Madame Sherri's Castle - West Chesterfield, New Hampshire

In the 1920s, Madame Antoinette Sherri was a French costume designer who catered to the actors and actresses in New York City.  She moved there from France with her husband in 1911.  Madame Sherri also did a little Vaudeville acting, dancing, and singing on the side.  During the summers she would visit with an actor friend who spent his summers in West Chesterfield, New Hampshire.  She liked the area so much that after her friend passed away, in 1927 she built a chateau style mansion in the area and would host very large extravagant parties of which most of the guests were the rich and elite from New York City.  The mansion had a grand stairway made of stone that led to a large red door which served as the entrance.  Local residents referred to her chateau as Madame Sherri's Castle.

Madame Sherri was a famous costume designer from New York who summered at her chateau near West Chesterfield, New Hampshire which today is known as Madame Sherri's Castle

The grand staircase leading to the entrance of Madame Sherri's chateau when it was intact

Madame Sherri became known to the locals in West Chesterfield as quite an eccentric. She was known to cruise around town in her cream colored Packard touring convertible wearing nothing but a fur coat.  When she was wearing clothes, she wore some of her extravagant costumes that she designed.  Besides the lavish parties that she would throw in the mansion, she lived in a much smaller cottage near the place.  That home was later discovered to be packed full of boxes and such, leaving very little room for living space.  There always seemed to be a entourage of young french beauties that was in her company which led some to believe she used the castle as a brothel.

Madame Sherri in one of her extravagant costumes

Madame Sherri's Packard touring car that she cruised around town in wearing nothing but a fur coat

As Madame Sherri grew older and had a harder time getting around she moved to a nursing home in Brattleboro, Vermont.  Over the years her castle sat empty and had been looted and vandalized several times.  In 1962 the castle burned to the ground.  Madame Sherri made arrangements to have the grounds and castle remains sold.  On the day the sale was finalized, Madame Sherri passed away.  Many believe that this meant her spirit was tied to the castle and remains there to this day.

The ruins of the grand stair case to Madame Sherri's castle today

Today, the castle ruins remain in what is now the Madame Sherri Forest near West Chesterfield, New Hampshire.  The stone foundation, fireplace and grand stairway entrance are still intact.  Many visitors to what remains of Madame Sherri's castle claim that they heard the sounds of a grand party emanating from the ruins with music playing, guests chattering and having a good time.  Others say they have seen the Madame Sherri's apparition ascending the grand staircase in one of her extravagant dresses.