09/13/2025 Haunted Locations: The S.K. Pierce Mansion in Gardner, MA

Happy Saturday! We are back this week with another haunted location! This one is ranked the second most haunted home in New England and ninth in the entire U.S. That being said, let's get spooky and take a look at the S.K. Pierce Mansion.

Built in 1875 for a wealthy furniture manufacturer and his family, the grand Victorian mansion quickly gained a notorious reputation. The home was occupied for just two weeks before the first of five confirmed deaths occurred. Since then, countless visitors have claimed the spirits of former residents never truly left.

The Man Behind the Mansion:

Sylvester K. Pierce was a wealthy furniture tycoon, owner of the S.K. Pierce & Sons Furniture Company. His success helped put Gardner, Massachusetts on the map as “Chair City.”

In the late 1880s, Pierce began construction on a Victorian-style mansion measuring nearly 7,000 square feet, featuring 10 bedrooms and hand-carved details. The project involved 100 workers and took a year and a half to finish. The house later hosted various guests such as President Calvin Coolidge, Bette Davis, P.T. Barnum, Norman Rockwell, and was also used as a meeting place for the Freemasons.

Tragedy Strikes:

Pierce, his wife Susan, and their son had high hopes for their new life, but just weeks after moving in, Susan died suddenly from a bacterial illness.

A year later, Pierce remarried Ellen, a woman 30 years younger, and had two more children. But in 1888, Pierce himself passed away, leaving Ellen and the children behind. After her death, bitter family disputes tore through the Pierce legacy, and the Great Depression crippled the family business.

A Sinister Turn:

Eventually, the youngest son, Edward, inherited the mansion. But times were hard. To make ends meet, he turned the home into a boarding house.

That’s when things got grim. The mansion became a haven for drinking, gambling, and prostitution. Whispers of murder soon followed. A prostitute was said to have been strangled in the infamous Red Room. In 1963, a boarder named Eino Saari burned to death in the master bedroom... some believe by spontaneous combustion. Other rumors tell of a young boy who drowned in the basement.

Haunted by the Past:

Over the years, visitors have reported encounters such as:

• Disembodied voices and chanting

• Slamming doors and footsteps in empty halls

• Sudden cold spots and foul odors

• Shadow figures lurking in the corners

• Full-bodied apparitions

Some experiences have turned violent. Guests claim to have been shoved by unseen hands—one nearly down the stairs, another almost out a third-floor window. Paranormal investigators describe these entities as unusually strong, capable of moving large objects and even draining electrical energy to manifest physically.

Ghostly residents are said to include:

• S.K. Pierce himself

• His first wife, Susan

• Edward Pierce

• A nanny named Mattie Cornwell

• The murdered prostitute

• Eino Saari

• A young boy, a little girl, and other shadowy figures lurking in the basement

Fame and Fear:

This mansion has drawn major paranormal TV shows like Ghost Hunters, Ghost Adventures, and My Ghost Story. 

It’s featured in books such as Haunted Massachusetts and Bones in the Basement. 

*These can be found in the links at the bottom*

Starting Fresh:

The hauntings were so intense that a couple who owned the mansion from 2008 to 2015 only lasted two years before feeling forced to move out. Their experiences included some of the most frightening encounters reported in the house.

In 2015, a company named the "Dark Carnival" purchased the property.

Since 2010, the "Dark Carnival" has been twisting reality and tormenting people with its sinister, circus-themed haunted attractions. Combining mind-warping illusions, relentless scares, and seasoned actors.

But in 2015, the carnival crossed a darker threshold. They claimed the notorious SK Pierce Haunted Victorian, a house steeped in death and whispers of the damned. This time, there are no actors. No animatronics. Only real paranormal forces and the chilling weight of history. The links below will provide you with ways to purchase an overnight stay or tour at the S.K. Pierce Mansion.

So, tell me. Have you heard of this location before? Have you been there? Would you go? Let me know in the comments.

And as always, if you do decide to visit here or any haunted location, respect the property, respect the owners, respect the residents... living or dead.

More details about this story, how you can visit, and links to the shows, podcasts, and documentary can all be found below. OH, and while it is still up and running, it is FOR SALE! It can totally be yours for around $1.2 million. I will link that below, too.