Beardslee Castle
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| Beardslee Castle | |
|---|---|
| Restaurant Information | |
| Street address | 123 Old State Road |
| City | Little Falls |
| State | New York |
| Zip | 13365 |
| Website | www.beardsleecastle.com |
Beardslee Castle is an elegant restaurant in Little Falls, New York. It has two stories, even including a basement bar, called the Dungeon. The castle itself was constructed in 1860 as a replica of an Irish castle. It was at first the home of Guy Roosevelt Beardslee, but after his death in 1937, a couple called the Christensens purchased the castle in the 1940s and turned it into a restaurant. The restaurant has been known by employees and historians as being haunted by ghosts.
Contents |
[edit] History
John Beardslee, an architect, civil engineer and mechanic. He resided in Connecticut, only to move in 1781. He arrived at Whitestown, New York in 1787 and built mills. He had a son, Augustus Beardslee, who built the castle in 1860. Augustus and his wife Helen Caitlin Bernard Beardslee had a son, Guy Beardslee.
Guy Beardslee was born in 1858 and attended Charlier Institute and spent two years to study in France. He graduated from West Point Military Academy in 1879, finishing last in his class. In 1892, two engineers paid him $40,000 to build the first rural electrification plant in the United States.
Beardslee also spent time in North Dakota fighting the Sioux. While fighting, he collected sacred artifacts. He had little respect for them, however. The castle mysteriously caught on fire in 1919, while Guy Beardslee was vacationing in Florida. After the castle was restored, more or less, nothing unusual happened with the castle. Guy Beardslee died in 1937, and his wife, Ethel, died in 1941.
In the mid-1940s Anton 'Pop' Christensen and his wife purchased the castle. They transformed the castle into a public restaurant, calling it 'The Manor.' Unfortunately, 'Pop' became terminally ill by the mid-1950s. Tired of having to put up with his illness, he hung himself in the ladies room of the restaurant, which is currently the side entrance foyer.
Not long after 'Pop' Christensen passed, John Dedla took charge and ran the business until 1976. John sold it to Joe Casillo, the proprietor of The Lakehouse in Richfield Springs. Casillo renamed 'The Manor,' 'Beardslee Manor.' In 1982, the second floor of the castle was rebuilt. By this time, ghostly phenomenon became a big thing associated with the castle. Employees and customers alike experienced ghostly encounters.
The castle burned yet again on August 30, 1989, which happened to be approximately 70 years and 7 months after the first fire. The castle was abandoned, only to be purchased by Tim Baumeister and Randall Brown in 1992. The partners restored the castle during an 18-month period.
In February 1994, the castle reopened as 'Beardslee Castle,' and has operated as a restaurant without interruption since then.
[edit] Fires at Beardslee Castle
In February 1919, while Guy Beardslee was in Florida, a fire started at the castle. Guy Beardslee's artifacts were all destroyed. The cause of the fire was undetermined, though the newspaper said that the cause was arson to cover up theft. Locals claimed that they had seen a "mysterious man" lurking around the premisis days prior to the fire.
After the fire, the main floor was rebuilt, but the second floor was left without a roof, while railings were across the window openings. Garden space filled the back part of the building. There were three tunnels that led to other buildings on the Beardslee estate. However, two of them were sealed off.
In 1989, the castle faced bad luck again when a fire started in its kitchen in the wee hours of the morning of August 30, 1989. Meanwhile, in the basement, water pipes burst and continued to leak water for the next three years. Everything but the original stone structure of the castle was burned. The cause of the fire this time was supposedly faulty wiring.
[edit] The Ghosts of Beardslee Castle
One of the most characteristic things about Beardslee Castle is its ghost stories. The earliest stories date back to after 'Pop' Christensen died. Kitchen utensils, glassware, etc. were misplaced immediately after they had been set. However, things became much more frightening afterward. Noises were heard throughout the castle without explanation, water turned off and on for no apparent reason. In one of the rooms, a "lady in white" was seen on occasion. The shadow of a man was also seen.
In the 1960s, the Beardslee Family Mausoleum became a popular hangout for teenagers. Strange lights and noises were heard while there. But what was even more despicable was when a few people sneaked into the Beardslee crypt and disturbed the graves. A local was arrested, and Augustus Beardslee's skull was found in his closet. A bizarre photograph was taken at the crypt by a Syracuse policeman. In the picture, there was a strange rainbow on the side of the picture, which shockingly does not follow the regular color pattern of the spectrum. The crime lab was unable to explain the appearance of the colors in the photo.
Ghost stories became increasingly more frightening and intense in the 1980s. Some ghostly activity ceased after the second floor was rebuilt in 1982, but ghostly encounters were still plentiful. One night, employees played with a Ouija board. Without warning, it suddenly spelled out, "Leave." The lights instantly shut off, and one man actually felt physically assaulted by an invisible force. He was knocked hard on the floor. Almost impulsively, everyone left the castle.
In 1983, the owner... along with over 40 reporters from newspapers, magazines, TV, and radio...decided to find out if there was any truth to the ghost stories. Casillo invited Norm Gauthier to investigate. Gauthier was a ghost hunter from the New Hampshire Institute for Paranormal Research. One night, Gauthier arrived with a car load of equipment to test for ghosts. Gauthier lit incense to attract spirits. During the course of the night, Gauthier used tape recorders that ran for ten minute stretches. By the end of the night, the tapes were played back, and faint whispering voices were heard...some almost in a playful nature. Gauthier's decided that Beardslee Manor was haunted by at least two spirits.
In January of 1987, three employees, including Hostess Cherrie Fox, were chased out of the Manor one night. On Haunted History, Fox retold the story. She claimed that they were in the process of closing the restaurant for the night, and they went to the back room to shut off the lights. As they went there, she said, "There's somebody in there." Not wanting to interfere with whatever was there, the three instinctively turned back and returned to the bar. But it was right then that they heard a loud noise. Fox said that no human could imitate the sound. It was the combination of a shriek and a growl. Nevertheless, the noise was extremely frightening, and it chased the three up the stairs and out of the building.
Before the castle reopened in 1994, Randall Brown hired a local reverend to bless the castle to keep the angry spirits at bay. Since the 1994 reopening, ghostly activity was reported to be much more subtle than in prior years.
An interesting photograph was taken by an employee of the castle. It was taken in the bar, and it featured a very pronounced image with something that appeared to be a ghost.
