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The Haunted Remnants of the Harry Flavel House in Astoria, OR

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Featured Haunted Places Horror Mystery and Lore

About the House

The Harry Flavel House in Astoria, Oregon
Photography by Steve Morgan

Also built by the Flavel family, the Harry Flavel House, even though it was first considered the Captain George Flavel House, is called such because of the history that followed after Harry Sherman Flavel. This house was originally owned by Captain George Conrad Flavel, then inherited by the captain’s son Harry M. Flavel where he lived with his wife Florence, and his two children Harry Sherman and Mary Louise. The status of the Flavel family, as well as respected members of the community, ended when Harry Sherman earned his Hatchet Harry nickname.

The Timeline of the Flavels, Their Houses & Fate

1893

Captain Flavel lived in the house for seven years with his wife Mary Christina Boelling and their two adult daughters, Nelli and Katie. Their son, George Conrad Flavel never resided within the George Conrad Flavel House, as he was already married and living in a house of his own. During his seventh year in the residence of the Flavel House, Captain Flavel passed away, leaving the to the family.

1901

Captain George Conrad Flavel’s son, George Conrad Flavel would build his house—the house that is now often referred to as the Harry Flavel House. George Conrad Flavel Junior had worked as a bar pilot for his father, becoming a Captain as well.

1923

Harry Melville and his first wife had three children, the middle of which—Patricia Jean Flavel—would donate the Captain George Conrad Flavel House to the Clatsop County Historical later in 1951. The two had their own home, but after Harry Melville’s father George Junior had passed away, he inherited the house. He ended up moving back into the home to stay with his mother.

1925

Harry Melville and his second wife Florence Sherman would have their first child Mary Louise.

1927

Harry Melville and Florence had their second child, Harry Sherman Flavel.

1944

Harry Melville’s mother lived in the house until she passed away.

1947

When Harry Sherman was twenty-two years old, the Flavels’ neighbor Fred Fulton heard screams of help emanating from the Flavel House—he feared that something was wrong and he burst into the home and rushed upstairs, where he found Harry’s mother, Florence screaming to be let out of the room she had been locked in. Harry Sherman proceeded to attack his neighbor with a hatchet, hitting the banister and cutting his neighbor’s arm. It was at this point that Harry earned the nickname “Hatchet Harry.”

Harry was subsequently charged with assault with a deadly weapon, but his mother Florence insisted she had been in no danger when the trial rolled around. Both Harry’s mother and sister Mary testified that their neighbor, Fred Fulton, had been drunk and broke into their home. They claimed that Harry had acted in self-defense because he had been frightened of the neighbor. The charges against Harry were eventually dropped.

1983

Thirty-six years after the incident that dubbed Harry Sherman, Hatchet Harry, he and his sister Mary Louise were still living at home with their mother Florence. Neither Harry nor Mary had gotten married and thus had no children to speak of.

Between the hatchet incident and 1983, Harry had a history of taking in stray dogs, so there were always a lot of dogs on the property—he was once accused of stealing a dog from his neighbors because Harry believed they weren’t walking it enough, but his neighbors were too scared of him to go to the Flavel house and take their dog back.

Harry was walking two dogs when a car belonging to a twenty-two-year-old Alec Josephson sped past him—Harry retaliated to the speeding by hitting the car with the dog’s chain as it went by. Driven to anger, Josephson chased Harry down an alley on foot where Harry stabbed him. Harry was charged with assault once again and was nearly sentenced to twenty years in jail, but was given probation instead.

1990

After he exhausted all of his appeals and lost, his sister Mary Louis and their mother Florence packed up and abandoned the house. Neighbors claim that the Flavel’s came back to the house several times over the years, but always called them first to be sure there weren’t any police around.

In October, Harry Sherman, Mary Louise, and their mother Florence were found in Pennsylvania where Harry was arrested for stealing hotel towels—he would have been extradited, but he and the family fled from law enforcement again.

1991

The Flavel family turned up once again in Massachusetts where Harry was arrested by the FBI and was taken back to Clatsop County where he was jailed until the hearing could take place. He ended up spending a year in jail before he was finally released and disappeared back to Massachusetts. Shortly after he was released from Clatsop County Jail, his mother Florence passed away and both of her children refused to claim her body from the morgue.

2010

Harry Sherman Flavel died at eight-two years of age on May 31 and while his sister Mary still owned the house, it remained empty—in October a black mourning bunting mysteriously appeared draped from the balcony. “Hatchet” Harry Sherman’s body remained in the morgue for nine months because Mary Louise refused to pay for a burial.

2011

The city of Astoria finally initiated proceedings to create a derelict building ordinance, in order to deal with the eye-sores of the Flavel properties. This ordinance allowed the city to impose a fine for each day that properties were in violation. After being unable to reach Mary Louise, the last remaining owner, the city began the process to have the properties forfeited, so that they would be able to take control of the properties.

2015

Eventually, a deal was made after the fines went unpaid, which allowed Mary Louise to sell the properties herself.

2017

The last of the Flavel’s dilapidated properties were finally sold, which left the family without any stake in Astoria.

Ghosts of the Harry Flavel House

The current owner, Newenhof dismisses the idea that the house is haunted, but the age of the interior and all of its facilities definitely gives the house a feeling of being stuck in the past. Aside from the vibe, there have been reports of it being haunted, but no real detailed reports of first-hand experiences.

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The Haunting of Captain George Conrad Flavel House in Astoria, OR

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Featured Haunted Places Horror Mystery and Lore

About the House

The Flavel House
Photography by Matt Howry

The Flavel House in Astoria, while now a museum, was once a mansion that is haunted by the spirits of those poor souls of the family who once inhabited its walls. The phantom remnants of the Flavel family have made themselves known by speaking amongst themselves—which has been reported as disembodied voices—as well as practicing music in the empty rooms. A woman’s ghost has been sighted in the hallway, and Captain Flavel himself has been seen in his old bedroom before promptly vanishing.

The Interior

A Queen Anne style, two and a half story, 11,600 square-foot behemoth, the Flavel House sits on the corner of a fairly large plot of land—there is traditional woodwork around the interior windows, doors, windows, and staircase, all of which are Eastlake-influenced in design. The doors and window trim were made of Douglas Fir and were crafted by a master carpenter to look like mahogany and burl rosewood. There are six unique fireplace mantels within the house and they feature different imported tiles from around the world, an elaborate hand-carved mantel and a patterned firebox designed to burn coal. The first floor features fourteen-foot high ceilings, where the second floor’s ceilings sit at twelve feet high and are both embellished with crown molding and plaster medallions. The house was also fitted with indoor plumbing—incredibly state-of-the-art at the time—as well as gas-fueled lighting.

The first floor is dedicated to the public rooms, such as the grand entrance hall, formal parlor, music room—where the Flavel daughters held their music recitals—the library, dining room, and conservatory. The more private rooms on the first floor included the butler’s pantry, kitchen, and mudroom which were reserved for the housekeeping staff. The second floor was where the main bathroom, five bedrooms, and a small storage room or sewing room were. The attic floor is large and unfinished and houses the two plain wood bedrooms that were used by the Flavel’s domestic help. The four-story tower was made for the Captain to have a 360-degree view of Astoria and the Columbia River as a way for him to keep an eye on the local ship traffic coming through. There was also a dirt-floor basement that housed the large wood-burning furnace that kept the house warm.

The Carriage House was home to the family’s caretaker, and was also originally made to hold the family kept their carriage, sleigh, and small buggies—where it had three temporary holding stalls for their horses, a tack room, and an upstairs hayloft. In time it was transitioned to hold the more modern vehicles, such as the Flavel’s Studebaker sedan, and the family’s driver kept a room upstairs.

The Grounds

Not too long after the house was originally built, the family’s gardener, Louis Schultz, began planting trees, beautiful roses, as well as bulb flowers and shrubs—many of which were typical of a traditional Victorian garden. A number of the trees on the premises were officially named Oregon Heritage Trees—there is also a pond and a bench under the pear tree where Flavel’s daughters would sit in the shade. The entire house is considered a significant architectural and historical treasure for the entire Pacific Northwest.

The Timeline of the Flavels, Their Houses & Fate

1886

While the construction of the Captain George Conrad Flavel house was started in 1884, and it was finally finished in the spring of 1886. The Flavel House was built for Captain George Conrad Flavel and his family. The house was designed by German-born architect Carl W. Leick and the construction bordered between the Victorian and Colonial Revival periods. It was considered a prime example of Queen Anne architecture; one of the few remaining well-preserved examples in the entire Northwest. Due to the Captain’s long history and contributions to the community of Astoria, the Flavel family had long been considered the most prominent family in town.

The Captain had made his name and fortune as a prominent businessman through real estate investments and his occupation as a Columbia River bar pilot—becoming Astoria’s first millionaire—at the age of 62, he was finally able to retire in the house that he had built for himself and his family.

1887

The Carriage House was built on the south-west corner of the property.

1890s

Alex Murray, the family’s hired caretaker, called the Carriage House home while in the employment of the Flavels.

1893

Captain Flavel lived in the house for seven years with his wife Mary Christina Boelling and their two adult daughters, Nelli and Katie. Their son, George Conrad Flavel never resided within the George Conrad Flavel House, as he was already married and living in a house of his own. During his seventh year in the residence of the Flavel House, Captain Flavel passed away, leaving the to the family.

1901

Captain George Conrad Flavel’s son, George Conrad Flavel would build his house—the house that is now often referred to as the Harry Flavel House. George Conrad Flavel Junior had worked as a bar pilot for his father, becoming a Captain as well.

1922

When most of downtown Astoria was destroyed by a fire, the Flavel House was one of the only survivors.

1934

The Captain George Conrad Flavel House remained in the family until the great-granddaughter Patricia Jean Flavel gave the property to the city as a memorial to her family.

1936

The house was set to be torn down to establish an outdoor community property—the city ended up having financial difficulties and returned the property to Patricia Flavel—that same year, Patricia deeded the residence to Clatsop County, but with conditions. The understanding was that both the grounds and the house would be kept in good repair and used for public purposes.

1937

From the time the house was deeded the to county, until the end of World War II, the Public Health Department, Red Cross, and local Welfare Commission all had offices within the mansion.

1951

The Captain George Conrad Flavel House was officially added to the list of the National Register of Historic places, before which it was nearly demolished twice—once for a parking lot and again for a community park, but the townspeople rallied against the proposal and it began to be operated by the Clatsop County Historical Society in 1950.

2003

The Camperdown Elm, Sequoia Redwood, four Cork Elms, Bay Laurel, Pear, and Ginkgo Biloba trees on the premises were named official Oregon Heritage Trees in a state-wide dedication ceremony that was held on the grounds.

The Haunting at Captain George Conrad Flavels House

Truly, ever since the Flavel house was converted into a museum in 1951, there have been many reports of hauntings; phantom music and voices were heard on the first story of the house which was believed to have been a product of the Flavel sisters, as they were gifted musicians. The Library has always housed an unhappy and strange presence. There is an apparition of a woman who roams the hallway on the second floor, but she vanishes when approached—and a floral scent can be smelt at strange times in the bedroom of Ms. Flavel, when no one has been around. In Captain George Flavel’s room, his apparition can be seen, but he disappears into the floor once he has been noticed.

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The Haunting of the Carolina Theatre of Greensboro

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Horror Mystery and Lore

The Carolina Theatre of Greensboro has a long history surrounding of paranormal activity. What makes the theatre all the eerier is that it opened on Halloween night, 1927. Originally called “The Showplace of the Carolinas” it began featuring a mixture of specialty acts such as burlesque comedy, song, and dance. Today it is home to many different events including concerts and live plays.

The Carolina Theatre of Greensboro is also home to three ghosts in particular. One ghost was a steelworker who fell from one of the beams during construction and died during the construction of the Carolina Theatre. A technical director who works at the theatre claims to have see this ghost. He recalls coming in early in the morning and walking across the lobby when it happened and said he saw a man in work clothes walking across the lobby 10 to 15 feet in front of him.

Carolina Theatre Front View Greensboro North Carolina
The Carolina Theatre

Thinking it was his coworker, the director began following him across the lobby. The apparition pushed open the door of the restroom as the director followed behind. When the director opened the door the lights to the restroom were off and nobody was in the bathroom.  He believes it to be the ghost of the construction worker wearing overalls and Dickies. 

The second ghost is that of a little boy. In 2014 a paranormal team stayed overnight at the theatre. They reported communicating with a little boy whose house used to be on the grounds before the theatre was built. His passing was a tragic event. Though no one has seen the little boy’s apparition there are childish things that go on at the theatre. Some report to have had stacks of chairs move on them and chairs taken off of the stacks the next day. People have also heard children’s laughter throughout the theatre.

The third, and most known, ghost is that of Melvaleene Reva Ferguson who died in a fire she had set to the theatre in 1981. In the ’80s there was a homeless woman who apparently had mental health issues. She came to a movie and hid behind the seats. As the story goes, she was denied her medicine that day and she told them if she didn’t get her medication that Greensboro was going to burn that night. After the movie she hid behind the seats while everyone else closed up. She went into the south stairwell of the theatre and started the fire which ultimately killed her. There have been sightings of her walking across the mezzanine level while she holds a clothing basket. People during rehearsals have also seen her walk back and forth before disappearing. 

With its long history and many sightings of paranormal activity it’s only right that The Carolina Theatre offers an event called “Paranormal Carolina with The Ghost Guild.” In the description the event offers you the chance to explore hidden parts of the haunted theatre, learn about 90 years of paranormal history, and experience being locked-in overnight with the spirits the Carolina holds. No prior paranormal experience required! 

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The Haunting of the SK Pierce Mansion

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Featured Haunted Places Horror Mystery and Lore

A 10 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath 6,661 square foot mansion with intricate wooden details, original windows, doorknobs, and marble fireplaces. Servant quarters with formal maid and butler pantries, a classic Mansard roof and grand staircase showcase the victorian era style of this mansion. With a team of 100 men, it took a year and a half to complete building. You would expect something like this to go up for millions, right? Well this house was sold in 2015 for $315,000, the same price as most three bedroom homes in the town of Gardner, Massachusetts where the SK Pierce mansion resides. This beautiful home was built all the way back in 1875 by a very wealthy owner of a manufacturing business named Sylvester Knowlton Pierce. His business was across the street from the home he built, and was the reasoning behind Gardner, Mass. being known as “Chair City”. It also supposedly housed very prestigious guests such as Calvin Coolidge (the 30th US president), Norman Rockwell (a famous painter), Bette Davis (a popular actress at the time), and P.T. Barnum (a politician and business man). So how exactly did this place turn into a destination for people investigating the paranormal?

The Haunting Lore

Very unexpected and mysterious misfortune struck the Pierce family shortly after moving into the house. Pierce’s first wife died three weeks after moving in. She had somehow picked up a bacterial disease that ate her flesh. Years later, during a downfall in the economy, SK Pierce passed away, and the rivalry between his son Frank and his second wife who was two years older than Frank began. The house ended up being passed to his second wife, Ellen, instead of his eldest son. This was not customary during the time and it angered Frank greatly. Eventually, Ellen died and her three sons fought in court over ownership of the house, ending in her son Edward winning. He utilized the size by turning it into a boarding home. Activities such as prostitution, drinking, and gambling ended up taking place at the boarding home. Among the darker activities was death. Edwards two-year-old daughter he had with his wife Bessie passed away from influenza. There was also a boarder by the name of Eino Saari who passed away from smoke inhalation in his room, though it is widely believed to have been caused by spontaneous combustion because the surrounding room had hardly any damage. Bessie also died in 1951 while the family occupied the home. Edward then lost the house in a poker game and a new owner took his place named Jay Stemmerman.

Jay Stemmerman.

SK Pierce Haunted Mansion

Jay Stemmerman didn’t last long in the Sk Pierce Mansion, he abandoned it somewhere in the 1980s and it sat like that for a near 20 years. It was filled with paintings depicting odd characters and scenes making people question what went on in the house. These paintings were discovered when the house was purchased in 2008 by Edwin Gonzalez and Lillian Otero, they were only able to stand living in the house for two years. They experienced many paranormal incidents including a message from a spirit leading Otero downstairs to a kiln where there were bones identified to be that of a young child. There had been stories in the past of a young boy dying at the home though no such reports were ever filed by the police. Edwin claimed to have seen the apparition of a young boy at his side in his office, many have speculated that it could be the ghost of the mysterious possible death of one. A book came out about the couple’s experience called “Bones in the Basement” by Joni Mayhan.

A Haunted Attraction

After a short two weeks on the market, this haunted home was owned by Rob and Allison Conti. They bought this house because of the title it holds as the second most haunted home in Massachusetts, and they quickly turned it into an attraction. You can now stay overnight at the SK Pierce Mansion or just visit for a paranormal experience of your own. Many guests there have reported a lot of strange activity. People have seen doors slam, full body apparitions accompanied by voices, furniture moving of its own accord, foul odors, and sudden temperature changes. There was even a guest who was said to have been pushed down the stairs by a ghost.

Paranormal Investigation

A group of people who investigate the paranormal went to visit the haunted mansion. They claimed to be able to feel the spiritual energy all over the house, which was also measured by multiple psychics using various tools. There were 25 people in the investigation that split into five groups of five people. Rooms such as the Red Room that were linked to some sort of tragedy were looked into. Colleen Costello was one of the psychics that were able to receive entities in many of the rooms. Specifically, in the Red Room, her group heard the spirit of a homicide victim using a spirit box. A spirit box is a device that uses radio frequencies to detect the voices of spirits. They also pinpointed and communicated with a nanny who had died in the house. The nanny would answer yes or no questions using lights but strangely refused to answer the one male in the room. Another room that they experienced strange events was the billiards room where they communicated with the spirit of P.T. Barnum. In the basement, Costello encountered a slightly angry spirit that had unresolved business issues with the Pierce family, from what the group understood it was about a false accusation. They realized the spirit was in the basement when the pendulum, a divination tool to detect said spirits, starting rapidly swinging.

Nicole Costello’s story doesn’t end there with the rest of the group though. She ended up spending the night and had more evidence of the paranormal. In the middle of the night, she reported hearing footsteps on the second floor which she was staying on. She later made sure it wasn’t one of the other guest’s footsteps, none of them had stepped foot out of their room that night aside from people on the first floor who never went up the stairs.

The Mysteries of The SK Pierce Mansion

There are still so many unanswered questions about this spirit-filled mansion such as why is there a tunnel below the house? Also are there more deaths there than have been reported? Did the strange paintings of half-beast half-human figures mean something more? There are many theories for all of these questions including the use of dark magic, child labor, human trafficking, and more. Would you dare to spend a night in this beautiful haunted mansion?

Index

https://www.estately.com/listings/info/4-west-broadway–5

https://www.littlethings.com/haunted-victorian-mansion-gardner-massachusetts

https://www.countryliving.com/real-estate/news/a35307/would-you-buy-this-famously-haunted-victorian-mansion/

https://www.sentinelsource.com/elf/body_and_soul/chair-city-spirits-investigating-paranormal-activity-at-s-k-pierce-mansion/article_9cb695ec-2b52-11e7-8a73-a3018843344e.html

https://jonimayhan.com/2013/12/16/secrets-from-the-grave/

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The History of Cosmic Horror

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Featured Horror Mystery and Lore

Don’t explain, because the unexplainable is the most frightening thing there is.

H.P. Lovecraft

What Exactly is Cosmic Horror?

Cosmic Horror movies and books are on the rise in the horror community lately—a refreshing turn away from the slashers and gore of the late seventies, early eighties, most of the nineties, and the last two decades. The Cosmic Horror genre is about more than just the copious amounts of senseless violence—it’s beyond its own monsters and dangers—it’s about testing the limits of your own humanity. How connected are you to the world around you? How frightened are you about the dangers of the unknown? When your perception of reality is suddenly pulled out from under you, you begin to experience overwhelming trepidation, anxiety, and an unanticipated creeping loss of sanity.

In stories with a central theme of Cosmic Horror, more often than not, have protagonists that are forced to face things that go well beyond the normal realm of comprehension, which leads to the idea that authors of the genre try to stand behind, “don’t try and over-explain what’s happening, rather let them stew in existential dread.” While this genre of horror contains plenty of gore and violence, it angles more on the supernatural, paranormal, and psychological sides of fear—so there is no reaction of disgust, but rather pure, unadulterated terror.

So, in the simplest terms possible, cosmic horror is a sub-genre of science fiction where horror is derived from the insignificance of our own existence within an often dispassionate universe … easy peasy, right? While Lovecraft is credited as the creator of cosmic (or Lovecraftian) horror, that doesn’t mean that he was necessarily the first person to write within this genre—he was simply the first person to dedicate his fictional writing solely to the genre which now bears his name. To this day Lovecraft remains the most famous writer of the cosmic horror genre, although the genre continues to expand with the works of writers around the world.

Where Did Cosmic Horror Come From Anyway?

A View Of the Cosmos
A View of the Cosmos
Photography by NASA

Now that we know what the genre of cosmic horror is all about, where exactly did this genre come from? As far as literary history has shown, cosmic horror began with one man—Howard Phillips Lovecraft. He is officially credited with being the father of the cosmic horror genre—but was he the first author to write in the genre, or was he simply the first author to be credited for it? Truth be told, Algernon Blackwood, an author out of England was officially the first one to write within the cosmic horror genre, but this subgenre of horror had not technically been established yet. His stories The Willows and The Man Who Found Out have historically been classified as general horror, gothic fiction, and fantasy fiction.

To understand certain types of horror, one must first understand where horror and the subsequent emotion of fear comes from. As has been mentioned many-a-times before, as said by Lovecraft himself, “the oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is the fear of the unknown.” This means that this particular subgenre capitalizes on this reaction to uncertainty (in its simplest form), the bread and butter of cosmic horror, and the inability to tell what is coming and when. This quote represents the spectrum of Lovecraft’s range of fiction—it’s elegant, yet somehow a pathetic representation of what can truly represent the genre as a whole. In no uncertain terms, Lovecraft and other authors of the genre make it increasingly clear that there are multiple ways in which the futility and insignificance of human beings can be frightening. If there is nothing meaningful connection to the purpose of human beings, then are we truly anything more than a plaything for celestial beings?

It’s truly an unsettling thought to acknowledge this nihilistic idea of the modern age—that we base our relevance on the time in which we live, but discount the ancient wisdom and forces that came before us. During the earliest days of cosmic horror, Lovecraft took exceptional influences from the plethora of pagan religions all throughout the world. He took particular influence from the most ancient of these pagan religions and cultures—this is in no small part, due to the fact that Lovecraft was quite reverent to paganism and quite openly rejected mainstream Christianity. Keep in mind, Lovecraft lived in a time and place where having beliefs, or favorable leanings towards paganism was highly taboo—where today it is quite a bit more commonplace. Cosmic horror, however, despite being more widespread isn’t an easy genre to write—not to mention capture on film—well at all.

When Lovecraft first began to write stories that exhibited his creations, he displayed a truth that is often disregarded in the course of our daily lives—that we don’t consider the idea that there is something unknown and completely unrelatable to anything we have ever experienced before in our years of life on this earth. We don’t consider that we might be in a world where we don’t recognize the god(s) that deserve idolization, that there may be a natural way of being that we are unaware of, that there may be some type of fate of the world that we haven’t considered as a possibility. This was something that Lovecraft and his predecessors might not have considered, but it is definitely a possibility that should be considered, even if it is completely alien to what we’re used to.

Dig into more cosmic horror by reading and watching our best of cosmic horror books, comics, and movies lists.

Puzzle Box’s Best of Cosmic Horror Comics
The Best Cosmic Horror Books
Cosmic Horror Movies that Perfectly Capture Existential Dread
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