With very few houses, a long pathway and wind that seems to whisper in your ears as you walk past, Seven Gables has been known to cause quite a fright in anybody within range of its trail. The Seven Gables road is believed to be one of the most haunted roads in Michigan and is located on Dexter Trail heading towards Dansville. The end of the road reveals a red gate tightly chained up. Beyond the gate is a long state-owned trail leading to a now torn down residence.
The reason many people avoid this trail is that there is a chilling tale that accompanies it. Legend has it that a woman who practiced witchcraft lived beyond the red, rusted gate, and late one night, looters came through, trapped her in the house and burned it to the ground. Before she died, the woman cursed the land, making it uninhabitable.
According to the lore surrounding the trail, that was not the end. Years later, on the very land that “the witch” cursed, a family built and lived in a large stone house that has since been demolished. On a night like any other, it is said that the husband went insane and tied his wife and children down and set fire to the house. Later that night, he took his own life and hung himself in the “hanging tree.”
While the legend continues to circulate, locals admit that too many strange things have happened, so there has to be evil lurking there.
Senior Alaina Kellenberger visited Seven Gables Road six years ago and said that her experience was unlike anything she has ever felt.
“I was with a friend and her parents decided to go past the gate, and as they did, the car alarm went off. We thought this was the end, we were going to die,” said Kellenberger.
Kellenberger was terrified during the entire visit and they took the car alarm going off as a sign that they needed to leave right then.
“I do want to go back because we left quickly, but I would definitely want to go with someone else,” Kellenberger said.
Cat Ryan, a well-known medium, has visited Seven Gables road several times. She said that every visit to the trail has been different.
“One time, I picked up a man dressed up as a milkman,” Ryan said.
As a medium, she is able to connect with the spirits of the dead, so visiting Seven Gables is an entirely different experience for her than it is for the average person.
“I felt watched most of the time I was there. Every time I go there I feel watched. But I am a medium. It’s really like a heavy feeling, like I feel observed for the entire time I’m there,” Ryan said.
Although she can feel watched even when she isn’t at a location with a haunted backstory, she feels different about Seven Gables Road.
“I’m definitely aware that it is an intense place,” Ryan said.
