👋 Hello Friends!
I’m a little excited. I’ve been waiting for years to explore today’s haunted Nova Scotia location.
And my experience didn’t disappoint.
This week, I hope you’ll join me for dinner as we explore one of Halifax’s most haunted locations: the 5 Fishermen.
Before the Restaurant
Built in the 1800s, the 5 Fishermen restaurant comes with a lengthy history.
I’ll give you the Coles Notes version.
This historic building:
⛪️ Originally served as a school for St. Paul’s Anglican Church (located directly across the street and is also worth a visit).
🎨 Became the Halifax Victorian School of Art, the founding school for what’s known today as the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design.
🪦 Turned into a mortuary named, Snow and Sons. This mortuary played a major role in two world disasters: the sinking of the Titanic and the Halifax Explosion.
Both the Titanic and Halifax Explosion had countless bodies moving through the building at one time. There are even stories about coffins lining the streets outside because there just wasn’t room to house them all.
Today, the building is home to the 5 Fishermen, a restaurant that specializes in seafood and steak.
But.
With a history of so many deceased moving in and out of the building, is it any wonder that people believe spirits remain behind?
The 5 Fishermen
I’ve wanted to visit the 5 Fishermen since I heard about it while on a ghost tour in Halifax many years ago.
When I heard about the record number of people who’ve had a ghostly encounter there, I knew I needed to add it to my ghost hunting list.
(Seriously. You can find countless examples.)
So when I was recently in Nova Scotia, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to find out if the stories were true.
It’s Dinner Time!
Eldest Sister made a reservation for the last day of my trip. If anything, the plan was to have a great meal before catching my flight the next day.
The restaurant’s been renovated recently (during COVID closures, I believe). As you can see from the pictures, the space is lovely, the ambiance inviting.
It doesn’t, however, scream: I’M HAUNTED!
Despite this, we settled in for our meal, which I quite enjoyed (steak tartare to start, followed by a gorgeous seafood linguine dish that I’m still salivating over. 10/10!).
More people started to arrive, and the restaurant grew livelier, as did our conversation.
I had all but forgotten about my ghost-hunting plans.
But Wee Nephew did not.
Just after I ordered dessert, our server asked if anyone needed anything else.
Wee Nephew, with all the seriousness of a 9-year-old fascinated by ghosts, said, “I heard this place is haunted. Is it true?”
Our server chuckled. “It is,” she said. “But mainly on the third floor.”
“Can I go look?” Wee Nephew asked.
“Sure,” our server told him. “Make sure to check out the washrooms.”
I looked at Eldest Sister (his mom) and said, “I’ll go with him.” I grabbed my phone and headed for the stairs.
The Third Floor
There’s a sign on the door that leads to the third floor.
It indicates that the washrooms are closed. Patrons should use the ones by the kitchen.
Eager to explore, I thought nothing of this note.
I did not take it as a warning.
Wee Nephew and I climbed the stairs together until his excitement got the better of him and he raced ahead.
Until he reached the third floor.
He stopped in his tracks. When I reached him, I stopped in my tracks.
Why?
Because I immediately wanted to get the hell out of there.
I’m Not Alone . . .
But I didn’t turn around. I kept walking.
Now, I’m going to do my best to explain the feeling that came over me as I moved down the hallway to the washrooms on the third floor.
I heard this low hum and felt its vibration. It only got stronger and louder the farther I got from the stairs.
I had to fight against the urge to turn around. I didn’t feel welcomed or wanted in that space. My stomach turned. I thought I might be sick.
What I can tell you for certain is that I’ve never experienced this feeling before, not during any of my previous ghost-hunting adventures.
And I didn’t like it.
Wee Nephew went to explore the men’s washroom, while I went into the women’s.
The low hum came from the direction of the women’s stalls. I couldn’t bring myself to even check them out. At this point, every fiber of my being told me to stay put— or run.
So I stopped in front of the mirrors.
I hesitated. I wanted to take a photo of the stalls, but I just couldn’t take one.
I took a photo of the mirrors instead.
The moment my finger hit the screen, Wee Nephew started shouting from the men’s washroom.
I heard him run for the stairs.
At that moment, all I could think about was how quickly he would evacuate the entire restaurant with his panicked shouts.
So I rushed from the bathroom and caught him just as he reached the first landing.
“The door!” he shouted at me. “The door! It shut behind me! The door shut behind me!”
I did my best to try and calm him down, but he did not want to stay in that stairwell any longer than I did.
We got back to our table. I barely said a word.
Eldest Sister’s Reaction
Mere moments after we returned to our table, Eldest Sister decided she wanted to check things out. Wee Nephew went with her.
They weren’t gone for very long.
When she returned, her face looked grim. She said, “I didn’t like that at all,” before she sat down.
She had strong feelings of sadness and despair— to the point where she wanted to cry. She also felt she had to keep Wee Nephew by her side, a feeling that ultimately had her telling him they needed to leave.
The Server’s Opinion
When our server returned with the bill, she asked Wee Nephew what he thought. He told her a stall door shut on him on its own.
Our server didn’t seem at all phased.
“They’ve renovated it recently and I still can’t go up there,” she told us. “You should have seen it before, the hardwood floors were all warped . . . I mean, there was something about those floors that I couldn’t stomach. Seriously. It made me feel sick to be up there.”
She paused. Her gaze grew unfocused.
“Yeah,” she continued with a series of sharp nods of her head. “I really don’t like to go up there.”
The Third Floor Ghosts
Before I visit a haunted location, I don’t like to dive into too many details. The reason for this is because I don’t want anything to influence my experience.
Here’s what I learned after my visit to the 5 Fishermen.
Legend has it that one of the spirits on the third floor of the 5 Fishermen is a woman searching for her child.
But she can’t find her child because . . .
There’s also a malevolent spirit who thrives on keeping the woman and her child apart.
That’s the kind of energy I believe I felt when I went up to the third floor.
A Little Food for Thought
The fact that a door closed on Wee Nephew, plus Eldest Sister's strong reaction to keeping him by her side leads me to believe that maybe, this malevolent spirit had other plans in mind.
(That, and there’s a damn good reason the restaurant doesn’t want its patrons using the third-floor washroom.)
If you haven’t been to the 5 Fishermen, I highly recommend stopping by, at least for a bite to eat! The food and service were truly wonderful.
However, if you’re looking to do a little ghost hunting (like me), I would recommend you wait until after you finish eating to explore the third floor.
Thanks for joining me for this week’s episode of i hope it’s a ghost! If you haven’t already subscribed, you can join this ghoul-loving community by clicking the button below.
Pssst . . . If you have been to the 5 Fishermen, I’d love to hear about your experience. Did you head to the third-floor washrooms? Have you done a more extensive tour of the building? Did you feel or see anything unusual? Let me know in the comments.
As always, thanks for reading. ✌️🖤👻