The Haunted Marathon Inn, Grand Manan, New Brunswick

Grand Manan sits in the Bay of Fundy, a ferry ride from the New Brunswick mainland, and the Marathon Inn has looked down on its main harbor at North Head since 1871. It is one of the oldest purpose-built hotels in Eastern Canada still operating, with only nine owners in more than 150 years. Three white buildings, linked by raised wooden walkways, hold the guest rooms, and many of them look out over the harbor and the ferry dock.

The ghost story belongs to the annex. In 1898 the building was moved across the island to stand beside the main house, and the names of three men who reputedly died during that move are written on the sill beneath it. The inn’s own website repeats that much. Island lore says at least one of them never left: guests are said to describe a man on the staircase who passes through walls, and Rooms 35 and 36 are linked to swaying coat hangers and lights that switch themselves on and off. We could not find those details in any published source, so treat them as island storytelling.

The ghosts of the Marathon Inn

The workman from the Annex

The Annex began life as the Marble Ridge Inn, in the Moses Lane area on another part of the island. Local lore says Captain James Pettes, who built the Marathon, won it in a poker game, and in 1898 he had it moved to stand beside his hotel. Canada’s Register of Historic Places says the names of three men who died in 1898, reputedly while the building was being moved, are written on the sill beneath the Annex, and that many local stories are tied to the building. The inn’s own site tells the same story. How the men died is not recorded in either.

At least one of those men is said to have stayed. In the island’s telling, guests have seen the figure of a man walking up the staircase and passing through walls. Some older retellings add that he looks more like a French peasant than a local workman. None of this appears in the inn’s own material or in the press we checked.

Rooms 35 and 36

Most of the activity in the retellings is linked to two rooms. Guests in Rooms 35 and 36 are said to have reported coat hangers swinging in the closet with no draft, and lights turning on and off by themselves. We could not trace these reports to a named witness, but these are the rooms to ask for if you want to test the story.

Creaks, walkways and a very old building

Travel guides describe the inn as full of character. Frommer’s notes creaky floors, thin walls, clawfoot tubs and antique furniture, and Fodor’s and the heritage register both point out that some guest rooms keep original furniture. On a windy Fundy night, with three old buildings connected by wooden walkways, it is easy to hear footsteps that may or may not be another guest.

The most haunted rooms and places to look

• Room 35: One of the two rooms most linked to the ghost, with reports of swaying coat hangers and lights switching on and off.
• Room 36: The other room in the stories, with the same reports.
• The Annex staircase: A flying baluster staircase in the building that was moved in 1898, where the man is said to be seen walking up the stairs.
• The cupola stairs: The stairway up to the Annex belvedere is covered with the signatures of generations of guests, a good place to look for the past even if the ghost stays away.

History of Marathon Inn

Captain James Pettes, a retired sea captain, built the Main House in 1871 on the hill above North Head harbor; Fodor’s describes it as set on 10 acres. Pettes was connected with the Flushing, the first ferry to run a regular schedule to Grand Manan, and the inn grew with the island’s summer trade. The Main House is a square three-story building with a straight mansard roof, dormers and a central frontispiece with paired arched windows.

In 1898 the former Marble Ridge Inn was moved from near Moses Lane to stand beside the Main House, becoming the Annex. It is a long three-story building with a gambrel roof, a full-width veranda and a belvedere on top, and it still has its original sitting room fireplace. A third building, the Captain’s Quarters, was Pettes’s own home at Pettes Cove before it too was moved to the site.

The inn has been in business since it opened and has had only nine owners. It was recognized as a Local Historic Place in January 2010, and it was added to the Canadian Register of Historic Places that March. Its character-defining elements include the walkways between the buildings, the original sash windows and clapboard, and some of the original guest-room furniture.

Today the inn offers rooms with private baths, many overlooking the harbor. Breakfast is served year-round and dinner in summer by reservation. Grand Manan is known for whale watching, sea cliffs and quiet fishing villages, which makes the Marathon a base for a slow island stay rather than a quick ghost hunt.

Tips for a haunted stay

• Book the ferry. Grand Manan is reached by car ferry from Blacks Harbour, New Brunswick. Summer sailings fill up, so plan your crossing ahead.
• Ask for Room 35 or 36. Call the inn rather than relying on a third-party booking, and ask for one of the two rooms in the stories.
• Check the season. The inn is busiest in summer, dinner is served only in summer, and some guides list it as closed in the off-season. Confirm your dates with the inn.
• Stay at least two nights. The island is too good to rush, and a second night gives the Annex a second chance.
• Combine it with St. Andrews. The Algonquin Resort in St. Andrews by-the-Sea, another haunted New Brunswick hotel, is within an hour’s drive of the ferry.

More haunted hotels nearby

• The Algonquin Resort, St. Andrews: New Brunswick’s grand haunted resort, near the ferry
• Captain Fairfield Inn, Kennebunkport, Maine: another sea captain’s haunted inn across the border
• Haunted places in Canada: more Canadian ghost stories
• Haunted hotels in Canada

Sources

Facts on this page are checked against the hotel’s own website, historic records and news coverage. Ghost stories are reported as guests, staff and local historians tell them. Read how we rate haunted hotels.

• Canada's Historic Places: Marathon Inn
• Marathon Inn (official site)
• Heritage Guide: Marathon Inn, Grand Manan
• Frommer's: Marathon Inn
• Fodor's: Marathon Inn

Booking links on this page are affiliate links. If you book through them we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.