Haunted House from Hell

Haunted House from Hell

At about six-thirty P.M., Monday, January 16th, 2012, the Portsmouth Fire Department responded to a fire at 1914 7th Street, a property previously owned by the bankrupt Shane DeSimone. Police Chief Bill Raison told the Portsmouth Daily Times he believes the fire was deliberately set, possibly by a firebug.

This is the house A.D.—

After DeSimone acquired it,

But before his bankruptcy

And before a firebug fired it.

It’s a fiery hell to a parson—

To a firebug it’s fuel.

Anywhere else it’s arson—

In Portsmouth it’s urban renewal.







Still-standing now, after the fire,
It’s a burned-out, asbestos-shingled shell.
But will it, like Dracula, never expire—
This haunted house from hell?