The Haunted S.K. Pierce Mansion
Morbid
09/07/23
•76m
About
Comments
Featured In
In the spring of 2009, Edwin Gonzalez and his girlfriend, Lillian Otero, fled their house in Gardner, MA, less than one year after moving into what they believed was their dream home. Later, once they were safely away from the old Victorian, Gonzalez and Otero would explain to friends and family that they had been driven out by angry ghosts who had done everything—including possessing Lillian—in order to torment them, leaving them no other options than to abandon the house that had once held such promise.
Although they didn’t know it when they moved in, Gonzalez and Otero’s home, the S.K. Pierce Mansion, had long been considered by locals to be haunted. Indeed, in its more than one-hundred-year history, the Victorian home had seen more than its fair share of tragedies, including several deaths in the house as recent as the 1960s, as well as countless other unsavory myths and legends.
Thank you to Dave White for research assistance.
References
City of Gardner. n.d. History. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.gardner-ma.gov/316/History.
Discovery Channel. 2013. "Haunted Victorian." A Haunting. New York, NY: Discovery Channel, October 19.
Farragher, Thomas. 2022. "Want to be a ghost host? Come to Gardner." Boston Globe, August 20: B1.
Fiorentino, Alyssa. 2021. How the S.K. Pierce Mansion became one of the most haunted homes in Massachusetts. October 27. Accessed July 31, 2023. https://www.housebeautiful.com/lifestyle/a38046654/sk-pierce-haunted-victorian-mansion/.
Fitchburg Sentinel. 1963. "Gardner man, 47, dies in room fire." Fitchburg Sentinel, April 9: 11.
—. 1891. "Notes." Fitchburg Sentinel, December 8: 2.
Gelinas, Brian. 2012. "Group of ghost hunting enthusiasts converge on Gardner mansion." Athol News, October 6: 1.
Gershon, Livia. 2006. Ghost hunters. July 28. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.thegardnernews.com/story/news/2006/07/28/ghost-hunters/11341583007/.
Ilinitch, Shawn. 2003. Psychic profiler detects spirits in South Gardner home. October 31. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.thegardnernews.com/story/news/2003/11/01/psychic-profiler-detects-spirits-in/11284159007/.
Landry, Stephen. 2021. "Debunking rumors about the S.K. Pierce Mansion." Gardner News, September 22.
—. 2020. "New book details history of S.K. Pierce Mansion." Gardner News, September 25.
Pelletiere, Nicole. 2016. Homeowner to turn 'haunted' mansion into scary attraction. September 2. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/homeowner-turn-haunted-mansion-scary-attraction/story?id=41769810.
SK Haunted Victorian Mansion. 2023. The Mansion. Accessed August 2, 2023. https://www.skhauntedvictorianmansion.com/index.html.
Stanway, Eric. 2013. The Victorian. September: Independent.
—. 2013. "Gardner mansion shelters ghostly past." Worcester Telegram and Gazette, July 10.
Zillow. 2023. 4 West Broadway, Gardner, MA. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4-West-Broadway-Gardner-MA-01440/57587523_zpid/
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)
Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Previous Episode
The Murder of Bridget Cleary
September 4, 2023
•79m
On March 15, 1895, thirty-five-year-old Michael Cleary murdered his wife, twenty-six-year-old Bridget Cleary in their home in Ballyvadlea, County Tipperary. While terrible, the murder was just the last act in a series of bizarre atrocities committed against Bridget, whom her husband would later claim had been taken by malevolent fairy folk and replaced with a changeling.
More shocking, however, was that the barbaric act hadn’t been committed by one man alone, but by a group of rural men, including family.
Was Bridget Cleary really murdered out of fear of fairies? Or had Michael Cleary just convinced himself of as much in order to commit murder?
References
Bourke, Angela. 1999. The Burning of Bridget Cleary: A True Story. London, UK: Pimlico.
Freeman's Journal. 1895. "Strange death near Clonmel." Freeman's Journal, March 25.
Irish Times. 1999. "Burning Bridget." Irish Times, August 7: B24.
n.a. 1917. The Tipperary Witch Case. Toronto, ON: McGill University.
New York Times. 1895. "A with burner sentenced." New York Times, July 6: 5.
—. 1895. "Not witches, but fairies." New York Times, April 22: 4.
Ruxton, Dean. 2016. "The story of the last 'witch' bruned alive in Ireland." Irish Times, November 24.
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)
Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Next Episode
The Attempted Murder of Olga Rocco
September 11, 2023
•54m
On the morning of December 31, 1946, nineteen-year-old Pearl Lusk boarded a crowded subway train in Brooklyn. A few days earlier, she’d met a man named Allen in a bar who offered her a very strange, yet simple job: she was to follow a young woman named Olga and take a photo to determine whether she was wearing any stolen jewelry.
That morning, as Pearl and Olga exited the crowded subway train, Pearl raised the camera in Olga’s direction and pulled the wire to take a photo, but what happened next would put into motion a series of events that rivals fiction.
Thank you to the wonderful Dave White for Research assistance!
References
Adams, Toni. 1947. "Troopers hunt and kill Alphonse Rocco." Kingston Daily Freeman, January 7: 1.
Brooklyn Daily Eagle. 1947. "Camera-gun suspect flees in stolen car." Brooklyn Daily Eagle, January 6: 2.
Buffalo Evening News. 1947. "'Camera' shooting victim asks N.Y. City to pay her $200,000." Buffalo Evening News, February 14: 1.
—. 1953. "Court frees city of liability for not averting shooting." Buffalo Evening News, April 22: 25.
—. 1947. "Police press quest for spouse of camera-gun victim." Buffalo Evening News, January 2: 9.
—. 1946. "Times Square Station is scene of shooting." Buffalo Evening News, December 31: 10.
International News Service. 1947. "Estranged wife and family glad Ruocco is dead." Buffalo Evening News, Janaury 7: 1.
Kingston Daily Freeman. 1947. "Victim of camera shooting guarded." Kingston Daily Freeman, January 2: 18.
McKelway, St. Clair. 1953. The Perils of Pearl and Olga. August 8. Accessed August 10, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1953/08/08/the-perils-of-pearl-and-olga.
New York Times. 1947. "Camera-gun victim files for $200,000." New York Times, February 15: 17.
—. 1947. "'Camera-gun' victim loses a leg." New York Times, Janaury 3: 1.
—. 1947. "Girl, dupe in plot, shoots woman with 'camera' gun." New York Times, January 1: 1.
—. 1947. "Lusk girl freed; will leave city." New York Times, Janaury 11: 20.
—. 1947. "Rocco killed by the police in Catskills." New York Times, January 7: 1.
Smith, Delos. 1947. "Gullible girl hoaxed into plot on life of estranged wife." Daily Boston Globe, January 1: 13.
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)
Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
If you like this episode you’ll love
Promoted