Historic – and Allegedly Haunted – Assonet Inn Up For Sale

ASSONET (WBSM) — It’s not often that true SouthCoast history is on the market, but that’s the case in the village of Assonet as the iconic inn that bears its name is up for sale.

The Assonet Inn can be had for $800,000, as plans to turn the 7,500-square foot Queen Anne building into condos has stalled.

The property, located at 16 Water Street, is being sold as is.

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According to the real estate listing, the 17-bedroom, eight-bath inn features a “wraparound porch, turret, bay windows, decorative trim (and) balconies.”

“Inside, classic original estate details are intact and solid: grand staircase, deep moldings, columned fireplaces, high ceilings, stained glass windows, in-laid wood flooring and intricate carved wood paneling,” the listing reads.

For the right buyer who wants to continue developing it into condos, the detached 3,000-square foot carriage house also can be used as another residence. The listing says the conversion plan has “projected unit values ranging from $550,000 to $700,000 each.”

The Assonet Inn operated as a restaurant and inn from the 1940s until it closed for good in 2017.

READ MORE: Assonet Inn Closes for Good

READ MORE: Vintage Menu from Assonet Inn Shows 1940s Prices

What Are the Ghost Stories Associated With the Assonet Inn?

To steal a line from the movie The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, “when the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”

That seems to be the case with the alleged ghosts of the Assonet Inn.

In my book Ghosts of the SouthCoast, I wrote about how rumors swirled that the inn was haunted by the ghosts of weary travelers who had stopped to dine or lodge during colonial times.

As the story goes, those travelers would be robbed and killed – some accounts suggest it was Native Americans, others that it was nefarious colonists – and their bodies thrown in the nearby Assonet River.

I also wrote about how this was just another case where people didn’t let facts get in the way of a good story.

After all, the Assonet Inn didn’t exist in colonial times; it wasn’t built until 1896, when it was a private residence for local Civil War hero Major John Deane. It didn’t become an inn until 1940.

There are reports that there was once a Green Dragon Tavern on the other side of the river that did exist during colonial times, from 1773 until the 1930s, so perhaps the ghost stories actually belong to that tavern and people have mixed them up over time.

Guess you’ll have to buy the Assonet Inn yourself in order to be sure.