Smith College - Sessions House

Brief history: Sessions House is the oldest building on the Smith College campus. It was built in 1710 by Captain Jonathan Hunt and includes a secret passageway that was used to hide from Native Americans during the colonial era. The building now serves as a dormitory for the college.

Ghosts: A pair of ghostly lovers may haunt Sessions House. They are thought to be the spirits of Lucy Hunt (Captain Jonathan Hunt's granddaughter) and Johnny Burgoyne, a British General who was held captive in the house during the Revolutionary War. It is said that the two young people fell in love and would meet secretly in the hidden passageway. Their affair ended when Burgoyne was sent back to England; he promised to return to Lucy, but never did. Their spirits, it is said, have been seen and heard in the building, searching for one another.

Two other tales include the ghost of a woman who allegedly killed her children with an axe, mistakenly, thinking they were intruders; and the spirits of two female students who fell while searching for the secret passageway.

Sources: "Living at Smith - Sessions House"; Encyclopedia of Haunted Places by Jeff Belanger.