Any Stephen King Constant Reader with a cool $255,000 can be the proud owner of the Orrington, Maine house that inspired the author to write the horror novel “Pet Sematary.”

‘Pet Sematary’ inspiration is up for sale in Orrington, Maine

It was back in 1978 that King and his family stayed in the four bedroom home in the Maine neighborhood of Orrington, which had been standing on that spot for 113 years. According to a report by the Bangor Daily News, the family lived there for a year while King was writer-in-residence at the nearby University of Maine.

King told their reporter that he didn’t remember the number of the house, but immediately recognized it when he saw the property listing on a real estate website. He does remember that the house was across from a store belonging to one Julio Desanctis. In fact, he said he wrote “Pet Sematary” in the storeroom of that store.

Smucky the cat dies on the road outside the house

The horror writer said on his website that his inspiration for the 1983 book came after his daughter’s cat named Smucky was hit on the road outside the Orrington home by a truck.

The family buried Smucky behind the home in a pet cemetery. King said he remembers crossing that road, thinking to himself that if a cat could be killed there, what if it had been a child that died? King added that they had experiences of their son Owen running out toward the road, and he managed to grab him just in time, pulling him back to safety.

After a dream that night involving a reanimated corpse walking on that particular road, King started thinking about death and burial and all it entails. Somehow all these thoughts came together and the idea for the book was born. King added that the idea of the cat coming back came on one side of the road, while the idea of a kid coming back came on the other.

He was instantly thrilled by the whole idea and knew it was going to be a novel. The book was later made into a horror film.

Meanwhile, the charming four-bedroom home is nestled on a little over three acres of land in Orrington, Maine and has an all-season sun room, formal dining room and two fireplaces. The last owner was Loran Dosen’s aunt, who bought it in 1991 but recently passed away. The house was passed on to Dosen’s parents, but they decided to sell it and move to Tennessee.

As noted by the New York Post, Dosen said Stephen King fans have already been knocking on the door, asking for a tour, adding that the house is “very charming.”
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