Steaks & Spirits The Country Squire is a local haunt in more ways than one By Emory Rakestraw
It’s a typical night at The Country Squire Restaurant, Inn and Winery. Diners sip martinis and Manhattans when suddenly, from the idle dartboard, darts whiz through the air unprovoked. Speechless patrons are mixed with nonchalant guests partial to the Squire’s haunting legend. This story recounted by current owner Iris Lennon doesn’t exist on a singular spectrum. Aside from the colorful dinner menu of Korean beef, New York strip and stuffed potatoes, the labyrinth of rooms lend themselves to tales more infamous than the restaurant’s 72-ounce “Kilt Buster” steak. “Many years ago, one of the waitresses saw a wee girl sitting on the steps,” Iris says. “Years after, four folks came out for dinner. One of the ladies wanted to take a picture. As she was snapping it, her friend turned and the wee girl was standing beside her, wearing exactly what the waitress described years ago.” Over the years, paranormal investigators have flocked to the Squire, including Port City Paranormal of Wilmington, and Haunted North Carolina Paranormal Research and Investigations. Iris welcomes each, allowing them to explore the multitude of rooms after she locks up for the night. Introduced to the Squire by a group of paranormal investigators, Michael La Chiana has been researching here since 2010 — Iris refers to him as the Squire’s in-house investigator. Using thermal cameras, audio recorders and a DSLR camera, he has captured a multitude of phenomena. Michael has recorded a girl’s voice asking the whereabouts of the Squire’s (now deceased) outdoor
cat: “See Hannah Thistle?” There’s a thermal image of a woman floating midair, and a picture of what he believes is a disembodied head poking up from a planter.
Piecemeal history With history that predates the Revolutionary War, the Squire was originally surrounded by 300 acres of family owned land. Today, it’s a seven-acre tract off NC Highway 50 between Kenansville and Warsaw. Michael believes the ghosts are a mix of souls who predate the Squire and others who tagged along with the mixed materials used by original owner Joe West, a former schoolteacher, when the restaurant was built in 1961.
The Country Squire exterior
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