| A hotbed of paranormal activity surrounding the ruins | | | | Most of the villagers fled town in fear of the mill. |
| of the Ramtail Factory (Foster Woolen Factory), | | | | Visitations by The RI Paranormal Group document |
| founded by William Potter in 1799, and mysteriously | | | | both audible and physical manifestations as well as |
| destroyed by fire in the 1880s, continues to haunt the | | | | photographic confirmation which more than confirmed |
| hollows of a town fifteen miles from the capital city of | | | | the area is quite active - "The feeling of being |
| Providence, situated on the extreme western | | | | watched closely and followed is a given at Ramtail |
| boundary of Rhode Island, bordered by Killingly and | | | | Factory!" Nevertheless, without wool gathering, the lure |
| Sterling in Connecticut. Once primarily an agricultural | | | | of Foster's rural charm is more than enough to rope |
| community, Foster remains sparsely settled as most | | | | you in with bells. |
| of its acreage is hilly or heavily forested. The town is | | | | Foster Town House (181 Howard Hill Rd.) -built in 1796 |
| rich in historic resources - homes, farmsteads, stone | | | | and still in use, it is the oldest government meeting |
| walls, roads, and yes-mill ruins-namely, the Ramtail | | | | house of its type in the United States where town |
| Factory, officially cited by the 1885 Rhode Island State | | | | meetings have been held continuously since 1801. |
| Census as being haunted. The area, considered part | | | | The Captain George Dorrance House (Jencks Rd.) - |
| of the Scituate Reservoir, is protected by the | | | | an historic house constructed in 1720 and added to the |
| Providence Water Supply Board, so no trespassing is | | | | National Historic Register in 1972. |
| allowed except for the RI Paranormal Research | | | | Nordland Farm (50 South Killingly Rd.) - an historic farm |
| Group presently conducting a full investigation in this | | | | in Foster Center with beautiful scenery, pastures, |
| hotbed of spirited unrest. Nevertheless, native Rhode | | | | forest, gardens and trails. One may picnic on the lawn |
| Islanders and out-of-towners alike are sure to acquire | | | | overlooking Moosup Valley. |
| an appreciation of Foster lore to foster an interest in | | | | Swamp Meadow Covered Bridge (Central Pike) - |
| exploring other historical and geographical haunts in the | | | | Rhode Island's only covered bridge on a public road, |
| township. | | | | this 40-foot-long replica of an early 19th-century |
| Lure of the lore: By 1813, William Potter expanded mill | | | | wooden bridge crosses Hemlock Brook north of |
| operations and made son-in-law, Peleg Walker, a | | | | Foster Center. It was completed in 1994 by an all |
| partner. Walker, no pun intended, walked the beat as a | | | | volunteer crew and built with donated lumber cut from |
| night watchman, holding onto his lantern while making | | | | local forests. |
| his rounds to all the buildings, and pulling the cord to | | | | Jerimoth Hill (RI's highest elevation - 812 ft.) - located |
| sound the bell in the tower to summon workers for the | | | | near the Connecticut border, the hill was once one of |
| day shift. Supposedly after racking up mileage on his | | | | the most controversial high points due to property |
| shoes over several years, an argument between | | | | complications; now accessible to the public 7 days a |
| partners brewed. Purportedly Walker retorted to the | | | | week, 8 AM - 4 PM. The actual highpoint itself is a |
| gist that "one day they'd have to grab the keys from a | | | | rocky outcrop in the woods at the northwest edge of |
| dead man." As prophesized, on May 18, 1822, Potter | | | | the clearing. There is a register in a mailbox for visitors |
| walked into the factory and found his son-in-law had | | | | to sign. |
| hung himself from the bell rope with the keys visibly | | | | Vivid details of the lore surrounding the Ramtail |
| hanging out of his pocket. Shortly after his demise, | | | | Factory ruins of Foster may be found in Haunted |
| strange events occurred: the bell tower struck at the | | | | Rhode Island by Thomas D'Agostino and The |
| stroke of midnight though no one pulled the cord, | | | | Encyclopedia of Haunted Places by Jeff Belanger, |
| prompting replacement of the bell; the townspeople | | | | where you may trespass and tarry in the deep woods |
| witnessed the mill running without anyone operating it, | | | | of words. However, the bell tolls for Rhode scholars |
| whereby the water flowed in the opposite direction of | | | | and out-of-towners eagerly roped into exploring visible |
| the stream; the apparition of Walker making his night | | | | historical and geographical haunts in the rural enclave |
| rounds holding a lantern; the mysterious fire. | | | | of Foster. |