During its more than 100 years in operation, the Moundsville Penitentiary in West Virginia was one of America’s most violent correctional facilities and the final stop for almost 1,000 criminals. The prisoners lived in cramped quarters, which led to riots. Many men were hung or killed in the electric chair, while others were murdered by other prisoners. The prison closed in 1995, but according to some, the tortured spirits are still behind bars and in the bowels of the prison and may be seen or heard on a tour.
Once known as the Weston State Hospital, this asylum was home to thousands of people with mental illness, starting in 1864. Hundreds of people died here before the facility closed in 1994. Spirits are said to haunt the building and grounds today, dating back to the Civil War era when the asylum’s grounds served as a military post. Paranormal tours of the facility feature 2-hour visits to the asylum’s 4 main hot spots. The more intense Ghost Hunt is an 8-hour overnight paranormal adventure with experienced ghost-hunting guides.
On June 10, 1912, the old white frame house at 508 E. 2nd Street became a grisly crime scene. The heinous murder of Josiah B. Moore, his wife, their 4 children and 2 young girls who were overnight guests rocked the small town of Villisca, IA, and the murderer was never identified. Over the years, residents of the home reported visions of a man with an ax, children crying and unexplained paranormal activity. In 1994, the home was restored to its original condition with no indoor plumbing or electricity. These touches add to the chilling ambience during a lamplight tour from April through November or an overnight experience available by reservation for groups.
Jerome, AZ, is a former copper-mining town with a paranormal reputation that dates back to the Wild West. The town is now home to just 400 residents (down from 15,000 in its heyday), but legend has it there are plenty more ghostly residents from the days of mining accidents and shoot-out gunfights. One well-known spirit is the working girl Sammie Dean, a prostitute who was strangled by a customer in the old Crib District. Her beautiful spirit roams the alleys looking for her killer who was never found.
Cuban Club, also known as Circulo Cubano de Tampa, can be found in Tampa’s Ybor City neighborhood. In 1917 this spot was a popular hangout for Cuban immigrants who enjoyed the ballroom, outdoor band shell and cantina with a stage and dance floor. Today the compound, protected by the National Historic Register, hosts concerts and special events and is the setting for many ghost stories about spirits playing the piano and riding the elevators.
Built in 1771, Fort Mifflin is the country’s only Revolutionary War battlefield that is still intact. There are 14 restored buildings on the grounds on the Delaware River and reportedly plenty of spirits from the past. Amongst the ghosts said to haunt the fort are a screaming woman whose cries are so loud that the Philadelphia police have been called to investigate, only to find no one there. Other characters in the local ghost stories include a faceless man wandering around the fort, a tour guide dressed in revolutionary garb and numerous children and dogs.
The Moon River Brewery brought its beloved beers to Savannah in 1999, but the building is one of the oldest in town, dating back to 1821. In its original incarnation, it was the City Hotel, a high-end hotel with a history of violence during the Civil War. Men were killed in the hotel during heated skirmishes, including a Yankee who was beaten to death by locals in 1860. Some bar patrons today say they’ve seen bottles mysteriously fly through the air and have witnessed guests being pushed, touched and even slapped by unseen forces. One resident apparition, Toby, is said to skulk around the billiard room looking for the next great bar brawl.
The house at 716 Dauphine Street is a classic French Quarter beauty with classic wrought-iron balconies and a large courtyard. But in the 1800s, this residence was a house of horrors for the Sultan, a wealthy man with a depraved lifestyle, multiple wives and children and a harem of women and young boys held against their will. Neighbors complained about the mysterious habits of this man who had a predilection for partying, opium and torture. But the greatest mystery in the house was the Sultan’s demise when he was buried alive in the courtyard after his family and harem were hacked to pieces in a bloodbath by an unknown perpetrator. Today, his angry spirit is thought to be responsible for the unusual noises, loud music and strong incense smells that waft from the home, as well as unwelcomed advances on past female residents who swear the Sultan is still up to his old tricks of groping female visitors.
Toni Jo Henry has been the talk of the small town of Lake Charles since the 1940s when she killed a man in cold blood. Just as notorious were her stunning good looks. The former prostitute charmed a gentleman in a pickup truck to give her a ride while she was walking the highway with a friend en route to spring her true love from a Texas prison. It took 3 trials for a jury to convict the wily Toni Jo, who had charmed the courtroom and jail staff and divided the town over her presumed guilt. In 1942, this murderous beauty known as Tiger Girl was the first female to die in the electric chair in the state. Her spirit lingers in the courthouse today, and workers there swear they feel her presence, hear her screams and even smell her burning hair. Many believe that she tinkers with office equipment, locks doors and meddles with everyday office life at the courthouse.
New Orleans is a town steeped in mythical traditions like witchcraft and vampires. Numerous cemeteries dot the landscape but the St. Louis Cemetery is the oldest in the city. Here, visitors will discover ornate above-ground tombs and mausoleums, winding footpaths and crumbling memorials. While many ghosts are rumored to call this place their home, Marie Laveau, the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans, reigns supreme.
With mile-long hallways, staircases to nowhere and doors that open into walls, this mysterious maze-like Victorian mansion in San Jose boasts160-rooms. The home was originally built by Sarah Winchester, the wealthy widow of William Wirt Winchester (son of the manufacturer of the Winchester repeating rifle). Sarah tragically lost both her daughter and husband to illness and later sought help from a spiritual advisor to overcome her depression. The medium warned Sarah that the Winchester family had been struck by a terrible curse, and would be haunted by the ghosts of the many deceased killed by the Winchester rifle. The only way to appease the dead according to the medium, was to build a house for the lost souls… and never stop building. For 38 years, construction on the house continued for 24 hours a day, until Sarah died. Today, visitors to the home will want to look out for the many unlucky number 13’s featured in the house design as they roam the haunted halls.
Only two dozen or so crumbling grave markers remain in this famously haunted cemetery in Indiana. Legend has that it was founded by a cult called the Crabbites, who sacrificed small animals and participated in sex orgies. Another story holds that a mother of an infant who died was so distraught that she went to the cemetery and dug up the child’s body after it was buried. Grieving, she took her own life. Visitors claim to have seen her ghost, dressed in black, weeping over her daughter’s grave, near the site of an old stump that has since rotted away years ago.
As the site of one of the Civil War’s bloodiest battles, Gettysburg stands the test of time as one of the most haunted places in America. Over 50,000 soldiers from the Union and Confederate armies were killed and their ghosts are still seen and heard today by tourists to the field and town. Visitors also claim to hear the thunder of canons, gunfire and screams and moans of the battle’s victims. Devil’s Den, a rock formation where dozens of bodies and limbs were discovered after the war, is a popular spot for tourists seeking a ghostly encounter in this historic area.
As the infamous locale where Jack Nicholson went crazy in “The Shining,” this hotel is a hot spot for paranormal activity. The Paranormal Research Society of ‘Paranormal State’ fame came for a field trip, while TAPS from “Ghost Hunters” has experienced phenomena around the hotel site.
Well known spooks include a young boy who makes his presence known in room 1211 and a young man who just likes to hang out in closets and bedrooms. The hotel’s owner, Mr. Stanley, makes his presence known by appearing to visitors in the lobby and billiards room, while his wife Flora entertains guests by playing a piano. The hotel offers ghost tours, so next time you visit Colorado, bring a camera. Who knows? Perhaps a friendly spirit will appear for a picture.
The ghosts of this haunted lighthouse are rumored to make their presence known by appearing as creepy shadows and making unexplained noises. Legend has it that the daughters of the Superintendent of Lighthouse Construction drowned, and continue to haunt the building ever since their untimely death.Three other people have passed away in the lighthouse from illnesses, while a keeper named Joseph fell to his death. Visitors have claimed to see shadows high up in the tower, while others hear the daughters laughing and giggling at night. The eldest girl is also fond of appearing before guests donned in the clothing she wore on the day of her death.