The house of Seven Gables, also known as the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion is located at 115 Derby Street in Salem, Massachusetts and is listed on the National register of historical places. It was built by John Turner in 1668, making it the oldest wooden mansion in New England. It was owned by the family for three generations before it was taken over by the Ingersoll family.
John Turner’s oldest son who was named after him, eventually inherited the property. It is said that he feared for the safety of his sisters during the Salem witch trials and built a staircase along the fireplace up to the second floor to provide a place for the girls to hide if the magistrate came looking for witches during the crazed historic witch scare. It is hidden through a narrow door next to the fireplace where it looks like wood would have been stored.
It has been said that the house is haunted. Many people have said they have seen a ghost roaming the hallways and they believe it to be the ghost of Susan Ingersoll. Susan is the cousin of author, Nathaniel Hawthorne who visited the location often. He later went on to write a book entitled, “The House of Seven Gables,” which was a follow up to his successful book, “The Scarlet Letter.” Others speculate that the ghost of a young boy was seen and may have been Nathaniel himself.
There are several other historical buildings that were moved to this site, including Nathaniel’s childhood home, which was moved more than 50 years ago.
You can view this quick 2:45 minute video for a quick view of the house:
I have found several pictures online of photos taken from outside the house that shows what could be an apparition but nowadays with Photoshop, it would have to be a photo from someone I know in order to believe it.
The Grave Addiction site posted this photo of a woman in the window that was submitted to them.
The mansion is now owned by a private organization who has restored the house to its original construction. It is said that they will not allow psychic or paranormal investigators into the home to report their findings. According to one of the pages they want to keep the home undisturbed. So, there are no ghost tours. They do offer walk through tours in which they give the history of the house and you can view hundreds of historical artifacts.
If you are interested in reading about what some people have experienced as far as paranormal activity, there are several personal accounts that were written in to the author of the website, The Grave Addiction.
People have reported to hear screams, whispers, and the feeling of an entity who followed one person home.
For more stories on paranormal and unexplained happenings, continue reading selections from the menu in the side bar on the left. Thank you for stopping by. Please also take a moment for some inspiration by checking out my other blog, The Peace And Happiness Project.
Sources:
Where the Ghosts Live 
Well, I’m interested because my maiden name is Turner…but holy cow… I want to know more : )
Debbie, I have done a great deal of ancestry research on my family. It is fascinating the stories you will find. I learned that my mother’s side of the family had land given to them by William Penn’s children and there had been a town named after them. You may just find that you are somehow connected. It’s worth looking into. Thank you for stopping by.
Wow! Probably shouldn’t have read this before bed… yikes! I get bad dreams! That said, really interesting! I better go peruse your peace and happiness blog! *grin*
Thanks Rene. I hope the other blog helped put you at ease and get some rest. Thank you for visiting both. I appreciate it!
I forgot to tell you that I toured the House of 7 Gables back in 2009. I’ve been in the staircase (a tad claustrophic but I managed) and I got in trouble for touching one of the tables. I hate when people tell me I can’t touch something historical. During the holiday season, they do scenes from “Little Women” and “A Christmas Carol.” Rick and I want to go this year.
The graveyard in Salem, MA is pretty cool, too.
Mike has always wanted to go during Halloween time. I’m weird in that I love the paranormal but I’m not a big fan or Halloween. Go figure. “A Christmas Carol,” sounds fascinating though.
Missy, that was a fun blog as usual. Thanks for the video. I live on the west coast and to get out that direction has to be very intentional. I think Salem would be a fascinating place to visit. Thanks for sharing.
Julie,
There are a great deal of site seeing locations here in the area. If you head to Salem, consider heading into Boston as well. This area is rich with history. It is much smaller than it seems, you can go from one state to another in New England in minutes instead of hours. Thank you for stopping by.