Mattapoisett Inn’s Ghost Stories and Haunted History

It's been known as the Holiday House, Bayview Hotel and Mattapoisett Inn. More recently, it's been the Kinsale Inn.

No matter what the sign outside says, the townies still just call it "The Inn."

Regardless of its name, Mattapoisett's Inn on Shipyard Park is the oldest continuously running seaside inn in America.

Back in 1999, there was a huge party to celebrate their 200th birthday. I can tell you it happened. I was there.

Think of the things this old inn has seen. It witnessed the filming of one of the biggest silent films of its era, starring actress Clara Bow, whose memory lives on in a Taylor Swift song by her name.

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Heck, the Inn opened only 16 years after America's War for Independence ended.

Think about that: it's very likely actual Minute Men kicked off their dusty boots and spent the night at the Mattapoisett Inn.

Mattapoisett Inn Ghost Stories

That's why it's no shock to hear from the Inn's owner, Chrissy Soares, that she's seen and heard some ghostly things in the wee hours of the night.

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Soares said she's worked at the Inn for the past 14 years.

"I've definitely had some spooky things happen to me, especially in the late night. There's a TV in one of the rooms that constantly turns on by itself," she said.

She said she never noticed much while she worked as a server, but once she was promoted to manager (and now owner), she started to pick up on things when she'd stay until the early morning.

"Once you spend time here alone, you start to see and hear it," Soares said.

"We were working on the porch about a month ago after closing," she said. "The speakers on the porch were turned off for the night when suddenly they turned on by themselves and music started playing."

Soares said she's heard a lot of slamming doors with no wind and no one else in the building.

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Innkeeper's Strange Stories

Soares shared that here used to be an innkeeper (who has now passed) nicknamed "Truck." He lived at the inn for free. In exchange, Truck would clean up the bar and restaurant each morning.

"He used to say he'd hear balls rolling down the upstairs hallway, slamming doors, and TV's that turned on and off," Soares said.

Two Ghosts at the Mattapoisett Inn

In his book Ghosts of the SouthCoast, Tim Weisberg reports that the Kinsale Inn's owners also had stories about ghosts.

"The most commonly sighted (ghost) is that of a sea captain seen in one of the bedroom windows, looking out toward the sea," Weisberg wrote. "He also is reported to roam the halls with his heavy boots, making a thunderous sound."

The other ghost is that of a little girl.

"The other reported spirit is that of a young girl called Sarah by the locals," he wrote. "For whatever reason, she wanders the hallways of the inn searching for her father. In her never-ending quest, Sarah is known to knock over items, open doors and rattle the bottles at the bar."

Learn more about Mattapoisett history at the Mattapoisett Museum.