The New Boston Inn in Sandisfield, MA is home to Harriet the ‘friendly’ ghost and a few other spectral beings.
If you’re a lover of the paranormal and traditional Halloween activities like trick-or-treating or scary movie watching won’t cut it for you anymore, then we suggest taking your Halloween to the next level and spending the scariest night of the year at the haunted New Boston Inn. The Federal-era building is known for its high paranormal activity and has been featured twice on TV, on Sci-Fi’s Ghost Hunters and the Discovery Channel.
Built around 1737, the New Boston Inn has been welcoming guests for more than 200 years and has gone through some serious history involving revolutionary soldiers, railway traveling and one unfortunate murder. That’s right, Harriet didn’t just accidentally lodge at the New Boston Inn. Although she’s said to be quite friendly and playful, her story is rather heartbreaking.
In the early 1800s, Harriet would often vacation in The Berkshires with her family. One year, she had a summer fling with a local farmer’s boy, but their romance was ill-fated. The young man, who was very much in love, asked her parents for their permission to marry but her parents refused, citing his lack of fortune as the reason. A broken-hearted Harriet and her family returned to New York and her lover enlisted in the war. The next summer Harriet and her family came back to celebrate her marriage to a rich, handsome man from New York. Her lover soon found out of the event and ran to the inn to stop it, only to find out he was too late. In a jealous fit, he took out his pistol and shot Harriet who later died in Room 4 of the inn, which you can still stay at if you so wished.
They say, her body left a bloodstain on the floor that could not be removed for over a century (how very Canterville Ghost-esque of her) and that you can sometimes still hear her singing in the Ballroom and walking down the hallway.
Harriet isn’t the only spectral resident at the New Boston Inn, however, a group of men can sometimes be heard playing cards in the ballroom as well. The room, it would seem, is a popular hangout spot for afterlife dwellers!
If you’re not too keen on spending all day with Harriet and her pals, the inn is conveniently located in the heart of the Berkshires so there’s plenty to do around the area. You can check out Sandfield’s Art Center for comedy, theatre and music, head into the wild and explore the many hiking trails and stunning views of the Berkshires or you can grab your car and explore the abounding museums, historical sites and other wonders the area has to offer.
All in all, New Boston Inn is a lovely getaway stuck in time and has plenty to offer, from outdoor activities to live music performances. Spending the night at a haunted inn with historic ghosts (friendly or not) may not for the faint-hearted but still quite an exciting weekend getaway if you ask us. So, what say you? Will you dare stay at the haunted David Stewart Farm?
For more information on reservations see New Boston Inn’s Airbnb listing.
See also: This Tavern Located Just An Hour Away From Boston Is The Country’s Oldest Restaurant
[Featured image: @princesscupcakez, Instagram]