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The Ghosts of Emily Shaw’s Inn
Emily Shaw’s Inn, once a popular restaurant, was located just 20 miles from Sleepy Hollow as the raven flies. Generations of Westchester County residents celebrated holidays and special occasions over the more than four decades Emily and her son John operated the venerable Pound Ridge establishment. The original part of the building was built as a residence around 1833, attributed to Alsop Hunt Lockwood. Eventually it served as a boarding house known as Dexter Lodge. By the early 1900s the population of this part of the county dropped precipitously as farming in the area fell into steep decline. By the 1930s the building, like many of its neighbors, was rundown…
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Haunted Taverns of Sleepy Hollow Country
For centuries, taverns have been the beating heart of Hudson Valley life—places where Revolutionary War soldiers planned midnight raids, where railroad workers cashed Friday paychecks, where generations of locals celebrated, commiserated, and occasionally, refused to leave. Even in death. While Sleepy Hollow’s Headless Horseman may be the region’s most famous phantom, preferring his solitary rides along dark country roads, there are at least three establishments where the spirits are considerably more sociable. Pull up a barstool and let us introduce you to the residents who checked in permanently. “The dominant spirit, however, that haunts this enchanted region, and seems to be commander-in-chief of all the powers of the air, is…
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The Florence Inn
From 1819 to 1964 the northwest corner of the intersection of South Broadway (Route 9) and Franklin Street was occupied by a rambling old house that for much of its existence was a popular inn. Known first as the Franklin House and later as the Vincent House, Florence Inn, and Hotel Florence, it served locals and travelers along the Albany Post Road. Notable Guests of the Florence Inn In their History of the Tarrytowns, local historians Jeff Canning and Wally Buxton record a parade of notable visitors to the Florence: President Martin Van Buren often stopped while in transit from his home in upstate Kinderhook, NY to Washington, DC; Woodrow Wilson…
