THE PAINE HOUSE
MUSEUM
Coventry, Rhode Island
THE PAINE HOUSE
Built around 1691, the Paine House is considered one of Coventry’s oldest surviving structures. Originally associated with Samuel Bennett’s sawmill, the house was enlarged in the 1740s and later operated as an inn and tavern before becoming the longtime home of the Paine family.
The property was donated to the Western Rhode Island Civic Historical Society in 1953 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
THE CASE
The house has developed a paranormal reputation through investigations, including a series conducted by RISEUP Paranormal. Reported activity includes EVPs, responses to knock-response sessions, unexplained movement of furniture, and disturbances on the second floor. Some investigations have reportedly produced communications associated with former residents, including Sarah Whipple Stone and her family.
The museum now hosts Historic Paranormal events and paranormal investigations, making the site’s supernatural reputation part of its modern history. More than any other location, the Paine House and RISEUP are synonymous with each other. We have been given unfettered access to the location since 2010 and conducted group and public investigations there until 2023.
Our tenure there has not ended, as the historical society still allows us to conduct private team investigations there on occasion. One of the most gratifying aspects of our time has been the corrections and additions to the historical record of the owners and families that once called it home. It has turned into what can only be called a “gem” in the world of paranormal research, and RISEUP truly feels it is a second home to its members throughout the years.
This was our final year at the Paine House as group demands and family responsibilities required more latitude on our part. New opportunities presented themselves, and we chose to allow ourselves the ability to explore, travel, and take advantage of them.
Nonetheless, we still maintain a presence there, and the historical society has continued to welcome us on occasions when we want to keep in touch with its longtime residents, with whom we have developed close ties and friendships based on trust and mutual curiosity.
Our visit in the spring was more than another series of communications. Because of the interest and industriousness of Christian Kartanowicz, who resides in Arizona, we were able to present a very special memento to Sarah Whipple. Christian has had a long interest in the Paine House and the Whipple family since watching our live investigation a couple of years earlier.
His research led him to a daguerreotype displayed online of Sarah and her sister Abby, taken when they were teenagers in Providence, Rhode Island. We presented a framed copy to her and, by extension, the historical society. We hope it finds a place of prominence in the house for generations to come.
