Lovingly restored, this Gilded Age ‘haunted’ mansion is ready for a new owner

In 2020, Los Angeles native Cynthia Butler took a leap of faith. She saw an Instagram post rallying for bidders to “save” a 117-year-old mansion in Orange, Mass. A property auction later, she moved to the East Coast with her kids.

Having flipped houses on the side while running a video production company for the last 20 years, the Wheeler Mansion wasn’t Butler’s first home renovation project, but it would certainly be her most ambitious.

“It was five times larger than anything I had ever restored before, but there were so many character details that I was just drawn to,” said Butler, who purchased the property for $150,000.

Built in 1903, the three-story, 15,000-square-foot home was first constructed as a private residence for John W. Wheeler and his wife, Almira, who made a fortune from their sewing machine business, according to the Wheeler Mansion website.

Now, the mansion, boasting 13 bedrooms and 6.5 bathrooms, is listed for $1,147,000. It’s billed as a “turnkey boutique inn, licensed event venue, and short-term rental operation.” Among its standout features are stately pillars, a domed billiard room, a hedge maze, and jade and onyx fireplaces.

Butler has lived at the property for the last six years, renting out the carriage house and spare bedrooms on Airbnb, throwing themed parties that she posts on Eventbrite — from murder mystery nights, to balls, to New Year’s Eve bashes and hosting weddings.

“The mansion just kind of lends itself to that because it’s the perfect backdrop for so many different things,” Butler said.

In 1910, John W. Wheeler died in the house. He deeded it to the the Order of the Eastern Star, a co-ed Masonic appendant body, and in 1925, the mansion was converted into a rest home for the Ladies of the Order of the Eastern Star. The Eastern Star Home was in operation until 1990, when it sold and was again used as a private residence, according to the Wheeler Mansion website.

In 2015, financial setbacks forced the house into foreclosure. It stood empty and decaying for the next five years, suffering damage from a leaky roof and burst pipes, until Butler restored it to its former gilded-age glory.

“It was a passion project for sure. It was kind of going to be my retirement plan — slow down life a little bit, meet new people through travel, hospitality, tourism, things like that,” Butler, 55, said. “And so I started the restoration process in 2020 and was able to open my doors fully in 2024.”

Having done business in the area for 25 years, Sara Lyman, who works for the Hometown Team partnered with Real Broker in listing the property, has been witness to the mansion’s transformation.

“It’s been really, really nice to see that property go through the renaissance it has,” Lyman said. “Orange, Mass., is definitely a post-industrial community, and to have something of this caliber brought back to the glory that Cynthia has brought it back [to], and for the public to be able to use it for events, is just something very special.”

As if the property’s glamour doesn’t offer enough intrigue, the mansion is rumored to be haunted by the ghosts of John W. Wheeler and the Ladies of the Order of the Eastern Star. Butler even claims to have had paranormal experiences there herself.

“We coexist with some other-realmly people,” she said, but she called the ghosts in question more “prankster-ish” than anything else.

With Butler ready to ease into retirement, both she and Lyman hope to see the mansion continue to thrive as a community event space under new ownership.

As for John W. Wheeler and the Ladies of the Order of the Eastern Star?

“Cynthia’s lived in the property for the last six years, and none of the ghosts have scared her off,” Lyman joked. “They’ve all been very friendly to her.”