Sag Harbor home has ties to Underground Railroad

When the owner of an 1840s Sag Harbor house first moved in, she noticed one of the downstairs closets had a dirt floor.

“I always said that is the weirdest thing — why would there just be dirt?” says Kristina Gale, who purchased the house in 1995 and recently put it on the market for $799,999. “What people had told me was that it was indeed the place that a tunnel went from my house to the church next door.”

Though Gale says she was never able to find written proof, she has been told by many in the community that her house was, in conjunction with St. David A.M.E. Zion Church, which still stands next door, part of the Underground Railroad.

A story from the East Hampton Star in 1998 said that the church, which has two trap doors, was believed to be a stop for slaves traveling to New England and Canada. One of the founders of the church was Charles Plato, who Gale says, based on research by historical archaeologist Allison Manfra McGovern, is believed to have been the original owner of the house.

The proximity to the church and link to Plato serves as the greatest evidence of the house’s possible connection to the Underground Railroad, she says.

“But there is no definitive proof that I was able to find yet beyond the old-timers saying, ‘Oh yeah, everybody knew that,’ ” Gale says.

The house, which features original wide-plank hardwood flooring and exposed beams, has five bedrooms and two full bathrooms. The main level of the legal two-family house includes a living room with a fireplace, a dining room, kitchen, three bedrooms and bath. Upstairs is a living room, kitchen, two bedrooms and a bath.

On the upper level there is also a low closet that Gale says “if you were to go in there, you could go all the way around the upstairs of the house and come out on the other side of the house. I’ve had people tell me that’s classic for trying to hide people.”

In the yard, which features a stone well and firepit, Gale says she has found many relics, from old bottles to porcelain dolls.

“Stuff gets exposed every time it rains,” she says. “It just kind of shows up.”

The house, which is listed with Thomas Hopkins and Jennifer Torre of Alexander Madison Realty, sits on a .18-acre corner property. The taxes, according to the listing, are $1,781.

Gale says a house in the area from the same time period was recently razed, rebuilt and put on the market for $3 million.

“That broke my heart,” she says. “I would like [a buyer] who loves the history of the town and the house and is not just looking to build some big, new modern house. I think there is plenty of that around here. It would be really nice for somebody to really appreciate the house.”