It’s the season for ghosts, goblins, and those things that go bump in the night, so spooky-spirited groups are putting out the invitation to get to greet the season — and maybe a holiday spirit or two.
Let’s start with White Hill Mansion in Fieldsboro, just south of Bordentown.
The Fields family started the building in 1723, and several generations added to it in the early 19th century. That includes family member Annis Stockton — the poet and wife to Declaration of Independence signer Richard Stockton.
But it is the house on the Delaware River’s sordid side that makes it ripe for haunting. And the building’s checkered past includes the mysterious death by drowning of owner Robert Field, allegedly smacked in the head by an oar while crossing the river, as well as the establishment of a bordello in the early 20th century.
Operated by the Friends of White Hill Mansion, the house is set for tours and activities, including three Saturday night “Public Paranormal Ghost Hunts,” featuring a tour that includes both the home’s historical and haunting background and ghost hunters with their hunting equipment and their own stories.
The first is on Saturday, September 25, aka National Ghost Hunting Day, and will be hosted by the Bucks County-based Keystone Spirit Seekers. Armchair ghost hunters can tune into the festivities on the National Ghost Hunting Day live streaming platform at www.nationalghosthuntingday.com.
Up next are the South Jersey Soul Searchers on Saturday, October 2, and the New Jersey Paranormal investigations, Saturday, October 9.
All three sessions run 7 p.m. to midnight. Participation is $40 per person.
Also on the schedule is the Friday, October 8, “Witchy Moon” party. The BYO wine welcome Halloween celebration runs from 7 to 9 p.m. and includes snacks and refreshments. $40.
Also keep an eye on the mansion’s evolving schedule for information about its 45 to 60-minute tours, $5 to $8, and the seasonal candlelight tours, $15.
White Hill Mansion is located at 217 Burlington Street, Fieldsboro. Learn more at www.whitehillmansion.org.
Bordentown Walking Tours is resuming its popular “Haunted History Tour.”
As organizer and company owner Mark Neurohr-Pierpaoli says in his promotional materials, “Hear the stories of Bordentown’s ghostly activity and haunted happenings as you make your way through the dark and mysterious alleys of historic Bordentown City.
The fulltime English teacher also adds, “We strive to tell the true history of what happened at each stop to help explain the mysterious encounters that real people have described.”
He is also quick to point out that it’s family friendly and that “nothing will jump out or touch you. Our ghost stories and paranormal experiences are a retelling of legends and historical events that have been reported in Bordentown throughout the centuries.” Prices for the one-hour tour range from $10 to $15. Meeting directions follow after reserving the tickets.
Find out more at www.bordentownwalkingtours.com.
Princeton Ghost Tours is offering “Hunt & Cemetery Visits” — with visitors provided ghost hunting equipment.
Designed by Princeton Tour Company owner Mimi Omiecinski, these events use “the legends and lure of Princeton past, to explore the shadowy passageways and dark corners of campus and its surrounding neighborhood. We’ll even take you beyond the locked gates of one of America’s most prestigious cemeteries.”
Promotional materials claim that Princeton Tour Company’s experienced Ghost Hunter Guides will train each guest to use EMF Meters, dowsing rods, therma-meters, and the controversial Psyleron Lamp to interact with the other side at an unmarked burial ground. More importantly, they’ll carry all that heavy stuff. Because the cemetery of Nassau Presbyterian Church is a resting place, we don’t investigate there. Instead, historians will lead you to the gravestones of Grover Cleveland, Aaron Burr, Jr., Paul Tulane, and a Princeton graduate with too much money but not enough luck. Stories are uncensored and sometimes graphic. Therefore, this tour is rated PG-13.”
The price for the two-hour tour is $35. They’re scheduled at 7 and 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights, October 15 through 30.
Find out more at www.princetontourcompany.com.
Ghost Tours of New Hope is offering Friday and Saturday night tours throughout October.
The long-time attraction has an interesting pedigree through its funder, Adi-Kent Thomas Jeffrey, a Bucks County paranormal investigator and author of the “Ghost in the Valley” series, the “valley” being the Delaware Valley.
As promotional materials note, “In 1981, (the writer) decided to take her love of the paranormal one step further and founded The Ghosts Tours of New Hope, and we have been going strong ever since! The lantern-led tour will take you through the streets of New Hope, where you will make several stops to hear true stories of hauntings throughout the town. The tour lasts one hour and covers approximately one mile of the town.”
Promoters say that the stories told on the tour are based on the tales from Jeffrey’s books and that “throughout the years, many people have had paranormal experiences while on the tour. Adi-Kent Thomas Jeffrey said over 10 percent of her guests would have a paranormal experience while on her tours. We believe that figure is much higher now. The reason? Due to the popularity of cell phone cameras and paranormal equipment, more people are taking pictures now than in the ’80s when Adi-Kent was hosting the tours.”
Tours are set for 7:30, 7:45, and 8 p.m. $10. Reservations required. For details, go to www.ghosttoursofnewhope.com.
Burlington County Prison in Mount Holly is a regular on the haunted circuit. And why not? As its background materials note, “Angry inmates, anguish, and death: these may all have caused the Prison Museum to be haunted. The first report of spirits roaming the prison’s halls was in 1833, following the execution of Joel Clough, who was buried on the grounds. Guards and prisoners heard moaning and rattling chains, and smelled cigarette smoke coming from the ‘dungeon.’ During renovations in the 1990s, workers heard sounds and saw apparitions throughout the building. Most disturbing to them was when their tools went missing and were later found in locked cells! This prompted the Board of Freeholders to ask a paranormal team to investigate. As a result of the investigation, the prison joined the ranks of the most haunted buildings in New Jersey.”
Not surprisingly, the site also attracts ghost hunters. The Burlington County Prison Museum Association allows to them to rent the space and “use their own digital voice recorders, cameras, infrared video cameras, and electromagnetic field detectors, which pick up breaks in the energy field. They review their evidence over the following weeks and then send a report to the museum. Thus far, each group has found evidence of the prison being haunted. They have recorded voices, caught orbs (energy) on film and detected spikes in the electromagnetic field. All of these things combined give the prison museum the title ‘haunted.’”
Investigations take place Friday and Saturday nights throughout the year, 7 p.m. to midnight. The ghost hunters’ cost is $350 for groups of 10 or less and $700 for groups of between 11 and 20.
But for the casual, curious visitor, the prison museum is open for self or audio-guided tours. Since the pandemic is affecting its schedule, check the website before visiting. However, the schedule says it is open Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. $2 to $5 entrance fee, $3 for audio tour. Personal guided tours can also be arranged.
The Museum is located at the corner of High and Grant Streets in Mt. Holly. www.prisonmuseum.net.
And while you’re in Mt. Holly consider Neurohr-Pierpaoli’s Haunted History Tours Mount Holly session that focuses on the “ghostly tales of the macabre, spooky, and hidden history.”
The one-hour tours are set at various times on weekends and cost $10 to $15. For more details, visit www.mounthollytours.com.
Since the tours and offerings above are subject to pandemic-related developments and protocols, reservations will be required and scheduling can change. So those wanting to participate need to check the sites.
And while doing so, note that all tour groups advise the same thing: comfortable walking shoes and appropriate dress. And be sure to check their weather related adjustments and to pay attention to their meeting times — or the tour can easily leave without giving the tardy attendee a ghost of a chance to participate.
Visitors on a ghost tour in Bordentown City.,
The White Hill Mansion in Fieldsboro, one of many historic sites in Burlington County.,
