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| Photograph ©Ross Warner |
Address:
40 Court Street
Portsmouth, New Hampshire 03801
(603) 433-1200
(877) 747-3466
Website
Built in 1881 by successful business man, John Sise, this Queen Anne style mansion is now an inn that offers its guests thirty-four lovely rooms decorated with period antiques, a tranquil and relaxing atmosphere, round the clock staff, an elevator for guests convenience and…..ghosts? Oh yes, this one’s packed full of the paranormal!
The spooks and specters of this inn seem to have quite a unique sense of humor, though the living aren’t always amused by it. One or more of these spirits seem to spend most of their time in or around room 204. One woman who was working the front desk during the night shift claims that on that particular night the entire third floor was empty of guests. While sitting at her station she heard the ice machine being used and went up to investigate. Upon stepping out of the elevator the woman found a trail of ice cubes leading from the ice machine to room 204. The door to the room, which was previously closed and locked, was hanging wide open with a pile of ice cubes in the doorway!
On another occasion, when room 204 was occupied, the guests of that room found themselves locked out of the room at 2:00 in the morning because their key suddenly wouldn’t work in the door! These confused visitors sought help from the desk clerk who also couldn’t get the door to open with the emergency key. Finally, after trying for two hours to get the door open, the manager was called. The manager gave it a try as well but without luck. The inn was packed to its maximum that night with no rooms to spare so, they called in a locksmith. The locksmith arrived and was given the original guest key so that he could see for himself that, for some reason, it no longer worked. The locksmith put the key in the lock, turned it and the door open up! In addition to this incident, the key to room 204 is constantly coming up missing! It sounds to me like that ghost wants the room to his or herself!
The cleaning staff is even less amused by the constant pranks played by these phantoms! One maid reported some unseen person grabbing her hips as she was bent over cleaning! Another maid said that while she was cleaning, an unseen presence grabbed her gently and attempted to pull her into one of the closets!
One of the guests staying at the inn claimed that while she was in bed, an unseen presence actually laid down in the bed next to her. This specter was probably trying to get fresh with her, just as he had with the maids; I imagine he was pretty disappointed when the woman jumped up and hightailed it out of there before he had the chance!
Some of the other interesting reports here include: unexplainable cold spots, doors locking or unlocking (or refusing to unlock), items in guest rooms suddenly flying across the room for no reason, the elevator going up and down when no one is aboard, the elevator doors opening and closing for no reason, the rocking chair next to the front desk rocking when no one is sitting in it, items being moved by unseen hands, and more!
:Update 2014: The Sise Inn is now known as The Hotel Portsmouth