They’re Baaack!

Halloween has traditionally been viewed as the time of year when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest, enabling those from the spectral realm to visit the world of the living. Perhaps not uncoincidentally, as we head into the fall months, we at the Mira Monte tend to experience events that are, shall we say, a little unconventional:

When things go wrong around the inn, we often jokingly blame the spirit of “Henry”, a former owner whose dour visage looks down from his portrait in the hallway. One morning, our guests alerted us that the cold water taps in all rooms had hot water coming out of them. The taps had been functioning perfectly the day before. After tinkering with the plumbing with no success, the innkeeper on duty turned to Henry’s portrait and shouted “Henry, you stop that right now” The water immediately returned to normal. Coincidentally (or not) this occurred on the anniversary of Henry’s death…

One quiet afternoon while working at her desk in the parlor, the evening innkeeper heard what sounded like a small girl’s voice playfully calling “hi…, hi…”. The innkeeper turned to see a faint shadow disappearing down the hallway…

A live-in housekeeper reported that her bed shook in the middle of the night, as if someone were trying to rouse her from her sleep. When she looked up, no one was there…

Of course, all of these things can easily be attributed to perfectly normal factors; voices carrying from outside, vibrations from a truck rumbling down the street or simply the typical, everyday problems that come with a very old house. As afternoons grow short in the dying days of summer, routine events can take on an eerie, almost sinister air. So, all’s well…. Nothing supernatural to see here.

Then there’s the pen incident. Just days ago, three of our staff were gossiping in the kitchen about yet another employee, when a pen “flew into the air and exploded” with a pop, sending pieces across the kitchen. No one else was in sight. This happened in full view of the three gossips, who concluded that the phantom pen-thrower had been very disappointed by their indecorous behavior.

Is the Mira Monte haunted, or are all the incidents simply a product of overactive imaginations, stimulated by the arrival of Halloween, when images of death abound and our attentions are drawn to to the world beyond? If there are any spirits here, it’s good to know that they’re helping to keep the staff in line. Happy Halloween!

Mira Monte’s Long Lost Twin

This postcard of the Miller Cottage Inn from the 1930’s left us puzzled. It shows a building that looks suspiciously like the Mira Monte, or Ash Cottage as it was then known. The similarities are notable, right down to the Greek-style portico, the stacked bay windows and even the sloping driveway to the right of the building. Like Mira Monte, Miller Cottage Inn was said to have been on Mt Desert Street. Could the Miller Cottage Inn and the Mira Monte have possibly been one and the same? The known history of Mira Monte offered no clues. If the buildings were not the same, we wondered, who would build a home that was virtually identical, and on the same street? Adding to the confusion, most of the pictorial archives of Bar Harbor depict a Miller Cottage that was an entirely different building, a much larger 4 story hotel.

After much painstaking research, Bar Harbor historian Brian Armstrong has unraveled the mystery:

“The original Miller Cottage was built in the early 1880s for Henry H. Miller from Tremont. The completed cottage resembled the Mira Monte because Miller was Orlando Ash’s brother-in-law, and they most likely used the same plans and builder. Miller was married to Orlando Ash’s wife’s sister, Fanny Welch. Miller and Orlando Ash both lived in Tremont in the 1870s and moved to Eden (Bar Harbor) in the early 1880s. The Miller Cottage was destroyed in the 1947 fire.”

So, Mira Monte once had a twin just a few doors down the street! After the fire of ’47. Mira Monte alone remained as the surviving sibling. In the following photo from the 1880’s, both Miller Cottage and Mira Monte can be seen. Miller Cottage appears toward the front of the image behind the tree on the left side of t he street. Mira Monte (Ash Cottage) can be seen 4 doors down behind a home with a small tower.

The photos of the “other” Miller Cottage are of the hotel that took the cottage’s place following the fire. The second Miller Cottage appears below.

Introducing the Echo Lake Suite!

Our newly renovated suite is called “Echo Lake” after one of our favorite spots on the “quiet side” of the island. As with our other renovated rooms, the suite features the blend of contoporary and traditional design elements that the Mira Monte is known for. The suite already has a waiting list for much of the season, and we can’t wait for you to see it in person!

Mira Monte History Re-Discovered

When we first arrived at the MIra Monte, we never suspected that our unassuming cottage on Mt Desert Street would belie such rich history. If you’ve followed our blog, you already know what recent research has brought to light. Now our local paper, the Mount Desert Islander is sharing the story of the inn with the wider community: Mira Monte’s Lost History

Is the Mira Monte H-H-Haunted?

With Halloween fast approaching, we tend to get this question quite a bit. We hate to dissappoint, but in a word, no. Well, that is, mostly no…

The Mira Monte has always resonated with the sounds of happy vacationers. Nary a specter, it seems, would dare to intrude upon our festive holiday makers. If there are any spirits here, they seem to us a very private and well-behaved bunch indeed. Then again, over the years several former staff members and guests have described having a decidedly different take on things:

One long-time caretaker who spent winters alone at the house claimed to have heard heavy footsteps and other strange noises emanating from the vacant floor above.

An erstwhile cook who worked in the kitchen in the wee hours before dawn described being greeted regularly by a shy little ghost boy peering at her from the kitchen door… and of hearing the quiet laughter of children emanating from the empty dining room.

A recent guest, a self-described psychic medium, emphatically reported encountering numerous spirits during her visit, including a 19th century housekeeper keeping vigil at the top of the stairs and another “more contemporary” woman, who she took to be a former owner, in the parlor.

Another guest reported encountering a mysterious gentleman at the end of the hall who vanished before his eyes.

A live-in housekeeper turned off the lights to her room and locked her door before retiring for the night. At 2 AM she awoke with a start- the light in her closet was on and the door ajar.

So, is the Mira Monte haunted? Or are all the tales simply a case of imagination run amok, piqued by this somber time of year when chill winds rustle withered leaves and shadows fall long across the land? So much history has transpired at the Mira Monte and so many people have resided within it’s walls- is it at all possible that some former residents never left? We have our opinion, what about you?

Building a Better Breakfast!

Our new professional kitchen has enabled us to offer a range of breakfast options that were never before possible! Shown here is our Char-Broiled Pork Chop with Grilled Polenta and Rainbow Chard.

The Parlor

We love our artists- we think you nailed it! Thank you for the lovely sketch JC and Jane- you’ve made our day!

Blaine Letter Returns Home

Recently, we came upon this letter, written by Senator James G. Blaine, at auction. The subject is unremarkable, a brief note of thanks to one Theo F Reed for an unspecified favor. The significance of this particular item is that it was penned while Blaine was living at Ash Cottage during his presidential run. It almost certainly would have been written in his study at the home, where he spent considerable time answering “cords” of correspondence. Thankfully, few people need to have Blaine memorabilia these days so we were able to acquire the letter for the inn. After 138 years, we are delighted to return this small piece of history to the Mira Monte so that we may better tell the story of the many people who have stayed within its walls. We hope to have the letter on display soon. The note reads:

Personal

August 13, 1884
Bar Harbor, Maine

Theo F Reed, Esq.
Spring Valley, N.Y.

Dear Fr-

I thank you for your kind favor of the 1st instant, and I return the enclosure as requested.

Very truly yours

James G. Blaine

Peter Marie

One of Bar Harbor’s more colorful summer denizens was New York philantropist and socialite Peter Marie. His family, having made it’s fortune in banking, enabled Marie pursue a life of leisure relatively early in life. The consummate bon vivant, Marie was host to a variety of social activities throughout the summer colony. One of these, a ladie’s putting contest, was a regular event that was held on the back lawn of Mira Monte. The accompanying photo shows one such competition, circa 1900. These events were embued with all the pageantry of the guilded age- note the banners and floral garlands surrounding the green and the imported palms decorating the gallery. The ladies in the competition are seen elegantly attired in the latest 19th century “sportswear”.

The Chapman Family

Mira Monte History: In 1890, Mrs. Hannah Chapman, wife of eminent Philadelphia physician and naturalist Dr. Henry C. Chapman, bought the Ash Cottage from Orlando Ash to use as a permanent summer residence. Interestingly, title to the home was held in Mrs. Chapman’s name alone, a rare occurance prior to the turn of the century. Henry Chapman had been Professor of Medicine and Medical Jurisprudence at Jefferson Medical College and served as a director of Philadelphia’s Academy of Natural Sciences from 1875 until his death. Upon purchasing the cottage, the Chapmans added the Greek portico and columns that now surround the porch and renamed their estate Mira Monte, meaning “behold the mountains”.

Mrs. Chapman enjoyed entertaining, and Mira Monte was to become something of a social hub in those days, particularly for members of Philadelphia’s high society. An article in the society pages of the Philadelphia Enquirer describes a tea given at Mira Monte as the “most lavish social event of the season” at which Mrs. Chapman and the Countess de Laugier-Villars poured. While not unknown to the society pages himself, Dr. Chapman is remembered in Bar Harbor as first and foremost a humble and amiable man of science who “endeavored in every way in his power to minimize the distinction between the summer colony and the year-round residents” of the village. As recalled in memorium in the Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences:

“Here for nearly thirty years he pursued his studies of the flora and fauna of Mt. Desert island, the latter in a little laboratory on the water’s edge. Here the fishermen, all his devoted friends, brought whatever of interest they succeeded in securing from the waters.”

Chapman was also to play an active role in the civic life of the town and became a director of the local library.

After Dr. Chapman’s sudden death at the home in 1908, likely from a gastric ulcer, Hannah continued in the role of hostess until her passing on Christmas day, 1931, exactly 90 years ago.