You can get used to about anything, living at the Jamesport Manor Inn on Long Island. A former dishwasher who was also a tenant before it burned and was restored, proved it one afternoon as he was at his sink, doing his job. A waitress, who was also familiar with the specter of what people presume to be a former Lady of the Manor, was somewhat taken aback to come into the scullery and find her a short distance from the dishwasher, watching intently.
The dishwasher, David Ferreira was used to this, and shrugged it off. The ghost was equally non-plussed by the arrival of the waitress, and continued to watch Ferreira, oblivious to anyone else in the room. After all, there’s nothing unusual about people sharing a house spending a little time together. Even if one isn’t of this world.
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Editor’s Note: I received this article from David Ferreira, who spent a decade living and working at one of Long Island’s most famous haunted houses, and who has an interesting story to tell. Since there appears to be quite a lot of interest in the Jamesport Manor Inn, I thought I’d pass it along.
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I really enjoyed my ten years living at the Jamesport Manor. I would have purchased it, but I did not have the money. I took great care of it as much as possible, putting buckets under the falling water to keep the house from completing rotting or worse. I had to rid the place of vermin with my own money when it was closed. I also mowed the whole lawn with a little push mower. Well here are some of my stories, which I hope you find interesting. They are factual and actually happened, some of stories have witnesses.
One day many moons ago, I had been driving on Manor Lane in Jamesport, looking for a place to eat. I still remember the first time I came in- a middle aged waitress greeted me and I sat down at the bar. I had a few drinks and left for the night when they closed. Being that I did not have anything to do most nights after work, I came in frequently. One day, while eating my dinner, a waitress came over and said the owner wants to speak with me. It was Neil Kopp, who informed me that I could move in the manor if I was willing to work there. I just had to wait a month for Neil to evict the other tenants. I agreed, and began washing dishes as a start. I was told about the ghosts, but really did not see much at first, just the large doors flying open once in a awhile, while I ate at the bar. Sometimes the lights would flicker in the front alcove at night when the customers left. After living there for a month or so, I had noticed that there was a rose sscent on my way upstairs to the apartment, butI really did not pay much attention. I actually grew accustomed to it.
One time during the day I was relaxing in the afternoon in the bar area and a black mist came out of the large air condition duct on the ceiling. It was a strange, large mist or mass, which wrapped around the front stairs and then went up. It was not smoke but a weird mist.
Many other events took place, such as one night I was having a few drinks with a waiter and a waitress. There were no customers. The alcove lights began to do their thing and then the whole house began to flicker. It actually was a bit frightening, and we went in the kitchen. When we got ourselves together, we came back to the barroom area and all of our glasses were smashed on the bar. That night, as I slept there were voices in some other language coming from the yellow room. The yellow room is where they used to store liquor. These voices were not quiet, but very loud. Sounded as if they were arguing.
I used to have a pager. The pager would call me from the number of the Manor when no one was there. I would call back thinking it was the owner. However, either no one was there or a waitress picked up and said no one paged me. It would usually happen when I was at my mother’s house.
During Halloween, Donna who was the owner’s wife at the time, used to hang a frightening costume figure in the front main upstairs window. When I would go upstairs to the apartment. It would turn around and look at me. This happened every time.
In severe weather, the house as large as it was…used to shake. The tenants who lived before told me about this. Kind of a strange shaking as if the place were alive.
When the manor closed for five year, very little activity happened. An occasional child sounding as if playing. Sometimes I would wake up with bug bites on my legs when I did not see any bugs. I usually spent the time in the manor by myself studying for my BA in Art Education. I also painted almost every angle and season of the Manor. The manor when it was closed was a great place to use as an art studio. I still own some, but sold most of them to the Kar’s. When they purchased, I left, leaving the furniture and some of my belongings in the apartment. I was going to ask for them later when I had the opportunity. The Kar’s had some people living upstairs in the apartment.
The most frightening is experiences are what I would call, the follower ghost. I am not sure if it is the women or who or what it is. Anyway, this entity calls my name early in the morning 2-3 per year. It can be a female voice, male or even a voice from someone that I know. It always calls from downstairs when I am lying in bed. The voice will call my name until I wake up from sleep, then it stops. This entity came after I lived at the manor. I actually forgot about these occurrences while I was in the military. While living with my first wife in Portsmouth VA.I was living in a in a townhouse and my name was called. While this happened. I thought to myself. How can this be? I am living in another place and not even in the bed alone. A few years later, I moved to northern VA, where it happened a few times, though I never told my new wife, who happens to be Peruvian. She had a dream that this old woman was downstairs and could not come upstairs. She was mad and tried to touch the baby who was in her stomach but could not. I told my wife after this, and she understood. However, I am very protective of my baby. Now that the baby is born, I haven’t heard that voice. Nor would I dare answer it if I did. My mother says to answer it, but no way. I don’t know what it is,
When I heard of the lady who came to the manor to bring back the ghost, I was not too thrilled. Better to just leave and let alone. That’s fine if they just stay there. However, I do not want them to get curious and see how I am doing.
It was sad when I did see the ruins of where I used to live. I was told about it burning to ground from my older brother. He is a member of the fire department and was there when it crumbled. I was living in Winchester, VA and was about to go into the US Naval boot camp I visited the new manor when I had some leave time. I did not feel anything there. That’s not to say nothing was there or on the grounds.
Submitted by David Ferreira
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I visited The Jamesport Manor a few times and on one occasion, experienced some highly unusual things. If you still want to hear about it, I will send you the complete account.