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The Ghost Ship of the Hudson River

Ghosts of New York Blog 12 The Ghost Ship of the Hudson River © 2018 by Dr. Philip Ernest Schoenberg, Ghost with a Blog #ghost It was noised about New Amsterdam, in the days of Governor Peter Stuyvesant of yore, that a round and bulky ship flying Dutch colors from her lofty quarter was careening…

Ghosts of Grand Central

Ghosts like to haunt in all sorts of places Every city has urban legends, and our city is no different.  Even ghosts like to haunt in warm places such as Grand Central when winter cold strikes.  Urban stories grow over time, whispered in hushed tones in the corridors of power, retold to generations of passengers…

Did Edgar Allan Poe Believe in Ghosts?

Ghosts of New York Blog 9 Did Edgar Allan Poe Believe in Ghosts? © 2017 by Dr. Philip Ernest Schoenberg, Ghost with a Blog #ghost “Did Poe himself believe in ghosts?  I don’t really know, but somehow I doubt it. He never showed any particular interest in spiritualism, which became extremely popularly during his lifetime….

The Ghost of Emma Lazarus

When Emma Lazarus died at the early age of thirty-eight her spirit lingers at the place of her last residence, 14 West 10th Street.  In 2011, one of the patrons on our walking tour a photo of what appeared to be a woman in one of the windows of her former residence.  Why don’t you…

Did Edgar Allan Poe believe in Ghosts?

“Did Poe himself believe in ghosts?  I don’t really know, but somehow I doubt it. He never showed any particular interest in spiritualism, which became extremely popularly during his lifetime. He certainly never wrote about it, though lots of other writers did.” Daniel Cohen, Ghost of Elvis and Other Celebrity Sprits  (New York: Pocket Books),…

The Spectral Scholar’s Seat at the Old New York University

When I attended New York University as a graduate student in history in the early 1970s, I heard a rumor about a ghost, a scholarly ghost no less, at the main library of New York University.  The library stuck as a kind of afterthought in the basement of what is now the main undergraduate building…

Edgar Allan Poe’s Last Home in NYC

Edgar Allan Poe’s last home in New York was at 17 West 10th Street. In May 1848, at the house, Dr. Shew allowed the poet to live in one of his rooms and to court his widowed sister, Mrs. Marie Louise Shew.  She had nursed Poe’s dying wife in the Bronx until she had died…

Fala Still in Search of His Master

Fala was an early Christmas gift to Franklin D. Roosevelt from his favorite cousin, Margaret Suckley, and proved to be the perfect political animal. He shook people’s hands instead of taking a bite out of them and refused to do his business in inappropriate places, unlike so many other dogs that the Roosevelts had. One had…

Don’t be an April Fool: Edgar Allan Poe and Mary Rogers

We can smash one urban legend for April Fool’s Day. Edgar Allan Poe neither knew Mary Rogers nor lived at 195 Broadway. Urban legend claims that he knew Mary Cecelia Rogers because he lived nearby and was a frequent customer. Many accounts claim that Edgar Allan Poe lived at 195 Broadway between Dey and Fulton…

Peter Stuyvesant: You Can’t Keep a Good Ghost Down

Stuyvesant was the last Dutch governor of New Netherlands. Stuyvesant was called “Peg-Leg Peter,” or “Old Silver Nails.” because of the silver studs wrapped around his wood en leg. He had lost the leg fighting against the Spanish for Dutch West India Company in Curacao. He is New York City’s oldest European ghost. St. Mark’s Church…

Ghost Tour of Times Square with Big Apple Comic Con

In conjunction with the Big Apple Comic Con, come join our ghost walk on March 10 for a special tour of Times Square. Ghosts of Times Square   Search for the spirits of famous and not-so-famous stars as we roam around Times Square.  Theatre Ghosts are unique in that they are not scared of the spotlight….

George Washington’s Ghost Saved the Union

During the desperate days of early July 1863 during the Civil War George Washington’s Ghost came to the rescue of the union. The ghost of American president and Founding Father George Washington came to the rescue of a group of Union soldiers waging a battle against 1863 draft rioters during the Civil War on Broadway…