October is for ghost stories told in the dark while eating vats of candy. With only a couple of weeks until the night of ghouls is upon us, we’ve rounded up the most haunted places to live in America.
These are towns where ghost tours are a staple, the nights are full of apparitions and spooky tales about dark, eerie histories are told beyond just Halloween.
1. Athens, OH
The college town of Athens is home to The Ridges, formerly known as the Athens Lunatic Asylum, where researchers performed lobotomies from 1874 until the early 1990s.
Currently owned by Ohio University, visitors and students have shared creepy stories about apparitions and shrieking screams coming from the halls. There’s also the infamous bloodstain in one of the rooms. The bloodstain comes from the decayed body of a patient that wasn’t found until over a month after her death. Despite multiple efforts, they haven’t been able to scrub it off the floor.
The allegedly haunted university dorms share similar ghostly apparitions stories as well.
2. Savannah, GA
The belle of Georgia thanks to its preserved architecture and moss-lined streets, Savannah also carries a haunted history — massive fires, epidemics, war, slavery and more.
Due to its original small size, the city allowed family members to bury their dead in their backyard, so if you’ve walked the cobble streets of this southern city, chances are that you’ve stepped on unmarked graves.
Savannah’s ghost tour industry is booming, thanks to various Civil War-era haunted hotels, funeral homes that were turned into bed and breakfasts and pubs and restaurants with a history of ghost sightings. It’s no surprise the city dubbed itself the most haunted place in America.
3. St. Augustine, FL
Hearing about paranormal activity is not unusual for the residents of St. Augustine. One of the main haunted attractions is Old Jail, a maximum-security prison from the late 1800s where inmates, male and female, used to be tortured and kept in bad conditions.
The clinking noises of their shackles can allegedly be heard at times, as well as barking dogs and loud wailing. The city is riddled with dark tales of epidemics and various ancient burial grounds, including the famous ghost of Judge John B. Stickney, who has been seen multiple times at the Huguenot Cemetery.
4. Gettysburg, PA
This central Pennsylvania town is known for where Abraham Lincoln delivered his Gettysburg Address. It is also the site of one of the bloodiest battles during the Civil War.
There are several places around Gettysburg that are known for paranormal activity, from battlefields to inns and hotels across town. Visitors claim to hear wailing and cries from injured soldiers and see life-like apparitions – one of which appears to be Confederate General Robert E. Lee.
5. Charleston, SC
The first female serial killer in the country, Lavina Fisher, has been seen around Charleston, SC, as an apparition and of course, the old jail used to host some of the most dangerous criminals in the area.
With a robust history of slavery, pirates and unexplained incidents, Charleston is a spooky hub to settle in.
6. New Orleans, LA
With the prevalence of voodoo culture, pirates wars, hurricanes and epidemics, New Orleans hits all of the right ingredients when it comes to a haunted city. They say that the dead can’t rest in New Orleans as the city is built on a swamp, not solid ground, constantly waking them up from their slumber.
TV shows, books and a slew of legends about vampires, witches and the undead have been born right in New Orleans.
7. Tacoma, WA
The bell tower in Tacoma is said to be haunted — it has been known to go off late at night without anyone nearby. You might also see flashing lights and fire alarms going off with no one on the premises. The resident ghost, “Gus,” allegedly moves the elevator up and down at his will.
A few ghost tours in town will also take you to the nearby mental hospital and a few other haunted hotels full of often sinister legends.
8. Salem, MA
Famous for the Salem Witch Trials of the 1690s, this town needs no introduction. Every fall, more than 50,000 people land in Salem to celebrate all things haunted, complete with a parade, costume balls and ghost tours.
Eerie apparitions of women said to be wronged during the trials might make an appearance, as well as possible paranormal activity in its cemeteries and even bookstores, where books are reported to fly off the shelves.
9. Austin, TX
Austin is more than weird — it’s also haunted. While grabbing a drink at Buffalo Billiards, you may hear patrons talk of the resident ghost, Fred, who loves to move the pool hall’s equipment around.
Buildings like the Texas Governor’s Mansion, the Walter Tips House and the Littlefield House have seen their share of eerie happenings, but nothing like Shoal Creek. The area is closed after 10 p.m. because of the amount of paranormal activity in the area from both a man that was killed and several unmarked graves that are centuries old.
10. Washington D.C.
It’s no surprise that the nation’s capital, with its long history, harbors multiple spots that are ridden with ghostly apparitions and unexplained phenomena.
Old homes with extensive history are said to be haunted by aggressive ghosts, apparitions of dead soldiers and women of society — and yes, that includes the White House.