Salem's Lot

1

From a scrapbook kept by Ben Mears (all clippings from the Portland ‘Press-Herald’):

November 19, 1975 (p. 27):

JERUSALEM’S LOT-The Charles V. Pritchett family, who bought a farm in the Cumberland County town of Jerusalem’s Lot only a month ago, are moving out because things keep going bump in the night, according to Charles and Amanda Pritchett, who moved here from Portland. The farm, a local landmark on Schoolyard Hill, was previously owned by Charles Griffen. Griffen’s father was the owner of Sunshine Dairy, Inc., which was absorbed by the Slewfoot Dairy Corporation in 1962. Charles Griffen, who sold the farm through a Portland realtor for what Pritchett called ‘a bargain basement price’, could not be reached for comment. Amanda Pritchett first told her husband about the ‘funny noises’ in the hayloft shortly after…

January 4, 1976 (p. 1):

JERUSALEM’S LOT-A bizarre car crash occurred last night or early this morning in the small southern Maine town of Jerusalem’s Lot. Police theorize from skid marks found near the scene that the car, a late-model sedan, was traveling at an excessive speed when it left the road and struck a Central Maine Power utility pole. The car was a total wreck, but although blood was found on the front seat and the dashboard, no passengers have yet been found. Police say that the car was registered to Mr Gordon Phillips of Scarborough. According to a neighbor, Phillips and his family had been on their way to see relatives in Yarmouth. Police theorize that Phillips, his wife, and their two children may have wandered off in a daze and become lost. Plans for a search have been…

February 14, 1976 (p. 4):

CUMBERLAND-Mrs Fiona Coggins, a widow who lived alone on the Smith Road in West Cumberland, was reported missing this morning to the Cumberland County sheriff’s office by her niece, Mrs Gertrude Hersey. Mrs Hersey told police officers that her aunt was a shut-in and is in poor health. Sheriff’s deputies are investigating, but claim that at this point it is impossible to say what…

February 2 7, 1976 (p. 6):

FALMOUTH-John Farrington, an elderly farmer and lifelong Falmouth resident was found dead in his barn early this morning by his son-in-law, Frank Vickery. Vickery said Farrington was lying face down outside a low haymow, a pitchfork near one hand. County Medical Examiner David Rice says Farrington apparently died of a massive hemorrhage, or perhaps internal bleeding…

May 20, 1976 (p. 17):

PORTLAND-Cumberland County game wardens have been instructed by the Maine State Wildlife Service to be on the lookout for a wild dog pack that may be running in the Jerusalem’s Lot-Cumberland-Falmouth area. During the last month, several sheep have been found dead with their throats and bellies mangled. In some cases, sheep have been disemboweled. Deputy Game Warden Upton Pruitt said ‘As you know, this situation has worsened a good deal in southern Maine…

May 29, 1976 (p. 1):

JERUSALEM ‘S LOT-Possible foul play is suspected in the disappearance of the Daniel Holloway family, who had moved into a house on the Taggart Stream Road in this small Cumberland County township recently. Police were alerted by Daniel Holloway’s grandfather, who became alarmed at the repeated failure of anyone to answer his telephone calls.

The Holloways and their two children moved onto the Taggart Stream Road in April, and had complained to both friends and relatives of hearing ‘funny noises’ after dark.

Jerusalem’s Lot has been at the center of several strange occurrences during the last several months, and a great many families have…

June 4, 1976 (p.2):

CUMBERLAND-Mrs Elaine Tremont, a widow who owns a small house on the Back Stage Road in the western part of this small Cumberland County village, was admitted to Cumberland Receiving Hospital early this morning with a heart attack. She told a reporter from this paper that she had heard a scratching noise at her bedroom window while she was watching television, and looked up to see a face peering in at her.

‘It was grinning,’ Mrs Tremont said. ‘It was horrible. I’ve never been so frightened in my life. And since that family was killed just a mile away on the Taggart Stream Road, I’ve been frightened all the time.’

Mrs Tremont referred to the Daniel Holloway family, who disappeared from their Jerusalem’s Lot residence some time early last week. Police said the connection was being investigated, but…