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Reported phenomena, as catalogued
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A 1693 colonial inn and stagecoach stop on Long Island where Thomas Jefferson and James Madison stayed in 1791, and whose operators may have passed intelligence through the Culper Spy Ring.
81 Main Street, Center Moriches, NY 11934
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Tours available; contact the Ketcham Inn Foundation for scheduling and any admission fees.
Access
Limited Access
Historic colonial structure; uneven floors common in 18th-century buildings
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1693 · Built 1693 by Samuel Terrell; expanded c. 1710 and c. 1790 · Operated as stagecoach inn and tavern during colonial and Revolutionary periods · Benjamin Havens connected to Culper Spy Ring; inn a waypoint on spy routes · Thomas Jefferson and James Madison visited 1791 · Listed on National Register of Historic Places, June 24, 1993
The first structure on this site was a small single-story timber-frame cottage built by Samuel Terrell, a blacksmith, in 1693. The property passed through the Havens family and others, growing in two significant phases — circa 1710 and circa 1790 — into a two-story, nine-bay structure with a rear wing. By the late 18th century it was operating as a tavern, public house, and stagecoach stop on the route running through eastern Long Island.
Benjamin Havens managed the inn during the Revolutionary War. His wife, Abigail Strong, was the sister of Patriot leader Selah Strong and a relative of spy chief Abraham Woodhull — the center of the Culper Spy Ring operating out of Long Island. Havens had proposed a stagecoach route from Brooklyn to Sag Harbor in 1772, giving him knowledge of troop movements along the full length of the island. Historians have documented his connections to the network, including his surveillance of British operations at nearby Fort St. George.
In the summer of 1791, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison stopped at the inn during a documented trip to visit General William Floyd in Mastic. Jefferson was also recording the Unkechaug language at a nearby reservation during the same journey.
A fire in August 1989, when the building was operating as a shelter for women in need, nearly destroyed the structure. Preservationist Bert Seides led the restoration effort, working through a 'maze of regulations, paperwork, and government agencies.' The restored inn is now maintained by the Ketcham Inn Foundation and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Sources
Paranormal accounts tied to the Ketcham Inn span at least 100 years, according to local lore documentation. Among the phenomena reported: green glowing orbs, apparitions in period clothing consistent with colonial or Revolutionary-era dress, and unexplained voices in otherwise empty rooms. A former owner is occasionally reported still present on the property, though sightings are described as infrequent.
Two types of auditory activity are most frequently mentioned. Visitors and staff have described hearing old-time music — fiddle or similar folk instruments — when no one is in the building's main rooms. Separately, door latches have been heard working, and latched doors found open or closed in ways inconsistent with recent traffic. Both phenomena are documented in local press coverage from 2018 (News 12 Long Island).
A ghost story involving a young woman who died in a fire is among the earliest recorded claims, said to date to the early 1800s. Given the 1698 fire that destroyed Samuel Terrell's original homestead adjacent to the site, and the 1989 fire that nearly destroyed the inn itself, the building's fire history is a documented component of its dark record — though no specific fatality in either fire has been confirmed in the historical record.
The Ketcham Inn Foundation offers guided tours of the historic structure, covering its colonial origins, expansion history, connections to the Culper Spy Ring, and Jefferson-Madison visit in 1791. Contact the Foundation to schedule.
The adjacent hay barn (c. 1850) operates as a used bookstore during Foundation events, offering an opportunity to browse and view the exterior of the restored inn.
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