Maine

Poland

The Poland Spring Inn

Indian Tribes inhabited Poland Spring in early years who may be responsible for some of the haunting. The shakers then moved into the area and used the land for grazing. In 1790's, Jabez Ricker traded his land in Alfred Maine with the Shakers for Poland Spring.

With a main road dividing it, many stagecoaches traveled through his property.

With the help of his sons, Wentworth, Samuel, and Joseph, he constructed a large, two-story gable-roofed house for use as a stagecoach stop. At its door, he hung this simple sign: WENTWORTH RICCAR 1797. Montreal to Boston stage lines made Poland Spring a regular stop. Others followed and in a short time it became best-known Inn in Maine. Business thrived and there was talk almost immediately of adding rooms to the Inn.

It is very possible that some of the ghosts came from this period but most feel the main ghost possibility is that of the inn’s first owner, Hiram Ricker, the founder of the Poland Spring water company.

Several employees have seen the ghost of Hiram wandering the Inn. Some workers report hearing the voice of Hiram coming from vacant rooms, and hear his footsteps in the early hours of the morning in the empty lobby. He plays tricks on the staff by moving various objects to unusual places.

The Ricker Family no longer owns Poland Spring but their legacy lives on as well as their ghosts. In the 150 years they owned Poland Spring, they left over 100 buildings, three hotels, over 5000 acres of grounds and an unknown number of invisible guests. The golf course was the first built in America at a Resort. Kings, Queens, oil barons, Babe Ruth, Presidents all visited Poland Spring.

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