History & local legend
The Wedgwood Inn in New Hope occupies a house built by Mary Ann Slaughter in 1870 on the foundations of an older home. Its best-known ghost is a girl called Sara, usually described as about twelve. In the inn’s tradition, she was separated from her parents while the family fled slavery and is still looking for them.
Children staying at the inn have reportedly met Sara as another young guest. Other visitors hear scratching inside the walls, especially around the former servants’ staircase. Innkeeper Carl Glassman discussed Sara’s story with the South Philly Review in 2006.
During construction, the owners uncovered a wood-and-stone tunnel running from the kitchen toward a gazebo. The New Hope Historical Society’s 2023 account records the discovery and the owners’ reports of the girl. Another presence in the inn’s folklore is New Hope painter Joseph Pickett, whose Manchester Valley depicts the landscape visible from the property.
Sources
- South Philly Review, Discovery Days, 2006 interview with innkeeper Carl Glassman
- Visit Bucks County, reports of scratching, the girl’s appearances and Joseph Pickett
- New Hope Historical Society, archival team’s inspection and interview with the owners
- Museum of Modern Art, Joseph Pickett’s Manchester Valley
