrusis

All rights reserved

Cover image: Beacon Hills Acorn Street, known as one of the most photographed spots in America thanks to its picturesque brownstones and narrow cobblestone lane dating back to the 1820s, is also rumored to be Bostons most haunted. There have been numerous sightings of ghostly, full-bodied apparitions wearing turn-of-the-century and Civil Warera garb passing by the streets ornate, gaslit lamps. Photo by Ryan Miner.

First published 2012

e-book edition 2012

Manufactured in the United States

ISBN 978.1.61423.678.8

Library of Congress CIP data applied for.

print ISBN 978.1.60949.742.2

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank Andrew Warburton, my eagle-eyed Agent Scully and research assistant, who believed in this monstrous project from the beginning. Special thanks to the handful of paranormal investigators and researchers who helped make Ghosts of Boston a reality, including Adam Berry from Ghost Hunters, Jeffrey Doucette and Hillary Kidd from Haunted Boston, Scott Trainito and Mike Baker from Para-Boston, Wendy Reardon from Gypsy Rose Pole Dancing, Christina Zamon from Emersons library archives and Jim Lauletta for his comedic ghost-hunting talents. Special thanks to my writing colleagues, including Scott Kearnan from STUFF magazine, who published the initial Haunted Hot Spots article; James Lopata from Boston Spirit; Stephanie Schorow, who coauthored The Boston Mob Guide and helped navigate The History Press landscape; and my former high school journalism teacher and mentor, Beverly Daniels Reinschmidt. Thanks to my mother, Deborah Hughes Dutcher, for her support even after I came out of the paranormal closet, and my friend Joe Keville for showing me the light when I was surrounded by darkness. The books back-cover illustrator, Dan Blakeslee, and photographer, Ryan Miner, deserve a special shout-out for working the graveyard shift. I would also like to thank Jeff Saraceno from The History Press for his understanding approach to deadlines and his support during the process of putting this book together.

INTRODUCTION

I see dead people. At least, thats what the headline of a popular Boston-based blog called Universal Hub reported after I posted a picture online after one of my eerie close encounters of the poltergeist kind. My run-in happened one winter afternoon outside the last stop on the Orange Line T station in Jamaica Plain near the Forest Hills Cemetery. The ghostly figure, a shorter-than-usual specter that looked like the outline of a child peeking out of an open Forest Hills station subway door, manifested itself during one of my impromptu photo shoots for a freelance project.

As a recovering X-Files junkie, Ive always been more of an Agent Scully than David Duchovnys Mulder. However, after a string of unexplained paranormal encounters over the years, I must admit that Ive become more of a believer than a skeptic. However, Ive approached Ghosts of Boston as a journalist and left no gravestone unturned when it came to digging up the historical dirt on each so-called haunting.

Since that subway incident, Ive spent years investigating alleged accounts of paranormal activity at sites all over Boston. Ive collected a slew of reports from these supposedly haunted locales, and the mission was to give readers a contemporary take on Bostons bevy of site-specific legends. Ghosts of Boston is, in essence, a supernatural-themed travel guide written with a historical lens. Based on my research, the city is a hotbed of paranormal activity.

Incidentally, I have firsthand experience with many of the haunts in the book. For example, my old sophomore-year dormitory at Boston University, the fourth-floor Writers Corridor at Shelton Hall, is rumored to be haunted by Pulitzer Prize winner Eugene ONeill. Did I have a close encounter with the phantom playwright? Not exactly. But I do remember flickering lights and inexplicable knocks when no one was there. The old hotels ambiance was eerie and it always exuded a haunted vibe, but I didnt experience anything supernatural.

However, my first spirited encounter occurred while living in Somerville during the early 1990s. I remember seeing an apparition of a young girl who would play hide-and-seek in the hallway. She was a mischievous poltergeist, and I remember hearing phantom footsteps leading up to our second-floor apartment.

My personal experiences with the paranormal have been sporadic over the years. I do recall spotting a see-through residual spirit of a Confederate soldier when I worked for an alternative newsweekly in Pensacola, Florida. He would appear in the early evening, holding a Civil Warera sword, and pass through the back entrance of the building. It was like a videotaped replay of a traumatic event that occurred years ago.

In 2007, I moved back to Boston and had an experience while touring the ramparts of Fort Warren at Georges Island. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a female figure dressed in black. I looked again, and she was gone. At this point, I had never heard of the Lady in Black legend. I just intuitively knew Georges Island had some sort of psychic residue. While researching Fort Warrens back story, my interest in Bostons haunted past slowly started to become a passion. History repeats itself, and it was my job to uncover the truth and give a voice to those without a voiceeven though most of the stories turned out to be tales from the crypt.

While researching a Halloween-themed story called Haunted Hot Spots for STUFF magazine, I started spending hours in the Boston Common. Ive always felt a strong magnetic pull to the site of the Great Elm, also known as the hanging tree. I also had an inexplicable interest in the Central Burying Ground, and one night while walking by the old cemetery, I noticed a young female figure wearing what looked like a hospital gown and standing by a tree. I looked back and she was gone. At this point, I didnt know about the Matthew Rutger legend dating back to the 1970s. Like me, he saw a ghost at the old cemetery, and I remember shivering in the beauty and the madness of the moment. Somehow, I felt her pain.

A few months after the incident, I joined the team at Haunted Boston, a group of tour guides who specialize in telling Bostons paranormal history, and learned about many of the so-called ghosts from New Englands not-so-Puritanical past. While giving tours, I had several encounters with the paranormal at the Omni Parker House. Over the years, Ive stayed away from the hotel because it had a mysterious, something-wicked-this-way-comes vibe to it from the outside. While taking a photo in front of the famed enchanted mirror on the second-floor mezzanine, I noticed condensation mysteriously appear on the mirror as if someone, or something, was breathing on it. According to hotel lore, the antique was taken from Charles Dickenss room, and he apparently stood in front of it to practice his nineteenth-century orations. As a special treat for guests on my tour, I guide them to the supernatural hot spot. While the ghost story is intriguing, what interested me more is that the press room next to the creepy mirror is where John F. Kennedy announced his candidacy for president. Ive seen tons of photos and heard many stories from patrons who had strange encounters while staying on the hotels upper floors. Today, the Omni Parker House has become one of my favorite hot spots in the city. Haunted history oozes from the oldest continuously operating hotel in the country.