The Haunted Ackley House

We briefly discuss pre- and post-Revolutionary War history in Nyack, New York, the location of the first legally haunted house in the United States. We dissect and discuss the Ackley family’s allegations of three poltergeists that coexisted with them in their Rockland County home, for over twenty years, before failing to disclose the hauntings to a prospective buyer. This established the GhostBusters Ruling case in 1991, and changed the course of real estate disclosure laws in New York state. 

CW/TW: This episode discusses paranormal (or specifically poltergeist activity). We can’t be held responsible for your nightmares. Listener discretion is advised.

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Website: severedpodcast.com

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Hosts: Harry Chambers + Drew Hudson

Logo Art: Drew Hudson

Theme Song Composer | Podcast Editor: Harry Chambers

Show Concept | Researcher | Lead Writer: Drew Hudson

Available on RadioGardenState

Available on Rogue Media Network

Sources

Article: “History of Nyack, NY” (visitnyack.org)

Article: “How This Victorian Home Because America’s First Legally Haunted House” by Hadley Mendelsohn (housebeautiful.com)

Article: “Inside the Spooky Dream Home: This $1.85-million Mansion Was the Focus of the 1991 Ghostbusters Ruling” (thestar.com)

Article: “Our Haunted House on the Hudson” by Helen Herdman Ackley (rd.com)

Article: “Colonial Foodways” by Ed Crews (colonialwilliamsburg.org)

Article: “Research: Rockland in the Revolutionary War: Significant Events in Rockland” (rocklandhistory.org)

Article: “Helen Ackley’s Haunted House on the Hudson” by The Delaware Paranormal Research Group (deparanormalresearchgroup.com)

Article: “There’s a House in Hudson Valley That’s So Terrifying It Was Legally Declared Haunted by New York State” by Lea Monroe (onlyinyourstate.com)

Article: “Selling a Haunted House? Here’s What You Need to Know” published on NBCNewsYork.com

Article: “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving (gutenberg.org)

Poem: “The Hour and the Ghost” by Christina Rossetti (poetry.org)

Podcast: Strange Phenomenon (Interview with Cynthia Kavanagh, daughter of Helen Ackley)

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