HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
Built in 1812 on a colonial stagecoach stop and altered in 1854, this Chester tavern, now Publick House Hotel with PH Tavern & Steakhouse, is said to be haunted by the ghost of the founder's devout Methodist mother, killed by lightning through a church window, with apparitions, cold spots, and phantom perfume still reported by guests.
111 Main Street, Chester, NJ 07930
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Restaurant menu pricing applies for dining at PH Tavern & Steakhouse.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Historic building with accessible main floor dining. Older stairways to upper floors may be narrow.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1812 · Built on colonial stagecoach route (Morristown to Delaware River) · Tavern and hospitality use on this site since circa 1810, with the present building constructed in 1812 and altered in 1854 · Local landmark in Chester's Main Street historic district
The site at 111 Main Street in Chester has operated as a traveler's accommodation since the colonial period, positioned at a convenient stop on the route connecting Morristown to the Delaware River and points west. Federal preservation records date the present building's initial construction to 1812, with subsequent work in 1854; the current operator's own site tradition dates a tavern here to circa 1810 and credits Zephaniah Drake, giving the location its first substantial purpose-built structure after decades of serving as an informal stagecoach waypoint.
Drake came from a family with strong Methodist convictions — a denomination that, in the early nineteenth century, maintained firm positions against the serving of alcohol. The establishment of a tavern by Drake was, according to local tradition, a direct source of conflict with his devoutly Methodist mother. The story, repeated in multiple local accounts, holds that she believed her son's tavern work was spiritually dangerous and vocally opposed it until her death.
The manner of her death became the center of the location's ghost tradition. According to the accounts, she was killed by a lightning strike while sitting in a church — a death, as the story frames it, that struck the woman who was in the very act of seeking divine protection from her son's sinful enterprise. The irony was not lost on Chester's residents and has kept the story alive through multiple generations of tavern ownership.
The building operated under various names through the nineteenth century before being restored and reopened under the Publick House name. It now operates as Publick House Hotel, an all-suites hotel, with the on-site PH Tavern & Steakhouse; the ghost of Drake's mother remains part of local tradition about the building.
Sources
The haunting tradition at the Publick House is anchored to a specific story: Zephaniah Drake's mother, a devout Methodist who opposed her son's decision to operate a tavern selling alcohol, died from a lightning strike while inside a church. The narrative framing — that she died precisely while pursuing the spiritual protection she sought against her son's enterprise — gives the legend its staying power in Chester's oral history.
Staff and guests report four consistent categories of phenomena in the building. The first is visual: apparitions, typically described as a female figure, seen in the dining rooms and upper-floor areas. The second is auditory: low growling sounds reported in the building's older sections, without apparent source. The third is thermal: cold spots in specific areas of the building that do not correspond to drafts or ventilation. The fourth is olfactory: the smell of perfume in rooms where no one wearing perfume is present and where no fragrance source exists.
Haunted History Productions had hosted organized investigation events at the location under the 'Awakenings' series title, bringing structured paranormal investigation protocols to the building; that dedicated event page is no longer live. The owners are publicly open about the haunting claims and market both haunted and non-haunted room options for overnight guests, treating the ghost tradition as an operational feature rather than an inconvenience. The NJ1015 radio feature on New Jersey's haunted restaurants included the Publick House among its primary entries, citing the Drake family backstory and the consistent staff reports.
Notable Entities
PH Tavern & Steakhouse operates as the full-service restaurant at the Publick House Hotel, in a building whose present structure was initially built in 1812 and altered in 1854 on a site the operator's own tradition dates to circa 1810. Guests can dine in rooms where the Drake family hauntings have been reported.
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