In the summer of 2002, my ex-husband and I went on vacation to Salem, MA. I remember being so excited to finally get the chance to visit one of the most historical and haunted places in America. Once we checked in at the Carriage House Inn B&B, I grabbed all the brochures I could find and started to check off all of the ghost tours and places I wanted to visit. One of the tours started at the Peabody Essex Museum and continued outdoors visiting buildings connected to the 18th and 19th century maritime history.
It was a beautiful summer day and we started our Peabody tour. One of the buildings on the tour was The Gardner Pingree House. Our tour guide walked up to the house to see if it was ok for us to enter because there was some repairs being done. He came back to the group with a puzzled look on his face and told us that the workers must be out to lunch because their stuff is in the front room but nobody is in the house. I remember him saying in a sarcastic tone "Nice of them to lock up".
We started on our tour of the house looking at all the old furniture and fireplace with the old cauldron type pots and cooking utensils hanging in front of it. The guide starts telling us that the house belonged to a sea captain named Joseph White. He was very successful and wealthy but had a very bad habit of keeping his gold and doubloons in a trunk in his room.
Captain White also liked to drink and party when he came home from his voyages. Normally inviting strangers into his home and letting it slip that he keeps his money in the house. At this point the tour guide had led us upstairs to the Captain White's bedroom where he continued the story.
One night the captain went to bed a little earlier than usual he was in his 80's so he probably was not feeling well. In the morning his son Benjamin White found a window open on the ground floor with a plank leaning up against the back of it. He then ran upstairs to get his father for fear that someone robbed them, but found him dead; bludgeoned to death in his bed.
I was listening to him so intently that I jumped when I heard the front door slam shut. The tour guide stopped and said "it looks like the workers are back from lunch". I then started to hear heavy footsteps. It sounded like someone was coming up the stairs wearing a pair of work boots. The guide looked annoyed and said. "What is with these people today? They know they are not supposed to come upstairs when a tour is going on."
I stuck my head out of the bedroom to see who was coming, but the sound of the footsteps stopped almost immediately. Nobody was on the stairs. The guide called out, but there was no answer. Everyone got real quiet wondering what was going on. I looked at my ex-husband and said. "I think the Captain is home." After I said that the hair on both of my arms stood straight up and it got cold in the room.
The guide turned pale white and blurted out "Tour's over" and literally went running down the stairs, everyone in the group following closely behind and out the door.
I couldn't believe I actually had an experience in Salem, MA. I will never forget it, and I can't wait to go back again. Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it.
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