Paranormal Oddities at Basking Ridge's Astor Estate Town Hall

👻 The 3rd Floor “Spirit of the Astor Estate” in Basking Ridge. A spirit has haunted owners and workers wandering the third floor causing ghostly havoc at times.Reported by a number of Bernards Township Employees at the Astor Estate.

Bernards Township Employees

Believe it or not, the dead are alive in central New Jersey, especially in northern Somerset County. The question is not whether they are real or not, but whether they are disturbing or friendly. As we share, the Mr. Local History Project is looking for the public to share their paranormal experiences they’ve experienced at the end of this story.

Mr. Local History Archives -Astor Estate — The Astor Estate in 1968, just after Bernards Township acquired the property, was significant. Source: Courier News.

The House on the Hill

Perched on a quiet rise in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, the grand Astor Estate has stood watch for more than a century. Built in 1912, the brick-and-timber Tudor mansion was first home to pharmaceutical manufacturer Samuel Owen, later passing through several families — including the Astors — before becoming the Bernards Township Municipal Building in 1968.

Its twenty rooms, sweeping staircase, and high third floor tell the story of a bygone era of servants’ bells, fireplaces, and formal gardens. But within those walls, another story lingers, one not found in the town records or architectural surveys. It’s the story of a little girl, a loyal spirit, and a bond that stretched beyond a lifetime.

A Child and Her Ghost

When Dulcie Greene Dupont lived in the Astor house as a child, her bedroom was tucked away on the third floor, a quiet level once used by the household staff. Long hallways, low ceilings, and the soft creak of century-old floorboards gave the space a secretive feel.

At first, Dulcie thought the sounds she heard at night were simply the old house settling. But soon, she began speaking with someone no one else could see.
The voice was gentle, the presence comforting — a kind companion who seemed to watch over her when she was alone.

When she told her mother about her invisible friend, concern turned to alarm. Determined to understand what her daughter was experiencing, her mother decided to stay in the room one night. As the two settled into bed, the house grew still. The wind outside died. The old timbers held their breath. And then, just after midnight, a faint light appeared near the foot of Dulcie’s bed — soft, white, and shaped like a woman standing quietly in the dark. Gathering her courage, Dulcie’s mother asked,

“Are you here to harm my daughter?”

The figure tilted its head slightly, and in a whisper that both could hear, it replied,

“No. I once worked in this house. I’m only here to watch over her.”

Moments later, the light faded. The air warmed. The house fell silent again. The ghostly servant was never seen after that night, but Dulcie never forgot her.

The Return

Many years later, as part of a Mr. Local History Project, we invited Dulcie Greene Dupont, now an elderly woman, back to the place she once called home. The old Astor Estate had changed: its grand rooms now held township offices, its long hallways filled with fluorescent light and filing cabinets.

But the third floor, her old domain, remained much the same, narrow, creaky, and still carrying the faint scent of time. With a small smile, Dulcie climbed the familiar staircase, pausing on each step as if greeting an old friend. When she reached her childhood room, she closed her eyes. “I still feel her,” she said softly. “The same gentle feeling, she’s still here.” It was as though time had folded back upon itself, the little girl and her guardian spirit reunited once more, inside the walls that had kept their secret for so long.

The Spirit That Remains

Today, township employees still whisper about strange occurrences on the third floor.
Some report footsteps in empty hallways. Others hear doors closing when no one is there. A few have caught the faint echo of a woman’s voice — soft, distant, and always upstairs.

One Township Employee worker recalled,

“I was up there alone, and it sounded like someone was walking right behind me. I turned around, and no one was there. I got out fast.”

Another joked nervously,

“She just doesn’t like anyone who doesn’t live here.”

Whether it’s the same spirit who once watched over Dulcie or a new presence altogether, no one can say. But few who’ve worked late in the building doubt that something still moves quietly through those rooms, unseen but never absent.

A House with Memory

The Astor Estate has lived many lives: a family mansion, a home to laughter and secrets, and now the seat of township government.
Yet some houses hold on to their stories, and the Astor Estate seems to remember its own better than most.

Maybe the spirit that watched over little Dulcie still keeps her post, protecting the house she once served, reminding each new visitor that the past never truly leaves,it only whispers from the shadows, waiting to be heard.

Second Ghost – Alice Owen

Local lore tells of another spirit said to wander the halls of the Astor Estate, the ghost of Alice Burford Owen, the English-born wife of the mansion’s original owner, Samuel Owen. Alice, a refined woman of notable lineage and a relative of Sir James Horlick, was known for her grace and devotion to the home her husband built in 1916. Samuel Owen, a pharmaceutical manufacturer credited with popularizing malted milk in the United States, died in Daytona Beach in 1936. Many believe Alice’s spirit remained behind.

Those who have walked the second-floor hallway of the former mansion, now the Bernards Township Municipal Building, have reported a sudden chill, the faint scent of lilac perfume, and the uncanny feeling of being watched. One visitor who returned to the building years later claimed she could still sense Alice’s presence as she ascended the staircase, quietly saying, “She’s here, just as before.”

Dulcina Green Interview

If you’d like to learn about what it was like growing up in the Astor Estate and the Bernardsville Mountain, take a listen. This is when we discovered the ghost story!

Author’s Note

Dulcie’s story stands as one of the most personal and enduring ghost tales in the Somerset Hills.
It bridges history, memory, and the unseen, the way only the oldest houses can.
And whether you believe in ghosts or not, one thing is certain:
The Astor Estate still has a soul.

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