HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
+ 1 further entry on record
A National Register inn in High Springs built before 1900 as the Nisi Bakery, where a nightgown-clad female apparition rearranges chess pieces on the second-floor landing
420 NW 1st Ave, High Springs, FL 32643
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Rates from approximately $257/night including full breakfast.
Access
Limited Access
Historic two-story home with stairs; not fully wheelchair accessible
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1900 · National Register of Historic Places · Originally the Nisi Bakery, pre-1900 · Associated with two female High Springs mayors · Adjacent Easterlin House (1896), first residence on First Ave
High Springs, a small town in Alachua County, grew up around its railroad junction in the late 19th century, and the property at 420 NW 1st Avenue reflects that founding generation. The main structure began its life before 1900 as the Nisi Bakery, operated by Charles Nisi, serving the railway workers and settlers who defined the town's early character.
H.L. Grady acquired the bakery property from Nisi and repurposed it as a family home. The building gained its second floor in 1917 and subsequently served as a boarding house for railway workers before transitioning to apartments. Ed and Diane Shupe purchased the property in 1990 and converted it to the bed and breakfast still operating today. Current owners are Sara and Scott Miller.
The adjacent Easterlin House — nicknamed 'Skeet's Cottage' — was built in 1896 as the first private residence on First Avenue. It was home to Juanita Easterlin from her birth in 1910 until her death in 1997; Easterlin served as the first female mayor of High Springs (1956-57). Georgan Grady Roberts, who grew up in the main house, served as mayor from 1990-91. Both structures are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The inn has 10 rooms and includes a full breakfast. Notable guests have included director James Cameron, actress Brooke Langton, and documentary filmmaker Eric Bendick.
Sources
The apparition most consistently reported at the Grady House is a woman in period nightwear, described as old-fashioned in cut. She comes accompanied by a distinctive floral scent — lilacs or orange blossoms, depending on the account — that precedes or accompanies her appearance. The Red Room is the location most frequently associated with her activity.
The chess-set account has been the most discussed feature of the haunting. A wooden chessboard is kept in the second-floor hallway, and staff and guests have repeatedly found the pieces moved to a configuration they did not leave: one piece lying horizontally atop another, in a repeating arrangement. The activity occurs when no guests are present in the hallway. Some accounts suggest the configuration is deliberate — an attempt at signaling or communication — though the identity and intent of the apparition have not been established.
A 2024 guest report documented seeing a dark-haired woman in a white dress seated by the water fountain at approximately 2:30 am. A 2017 guest described hearing a voice calling 'Mom' and then experiencing unexplained footsteps and voices for nearly two hours in the early morning, with the sensation of an unseen presence nearby.
A 2001 article in the Gainesville Sun documented the chess-piece phenomena, making it among the earliest published accounts of the haunting.
Book a room in the NRHP-listed Victorian inn, where the second-floor hallway chess set and the Red Room are associated with recurring paranormal reports. Full breakfast included. Ten rooms available.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
Pensacola, FL
The house at 203 West Gregory Street was built in the 1890s for William Hazard Northup — a ship captain who arrived in Pensacola in the early 1870s, was elected mayor in 1897, and later served as the city's Collector of Customs and Postmaster. The home was a social center for Pensacola's turn-of-the-century professional class and has operated as a bed and breakfast since its restoration.
Apalachicola, FL
James N. Coombs built the house at 80 Sixth Street in 1905 as a private residence. When a fire damaged the home in 1911, the Coombs couple moved to a hotel during repairs. Mrs. Coombs died of grief at the hotel; Mr. Coombs died of heart failure three weeks later. Both are buried in Chestnut Street Cemetery, across the street from the home they built. The property is now a 24-room inn across three historic structures.
Apalachicola, FL
The Gibson Inn was built in 1907 as the Franklin Hotel at the height of Apalachicola's lumber and shipping trade. Sisters Annie Gibson Hayes and Mary Ellen Gibson purchased and renamed it in 1923. During World War II, the U.S. Army requisitioned it as officers' quarters near Camp Gordon Johnston. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.