UPDATE: This event was a tremendous success. Thanks to friends and fans who participated, and especially to those who shared their personal experiences during this ghost hunt!

David Wells (of ‘Most Haunted‘) and psychic medium Gavin Cromwell are coming to New England.

Join Fiona Broome of Hollow Hill, with Ron Kolek and Maureen Wood (of the New England Ghost Project) for a chilling paranormal adventure on Saturday evening, August 9th.

We’ll be investigating the haunted Buttonwoods Museum site in Haverhill, Massachusetts. It has strong spiritual and ghostly history, from Native American lore to early Colonial times, and a chilling connection to the Salem “witch trials.”

[Note: Tickets for the August 7th haunted lighthouse tour sold out almost immediately. I recommend signing up for the August 9th event right away. For tickets: See the New England Ghost Project events page.]

Haverhill, Massachusetts

Haverhill (pronounced “HAY-vuh-rill” or just “HAY-vrill”) has been the site of many significant events, including some gruesome history that is documented at Buttonwoods, the home of the Haverhill Historical Society.

Haverhill, Massachusetts — a lovely town near the New Hampshire border — was known for intense Native American activity, and it was a gathering place for several Penacook Indian tribes.

In 1640, colonists settled in the area and named it Haverhill, after the English town and birthplace of their first minister, John Ward. According to the “Haverhill Deed of Township,” the land was formally purchased in 1642 from the Pentucket Indians. (That deed was signed on Mill Street, just a short walk from Buttonwoods.)

The colonists paid three pounds and ten shillings for the entire town. The only signatures of the Natives were two “bow and arrow marks” on the deed. After that, Haverhill was generally peaceful, but some relations with the Natives were difficult.

One of the most horrific attacks occurred on March 15, 1697, when Indians burned six homes and killed or captured at least 39 people.

Many of the victims were buried in Pentucket Burial Ground on Water Street, almost across the street from Buttonwoods, where we’ll be investigating. (The Pentucket cemetery was established in 1668, and has many old and unmarked graves.)

Hannah Dustin

That was the same attack in which Hannah Dustin (or Duston) was captured, along with her newborn daughter, Martha, and Mary Neff, Hannah’s midwife. For 15 days, they were marched in freezing March weather.

After Hannah’s six-day-old baby was brutally killed by Abenaki Indians, Hannah Dustin and Mary Neff were joined by another captive, 14-year-old Samuel Lennardson. Hannah avenged her daughter’s murder by organizing a revolt one night. With a hatchet, Hannah killed and scalped nine of the 10 or 12 Indians they ambushed. Among Hannah’s Native captors, only one woman and a young man escaped the attack.

Hannah, Mary and Samuel seized a canoe and reached the nearest colonial settlement where they presented the scalps to the British authorities, for a reward of 50 pounds.

Hannah’s story has been the subject of controversy. Some describe her as a hero while others are less flattering. Nevertheless, a Haverhill statue commemorates her history, and — though the story is disputed — she may be buried in an unmarked grave in the Pentucket Burial Ground.

Buttonwoods’ museum is the home of many artifacts from the Dustin-Duston Family Association, and probably retains considerable residual psychic energy.

Hannah’s connection to accused Salem witch Lydia Dustin (or Duston) is not clear. Lydia Dustin died on March 10, 1693 — four years before the Haverhill attack — after being acquitted of witchcraft.

An 80-year-old widow, Lydia Dustin was not allowed to leave the Salem prison because she could not afford the jail fees. The courts had impoverished her. Lydia’s husband, Josiah (1623 - 1671), had been one of the founders — and leading land owners — of Reading, Massachusetts.

A second bloody attack

On August 29th,1708, Haverhill was attacked again. This time, over 100 French and Indians raided the town in a guerrilla-style attack. At least 40 people were killed and others taken captive, and — according to some contemporary descriptions — the town of Haverhill was “destroyed.”

Many victims of that attack are also in unmarked graves “at the south end” of Pentucket Burial Ground.

A spiritual site

Buttonwoods is located on Golden Hill, with beautiful river views.

From the first colonial settlement at Buttonwoods, the site has been recognized as a deeply spiritual site. John Ward, the minister who came to Haverhill in 1641, held church services there. (The 1710 house at Buttonwoods Museum was named for him.)

There are also rumors that, before the colonists’ arrival, the site was considered sacred by the Native Americans.

Today, besides being home to a remarkable museum and historical society, Buttonwoods is known for its ghosts.

Witch trials, Hugh Tallent and the “Buttonwoods” name

Buttonwoods passed from Rev. John Ward to his daughter, Elizabeth, and her husband Major Nathaniel Saltonstall.

Nathaniel Saltonstall (1639 -1707) was a soldier and a 1659 graduate of Harvard University. He’s remembered as one of the judges during the 1692 witch trials in nearby Salem, Massachusetts. Records suggest that Major Saltonstall was “very much dissatisfied with the proceedings.” After the hanging of “witch” Bridget Bishop, Saltonstall resigned in protest, and was replaced by Judge Jonathan Corwin.

Nathaniel Saltonstall was later accused of witchcraft. His grave is also in the Pentucket cemetery.

The Buttonwoods location is named for the sycamore (or “button wood”) trees planted there in the early 1740s. They were planted by Hugh Tallent (born 1719), an Irish immigrant and fiddler who worked for the Saltonstall family.

1815 Duncan House and 1850 Daniel Hunkins Shoe Shop

Two other historical buildings at the Buttonwoods site include the Duncan House, built in 1815 — the year James H. Duncan began his law practice in Haverhill — and the Daniel Hunkins Shoe Shop from 1850.

Bradford College

Haunted Bradford College is also in the city of Haverhill. For more about its ghosts, see our report at Hollow Hill: Bradford College, MA - summary of ghosts.

Summary

Haverhill is clearly a magnet for historically significant events. From its early Native American lore to its violent Colonial history to Bradford College’s Necronomicon connections and modern ghost sightings, Haverhill has an ample foundation for paranormal activity.