History & local legend
Trum Tavern in Trumbauersville, Bucks County, traces its tavern license to Elisha Parker in 1752. By 1799 it was known as Jacob Fries Tavern and had become a gathering place during resistance to a federal property tax.
On March 5, 1799, tax assessors ate at the tavern while Jacob Fries moved between them and local residents. Armed protesters later marched toward the building, but the assessors had already escaped to Quakertown. John Fries, who led the wider protest, was a separate figure from the tavern's Jacob.
The tavern's ghost tradition names a presence upstairs as Jacob. The Shadowlands collected reports of objects moving on the second floor and the sensation that someone was standing close behind visitors.
