The local ghost story is that all the orphans in the home were killed in a fire. There are a few theories regarding the cause of the fire, from a child dropping a latern to arson for insurance money and murder. The truth is that four children did die, but they were not orphans and were not killed in a fire. The site thought of as the orphanage began as Swift Mansion in 1840. The owner of this residence, Joseph Swift was the leader of a spiritual group that held occult rituals in the house. Swift sold the house to Nicholas Wilbur in 1865. Wilbur had four children who died at the mansion in the course of seven days, at the height of the diphtheria epidemic in 1893. He and his wife held séances in the attempt to communicate with their dead children. In 1902 the property became the Light of Hope Orphanage. Reverend and Mrs. Sprunger housed over 100 children in the orphanage they ran for over twelve years. The orphanage went bankrupt after Reverend Spunger died. The reports of haunting at the site started as early as 1905. The still standing Swift Mansion was vandalized by curious kids. In December 1923 it finally burned down without anyone inside. Claims of paranormal activity include: finding hand prints on cars, ghostly children walking, creaking doors, fire crackling, mist, screams, the smell of burning flesh, bright lights swirling, and a dark shadowy figure.
NOPSS Team personal experience: all four of us heard a loud scream.