Halloween is nearly here, the time for all things haunted and ghostly! We’re delighted to welcome NYC’s resident ghost guru, Gordon Linzner, who shared a round-up of haunted pubs perfect for kicking back with a pumpkin ale this month (or anytime!), in the company of past New York souls. Goosebumps, anyone?
Ear Inn 326 Spring Street
Built as a private home in 1817, became a saloon in 1890. Haunted in particular by Mickey, a sailor who was killed by a car just outside the bar. He likes to pinch the bottoms of female patrons and staff, drain cell phone batteries, and sometimes play with fire.
Landmark Tavern 626 11th Avenue
Opened in 1868, it is haunted by several ghosts, most notably a Confederate veteran who was stabbed in a fight and crawled upstairs to die in a bathtub. The tub remains in the upstairs bathroom. An Irish immigrant girl who died of cholera wanders the third floor. This was a favorite location of the actor George Raft, who some patrons have also claimed to see.
The White Horse 567 Hudson Street
A favorite tavern of the poet Dylan Thomas, who allegedly drank himself to death there in 1952. Morning staff will often find his favorite table tilted at an angle, the way he liked when he was writing, despite having been neatly straightened the night before.
Waverly Inn 16 Bank Street
Several ghosts call this home, but one in particular seems to favor the former smoking room here, occasionally rearranging furniture and lighting the fireplace. In 1997 a fire damaged every room in the restaurant – except the smoking room!
One If By Land Two if by Sea 17 Barrow Street
Aaron Burr and his daughter Theodosia are among the spirits haunting this restaurant, on the site of a carriage house that once belonged to Burr, often spotted on the second floor. Since Theodosia’s earrings were taken by a pirate just before she walked the plank, her spirit seems to have an affinity for such jewelry, often tugging on female patrons’ ears.
KGB Bar 85 East 4th Street
Once home to a speakeasy run by Lucky Luciano, whose spirit has been seen on the lower floor. A headless ghost is thought to be that of a rapist who was decapitated by his victim in the 1920’s, and the mirror on the 2nd floor, near the bar’s entrance, has sometimes reflected a demonic face with red glowing eyes.
Lovecraft Bar 50 Avenue B
The murals were painstaking painted over months in the first half of 2014 by Benjamin Enzfelder who, working one night into the early morning hours, started a conversation with one of the owners, he presumed, who’d dropped by – only to find no one there when he turned around. After a couple more of these visits he decided to no longer do his art when there was no one else in the building.
Library Bar 425 Lafayette Street
Originally this building housed the Astor Library, and head librarian Joseph Green Cogswell encountered the spirit of businessman Austin Sands three nights, finally discouraging the tight-fisted Sands by insisting the ghost pay him overtime.
MacDougal Ale House 120 MacDougal Street
Strange noises and cold spots reported by the staff when they’re closing up.
Ghost Bar 132A Eldridge Street
Got its name from accounts of a ghostly appareitiion seen in front of the building when it was first built.
Photo Credit: ScrapbookofTruth.net.
Jessica Tiare Bowen lives in the juicy Big Apple with her adorable pink-nosed chihuahua, Gillman. He’s the inspiration for her first published children’s book, “Park Avenue Pound Puppy.” The book is the combined result of her two greatest passions: pooches and penning stories.
Her passions include art, urban hikes through Manhattan, drinking coffee with 3 creams and 6 sugars, making extremely detailed itineraries and traveling to far away places, singing along to Broadway shows, Netflix movie nights, discovering incredible treasures at Goodwill and thrift stores, and listening to stories from little people under 7 and big people over 70.
She started her career as New York City Teaching Fellow, teaching elementary school and theater arts at a special education school in the South Bronx for 6 years. She is now a Special Education School Improvement Specialist working in public schools throughout New York City. She is the Editor-In-Chief of the online New York City travel magazine, Used York City. The magazine focuses on finding the best of New York…as used by New Yorkers. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and an ASPCA Ambassador.
