Yankee Pedlar Inn

Dating back to 1891, the Yankee Pedlar Inn inspired the 2011 horror film "The Innkeepers" directed by Ti West. Though the hotel has been closed for several years, its haunted reputation endures.

In November 1890, Irish immigrant Frank Conley purchased a lot at the corner of Main Street and Maiden Lane in Torrington, Connecticut, for $8,000. He and his wife Alice constructed a grand brick Victorian hotel designed by architect Robert Wakeman Hill, built with pallet brick and trimmed with Vermont marble. The couple spent an additional $40,000 to outfit the interior with marble, oak furniture, and modern amenities. The Conley Inn opened on July 28, 1891, featuring 52 elegantly decorated guest rooms with hot water—a marvel for its time. Under Alice's astute management and outstanding cooking, the inn quickly became one of the finest destinations in the region, known throughout Connecticut for its exceptional hospitality.

The Conleys' dream came to an end on March 17, 1910, when Frank died. Alice followed him just five months later on August 22, 1910—and she reportedly drew her last breath in Room 353. Her death in the room where she had devoted two decades of her life may have marked the beginning of the paranormal activity that would make the Yankee Pedlar Inn famous.

Alice's spirit is said to still roam the halls of her beloved hotel, checking on guests to ensure their stays are pleasant. Visitors and staff have witnessed her favorite rocking chair in the lobby moving on its own, as if occupied by an invisible presence. Apparitions of a woman in Victorian dress have been seen folding linens, maintaining the property even in death. Room 353, where Alice died, has become a focal point for paranormal activity. Guests report phantom smells, unexplained cold spots, and the distinct feeling of being watched. Apparitions of both a male and female figure have appeared in the room—possibly Frank and Alice reunited in the afterlife. One employee recounted how a group of male college students staying in Room 353 became so terrified by something in their room that they checked out early, refusing to spend another minute in the hotel.

The haunting extends far beyond Room 353. In Room 295, guests have reported seeing spirits and the unsettling sensation of a presence climbing into bed with them during the night. Lights flicker on and off by themselves. Throughout the hotel, doors open and close independently—sometimes slamming shut—while elevators operate without passengers or visible operators. Staff and guests have reported being pushed, tugged, kicked, pinched, and slapped by invisible forces. Strange whispers echo through the corridors at night. Most eerily, groups of guests have reported sharing the same dream during their stay—being given a tour of the building by a man with grey hair and a deep voice, believed to be Frank Conley himself.

Additional spirits have been sighted throughout the property: a man in a top hat has appeared in the lobby, representing a formal 19th-century visitor, while a little girl has been seen wandering the third floor, searching for her mother—possibly stemming from a tragic incident in the inn's early years. Shadowy figures materialize in the restaurant area, remnants of past patrons from the inn's mid-20th-century heyday.

The Yankee Pedlar's reputation attracted paranormal investigators. The Northwest Connecticut Paranormal Society captured a spirit orb photograph during their investigation. In 2013, Glory Haunt Hounds, a New York-based paranormal investigation group, conducted an overnight investigation with EMF detectors, Laser Grid equipment, and full-spectrum camcorders. Hotel manager Sanjay Patel made normally restricted areas available for investigation, including sections of the basement, the attic, and a secret staircase—all identified as particularly active locations.

The inn's dark reputation reached filmmaker Ti West in 2008 when his crew stayed at the Yankee Pedlar while shooting "The House of the Devil" nearby. West, a self-proclaimed skeptic, witnessed TVs turning on and off by themselves, doors closing without explanation, and lights in his room repeatedly burning out. The entire cast and crew experienced vivid collective nightmares. Actress Sara Paxton would wake in the middle of the night convinced someone was in the room with her. Night auditor stories about the inn's ghosts fascinated the crew so much that West wrote a new screenplay. Remarkably, the room West chose as the most haunted location in his film—based solely on its size—turned out to be the same Room 353 that the hotel's real ghost lore centered on. "It could be a coincidence," West said. "It's weird that it happened that way."

"The Innkeepers," released in 2012, starred Sara Paxton, Pat Healy, and Kelly McGillis as employees investigating the ghost of Madeline O'Malley—a bride who allegedly hanged herself when abandoned at the altar, her body hidden in the basement by hotel owners. While this particular legend was created for the film, it drew directly from the inn's genuinely unsettling atmosphere and documented paranormal history.

The inn closed on December 1, 2015, for what was supposed to be a 7-9 month renovation under new owner Jayson Hospitality, who had purchased the property in 2014 for $650,000. The renovations stalled due to lack of funds, and the hotel has remained closed ever since—now over nine years. The City of Torrington sued to obtain the property, and in July 2024, the Torrington Development Corporation was awarded receivership under Connecticut's PA 19-92 blight statute. As of 2025, a potential buyer has been identified, with court approval pending. The building remains vacant and deteriorating, but the ghosts of Frank and Alice Conley—and the other spirits who call the Yankee Pedlar home—may still be waiting for guests to return.