The Vineyard House

The Vineyard House's reputation as one of California's most-haunted Victorian properties centers on its original owners. Long-running tradition holds that Robert Chalmers, suffering from progressive illness — accounts describe late-stage syphilis-related mental illness — was kept chained in the basement when his behavior became too erratic for the household to manage, and that he died there. Louisa is said to have died in 1900. Other published accounts describe a more careful version: Louisa arranged for a barred cell to be installed in the basement out of concern for the household's safety, and Robert reportedly starved there.

Guest accounts from the inn-and-restaurant era describe drunken Victorian-dressed men ascending the staircase, fading before reaching the landing. A different couple reportedly fled in the night, refusing to describe what they had seen. A bartender working alone after closing described a glass sliding the length of the bar without prompting.

The restaurant produced its own pamphlet documenting these accounts for guests, and a chandelier reportedly fell during service one evening, narrowly missing seated diners. A woman dining alone reportedly described being asked by a small child to cut his food.

With the property closed for years and access restricted, current investigation is not possible. The lore is preserved in roadside-history markers, archival blog accounts, and the property's prominent placement in California ghost-tourism literature.