Famous
Hauntings
Fort Mifflin
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Fort Mifflin has a history that dates back to the 1770’s. In the fall
of 1777 George Washington’s Colonial army was defeated at Brandywine by
British forces led by General William Howe. Howe’s 20,000 troops
moved in and occupied Philadelphia. He wanted to crush the
retreating colonial army and end the revolution. He needed supplies
which were on over 200 British ships at the mouth of the Delaware
River. A small contingent of troops manned Ft Mifflin which was an
unfinished British fort. They needed to delay the arrival of the
British ships. Time was of the essence for Howe. He had to get his
supply ships up the river before the river began to freeze or his army
would not be able to pursue Washington. In November 1777 the siege of
Fort Mifflin began and only lasted a little over a week. The British
did take the Fort but in the time it took to prepare for the battle and
the battle itself Washington was able to make his way to Valley Forge.
The Colonial Army was safely out of the reach of the British and the
river began to freeze which blocked Howe’s supplies. The 400 men at
Fort Mifflin held off the 200 ships and 2000 troops long enough to
cover Washington’s retreat.
During the Civil War the Fort was used a prison for both Confederate
and Union troops as well as other prisoners. The Fort was active
through the Korean War and was closed down in the early 1960’s.
The fort’s haunted history seems to tie into the Civil War era but
there are some older spirits there as well. What makes this place
unique is the large amount of sightings all describing the same spirits
in the same areas. Here is the breakdown of the haunted areas of the
Fort Mifflin and the spirits that haunted them.
· The Officers Quarter’s: This is where The Screaming Woman has
been encountered. She is believed to be Elizabeth Pratt, the wife of an
officer that hung herself after the loss of her daughter who she had
not spoken to in many years.
· Casemate #5: This was used to house prisoners during the Civil
War. There have been many reports of a faceless man sewing in there. He
is believed to be Billy Howe, who was imprisoned there and later
convicted of murder and hung at Fort Mifflin.
· Jacob the Blacksmith: Jacob constantly would get in trouble
with the Commander because he wanted to keep the back door open to the
blacksmith shop. He has been sighted in the blacksmith shop on numerous
occasions. The staff at Fort Mifflin also report having a problem with
the door opening and closing.
· The Powder Magazine/The Tour Guide: This is where you may find
a very informative tour guide. Many visitors have stopped by the main
office to comment about the wonderful tour guide dressed in a
Revolutionary War uniform, when they are told there was no tour guide
or re-enactor on site that day, they are VERY surprised.
Check out the results from our investigations of this place by clicking here
Check out the results from our investigations of this place by clicking here
The Winchester Mansion
San Jose, California
Sarah Winchester, the widow of William Winchester (the son of the man
who founded the Winchester Rifle empire) was told by a psychic that the
spirits of all the animals and people who had been killed or injured by
a Winchester rifle would seek her out for revenge. She was then advised
to build them a house. As long as she was building the house for them,
the spirits would not haunt her. For 38 years carpenters worked 24
hours a day, 365 days a year. When Sarah died there were 160 rooms in
the house. It is estimated however, that over 600 were built and then
torn down during these 38 years.
There have been many unexplained events reported in the Winchester Mansion:
· Every night at 12 midnight a bell in the bell tower was rung
to summon the spirits and rung again at 2am to signal the spirits
departure. It has been reported by passersby that during these 2 hours
organ music can be heard. Sarah’s hands were so riddled with arthritis
she could barely hold a pencil to draw her designs for the house.
· One night Sarah went into her wine cellar (she was only one to
hold a key) to locate a very special bottle of wine. She discovered a
black hand print on the wall, that night she reported the spirits had
told her that night it was the handprint of a demon. Sarah took this as
a warning against alcohol and had the door to the wine cellar walled
over.
· In 1981 two different tour guides on separate occasions
smelled the aroma of chicken soup coming from the kitchen, a room that
is never in use.
· A former caretaker reported hearing footsteps coming from Sarah’s bedroom.
The Burlington County Prison Museum
Mt Holly, New Jersey
The Burlington County Prison Museum is located in Mt Holly, NJ. The
prison was built in 1811 and was designed by the famous architect
Robert Mills (the designer of the Washington Monument). It is a large
rectangle building made of stone and iron that looks more like a castle
from the outside. It was used continuously as a jail until 1966.
Since then local legends spoke of the ghosts that inhabited the
building. One in particular was the ghost of Joseph Clough, a
convicted murderer who killed his mistress with a leg from a table.
He was held in the death row cell which consisted of an eye hook in the
floor which he was always chained and a extremely small window. He
was eventually hanged in the 1850's and other guards and prisoners
report hearing his moans and chains rattling from that cell. The
guards and inmates also reported seeing someone in the empty cell as
well as objects levitating in the cell.
In 1999 the county began a restoration project transforming the run
down building into a museum and returning it to its original
condition.. As the work progressed the construction working began
reporting strange events such as loud noises, voices and screams
coming from various areas of the building. They also reported having
their tools disappear when they turn their backs only to find the
missing items in another room or on another floor later on in the
day. Eventually some workers were leaving early so they would not be
the last ones in the building.
Check out the results from our investigations of this place by clicking here
Check out the results from our investigations of this place by clicking here
Check out the results from our investigations of this place by clicking here
The Betsy Ross House
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Betsy Ross is said to haunt the home she lived in when she sewed the
first American flag. Betsy Ross, who is buried on the premises, has
been sighted sitting on her bed and crying. Also there are reports of
the ghostly Charles H. Weisberger, the basement is often disturbed by
mysterious whisperings that may belong to the displaced spirit of Mr.
Weisberger, the founder of the Ross Memorial.
Check out the results from our investigations of this place by clicking here
The Haunted Mansion
Disneyland, Anaheim, California
The
Haunted Mansion at Disneyland holds the record for being the most
visited attraction. The imaginers at Disneyland worked very hard using
illusion and magician’s tricks to make this ride one of the best.
Little did they know there would be several ghosts haunting the Haunted
Mansion.
The Man with the Cane: In the 1940’s a small plane crashed in a lake
near where the park was to be built. The pilot’s ghost has been seen by
many Cast Members who refer to him as “The Man with the Cane”. He is
often seen late at night after closing.
The Man in a Tuxedo: No one really knows who he is. There is a mirror
in the area where passengers get off of the ride so the employees can
see when riders come up from behind. A female employee kept seeing am
an in a tuxedo in the mirror but when she would turn around there would
be no one there. She felt a cold chill and a hand placed on her
shoulder shortly after. She turned again there was no one there!
The Whitehouse
Washington, DC
There have been several witnesses reporting ghostly visitors in the
White House. Abraham Lincoln is the most famous of the White House
Ghosts. Grace Coolidge, Calvin Coolidge’s wife was the first to witness
Lincoln’s ghost. She saw him peering out of an Oval Office window.
Other reported White House Ghosts-
The Lincoln Bedroom: Many overnight guests have reported seeing
Lincolns ghost in this room.. Lincoln used this room as an office while
he was in the White House.
The Black Cat: There is a phantom black cat in the basement of the
White House. It has been reported that seeing this black cat is a
premonition of a tragedy.. It was spotted before JFK was assassinated
and before the stock market crash in the 20’s.
Dolly Madison: Dolly’s ghost has been spotted in the White House garden
and seems to get a little upset when someone tries to change the look
of the garden.
Abigail Adams: Abigail’s ghost has been seen walking through one of the
hallways as if she is carrying something, and it is reported that she
seems to act as if she is doing laundry.
President Benjamin Harrison: Some people say his voice is sometimes heard in the attic.
President Andrew Jackson: He has been reported to haunt his bed which is in the Rose Bedroom.
The Alamo
San Antonio, Texas
The Alamo was originally a mission built to house missionaries and some
American Indians while they were converting them to Christianity. In
the early 1800s, the Spanish military stationed a cavalry unit at the
former mission. The soldiers referred to the old mission as the Alamo
(the Spanish word for "cottonwood") in honor of their hometown Alamo de
Parras, Coahuila. The Alamo was home to both Revolutionaries and
Royalists during Mexico's ten-year struggle for independence. The
military, Spanish, Rebel, and then Mexican, continued to occupy the
Alamo until the Texas Revolution. The bloodiest battle of the Old West
was at The Alamo in 1836, 1600 Mexican soldiers and 200 Texan soldiers
were killed here.
There are many reports of apparitions wandering the Alamo grounds,
strange dancing lights, unexplainable sounds-screams, explosions, and
trumpets.. There are certain rooms and areas guards, janitors and
employees avoid at night.
One of the most often reported ghost sightings at the Alamo is one of a
small blonde haired boy. His ghost has been seen in the left upstairs
window occasionally. It is now the gift shop. The legend states this
little boy may have been evacuated during the siege of the Alamo and
comes back to visit at the same time every year, during the first weeks
in February to the place where he last saw his family.
The Queen Mary
Long Beach, California
The Queen Mary made over a thousand trips across the Atlantic Ocean.
From March 1940 until September 1946 the Queen Mary carried a total of
765,429 military personnel before it was returned to be a passenger
ship once again. The Queen Mary is not permanently docked in Long
Beach, CA.
There have been many ghostly sightings aboard the Queen Mary. Here are just a few…
· There are the ghosts
of 2 women who drowned in the first class swimming pool, sighted near
the pool area.
· In the passageway by
the pool there have been sightings of a little boy who had reportedly
fallen overboard.
· In the Queen’s
Salon, which is the first class lounge, there is the ghost of a
beautiful woman in a white dress dancing.
· In the area of the
first class suites there have been sightings of the ghost of a black
haired man that has bright lights all around him.
· In the forward
storage room there have been reports of hearing children playing, when
none are around.
