Highgate Manor

Highgate Manor is a manor located on Vermont Route 207 in Highgate, Vermont.[1] It has been used as a home, as a bed and breakfast, and as a dance hall. Local legend says that the children of a doctor who once owned the house and performed experiments on them have remained in the house since they died.[2]

Highgate Manor
Location of Highgate Manor in Vermont
Highgate Manor (the United States)
LocationVermont Route 207 Highgate, Vermont
Coordinates44°55′56.5″N 73°2′56.8″W
Built1818 (1818)
Built byCaptain Steve Keyes

History

Construction

The manor was built in 1818 by Captain Steve Keyes.[3]

Baxter acquisition

Dr. Henry Baxter purchased the land and the building from the Keyes family sometime during the 1860s.[4] Dr. Baxter opened his practice in the manor, where there are still blood stains on the floor in what is now the library. It is believed that he performed experiments on his children, most of which did not live past the age of ten.[2]

Vacation resort

After the death of Dr. Henry Baxter in 1898, Philip Schmitt took over the manor. In 1917 it was converted into a vacation resort with great success. Many dignitaries, including Al Capone, frequented the manor and a speakeasy hidden underground.[2]

Underground railroad

The manor was one of the last stops for the Underground Railroad before entering into Canada. There are still tunnels under the manor that lead to the nearby river.[3] There have been reported sightings of an African American spirit near the manor.[5]

References
  1. "About Us - Highgate, Vermont". Town of Highgate, Vermont. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
  2. Alexander, William. Forgotten Tales of Vermont. p. 112.
  3. "Haunted Inns. The Highgate Manor, Vermont Ghosts, VT Ghost Stories". Vermonter.com. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
  4. "Baxter Family of Swanton & Highgate Falls, Vt" (PDF). Vermont Historical Society. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
  5. Lewis, Thea. Ghosts and Legends of Lake Champlain.
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