New Hope in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, has been called the “most haunted town in America.” Since the only ghosts that ever haunted me in New Hope are those of my misspent youth, I can only regale you with tales that have been passed on. I will, however, relate a personal story at the end of this article of events at a house in a nearby village.
New Hope, originally called Coryell’s Ferry, dates back to 1710. It is one of those little colonial touristy towns on the Delaware River with overpriced everything, but people still flock there in nice weather with their spouses, lovers, children, motorcycle buddies and old Aunt Edna. Washington’s Crossing is close by, and George Washington and his troops camped in the area the night before his famous crossing of the Delaware.
There are reportedly so many ghosts in the inns, restaurants, houses and even a bridge at New Hope that they should start a union. The Inn at Phillips Mill is an 18th century stone barn, and listed on the National Historic Register. The Inn reputedly has a female specter in a high-collared long dress who hovers around the staircase and upstairs hall, and is said to brush up against guests on the stairs. There are also reported to be ghosts in the walls, and a haunted rocking chair.
New Hope’s Logan Inn, also on the National Historic Register, was founded as the Ferry Tavern in 1734, and is said to have four spirits. Guests have reported seeing the image of a man in the mirror in Room 6, and two children are said to haunt this room. Guests report doors opening and closing, footsteps in the empty halls and floating orbs have been photographed. A revolutionary war solder also wanders about, roaming the dining room, bar and basement. Men using the basement restroom have reported seeing a man in knee breeches waiting for them, and a little girl reportedly dwells in the parking lot near the canal in which she drowned. Finally, the spirit of a woman named Emily who was partial to lavender, reportedly likes to fool with the heat, throw around shoes and rearrange luggage, and many people claim they can smell lavender near her portrait. I must admit that I’ve lunched in their bar, and it did feel creepy.
The spirit of New Hope artist and printer Joseph Pickett reputedly haunts the Pickett House on Mechanic Street, particularly his bedroom, as well as the neighboring house of his cousin. He’s also been seen strolling down the towpath of the nearby Delaware Canal. New Hope Odette’s Restaurant, now closed, was said to be haunted by the ghost of a woman murdered there in the 18th century when it was known as the River House. The tragic 1983 death of newswoman Jessica Savitch, who died when the car she was in went over the edge of the towpath into the canal, also haunts Odette’s.
Horse thieves used to be hanged from the New Hope Van Sant Covered Bridge and legend has it you can sometimes see one of these poor wretches dangling. Also, a young unmarried woman, left with a baby by her lover and cast out by her parents, is said to have jumped to her death from this bridge with the baby. People claim that when you’re standing on the bridge, you can hear the haunting cries of the baby. Check out the link below with one man’s personal experience on this bridge. Finally, Aaron Burr hid out in New Hope when he was indicted for murder in New Jersey after his infamous duel with Alexander Hamilton; his phantom is also said to haunt the streets of New Hope.
Now, I have never seen or heard any of these esteemed apparitions, to be honest I was too busy with my liquid spirits to look for them. But my brother George did live about ten minutes away, on a Christmas tree farm outside Peddler’s Village in the mid-70s. The farm buildings dated back to the 1800s, and included a stone carriage house that George sublet with his friend Dave. I stayed there one weekend with my toddler daughter, and when I heard the shower go on, and I knew Dave was out, I asked George who was in the shower. He grinned at me and said “the ghost.” Now, not even the ganja was going to make me believe that, so I climbed the stairs to the bathroom, all the while STILL hearing the shower running, opened the bathroom door — to silence and bone dry shower walls.
George then told me that he learned the house was haunted shortly after he moved in when he came home one night to find all the doors locked, the piano playing and the sounds of people partying. Since they never locked the house up back then, he didn’t have his keys, and pounded on the door for 15 minutes, until finally Dave appeared, seconds after the noise stopped. George proceeded to soundly cuss him out and wanted to know what the bleep was going on when he realized that Dave was not totally awake. When George stopped yelling, Dave stared at him trancelike, and said, “Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you, the house is haunted.” He then turned and went back to bed. The next day, Dave did not remember letting George in.
George swore that every time I came up with my daughter, or any of his other friends with small children visited, the spirits seemed get stirred up and tormented him for weeks, until one really annoying night when he sat up in bed and “told the suckers that ‘You’re dead, you don’t belong here, so either get the bleep OUT or be quiet and let me sleep!!!!'” He claimed he never heard another sound.
Sources:
Unsolved Mysteries; Ghosts of New Hope; Personal Experience;
Check this story out: Vant Sant Bridge Ghost Sighting Story
