McNinch House Restaurant

Posted: 04.07.2025 | Updated: 04.07.2025

How strong is a person’s tie to their home? Is there an inherent bond that will anchor one’s spirit to the building in which they were born or raised? The specter bound to the McNinch House Restaurant suggests that a strong emotional attachment is all that’s needed. 

Mattie McNinch was one of Samuel S. McNinch’s five children, most of whom passed away within years of each other. Yet, her ghost is said to accompany diners at the long-since converted McNinch House Restaurant. A popular haunted Charlotte restaurant, the McNinch House holds onto a largely wholesome history that at least one person felt was worth sticking around for.

The Queen City has a long and often tumultuous history. Specters of fallen soldiers and the ghosts of the city’s past await to have their stories heard. Lend them your ear by booking a Charlotte ghost tour today.

Why is the McNinch House Restaurant Haunted?

Whether as a residual haunting cycling through years of happiness or an intelligent apparition curious about the eatery built around her, Mattie McNinch is believed to continue to be a fixture of the McNinch House Restaurant. As such, this restaurant in Charlotte is known for much more than its simple yet classy menu. 

The McNinch name had been tied to the property on North Church Street for decades. It’s where children like Mattie and her siblings Julia, Grace, and Samuel grew up. Memories of the tight-knit family replay within the old home, fostered by the last of the McNinches to remain at the property. 

Quick Facts:

• The McNinch patriarch, Samuel, served two years as mayor.
• Before purchasing the home, the McNinches lost a baby girl.
• Samuel McNinch was the son of the founder of a local fire company.

Early Years of the McNinch House Restaurant

Before the namesake family moved into the property on North Church Street, it first needed to be built. That honor went to Vinton Liddell, who commissioned the Queen Ann and Shingle-style home in 1891. A two-and-a-half-story structure, Liddell’s home was built amongst lively greenery and flourishing trees. 

The home’s most striking feature is its unique roofline, which has multiple peaks and angles. According to local legend, this property could have contributed to the building’s future haunts.    

A businessman from Charlotte, Liddell came to the area in 1875 following his father’s founding of the Liddell Company. In a spectral sense, Liddell’s presence in the future McNinch property was unremarkable. 

Liddell retired sometime around 1907 and sold his home to Charles M. Patterson. Little is known about Patterson, save that he only remained in the Church Street home for three years before selling it to Samuel McNinch.

The McNinch Legacy in Charlotte

Samuel McNinch moved his family into the Church Street residence years after the McNinch name had already established its legacy in Charlotte. Franklin Alonzo McNinch, Samuel’s father, served in the Civil War before stepping in as the city’s chief of police for three terms. 

For another 15 years, Franklin sat as a trial justice. As a founding father of the Pioneer Fire Company, Franklin was elected as the chief of the Volunteer Fire Department. 

Following in his father’s footsteps, Samuel, too, served the Charlotte community. Though his money was made in real estate, his legacy was established when he was elected as Charlotte’s mayor. He sat in the mayoral seat for two years, from 1905 to 1907.

Samuel purchased Liddell’s home from Patterson at the end of his term and moved his wife, Sarah, and five children, including Mattie Magill, onto Church Street. Sadly, years prior, in 1893, Sarah had given birth to a girl, Pearl, who died at the age of 2. The circumstances of her death remain unrecorded.

The Death of Eli McNinch

Their infant’s death wasn’t the last tragedy the McNinches would endure. Amidst notable events like having President Howard Taft visit their home for the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, tragedy again struck. 

On August 8, 1915, at only 20 years old, Samuel and Julia’s son, Elijah “Eli”, passed away. Weeks before, Eli suffered from appendicitis. Despite swift medical intervention and continued surgeries, Eli’s condition worsened over four weeks. Eli McNinch eventually died while at the Charlotte Sanatorium.

Though grief-stricken, the family remained a tight unit and stayed in Charlotte. As time passed, the McNinch family slowly died off. Samuel McNinch died in 1929 after a sudden heart attack. 

Julia followed in 1960, living to 93 before being buried beside her love. The remaining McNinch children — Grace, Julia, Samuel Jr., and Mattie — all survived into the 1970s. The last of them to die, Mattie retained ownership of the Church Street home. Before her passing in 1977, the home was petitioned to be added to the National Register of Historic Places.

From Home to Restaurant

After Mattie’s death, entrepreneur Ellen Davis purchased the McNinch home. Her vision for the property was quite unique, and she immediately took on heavy renovations. In 1989, Davis opened the McNinch House Restaurant, where patrons could come and dine amidst a small slice of Charlotte’s history. 

The Charlotte restaurant has been in operation since, closing briefly in 2020 for COVID. While the McNinch House Restaurant menu may be known for its elegant dining choices, like filet mignon in a port wine reduction or Chilean sea bass with a southern succotash, the restaurant has also become a venue for travelers in tune with the otherworldly.

Beneath the welcoming air of the cozy eatery lingers a discernable energy. To many who dine at the McNinch House Restaurant, it feels like unseen eyes gaze down upon them. 

Hauntings of the McNinch House Restaurant

Over time, the staff at the McNinch house grew accustomed to the unexplainable. In the kitchen, utensils move on their own, and pantry supplies go missing. An inescapable cool draft often circulates throughout the restaurant, its source undeterminable. For many, it’s a sign that someone has remained behind. 

Since the McNinches inhabited the home for the longest span, it’s expected that one of the heirs, or Samuel himself, would have stayed behind to watch over the property.

Customers and employees of the haunted restaurant believe that the spirit is Mattie, who refuses to let her family’s memories go. Having cared for the Church Street home until her final days, Mattie has a strong connection to its past. Maybe she’s hoping to reunite with Eli, or perhaps the young man is trying to reclaim the years he lost with his family. 

Whoever does haunt the McNinch House Restaurant is no threat to the establishment. Though at times mischievous, the unseen specter remains a harmless quirk that can elevate the restaurant’s appeal.

Visit Haunted Charlotte

The McNinch ghost manifests not from tragedy but from dedication and love. However, not all of Charlotte’s haunted places have such a comfortable aura. Some teeter on the edges of darkness, desperate to rejoin the realm of the living. It’s these ghostly hotspots that elevate a Charlotte ghost tour. 

Book your haunting walk through the city today and join Charlotte Ghosts on a journey into the unknown. Read more of Charlotte’s haunts on our blog, and follow us on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.

Sources:

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/38966585/samuel_sylvanus-mcninch
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq8Yg4XsdwE
• https://www.mcninchhouserestaurant.com/about
• https://historicnewspapers.sc.edu/lccn/sn86063778/1915-08-12/ed-1/seq-1.pdf