Gettysburg, PA
Gettysburg may very well be the most haunted town in the country. Mark Nesbitt, a former National Park Service Ranger/Historian, started his own research and writing company in 1977 and has written numerous books on the subject. In 1994, Mark started the first ghost walk in Gettysburg, The Ghosts of Gettysburg Candlelight Walking Tours and discusses stories of sightings of the soldiers that passed through the town nearly 150 years ago, moving again in battle lines, across the fields where they once marched… and died. These apparitions come back to remind us, in one way or another, that they are not to be forgotten for what they did here. Farnsworth House Inn is also said to be one of the most haunted houses in America.
Frederick, MD
Said to be Maryland’s Most Haunted City, the town has a rich history dating back to the Revolutionary War. During the Civil War, the town served as “one vast hospital” and was a major crossroads for Union and Confederate soldiers starting with the Battle at Antietam and continuing to the Battle at Gettysburg and its own Monocacy battle in 1864. For example, the Maryland School for the Deaf (founded in 1868) sits on an old barracks that was used during the Revolutionary War to house captured Hessian soldiers. It also served as a hospital during the Civil War. Story has it some have seen spirits of those wounded in combat in the barracks moaning. The hospital equipment from that era is still in the building and just a short walk down the street sits the National Museum of Civil War Medicine. Also, Hood College is built on an old saloon from the Civil War and folks say you can hear hooting and hollering late at night (and not from current college students).
Harpers Ferry, WV
In the 1800s, a 9-year-old girl was hit and killed by a train while playing on the tracks. Apparently she got lost while wandering in the woods. Her ghost has been seen by residents that live near the railroad tracks, as the girl, clothed in a white dress, still searches for her home. At St. Peters Catholic Church, many people have seen the priest standing outside of the church, and several people have heard the screams of the wounded soldier. The town itself is said to be home to several ghosts. Many are linked to the Civil War, but there are many that are just townspeople returning home.
Manassas, VA
A spirit named “Miss Lucy” is said to like to play pranks such as turning on faucets, messing up the beds and unplugging appliances at the Olde Towne Inn. She haunts room 52, but roams from 50-54. And the Old Town Hall, built in 1914, is said to be haunted by the spirit of a 1930s prisoner who had committed suicide. Doors open and close/slam shut. Workers there are often locked in. Finally, spirits of Civil War soldiers have been seen crossing Cobblestone Bridge Bull at Run/Manassas Historic Battlefield.
Paulding light — Michigan
Paulding light, a mysterious light seen in rural Michigan and the subject of intense debate, pro and con, for decades. Michigan Technological University electrical engineering students did a study of the light a couple of years ago, and Michigan Tech published a news story about their work, which is still receiving heated comments today. See the story and comments at mtu.edu.
