The Balsams Resort: Dixville Notch, NH (Haunted and Abandoned - 2022 Update)

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When I used to work at my family store, we had a Coke delivery driver who was also into the paranormal. He was more into the alien aspect of it, big fan of Coast to Coast with Art Bell, would go to UFO conventions. That was his cup of tea, but sometimes the people he would meet would also be into ghosts. The guy’s name was Dennis Rano, the very man who drew this caricature you see as my profile picture and at the end of every video.

Anyway, he told me a story about when he went up to a hotel called the Balsams Grand Resort in Dixville Notch, New Hampshire to make a delivery. Looking at pictures of the Balsams, I can truly see it is a grand hotel. It does look beautiful, and a nice place to stay. But according to Dennis, as well as many others, the place is spook central. 

Just a short overview of the history of the hotel before I get going on Dennis’ story: the hotel was opened by George Parsons shortly after the Civil War and was then known as the Dix House. The Dix House was a 25 room summer inn. 

In 1895, it was bought by Henry S. Hale from Philadelphia who was an inventor as well as an industrialist and a long time visitor of the Dix House. By 1918, Hale’s vision for the little Inn grew steadily and expanded until what is today. Before long, the capacity went from 25 to 400 guests when he added the Hampshire House.

But, what makes the Balsams Hotel such a hotbed for spiritual activity? The Balsams, according to Dennis, is one of the most haunted places he’s ever been to, and with good reason. Here are some highlights from what he told me.

Experiences:

-Toilets flush on their own-there are no sensors on the toilets. Because of how my mind works, it makes me think, spirits go to the bathroom? At least they have the courtesy to flush. 

-A one armed man who mysteriously disappears

-Three, laughing old ladies who also disappear

Also, when Dennis told the maintenance man of these happenings he motioned Dennis to come along with him down to the basement of the grand resort. The resort's basement is filled with pipes, BUT, the strange part is there are people buried in the basement. Needless to say, Dennis probably got out quick.

Dennis has been back to the resort, and has actually slept there at one occasion and claimed it was one of the most restful nights he’s ever had.

But as I went deeper into my research, I found a few more intriguing guests who have never checked out of the Balsams. You’d be thinking that just like the Mount Washington Hotel swears the staff to secrecy about not telling guests about the spiritual activity, the Balsams actually embraces its ghostly guests of the dead. According to the book, Weird Hauntings: True Tales of Ghostly Places, in a chapter written by Joseph A. Citro, he said that when he talked to the president of the hotel, Stephen P. Barba, he was surprised to hear that Mr. Barba has actually documented the ghostly appearances since 1959.

According to Mr. Barba, the spiritual activity came to an uprising when they did renovations at the Balsams. He also claims that he does not discourage staff members to talk about the spirits. Now, not all of the staff are as welcomed to the idea of spirits as others, as there is actually a bellhop who will not, under any circumstances, go up to the third floor.

Other Ghostly Guests:

The Vanishing Beauty- The legend of the Vanishing Beauty at the Balsams starts with how a doorman was heading up to a room. Upon getting halfway up the last set of stairs, he looked up and saw a beautiful woman sitting in a chair just beyond the landing. At first he thought it was just a guest, but taking in consideration the hour, which was midnight, and her clothing, he wasn’t seeing just a former guest, he was seeing a ghost. Let’s just say, the doorman showed himself out after seeing this, but upon looking back, the beautiful woman vanished.

The Vanishing Beauty has been seen more than just once. She has also been seen or rather heard in the John Dix social parlor laughing. When guests try to look for her they are confused to find nothing. One man, however, had the same encounter, but with a different ending. When this man went to look for her, he passed a mirror, seeing a beautiful woman’s delightful figure reflecting off of it. When he turned to where the reflection should be coming from, he is met by the scary sensation of him being alone. The Vanishing Beauty is no stranger and has been seen sitting in chairs, being in the shadows of the hotel, and has even been spotted in the main lobby, but the question is, who is this woman? What was her purpose at the hotel? Why is her soul confined to the property? Is she stuck or does she just really enjoy the hotel’s service? Those questions will probably never be answered.

Another guest, though his name is not something I want to be plugged with once I am spotted as a ghost, is known as---

The Naked Man- The legend of the Naked Man, according to Mr. Citro’s story, is that one night a couple were staying in room 120. The wife was awoken to a man standing right at the foot of her bed. Thinking it was her husband she asked if he was okay. The response was not what she was expecting as it was not her husband standing at the end of the bed, it was a naked man standing at the end of the bed. She was also astonished to find out that the man was translucent, she could see through him. Before the figure disappeared, the husband had woken up to this scary sight before the figure vanished. Other occurrences in this room are sounds of things being moved and talking coming from the room even if there is nobody in there.

Who is the naked man? I’m okay with not finding out, but maybe someone does. If you must know, there are two possible theories as to who the naked man might be; one theory is that bandleaders used to frequent room 120. A second theory is when a bandleader drowned in Lake Gloriette which is on the resort's property.

The third ghostly figures are simply known as---

The Others- Though you may think that there is some horror, inhuman spirit which presides at the Balsams due to the name, but that is not the case. The name is only due to the fact that the employees who have seen “The Others' ' can not distinguish what or who these entities may be. The Others have been spotted in the direction of the Sun Room. Before the employees can mention the apparition to their peers, the figure disappears. Most employees have said that they think the figure is a male. When some of the employees pass the Captain’s Study heading towards the Sun Room, they are overtaken by a cold sensation.

What is it? Bad wiring? Or is the world of the supernatural and the world of the living both the same? A crossroads between the living and the dead may be located at the Balsams. Even though the Balsams is not considered in the same legendary status as the Mount Washington Hotel, it is still a worthy candidate for most haunted place in New Hampshire. 

Shortly after publishing this article in 2010, I received an email from a former employee who worked as a night steward at the Balsams. It was a pretty long email, but he had some interesting information that Dennis didn’t know. I have left some things he said out of the original email, because it would just be repeating stuff I’ve already talked about, but you can read the full email on my blog, link is in the description. Here’s what he had to say: 

"I used to work there as a night steward. I have seen none of these events, but if any place would be haunted in the north country it would probably be the Balsams. 

More importantly I notice you never went into the under tunnels, James." (James himself notes: I never knew of the tunnels). "The tunnels were once used for staff to move between facilities during the winter, thus avoiding having to deal with the blizzards and guests. When a nearby factory closed in the 90's, they stored the mannequins used for plastic molding in those tunnels. Yes, indeed, there were and still may be hordes of rotting mannequins, hot steam, and faulty lights down there. It was the only way for the night staff to leave when all facilities locked down.

Nobody told me of any haunted events during my tenure, but first rule of the night shift was that you were never to go alone into the tunnels. I do not know if anyone had the stomach to remove those blank faces and bins of grasping rotting arms. But I doubt it.

My father also worked on the crew renovating it in the late 90's when the last guys to own it came in and bought it. Apparently for construction workers there is an actual system for dealing with creepy places like that.

All work crews are grouped into three buddies and bring bright lamps as they work. As it turns out the tunnels are full of dead ends and unfinished works.

My night supervisor was scared out of his wits of those tunnels and high strung as a result. Apparently he worked at that factory before it closed."

Now, while the Mount Washington Hotel is still thriving, the Balsams is a different story. It has been closed since December of 2011, almost eleven years now. The current owners are trying to seek financing for redevelopment of the resort and the good news is that as of June of 2022, the funding may be commencing and we may see the Balsams reopen once again. 

Resources/Further Reading: 

https://thebalsamsresort.com/a-walk-through-history/