Hauntings02:12 Oct 01 2016
Times Read: 376
Tennessee:
The most famous haunting in America actually took place in Tennessee and is known as the Bell Witch. This phenom struck the unfortunate Bell Family in 1817-1821 and ended with the death of farmer Bell. The spirit was supposedly the neighbor of Farmer John Bell and she’d had bad dealings with him over the purchase of slaves, so apparently decided to torment him and his family, friends, guests from the afterlife. The violent ghost would scratch, poke, kick, slap, and pull the family from their beds, tormenting the adults and children. The haunting was so well-known that even President Andrew Jackson stopped by to see what was going on and she (the ghost was Katie) stalled his wagon wheels. Eventually she tormented Farmer Bell enough that when he was sick he never recovered and was found with a bottle of poison nearby. She was said to have laughed and screamed at his funeral and remained to torment his family for a while longer before finally disappearing and reappearing sporadically. There is now a cave on the property where the haunting took place that is said to still have paranormal happenings. Approach if you dare!
New Orleans
1. LaLaurie Mansion
Many have heard the tale of Madame LaLaurie and her torture chamber on Royal Street.
Born in New Orleans, the prominent Delphine LaLaurie was married three times over the course of her life.
The origin of the ghostly tale begins in 1832 when Dr. Louis LaLaurie and Delphine moved to a Creole mansion in the French Quarter. Known for their wealth and prominence, the house was attended to by dozens of slaves.
Following a fire in the mansion's kitchen, the horrors of the home were revealed. Legend has it that behind a barred door in the attic was a torture chamber for those enslaved. Many stories detail the cruelty involved; men and women chained to the walls, children shut inside cages and body parts strewn across the floor.
LaLaurie later fled to Paris, believed to be run from town by an outraged mob.
Tales of lingering are said to haunt the grounds. Others say the ghost of Delphine LaLaurie herself haunts the mansion.
2. St. Louis Cemetery No. 1
Established by the Spanish in 1789, many of the city's early occupants and infamous personalities are interred here, including Marie Laveau. It has also been named the 'Most Haunted Cemetery in the United States.'
Pirates, aristocrats, politicians, killers, artists and the Queen of Voodoo are interred on the grounds. With over so many dead interred, it's no wonder the cemetery has heard its fair share of ghost stories.
Phantom figures and yellow fever victims reportedly stalk the rows of crypts. However, the most famous spirit believed to roam the grounds is that of Marie Laveau, New Orleans' Queen of Voodoo. Some believe that Laveau materializes annually of St. John's Eve (June 23) to lead the voodoo faithful in worship.
3. The Myrtles Mansion
Although not in New Orleans, the Myrtles Plantation is just a short day trip from the city.
The antebellum plantation sits in St. Francisville, Louisiana. It has been touted as one of “America's Most Haunted Homes.” The home was built in 1796. Since it was erected, it has been the home to many prominent figures.
It's said to be haunted by over a dozen spirits and ghosts. Some claim the home has seen ten murders on the grounds. However, historical records show just one. In the 1800s, William Winter was shot and killed on the porch of the home. His killer is unknown.
Aside from Winter, numerous other figures reportedly haunt the grounds. The home is said to be built on an Indian burial ground. Other say it's haunted the ghosts of prior slaves and young children.
Two particularly frightening stories stem from photographs showing alleged spirits and ghosts.
According to the plantation's website, a young slave girl (known as Chloe) was photographed on the grounds of the plantation. Another photo depicts what appears to be a young, antebellum girl staring out of a window behind two visitors (photos in slideshow above).
4. Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop Bar
A small tavern located on the corner of Bourbon and St. Philip, it is one of the oldest surviving buildings in New Orleans.
Built sometime between 1722 and 1732, Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop Bar is reputed to be the oldest structure used as a bar in the United States.
From 1772 and 1791, the property was believed to have been used by Jean and Pierre Lafitte. It was used as a New Orleans base for their Barataria smuggling operations, according to legend.
A French-American pirate and privateer, Jean Lafitte plundered the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Some stories claim the buccaneer's treasure is buried in the building's bricks. A fireplace grate in the downstairs of the bar is rumored to be the resting place of some of the plunder. Some say a pair of ghostly red eyes can be seen staring from the grate.
Other legends say the ghost of a pirate guarding the treasure haunts the bar. Some also say the spirit of Jean Lafitte roams the tavern.
5. Hotel Monteleone
Built in 1886, the Beaux Arts-style Hotel Monteleone in the French Quarter is known for its rotating Carousel Piano Bar and Lounge.
It's also known as one of the premier haunted hotels in New Orleans.
The hotel reportedly has a restaurant door that opens and closes every night, even though it is locked. Elevators stop on wrong floors, leading visitors down eerily chilly halls.
Legend states that a former employee, a man named William “Red” Wildemere, died inside the hotel of natural causes. Visitors reports seeing him inside.
A toddler spirit name ‘Maurice' is also said to roam the halls. He allegedly died in the hotel and his distraught parents returned frequently in hopes he might visit them.
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10 Most Haunted Places in America by www.sixwise.com
1. Bachelor's Grove Cemetery, Midlothian, IL
This 1800s-era cemetery has been largely abandoned since 1965, and since then has fallen victim to vandals. Among the toppled tombstones it is said that satanic and occultist groups perform ceremonies, and over 100 reports of strange phenomena have been collected.
Among them, ghost lights, inexplicable lights and voices, apparitions, strange photos, anomalous recordings and sightings of unbelievable creatures. There is also a nearby haunted lagoon, a phantom farmhouse and a stretch of haunted turnpike near Bachelor's Grove.
2. The Lemp Mansion, St. Louis, Missouri
Built in the 1860s by the Lemp family (who created "Falstaff" beer), the Lemp Mansion is said to be haunted by the family, which was surrounded by tragedy. William Lemp's son died in 1904, and afterward William committed suicide in the house. In 1920, his daughter also committed suicide, and later so did William Lemp, Jr., and Charles Lemp, leaving the family completely torn apart.
Since then, the house was sold and became a boarding house and later, in 1977, a fine restaurant (which is still open today). Workers and boarding tenants have reported feelings of being watched, vanishing tools, strange sounds, apparitions, glasses flying through the air, a piano playing by itself, voices and other strange occurrences.
3. Villisca Ax Murder House, Villisca, Iowa
In 1912, the J.B. Moore family (the parents and their four children), along with two children who were staying over that night, was murdered in their beds in a shocking crime for this otherwise small, peaceful community. The murders were never solved, but since then many unusual phenomena have been reported in the house. The Moore home was restored and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998, and today is open to overnight visitors.
Guests have reported children's voices and laughter, falling lamps, moving objects, and odd sounds, while others have recorded audio, video and photographic evidence of supernatural activities. Psychics who have visited the home have also reportedly communicated with spirits.
4. The Old Slave House (Hickory Hill), Junction, IL
The Hickory Hill mansion was built in 1842 by a wealthy man, John Hart Crenshaw, who owned several salt tracts. Although it was illegal to own slaves in Illinois at this time, it was legal to lease slaves from other states to work in the salt mines.
Crenshaw imprisoned slaves, some of whom were kidnapped, in the attic of the mansion in narrow cells and manacles. He reportedly tortured and beat the slaves for many years, and also "bred" his own slaves, until eventually his cruel practices were discovered and he retired to become a farmer.
In the 1920s, the house was opened as a tourist attraction where slavery existed in Illinois, however tourists began reporting sounds of people crying and moaning coming from the attic, cold chills, and whispers. Things intensified when a ghost hunter named Hickman Whittington went to the attic shortly after it opened and spent a few hours there. Though he was in perfect health at the time, he died a few hours after leaving the mansion.
Reportedly, hundreds of people tried to spend the night in the attic after Whittington's death, but would leave, terrorized, before morning (one man did finally spend the night there in 1978, and reported strange sounds).
Currently, the Hickory Hills mansion is owned by the state of Illinois, and is scheduled to open as a historic site (but has not yet re-opened to visitors).
5. The Winchester Mansion, San Jose, California
Sarah Winchester, a wealthy widow, built the 160-room Victorian Winchester mansion in 1884. It was such an unprecedented project that construction workers worked on the home 24 hours a day for 38 years. The home has many bizarre features, built to keep out evil spirits, including false doors, a room built for séances (where Sarah developed building plans that ghosts sent to her) and a stairway that leads to the ceiling, and many supernatural occurrences have happened there.
Sarah Winchester reportedly spoke to spirits nightly at midnight and since then people have reported organ music in the Blue Room where Sarah died, apparitions, cold spots, a smell of chicken soup in the kitchen, red balls of light and more. Today visitors can take tours of the mansion (including special nighttime flashlight tours).
6. Bobby Mackey's Music World, Wilder, Kentucky
Bobby Mackey's Music World is a dance hall that was once (in the 1850s) a slaughterhouse. Devil worshippers reportedly used the slaughterhouse's basement, which collected animal blood, for rituals, including one in which a woman was beheaded.
In the 1920s, the building was a speakeasy and several mob murders reportedly occurred on the site. Since it was converted into a dancehall in 1976, at least 30 people have signed affidavits that supernatural happenings have occurred there, including appearances of ghosts dressed in old-fashioned, cowboy-type clothing.
A customer even claims to have been assaulted by a ghost in the bathroom, which caused him to break his arm. He's suing Bobby Mackey for not ridding the building of spirits.
7. Myrtles Plantation, St. Francisville, Louisiana
Now a bed-and-breakfast, the Myrtles Plantation is said to house many ghosts and spirits due to 10 murders and 1 suicide that have occurred there since it was built in 1796. Among them are the ghosts of Cleo, a former slave who was hung for poisoning two little girls, the ghosts of the little girls, and William Winter, a former owner who was shot on the front porch.
Other apparitions seen by visitors include ghosts from the slave graveyard on the property, and a ghost that meets guests at the inn's gate and says the plantation is closed. A psychic who visited the building said visiting the parlor was like walking into a "crowded cocktail party of spirits," while the owner of the bed-and-breakfast said the ghosts have proven to her that there's life after death.
8. John Stone's Inn, Ashland, Massachusetts
Captain John Stone's Inn is a 164-year-old pub, which once served as a hiding place for runaway slaves and was the location of speeches by Daniel Webster. Customers and employees of the pub report the apparition of a 10-year-old girl in a storage room near the kitchen, moving objects and invisible hands that hold their hands under the ice when filling ice buckets. There were two televised séances held here during which the spirits of a little girl, a woman innkeeper and Captain John Stone were reportedly contacted.
9. Devil's Promenade, Hornet, Missouri
There is an unexplained ball of orange light that has been seen every night since 1866 on a two-mile stretch of road known as the Devil's Promenade. Legend suggests the light is the ghost of two Quapaw Indians who were in love and committed suicide together. Another theory is that it is the lantern of a miner's ghost who is looking for his missing wife and children, who were abducted.
The light -- also called the Hornet Ghost Light, the Neosho Spook Light, and the Devil's Jack o' Lantern -- is known to enter cars, dodge people and leave glowing traces and sparks behind as it moves. The Army Corps of Engineers investigated the phenomenon in 1946 and concluded it was "a mysterious light of unknown origin." The light was also investigated by the Ghost Research Society in 1983, which found it was a diamond-shaped light with a hollow center.
10. United States Air Force Museum, Dayton, Ohio
Night guards report moving objects, apparitions and unexplained voices and sounds at this military museum. Among the occurrences:
Parts from the "Lady Be Good," a B-24 that crashed in the Libyan Desert in World War II, killing seven crewmembers, move by themselves.
Strange lights appear in the "Strawberry Bitch," another B-24.
The ghost of the helicopter "Hop-Along's" co-pilot can be seen flipping switches in an attempt to get the craft moving.
The "Black Maria," a helicopter, is haunted by its pilot, who was killed in Vietnam.
The ghost of a Japanese boy has been seen standing next to "Bockscar," the bomber that dropped the A-bomb on Nagasaki.
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