Sea captain's ghost said to haunt Dover

By JIM HADDADIN
Democrat Staff Writer

DOVER — The summer solstice has gone by and Halloween is still months away, but for ghost hunters, June is the prime season for spotting spirits in Dover.

And with one "salty" sea captain from the city's past slated to make his return this week, residents may be hearing a few extra bumps in the night.

According to researchers at Hollow Hill, a website for ghost enthusiasts, witnesses have reported seeing an orb of light near the intersection of Central Avenue and Washington Street. The orb is said to be one-foot across, floats at least three feet above the ground and sometimes appears closer to the waterfront.

Fiona Broome, a moderator at Hollow Hill, says that the orb is the manifestation of an eccentric figure from Dover's history, Capt. Richard "Salt Eye" Storr.

Broome says that Storr was a sea captain who lived alone in a log cabin off Dover Point Road during the late 17th century. Storr reportedly sailed from England to New Hampshire as a child with his father, Augustine, and his brother, William.

At 12 years old, he began working as a crew member on sailing ships. His gruff demeanor earned him the nickname "Salt Eye" and Storr eventually commanded his own schooner.

On June 28, 1689, when local Native American tribes exacted their revenge on the settlers at Cocheco for an earlier betrayal, Storr was at his home by the river and escaped with his life.

According to local folklore, Storr returns near the anniversary of the Cocheco massacre every year to watch over Dover residents.

Unfortunately, the details of the captain's story don't check out with local information. Researchers at the Dover Public Library and at the University of New Hampshire's Dimond Library could find no record of the Storr family in local genealogies and town histories. The log cabin near the river doesn't appear on the oldest map of the city, and Storr's tombstone is not among those in the cemetery that dates to 1633.

There is, however, one piece of evidence to suggest that the captain may have really existed.

In the Exeter Public Library, two books reference a man named Augustine Storr who moved to the town in 1638 with his wife, Susana Hutchinson, and his sons, one of whom was named William.

Despite the thin evidence to support Hollow Hill's story, spiritual medium Raven Duclos is convinced that Dover is teeming with restless souls.

Duclos is the lead investigator of Ghost Quest, a team of paranormal researchers from the Manchester area. Five members from the group arrived in Dover on Sunday afternoon with tape recorders, digital cameras, an infrared sensor, and an electromagnetic field detector. They conducted a preliminary investigation to see if they could make contact with Storr.

Clad in all black, Duclos led her group up and down the streets using her special ability to sense spirits in her "mind's eye," a gift she says that she was born with. She likens her heightened sixth sense to other natural human abilities, like playing professional baseball or concert piano. Duclos claims that she can view the spirits of deceased humans that exist in a different dimension known as the "astral plain."

Raven was overwhelmed by the scene that unfolded as she walked up Central Avenue. She described women and children running from the buildings, militiamen shouting and brandishing muskets and bodies lining the intersection.

"It's almost like the fighting came up suddenly, like the people weren't expecting it," Raven says. "It wasn't mindless either, though. There was a reason for it."

Other members of the crew follow beside Duclos and stop to take photos as she paces up the street, conversing with spirits.

Duclos and the crew were unable to locate Storr during their investigation, but they were astounded by the amount of spiritual energy in the city and plan to return with their full eight-member team in the fall.

A trained medium, Duclos says that Storr is trying to communicate with Dover residents because his death has not yet been validated and his story remains untold.

"Spirits are like you and me," Duclos says. "They just want to be heard."