A 1738 New Castle mansion where staff report a 'Lady in Blue' in the upstairs windows and objects found neatly moved
2 East Fourth Street, New Castle, DE 19720
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$
Guided house-tour admission; Hauntings in History walking tour priced separately by the New Castle Historical Society
Access
Limited Access
18th-century brick mansion with period staircases across three floors
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1738 · Built 1738 by John Finney; home to future governor Nicholas Van Dyke · George Washington attended a wedding here in April 1784 · Subject of New Castle's first preservation effort (1931), founding the New Castle Historical Society · Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The Amstel House stands at 2 East Fourth Street in New Castle, Delaware, a colonial-era town on the Delaware River. It was built in 1738 after John Finney purchased the property that year, and it stands among the better-preserved 18th-century mansions in the town's historic core.
The house passed through several prominent early-American households. Nicholas Van Dyke, who would become the seventh governor of Delaware, lived there, as did Kensey Johns, a member of the state's constitutional ratification committee, with his wife Ann. In April 1784 George Washington attended a wedding at the house — one of the events that anchors its place in New Castle's history.
The Amstel House became the focus of New Castle's first formal preservation effort. In 1931, concerned citizens raised funds to buy the house to protect the town's heritage; the group that formed around that campaign became the New Castle Historical Society. The society still owns the house and operates it as a museum, offering guided tours on weekends from April through December.
The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its long run of early residents and its place in the town's preservation story make it a regular stop on the society's history and ghost programming.
Sources
The Amstel House has carried a haunted reputation for close to a century, according to the New Castle Historical Society. Its executive director, Mike Connolly, describes the best-known figure as the "Lady in Blue," repeatedly seen in the upstairs bedroom windows and reported by people passing the house from the street. The identity of the figure is uncertain, and the society does not attach a documented name to her.
Staff also describe objects moving in ways they cannot explain. Connolly has recounted paintings and mirrors that hung on the walls being found on the floor afterward — not fallen and broken, but standing neatly against the wall, with the hanging hooks still intact and no one present at the time.
The New Castle Historical Society folds these accounts into its "Hauntings in History" tour, which pairs the town's ghost stories with its documented darker history of crime, punishment, and disease. The society is careful to frame the stories as accounts told to them by homeowners and business owners, some dating back to the 19th century, rather than as verified events. No independent confirmation of the Lady in Blue or the moved objects has been published.
Notable Entities
Tour the Amstel House, built in 1738 by John Finney and later home to Nicholas Van Dyke, who became Delaware's seventh governor. George Washington attended a wedding here in April 1784. The New Castle Historical Society runs guided tours on weekends April through December.
The Amstel House is the centerpiece of the New Castle Historical Society's 'Hauntings in History' tour, which pairs the town's ghost stories with its documented dark history. The mostly outdoor walking tour starts at the Arsenal Visitor Center (30 Market Street); advance reservations required.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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