Preview The ‘Haunted’ Historic Herkimer Jail

The 7th annual Haunted History investigation, Herkimer’s Haunted Crossroads Investigation, will take place on October 22nd 2016. One of the sites you'll be able to explore is the 1834 jail house where murderer Chester Gillette was held and Roxalana Druse was hanged.

The jail is a two story structure made famous over the cases of Chester Gillette (the "American Tragedy") and Roxalana Druse. The American Tragedy story began back in 1906. The story involves Chester Gillette and Grace Brown. The pair met at a factory while working, and the pair developed a relationship.

In the spring of 1906, Brown revealed that she was pregnant. She continued to pressure Gillette to marry her, often writing him pleading letters. As the spring and summer of 1906 progressed, others noticed an increasing frequency of Gillette's raised voice and Brown's tears at the factory or at each other's homes. Brown continued to press Gillette for some kind of decision, while Gillette played for time with vague statements about their future and of their going away on a trip sometime soon.

Finally, Gillette made arrangements for a trip to the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York. The pair stopped and stayed for a night in Utica, New York, and then continued to Big Moose Lake in Herkimer County. At a nearby hotel, Gillette registered under a false name (although one that used his own initials, to match the monogram on his suitcase). He was carrying one suitcase and a tennis racquet. Brown at this point may have expected some kind of elopement ceremony."

On the evening of July 11th, Gillette took Brown out in a rowboat on Big Moose Lake, where he clubbed her with his tennis racquet and left her to drown. Gillette had done a poor job of planning the cover-up and was quickly arrested in nearby Inlet, New York. The trial took place in Herkimer County became a national news story. The jury convicted Gillette of murder. On March 30th, 1908, Chester Gillette died in the electric chair at Auburn Prison in Auburn, New York.

Recently, the New York Shadow Chasers investigated the local jail house. Here's photos from that investigation:

Explore the jail, and the rest of the famous Herkimer Four Corners on October 22nd. Click Here for more info.

BONUS VIDEO- LOCAL HALLOWEEN DISPLAY IN SYRACUSE