Omni Parker House - Boston, MA
Posted by: 
NorStar
N 42° 21.482 W 071° 03.620
19T E 330324 N 4691585
The Omni Parker Hotel in the center of Boston has many stories of ghosts and unexplained happenings, including sightings of Harvey Parker himself.
Waymark Code: WMD0AY
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 11/01/2011
Views: 17
In Boston, at the corner of Tremont Street and School Street, is the Omni Parker House Hotel, an elegant establishment that has many stories of ghosts and unexplained happenings. Many of the stories are attributed to Harvey Parker, the former owner of the hotel.
The Omni Hotels and Resorts web site has a page specifically about these stories. Stories are also found on other sites about hauntings, including the Shadowlands site.
Many stories are of happenings attributed to the ghost of the founder of the hotel, Harvey D. Parker. According to Wikipedia, Harvey D. Parker, or H. D. Parker, lived from 1805 to 1884. He moved from Maine to Massachusetts when he was 20, and started working at Hunt's Restaurant in Court Square. In 1854, he had the Parker Hotel built. It became a success, and in 1858, he had an addition built. He died at age 80 (no mention of how he died). He was known for being a perfectionist who always wanted to be involved in the hotel operations. Perhaps because of this trait, his apparation has been seen at the hotel many years later. The hotel page mentioned that he often had been seen on the 10th floor hall of the hotel annex. From a former bellman, "...one in particular happened around 1950. An elderly woman guest insisted she saw an apparition outside room 1078. At first it was a misty apparition in the air, then it turned toward her. She said it was a heavy set older man with a black mustache. He just looked at her, then faded away. She came downstairs, a bit jittery, and security went up to the tenth floor. They checked it out, but reported they could find nothing.” Another story stated, 'A mother and daughter were spending the night in room 1012. The daughter awoke around daybreak to find a gentleman dressed in period garments of the latter 1800's standing at the end of her bed. The gentleman sported a large grin as if he was asking, “Are you enjoying your stay? “ When she smiled back the gentleman gracefully disappeared. The woman was amazed to find the portrait of her nightly visitor hanging in the dining room when she went down for breakfast. It was the portrait of Harvey Parker.' The hotel site also mentioned that sightings haven't been reported in the last 20 years.
There have been other sightings. An elevator stops on the third floor without a button being pushed. One person reported being unable to sleep because of the sound of a rocking chair (no rocking chairs are in the hotel). Voices have been heard in the restaurant, lobby, and halls. Employees have been scared enough to quit.
But it seems, that the apparitions are more concerned about the comfort of their guests than in scaring them. So, come and stay a night!
Other Source:
Wikipedia (Harvey D. Parker):
(
visit link)
Theshadowlands.net (Massachusetts):
(
visit link)