Haunted mansion murder on Staten Island

The mansion -- which sits on a secluded hilltop, with a no-trespassing sign near its locked gates -- has its own stories to tell, even before the murder.

Balthasar Kreischer, a wealthy 19th-century brick manufacturer, built twin mansions for his sons, Edward and Charles, on the top of the hill at 4500 Arthur Kill Rd. in 1885, overlooking a neighborhood that was then called Kreischerville.

Conviction in mob murder at Staten Island's Kreischer Mansion

In 1886, though, the patriarch died. A few years later, his brick factory burned to the ground and was rebuilt.

In 1894, Edward Kreischer shot himself in the head at the factory, reportedly because of trouble with employees. His weeping, distraught wife is among the ghosts people claim to hear at the mansion, even though theirs was the one that burned down.

By 1899, the final member of the family had retired and the once-thriving business passed out of the family and eventually closed.

During World War I, when just about anything German became taboo, the name of the neighborhood was changed to Charleston, and most traces of the family disappeared, including large stone tablets at a nearby church that publicly thanked Kreischers for their work in the community.

In 1996, the mansion became a restaurant, and patrons would regularly talk of strange happenings and supernatural experiences.