Category Archives: Berlin

Rackliffe House

Berlin, blog posts, ghost story, Worcester County, ,

The Haunted Trifecta

Rackliffe House in Berlin MD
Rackliffe House in Berlin MD

RACKLIFFE HOUSE in Northern Worcester County was built in 1740 by Charles Rackliffe as the main house on a large plantation on Sinepuxent Bay. Author Tom Patton referred to it as the “most haunted house in the country” – and Mr. Patton was a Rackliffe descendant and knew the house well.

Like the Shoreham Hotel in Ocean City, the Rackliffe house has had (according to folklore), a murder, a suicide and an accidental death all take place in the house. It is also built on the site of an Assateague Indian camp where artifacts as old as 10,000 years have been found through excavation.

There is so much commentary on Rackliffe house being haunted that there’s almost no disagreement about the hauntings – even the docents who receive visitors at the now restored house will matter-of-factly say when asked, “Yes, people say it’s haunted.” Continue reading Rackliffe House →

The Spirit of Zippy Lewis Still Seen Combing the Beaches

Berlin, blog posts, ghosts, Ocean City, , ,
Zippy Lewis
Zipporah “Zippy” Lewis by artist, David O. Bunting

The Eternal Beachcomber

This painting of Zipporah – “Zippy” Lewis was painted  by  artist, David O. Bunting and it hangs in the Dunes Manor Hotel in Ocean City. It’s created from his imagination as there were never any pictures of the famous beachcomber. She was born around 1812 in Delaware – probably near Fenwick Island. She married Jonathan Lewis when she was sixteen and they lived in a shack on the beach. Jonathan was a sailor.

In1847 Jonathan and Zippy had five children. Jonathan went out to sea, but never returned. Zippy walked the beach for years looking out for his ship on the horizon … hoping he would find his way home. As a widow left with 5 children, she struggled financially.  Continue reading The Spirit of Zippy Lewis Still Seen Combing the Beaches →

Adkins Hardware Berlin MD

The Haunted Triangle at Adkins Hardware

Berlin, blog posts, ghosts, Worcester County, ,

Adkins Hardware – Home of the Elemental

When I got my first ghost story about Adkins Hardware in Berlin, I headed right to see this place for myself and start collecting facts. I took several photos but was underwhelmed. The empty lot across from the hardware story was allegedly home to an “elemental” or non-human spirit that had presented itself to an informant … and lots of teenagers who wanted to scare themselves.

I was scoping out sites for the Berlin Ghost Walk and I wasn’t sure this vacant lot was going to make the cut. It wasn’t much – not in the daylight anyway.

Continue reading The Haunted Triangle at Adkins Hardware →

The Child Spirit at the Atlantic Hotel

Berlin, blog posts, ghosts, Worcester County, ,
Atlantic Hotel. Nothing like it on the Eastern Shore
Atlantic Hotel in Berlin, Maryland

THE ATLANTIC HOTEL – in Berlin, MD has been anchoring the downtown since it was built in 1895 and it has its share of ghosts. Beautiful as it is with its porch rockers and veranda, there’s more to the Atlantic Hotel than meets the eye, and the most interesting spirit – and there are plenty – is the spirit of a little girl.

The Little Girl Who Haunts the Second Floor

People staying on the second floor as well as staff have reported hearing the laughter of a child and what sounds like a ball bouncing down the hall. No one knows who the child is – or could be. Continue reading The Child Spirit at the Atlantic Hotel →

Windy Brow – Orlando Harrison and Berlin Peaches

Berlin, blog posts, Worcester County, , ,

WINDY BROW – ORLANDO HARRISON ESTATE

Berlin - Windy Brow
Windy Brow, the home of Orlando Harrison, Berlin, MD.

The old home-place of Orlando Harrison, built in 1899 sits near the railroad tracks in Berlin, Maryland.  It’s not haunted, but if ever there was a house that held the spirit and charisma of a family it would be Windy Brow.  It’s a stop on the Berlin Ghost Walk where we stand near the old railroad depot across from the house and tell the story about how a family made Berlin famous.

It’s the story of Orlando Harrison and peaches and rail cars and the people who worked for the Harrison Brothers Nurseries . Hundreds of Worcester County residents and thousands of their descendants have been impacted, and futures shaped by what Orlando Harrison began right from this location. Because it’s so significant to the the character of the Town of Berlin, and because many of the the ghosts that are still hanging around the town engaged with the Harrisons…it’s worth a stop and reflection.

It is also a wonderful “tale of the dead.” Continue reading Windy Brow – Orlando Harrison and Berlin Peaches →

The Odd Fellows (IOOF) – Skeletons in Their Closets

Berlin, blog posts, Easton, Talbot County, Worcester County, , , ,

Easton and Berlin are two of the towns on the Chesapeake Ghost Walks that have lodges built by the Independent Order of the Odd Fellows (IOOF) and both are reportedly haunted.  Maybe “haunted” is the wrong word.  Mystical better describes these buildings.

Berlin Odd Fellow Hall
Berlin Odd Fellows Hall

The Odd Fellows (IOOF) is a fraternal organization that was founded in England in the 1600s.  At that time people in society were class conscious and few helped their neighbors.  When people got sick or their loved ones died, they were left to fend for themselves.  Many didn’t have enough money to bury their own dead.  Continue reading The Odd Fellows (IOOF) – Skeletons in Their Closets →