12. The Omni Parker House is called one of the most haunted places in America
Boston’s venerable Parker House – the birthplace of Parker House rolls and Boston Cream Pie – has numerous ghosts said to wander its halls and rooms, including that of Charles Dickens, who has been said to appear in a mirror. An elevator stops of its own accord at the third floor from time to time and the ghost of a young Harvey Parker is believed to frequent several rooms. The third floor is particularly haunted, creaking rocking chairs are reported by guests, though there are no rocking chairs on the floor, and the ghost of an actress who died in 1876 has been described as visiting once again. Dickens preferred the third floor when staying at the hotel, and it is there where he has been seen in a mirror.
Boston, being one of America’s oldest cities, claims numerous haunted sites, where the living have reported encountering the spirits of the dead. Parker House has more than its share. Room 303 has been reported to have unusual shadows appearing and disappearing and a bathtub which suddenly starts filling itself. Parker House, which was built in the 1850s and rebuilt in the 1920s, sits across the street from King’s Chapel, the grounds of which hold Boston’s oldest cemetery and is itself reputed to be haunted. Thus guests at the hotel are surrounded by ghosts, should the tales of them be true, and those staying on the ninth, tenth, and third floors are most likely to encounter them, according to the stories.