Michele Decoteau
micheledecoteau@verizon.net
A Spirited Look at the Blackstone Valley
Boo! This time of year is always filled with ghost, spirits, and things
that go bump in the night. The Blackstone Valley is a beautiful place
to live and there are a few residents who have remained even after their
life is over. Here are a few haunts to visit and shed some light on the
darker corners of our historic home.
One of these haunting homes is Hearthside in Lincoln, Rhode Island. Hearthside
is on the National Register of Historic Places in recognition of its architecture
and historic location. Well known for being a romantic location, it was
built as a gift of love and now is used for weddings and other special
events. Less well known are its spirited visitors that left an impression
on a psychic during a demonstration a few years ago. She walked through
the house and accurately described an ill servant, a past owner of the
home, and had strong impressions of fire. Although there was never a fire,
the builder of the house was concerned and built the house to withstand
a fire.
Local historian, author and paranormal investigator, Tom D’Agostino, tells many ghost stories and his own investigations of them in his book Haunted Rhode Island. One of these stories takes place in Cumberland, RI at an old monastery that is now used as a library. On a Sunday in March 1676, during the King Phillips War, a group of Native American marauders were on their way to Attleboro. They came across a group of Rehoboth militia and used a ruse to slay nine of them. Their commander buried all nine on the spot. A few hundred years later, a stone monument was erected in the area. In the years since, many people have heard the screams of the slain men. Using specialize equipment, Tom has been able to record electrical phenomena on the site.
A local character in Sutton, MA, retells a spooky account about her experience in the cemetery at the center of town. For the Sutton 300 celebration, a Haunted Tour was planned with a storyteller, stops at a few houses around the common, and a tour of the cemetery. The tour used true tales but embellished them to make for a good tour. One story about a fellow was less than flattering, but his grave was not close to the tour route. Instead they used the name of another resident whose gravestone was ornate and conveniently located. While doing a final check before the tour, one local volunteer passed by this grave and felt every hair on her body stand up. She reported that it felt like this cold thing just went through her. She fled the cemetery. A few minutes later, another volunteer contacted her and reported a similar experience in the same spot not 15 minutes later. Perhaps our kind resident was not happy to have his name tarnished to make for good storytelling…
In keeping with our industrial heritage, Tom D’Agostino relates that even the ghost of a mill has been seen. In the early 1970s, the Crown and Eagle Mill in Uxbridge burned down. Condos have been built on the foundations. Some say they have seen the ghost of the mill reappear over the condos.
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This appeared in October 2006 Blackstone Valley Shopper.
