HGB Ep. 645 - Haunted Kingston

This Month in History - Carranza Monument (Suggested by: Dennis Gibbons)

In the month of July, on the 13th, in 1928, Captain Emilio Carranza Rodriguez crashed his plane in the remote New Jersey Pine Barrens in Tabernacle Township. The captain was returning home to Mexico City after a historic goodwill flight to New York. Often celebrated as the "Charles Lindbergh of Mexico", the captain flew to New York as an international gesture of peace and cooperation. The flight was in direct response to American aviator Charles Lindbergh's celebrated 1927 flight from New York to Mexico City in 1927. Carranza had successfully landed his monoplane at Roosevelt Field on Long Island. He was greeted with much celebration and received the key to the city from New York Mayor Jimmy Walker (Dy-no-mite). On Carranza's return flight home he encountered a severe thunderstorm shortly after taking off. There is historical lore that states that Carranza departed New York at 7pm at night, guided only by a handheld flashlight. The reality is that his aircraft, the Mexico-Excelsior, was equipped with standard flight and navigational lights. However, when his body was recovered the next day, Carranza was found with a hand held flashlight jammed through the palm of his hand as a result of the crash impact. Today, a monument site dedicated to Captain Emilio Carranza Rodríguez is located in Wharton State Forest. It is a 12 foot, Aztec inspired stone monument that was erected in 1931 using pennies donated by Mexican schoolchildren. There is an annual memorial service held every July which draws a crowd of approximately 100-150 attendees.

Haunted Kingston 

It's not surprising that Kingston is considered one of Canada's more haunted cities because it is known as the "Limestone City." Limestone has a way of absorbing energy, good and bad. What started as a French trading post has grown into one of the largest cities in Ontario. There are many haunted locations here from asylums for the criminally insane to jails to cemeteries. Join us for the history and hauntings of Kingston, Ontario, Canada. 

First Nations settlements were here starting back in 500 BC and carrying forward until 1673 when Fort Cataraqui (cat-a-ROCK-way) was founded as a French trading post near the mouth of the river from which it takes its name. The fort was later renamed Fort Frontenac for the Governor of New France, Louis de Buade (byoo ad) de Frontenac (Fron tuh nack). It was demolished in 1689 and rebuilt in 1695. The fort was destroyed again by the British who reconstructed it in 1783. The Crawford Purchase in 1783 would begin the effort to lay out a settlement for British colonists fleeing the newly free America. The name Kingston came from an initial name of "the King's Town." Kingston would incorporate as a town in 1838 and two years later a great fire ripped through the downtown destroying most of the buildings. They rebuilt with limestone, thus the nickname. From 1841 to 1844, Kingston was the capital of the united Canadas. Electricity arrived in 1888. The city has flourished through the years establishing Queen's University, opening the International Hockey Hall of Fame and building beautiful cathedrals. Several locations here are rumored to be haunted.

Rockwood Asylum 

The asylum was established in 1859 and was one of the first criminal asylums in Upper Canada. Like everywhere, Ontario was trying to decide what to do with the mentally ill in the 1800s. Many were incarcerated and it was believed they would be better served in an asylum. There would be a chance of recovery. Rockwood Asylum for the Criminally Insane was meant to be hopeful. 

A man named John Cartwright sold his 40-acre property to the Province of Canada and this was where the asylum was built as designed by architect William Coverdale. The most progressive hospital design at the time, the Kirkbride Plan, was chosen and inmates from Kingston Penitentiary were brought over to build it. Construction was completed in 1870. The finished building was four-stories and imposing, so that nearby residents felt safe. It faced Lake Ontario to give patients a calm view. Rooms were individual and measured 10 ft. by 10 ft. and had a bed and a wardrobe. There was a male wing and female wing and the dining room and chapel were in the center of the building. The criminally insane from the nearby Kingston Penitentiary were brought over and mentally ill civilians were also welcomed in. The first group of patients numbered 20. Things didn't start great here. Staff were untrained and regularly used physical restraints on patients who had to eat with their hands because they weren't allowed to have utensils. They had to sleep on straw beds. The place was pretty filthy after awhile as well. Many of these issues had to do with the fact that a con man was brought in as the first superintendent, John Palmer Litchfield. He liked to practice bloodletting to "cure" patients. Not only was this an outdated and bad practice, but Litchfield had lied about his medical credentials. Litchfield regularly welcomed lobotomies too. But he was considered a compassionate man who said that “criminal lunatics were no more dangerous than regular lunatics” and should be treated as such. The community, apparently, loved him because he had great charisma. He was replaced in 1878 by Dr. Wiliam Metcalf who implemented more humane practices. Metcalf abolished restraints and promoted physical activity and the patients were encouraged to put on plays. He died in 1885 after a paranoid schizophrenic patient named Patrick Maloney stabbed in the stomach with a dinner knife from the kitchen. His successor, Dr. C.K Clarke, continued the same humane treatment. 

The building and treatment changed over the years but remained a psychiatric facility until it closed in 2000. The building is vacant to this day and no one is allowed to tour it due to fears of asbestos and deterioration.
    
The stories told about the facility and its hauntings include the Suicide Stairs. Ghost lore claims that several patients threw themselves down these stairs and that there are now black crosses on the windows where each of these patients died. Etched into the glass of the window at the top of these stairs is the word "Help." A water fountain on the property is nicknamed the "Bloody Fountain" because a young child drowned in it and legend claims that blood still mysteriously seeps into the stone. Shadowy figures have been captured in photos and seen in the upper windows of the empty facility. Full bodied apparitions have been seen looking out of the windows of the vacant building as well. 

Skeleton Park

It's only fitting that a cemetery would get the nickname "Skeleton Park." This is located in Kingston's inner harbor neighborhood. Officially, this cemetery is McBurney Park and was officially the Upper Burial Ground from the early 1800s to the 1850s and was used for mass burials during epidemics. There are as many as 10,000 bodies buried here due to typhus and cholera outbreaks. 

There were a few headstones at one time, but in the 1890s, the cemetery fell into disrepair and the city leveled the headstones and created a park, without moving any bodies. Uh oh! Some graves were kinda shallow and when a heavy rain would come along, well, you get Skeleton Park. And then you get ghosts. Because some of the Irish Immigrants weren't given their proper Catholic burial and so they are at unrest. Foggy nights usually stir up the most claims of seeing mysterious figures walking through the park that disappear, so that the witness knows they aren't just seeing other humans in the park. Sometimes these figures appear out of thin air. The park was featured on Creepy Canada.

Rochleau (ROHSH low) Court

Rochleau Court is a public alley that is accessed from King Street to the south, and Brock Street from the west. Tourists refer to this as a hidden gem because the courtyards of several historic buildings connect here and bars and restaurants line it. The alley is a hidden gem for us because it is said to be the most haunted alleyway in Kingston. 

The reason for the haunting? Murder, of course. The story is that a pregnant woman named Theresa Ignace Beam was murdered in this alley in 1868 by her lover, or nephew depending on who is telling the story, John Napier. Legend claims she was buried here somewhere and people claim her ghost walks the alley and occasionally she asks for help locating her bones. A photography business off the alley decided to use a Ouija board to communicate with Theresa. They seemed to connect with her and she told them she hadn’t had a proper Christian burial and that’s why she was still here. She indicated her bones were near the photography studio. They didn't do anything with the info and moved out, but the next tenant dug up the basement to see if they could get to the bottom of the story. They found nothing. Renovations being done years later revealed a sealed doorway, but the other business connected to this has no desire to tear up flooring. So we'll never know if Theresa's bones are actually here.

Frontenac (Fron tuh nack) County Court House

The courthouse was built in 1858 and designed by architect Edward Horsey in the Neoclassical style. Scobell and Tossell were the builders. The distinctive dome tower was added after a fire in 1874. There were several court rooms on the main floor and one on the second. A library and judge's and jury room were on the second floor too. 

There was a jail yard behind the courthouse and a jail next to it. So executions in Kingston were pretty infamous. People would come from all over, even from cities like New York City, to witness the final end to a convicted person. The gallows were in the jail yard. The city took in a lot of revenue as spectators would arrive a day before hangings and swell the hotels. Businesses near the gallows would construct makeshift towers that people could watch the executions from. The jail was demolished and the jail yard became a parking lot. There may be bodies under that parking lot. On the nights with a full moon, the spirit of a man is seen leaning against the courthouse and he apparently has a noose around his neck. He vanishes when approached. Disembodied whispers are heard as well.

Prince George Hotel

The hotel was preceded by a house that was built from 1817 to 1820 by Lawrence Herchmer. He died in 1820 and his wife inherited the property. When she passed in 1840, the couple's son Charles inherited and he leased it to his son-in-law John Macpherson. That would be the end of the house being lived in as a residence. Merchant William Henry Alexander leased the house in 1846 and he converted it into a commercial property that had shops, a warehouse and there were two saloons on the ground floor. The building was partially damaged in a fire in 1848 and while Alexander repaired it, he decided to build another building next to it that was designed by William Coverdale. In 1892, a full width verandah and balcony were built along both buildings to unify them and a Second Empire style mansard roof made of copper was added with a small tower in the middle of the roof at the front, giving the building a Victorian look. In 1918, the unified buildings became the Prince George Hotel. The hotel eventually shut down in 2004 and is today apartments with the Haunted Walks Kingston office on the ground floor. The pubs are still on the ground floor too.

Legend claims that a Lily Herchmer had lived here and that she was in love with a sailor and her parents didn't approve. She would light a candle in the window to signal to him that it was okay to visit and one night she fell asleep and the candle started a fire that killed her. Another version claims she watched her sailor's ship sink from a window and she died of a broken heart. There is no evidence a Lily ever lived here, but staff of the hotel claimed there was a ghost named Lily haunting the place. Passersby sometimes see an orange glow in a window at night as if there is a candle or lantern there. This is supposedly Room 304. 

Brenda Ganske, Field Researcher for Ontario Ghosts and Hauntings Society wrote in 2004, "After dinner during Christmas break, I went with a group of friends for a drink in the Tir na n'Og (tear nah noge) pub located in the historic Prince George Hotel (200 Ontario St) in Kingston. After being there for a few minutes, I excused myself from our table to take a look around. Within the Prince George Hotel first floor, there are three distinct pub/lounges: the Tir na n'Og (tear nah noge) (authentic Irish Pub), The Speckled Hen (English Pub), and Monte's (an upscale Martini Lounge). After viewing the beautiful antique/vintage decorative items, I started speaking to one of the staff members who then introduced me to a long time staff member of the Tir na n'Og (tear nah noge). This delightful lady had many stories to tell about the Prince George, and all of the "entities" within. She told me of the ghost of Lily who haunts not only the third floor, but the entire building. But the biggest entities that affect the Tir na n'Og are apparently two men who are malevolent. Quite a few of the staff has had experiences with the two men spirits... but they seem to favor the door staff. According to the staff that I spoke to, these individuals have experienced the feeling of being watched, and hearing something growling at them. The most interesting story that I was told that night had to do with recent events in the hotel. For about a week before New Years Eve of 2003, candles in the Prince George Hotel started lighting themselves according to staff. The staff members talked to each other about it, saying that Lily must be trying to tell them something. On New Years Eve at 12:04 AM, the Prince George started to burn. The fire started on the third floor, and is still under investigation (therefore the staff can not comment on the cause or where specifically it started). Luckily, there were no serious injuries. The hotel is now closed until approximately April, 2004 for repairs. Was Lily trying to warn the staff, and save her long time home? We will never know for sure... but maybe in 100 years from now - we may get a hint. According to Tir na n'Og (tear nah noge) staff, the hotel has been almost destroyed by fire every 100 years (this fire that almost destroyed the hotel was 40 years early). The future staff of the Prince George will have to keep their eyes and ears open for clues from Lily to prevent future disaster."  

Other activity in the hotel had been lights and radio turning on and off by themselves and doors would slam shut on their own. In Tir na n'Og (tear nah noge) staff and patrons watched furniture move on its own and some were touched by something they couldn't see. Silverware and glasses would fall on the floor on their own as well. A ghost child has been seen playing with toys. 

Fort Henry (Sarah Norton had suggested when we did it in 2017)

Fort Henry was built along a vital trading route near the mouth of the St. Lawrence River and the fort protected communication between Kingston and the eastern settlements of the area. French explorer Jacques Cartier had explored the Gulf of St. Lawrence on three separate voyages in the 1530s and 1540s. He gave the country of Canada her name. It was the Huron Iroquois name for "settlement." 

Cartier blazed a path for colonization by France and began some limited fur trading with the First Nations that lived along the St. Lawrence River. He was not as successful with trading because he focused on furs used as trimming and adornment, rather than the coveted beaver pelt. He was ultimately seeking the northeast route to Asia. He never found the route. He returned to France after the third voyage and lived out his life as a navigational expert, never exploring again. The War of 1812 broke out between Britain and America and Canada became a central battleground. With the importance of the St. Lawrence River, it was decided that forts needed to be built along the route for protection. Point Henry was one of these points. The Fort was constructed high atop Point Henry overlooking Lake Ontario. A dry moat leads down to the waters edge on both sections of the fort, making it impossible for the fort to be completely surrounded. The fort itself is surrounded by a dry moat as well. Discipline was paramount at the fort and punishment harsh. After the war, the Rideau Canal was built. That construction took place from 1826 to 1832 and it became even more important for the area to be protected because three important waterways intersected here: the Rideau Canal, the St. Lawrence River, and Lake Ontario. Fort Henry needed improvements, so it was reconstructed between 1832 and 1837.

The reconstruction was supposed to be more extensive, but the canal went over budget. Only the Fort and four Martello towers, spaced along the Kingston waterfront, were completed. This made Fort Henry the largest fortification west of Quebec city. The Fort cost 70,000 British pounds sterling to construct, which is the equivalent to approximately $35,000,000 in modern Canadian currency. 

Some soldiers were allowed to bring their families with them. There was a schoolroom for the children. Bugles, drums and bagpipes helped to communicate battle instructions and the Royal Welch Fusilires were stationed at the Fort in the 1840s. Today, the mascot of the Fort if a goat named David and he represents the Fusilires. This group was one of the oldest infantry regiments of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. *Fun Fact: At the surrender of Yorktown, the Royal Welch Fusiliers was the only British regiment not to surrender its colours after the British loss at Yorktown. They smuggled their flag out tied around an ensign's waist.* By 1870, the British no longer had use for the fort and they abandoned it, so Canadian troops moved in and stationed themselves there until 1891. Neither the original fort or this second one ever came under military attack. There was not much use for the fort after that time and it fell into disrepair until 1936. Ronald L. Way started an effort at that time to turn the fort into a living history museum and in 1936 restoration of the fort was begun as a "make work project" during the Great Depression. It opened on August 1, 1938 and cost over $1,000,000. Prime Minister Mackenzie King officially opened it and it was dedicated to all the British soldiers who had served within its walls. During World War II, it was closed to the public and used as a prisoner of war camp. It was known as Camp 31. It was re-opened to the public in 1948. It has been named as a National Historic Site and today, the former military quarters have been transformed into a restaurant and bar. The Fort is like a little village with displays and there is even a working bakery. They host tours, conduct demonstrations of firing cannons and troop movements and the top of the Fort offers great views of Kingston.

It becomes Fort Fright for the Halloween Season. The Haunted Walk of Kingston offers a ghost tour of Fort Henry, so this location has some spirits wandering around.

One of the ghosts is believed to belong to John "Gunner" Smith. He was a rifleman whose weapon malfunctioned and exploded in his face. This sent him flying backwards off the top of the fort down into the dry moat below where he screamed in agonizing until he died. Many people have reported seeing an injured man lying in the ditch while others have reported hearing the sounds of people scurrying in the area. His wails have been heard as well. Nils Von Schultz was a Finnish born nationalist that became involved in the Upper Canada Rebellion in the early 1800s. He was captured, tried for insurrection and hanged in 1838. There are claims that he haunts the Commanders Room #3. He likes to move objects around the room. And then there is the man in the blue uniform who wanders around several areas of the Fort.

Rob Brown wrote on TripAdvisor: "This place is phenomenal. Its so cool. Kids love it. Heck the Ghost hunters loved it. But they don't know a story I know. According to one of the night guards, all the canteens came off the shelf in one of the rooms and on to the table one night. Come to see the fort and you will know the room. The night guard was sincere. Why do I believe her? Well, a door closed behind me on its own. Go and visit if you are brave enough."

Rusty wrote of an experience he had, "In 2010 I took my family, which consisted of my wife, our 1-year old daughter and myself, on a trip to see Old Fort Henry in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. This fort is known for ghost experiences. I have had many "ghostly experiences" in my life so maybe I'm more sensitive to things than others but that's another story. While taking a group tour we came to a hallway leading to the fort's "Officer's quarters". My daughter started acting up in what could be best described as a refusal to enter the hallway (she was in a stroller at the time). My wife and her stayed back while I went with the group. After seeing the living quarters of the officers (which is secured with a glass front so no one can enter) the group moved onto the kitchen area. A few minutes later I decided to leave the group to go check on the wife and daughter. After checking to make sure things were okay with the family, I followed the hallway back past the Commanding Officer's quarters to catch back up with the group. As I passed this room I glanced back in for an extra look. Standing in front of the writing desk located in the room was a rather tall British-uniformed officer who turned and looked at me and then just faded away! Needless to say, it did not take me long to catch up with the group. At the end of the tour I asked the guide about ghost sightings in the fort and he did mention that there have been reports of an officer's ghost, along with several others, being sighted, sometimes in the hallway through which we walked."

The Tett Center

The Tett Centre had been a brewery built by Thomas Dalton in 1819. He sold it to Thomas Molson in 1831 who sild it in 1844 to James Morton who opened it as "Mr. Morton's Mammoth Brewery." The term "mammoth" was used because it was one of the biggest breweries in the city. Eventually, the brewery shut down and the military acquired the building in 1919 and they used it as a military hospital. The military would own the building until 1977 and they sold it to the city of Kingston at that time. The city opened it as a historic heritage site in 2015 called the Tett Center for Creativity & Learning. This is a community run arts hub. There are eight artist studios and a variety of spaces available for rent. The Juniper Cafe is on the ground floor and has a waterfront patio. This is the only restaurant waterfront view of Lake Ontario anywhere in Kingston. 

A watchman named Cornelius Driscoll was murdered on the property in 1867. This was an apparent robbery that went wrong. His murderer, Ethan Allen, was captured, convicted and hanged at the Frontenac County Gaol. Driscoll continues to do his duty in the afterlife. He is blamed for the locks rattling on doors. A tour guide claims to have felt a presence that made her uncomfortable in the primary power room.

Murney Tower

The Murney Tower was part of a four-tower system when it was built in 1846 on Kingston's shoreline. The other towers were Shoal Tower, Fort Frederick and Cathcart Tower. These were meant to protect the harbor and were named for the family that had owned the land, the Murneys. Although the stone over the entrance reads "MURNAY." The story here is that it was originally named for Sir George Murray, a British military man, but somebody re-etched the R into an N for some reason. The British built many forts around this area as they worried about America trying to take more land with the Oregon Territory. The spot was pretty strategic since Kingston sat on the junction of the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario. The Murney Tower had 15 foot thick limestone walls, so it could deflect cannon balls. A dry ditch circles the base and little mini bunkers jut out with rifle slits. A 32-pounder Bloomfield cannon capable of a full 360-degree swivel sat on a gun platform. The tower never saw any combat. It served more as a military barracks for long-service men and their families. There were usually six families here that lived like a commune. The military abandoned the tower in 1885 and it fell into disrepair. When the roof blew off a killed a young boy playing nearby, Kingston decided that they needed to do something with the tower. It was restored and opened as a museum in 1925 and continues to run as that today, making this museum over 100 years old. The original cannon is still here!

The main haunting here that has been experienced by several groups is a white mist that is seen by the naked eye. No one has ever been able to record it on video. Many EVPs have been captured here and ghostly soldiers are seen. The Canadian Haunting and Paranormal Society (CHAPS) investigated in 2015 and they told the Kingston Whig Standard that they "heard feet shuffling in the basement, then [lead investigator David] Gibb said a team member felt a hand touch his arm when no one was there. Gibb's electromagnetic field detector was also active flashing from green, for all clear, to red, indicating there could be a presence nearby." The Haunted Walks hosts investigations here if you want to check it out.. 

Kingston Penitentiary

This location is our inspiration for this episode. We were watching Harlan Coben's series "I Will Find You" on Netflix and one of the filming locations was a prison. We had to know more, so we looked it up and found out that it was Kingston Penitentiary and then we inquired as to whether it was haunted. And, of course, it is because what jail isn't haunted? This jail had been one of Canada's most notorious maximum-security prisons when it was open.

Construction on the jail started in 1833 and it officially opened in 1835 with six inmates. The cells were very small measuring 2.5 feet wide by 8 feet deep and the ceiling was at 6 feet. Inmates were employed as shoemakers, ropemakers, blacksmiths, tailors, carpenters, and stonecutters. Female prisoners did needlework and they would be at the prison for its first 99 years. Children as young as 8 were also here in the early years. Towers, stock walls and the north gate house were added in 1845 and a dome was built to connect four cellblocks in 1861. Riots broke out in 1932, 1954 and 1971. The 1932 riot lasted for 4 days as prisoners protested the conditions they lived under. This lead to prison reform because it was such a shocking event. The 1971 riot was lead by the prison barber and lasted four days as well with two prisoners being killed and the prison heavily damaged. Apparently, the two convicts killed were a bit of prison justice as one was a child killer and the other was a pedophile. Eventually, the jail became known as a place where bad guards were sent. The Penitentiary was officially closed in 2013. Through the years, there were 26 escape attempts with several inmates managing to get away. We did a Phantasmal Crime on the Black Donnellys and the patriarch, James Donnelly, was sent here to be hanged, but his wife managed to get his sentenced reduced to 7 years that he served at the Kingston Pen. Another infamous prisoner was Wayne Boden who was a Canadian serial killer nicknamed the Canadian Vampire Rapist. He died in the prison in 2006. The prison has become a museum and obviously, a filming location. Tours are offered daily. There are several spirits here. There is a little female ghost that wears a red dress. People believe she was the daughter of a former guard captain. An inmate who died at the jail in 1897 promised to get revenge on the guards before he died. His name was George Hewell and visitors and staff claim to see his full-bodied apparition. The last member of the staff to die at the prison was William Wentworth. He is seen most often still making his rounds on the third floor of the Regional Treatment Centre. Spirits show up in the Solitary Confinement Units, the Chapel and all along E Block.

Kingston has a little bit of everything, particularly when it comes to spooky activity. prison, hidden burial grounds, forts and so much more. Sounds like a great city to hang out in! Are these locations in Kingston haunted? That is for you to decide!