Cambridge's second-oldest surviving residence (1685), now headquarters of History Cambridge, with three eras of paranormal lore from owners across three centuries.
159 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Hours and tours offered seasonally by History Cambridge; check their website for current schedule.
Access
Limited Access
Historic 1685 residence with stairs and uneven floors; limited accessibility.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1685 · Second-oldest surviving residence in Cambridge · Brattle Street 'Tory Row' Loyalist house · History Cambridge headquarters · Old Cambridge Historic District
The Hooper-Lee-Nichols House was built circa 1685 for Richard Hooper, making it the second-oldest surviving residence in Cambridge (after the Cooper-Frost-Austin House of c. 1681). The original structure was a modest two-story timber-frame building; subsequent owners enlarged and remodeled it substantially in the Georgian style during the 18th century, giving it its current facade.
The house was owned by Judge Joseph Lee, a Tory loyalist, during the lead-up to the American Revolution; Lee fled Cambridge in 1774 amid Patriot pressure and the house was confiscated. After the war, Lee was permitted to return and reclaim the property. The Nichols family acquired the house in 1850 and lived there for several generations before Frances Nichols sold it to the Cambridge Historical Society in 1957.
The house is on Brattle Street, an area known historically as 'Tory Row' because of the concentration of Loyalist gentry residences before the Revolution. It is a contributing structure to the Old Cambridge Historic District and is open for tours and events organized by History Cambridge.
A library wing was added to the house in 1915, an event that figures in the building's paranormal lore (see Legends). The Cambridge Historical Society rebranded as History Cambridge in 2020 and continues to operate the house as its headquarters and a venue for historical interpretation programs.
Sources
According to Ghost City Tours, the earliest lore at the Hooper-Lee-Nichols House centers on Elizabeth Hooper, widow of the original owner. After her husband's death she ran a tavern from the house and faced financial hardship. Her body was reportedly found in 1701 wrapped in a sheet under unexplained circumstances. Witnesses are said to have reported seeing her 'gliding across the floor in the same white sheet her corpse was found in.'
The Boston.com 2012 Cambridge ghost-story feature notes that 'five Hessian soldiers playing cards supposedly haunt the Hooper-Lee-Nichols House on Brattle Street.' Ghost City Tours adds that the soldiers were German troops employed by the British during the Revolutionary War who are said to be buried on the property, and that their apparitions began being reported in 1915 after a library wing was constructed over their alleged burial site. Ghost City Tours acknowledges that 'there are no historical records to validate the supposed German soldier burials.'
The third tradition, also per Ghost City Tours, involves a Nichols granddaughter who died after a Fourth of July 1850 accident: she stepped on lit fireworks, the wound became infected, and she died shortly after. Her spirit is said to be associated with objects moving without explanation and subtle weeping sounds. The current executive director of History Cambridge is quoted confirming experiences of doors opening and closing and objects relocating.
Notable Entities
History Cambridge (the building's nonprofit owner-occupant) offers guided tours of the 1685 Hooper-Lee-Nichols House, the second-oldest surviving residence in Cambridge. Tours cover the building's architectural evolution and the multiple owner families across three centuries.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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