The Conference House, Staten Island, NY

Conference House Field Trip 10/24/04

By Jason Stroming | E-Mail

(Originally posted on 10/26/04 at TheUnexplained.net)

A Short History...

The Conference House, also known as the Billopp House, is a colonial mansion in the Tottenville section of Staten Island, N.Y. It's historically significant because on September 11th, 1776, Ben Franklin, John Adams and Edward Rutledge held a Peace Conference with British officials, in an attempt to stop the Revolutionary War. They failed.

The house was originally built in the 1600's (no exact date is known), and belonged to a Captain Christopher Billopp, a British loyalist who settled in America. Future generations of the Billopp family also occupied the modest colonial home. Archeological evidence suggests that prior to Billopp's arrival, the area was settled by Native Americans.

Today, the house is the only pre-Revolutionary War landmark still standing in New York City. It's located on the western end of Staten Island, near New Jersey, and situated on the beautiful Conference House Park, which overlooks Raritan Bay. For more information on the history of this fascinating landmark, please visit the Conference House website.

Supernatural Activity

Besides the historical significance of the Conference House, it is also a well-known haunted house. It is mentioned in just about every book on haunted locations in America. The house itself is small, but there are 2 floors, an attic that served as the slave quarters, and a basement which was used as the kitchen and food preparation area.

The main story associated with ghostly activity in the house regards Captain Billopp and one of the slave girls. Apparently, one day she was caught giving signals to the Americans across Raritan Bay by lighting a candle in her window at night, and Billopp (who was a British loyalist) either stabbed her at the top of the staircase, pushed her down the staircase to her death, or both. It is said that at night, sometimes a light can be seen in the Conference House window where she would signal from.

The house itself is unoccupied for most of the year. Guided tours are run Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 1:00pm to 4:00pm, from April until mid-December. There is a caretaker residence, which was built as an addition to the Conference House, which is always occupied, but these quarters face the road, and cannot be seen from the bay.

Field Trip

Before this weekend, I had only been to the Conference House once before, back in October of 2002. At that time, we weren't allowed into the basement. This time, however, we were. I have to say, the basement is definitely the creepiest part of the tour, and looks the least renovated or restored. It's mostly brick, and there is a fruit cellar in the back, which is basically a man-made cave (and not very comfortable for a 6 foot tall person as myself).

The other rooms are very small and utilitarian. The first floor contains a dining or living room area, and a parlor. The upstairs contains the master bedroom, children's bedroom, and Billopp's study. The master bedroom contains the only piece of original furniture, which is the storage bench at the foot of the bed. Billopp's study contains an original handwritten letter (which is framed under glass, now) and a book given to him as a gift. The rest of the house is furnished with reproductions or pieces from the same period, but not originally from the Conference House. The attic is not accessible, since it is used for storage. The wood floors on the second floor are the original floors.

During this recent field trip, nothing really of note happened. The fresh pair of batteries in my digital camera died just as I took it out to start taking pictures, but a spare set worked just fine. So this may have just been a case of bad batteries. Strange, but not conclusive. But that wasn't the case for my first visit to the conference house back in October or 2002. While we were waiting for the next tour to start, my wife was taking pictures outside of the house, on the park grounds. She took many pictures, but this one really stands out:

It should be said that this was a cloudy, overcast day, with a very light drizzle/mist, in October. There was no direct sunlight. We have had this digital camera for years now, and have never before or since had any pictures come out like this. We don't know what it is, but apparently many people who take pictures at the Conference House come away with anomalies on their pictures. You can see more pictures of the Conference House at www.theunexplained.net.

In Conclusion...

Whether you believe in ghosts or not, the Conference House is a great way to spend an afternoon. The staff is very friendly, the admission is negligible (we can all afford $3, right?), and the surrounding grounds and forest trails are a great way to relive what New York may have been like 300 years ago. It's very easy to get to, as well (simply take Hylan Boulevard all the way down to the western end, and it's right there). Bring your camera, take lots of pictures, and if you ask nicely, the tour guide may share some of the ghostly events that still go on in the house.