Meal Prep Delivery

Monday, October 12, 2026

50 Haunted Buildings That Show Every State Has a Ghost Story

Selma Cityscapes and City Views

Alabama: St. James Hotel

Built in 1837, Selma’s St. James Hotel has spent much of its life welcoming travelers, some of whom say the historic hotel has a few guests who never checked out.

USA, Alaska, Inside Passage, Skagway, Main Street, Red Onion

Alaska: Red Onion Saloon

The Red Onion Saloon opened in Skagway in 1898 during the Gold Rush, and stories about former occupants still follow the historic building today.

Rosson House, a 1895 Victorian house museum in Phoenix,

Arizona: Rosson House Museum

Built in 1895, the Victorian-era Rosson House is one of Phoenix’s best-preserved historic residences and has inspired local stories about strange sounds and unexplained happenings.

A woman at the check-in desk at Crescent Hotel and Spa.

Arkansas: Crescent Hotel

The Crescent Hotel has overlooked Eureka Springs since 1886, and its unusual history has helped make it one of the state’s most famous spots for ghost stories.

Whaley House

California: Whaley House

Built in San Diego in 1857, the Whaley House served as both a family home and courthouse before becoming known for reports of strange sights and sounds.

The historic Stanley Hotel

Colorado: Stanley Hotel

The Stanley Hotel opened in Estes Park in 1909, and its grand halls have since become nearly as famous for ghost tales as for overnight stays.

Mark Twain House

Connecticut: Mark Twain House

Samuel Clemens and his family moved into Hartford’s Mark Twain House in 1874, and visitors today occasionally report footsteps and other odd happenings inside.

Fort Delaware

Delaware: Fort Delaware

Built in the 1850s on Pea Patch Island, the former Civil War fort has a long history as a military prison and is now a popular setting for stories of unexplained activity.

Exterior Detail of Don Cesar Hotel

Florida: Don CeSar Hotel

The famous pink hotel opened in 1928 and is associated with stories about its founder, Thomas Rowe, whose ghost is reportedly seen around the property.

Georgia, Americus, Windsor Hotel At Dusk

Georgia: Windsor Hotel

Since opening in Americus in 1892, the Windsor Hotel has hosted generations of guests and gathered its share of ghost tales along the way.

ʻIolani Palace, Honolulu, Hawaii

Hawaii: ʻIolani Palace

Built in 1882, ʻIolani Palace was the residence of Hawaii’s last ruling monarchs. There are stories about apparitions of Queen Liliʻuokalani and unexplained sounds, including reports of a piano playing.

Interior Cell Block in Old Prison in Boise, Idaho

Idaho: Old Idaho Penitentiary

The Old Idaho Penitentiary opened in Boise in 1870, and its years as a prison left behind plenty of stories about strange noises and shadowy figures.

Chicago Cityscapes And City Views

Illinois: Old Joliet Prison

Opened in 1858, the former prison has a dramatic history and is now open for tours.

biketrails1121

Indiana: Story Inn

This 19th-century inn is associated with the “Blue Lady,” reportedly seen in rooms and hallways and sometimes accompanied by the smell of cherry tobacco.

Villisca Axe Murder House

Iowa: Villisca Axe Murder House

Built in 1868, the Villisca Axe Murder House became infamous after the 1912 killings there and later gained a reputation for unsettling experiences inside.

The Eldridge Hotel

Kansas: Eldridge Hotel

The current Eldridge Hotel building opened in Lawrence in 1925, continuing a hotel tradition on the site that stretches back much further and includes several ghost tales.

Waverly Hills Sanatorium

Kentucky: Waverly Hills Sanatorium

Louisville’s Waverly Hills Sanatorium opened in 1926, and the former hospital has since become closely associated with stories of strange figures and unexplained sounds.

Side view of Myrtles Plantation in Louisiana

Louisiana: The Myrtles

Built in St. Francisville in 1796, The Myrtles now welcomes overnight guests, many of whom arrive already familiar with the home’s long haunted reputation.

Twilight exterior of a Kennebunkport Inn

Maine: Kennebunk Inn

The Kennebunk Inn began as a private home in 1799, and stories about former residents and workers have followed the property through its later life as an inn.

As Trump Puts Focus On Baltimore, Group Works To Bring Awareness To Recent Murders

Maryland: Lord Baltimore Hotel

Baltimore’s Lord Baltimore Hotel opened in 1928, and guests over the years have shared stories about unexpected elevator rides, unexplained noises, and unusual sightings.

Lizzie Borden House

Massachusetts: Lizzie Borden House

The Lizzie Borden House, built in Fall River in 1845, became famous after the 1892 murders and now attracts visitors interested in both the case and the home’s ghost stories.

Archive

Michigan: Mackinac Island’s Grand Hotel

The iconic 1887 hotel has long been associated with reports of apparitions and unexplained activity.

Wabasha Street Caves In Minnesota

Minnesota: Wabasha Street Caves

These former sandstone caves date to the 19th century and have accumulated stories of ghostly activity.

Kings Tavern,

Mississippi: King’s Tavern

King’s Tavern dates to the 1700s and began serving travelers in Natchez in 1789, with ghost tales becoming another chapter in the building’s long history.

Close Up Of Death Chamber

Missouri: Missouri State Penitentiary

The former prison operated for 168 years and is now open for history and paranormal tours. Its enormous cellblocks and long institutional history add to its spookiness.

Local Landmarks

Montana: Grand Union Hotel

Fort Benton’s Grand Union Hotel opened in 1882, and its long life on the frontier has produced more than a few stories about strange sounds and sightings.

Argo Hotel From Sw 1

Nebraska: Argo Hotel

The Argo Hotel was built in Crofton in 1912 to serve railroad passengers, though today its history also includes stories of unusual encounters reported by guests.

Nevada, Nye County, Tonopah, Historic Mizpah Hotel

Nevada: Mizpah Hotel

Opened in Tonopah in 1907, the Mizpah Hotel is best known in ghost lore for a mysterious figure commonly called the Lady in Red.

Mt. Washington From Mount Pleasant House

New Hampshire: Mount Washington Hotel

The Mount Washington Hotel opened in Bretton Woods in 1902, and one of its best-known stories involves the supposed appearance of a former owner’s wife.

Flanders Hotel, Ocean City, New Jersey, USA, John Margolies Roadside America Photograph Archive, 1978

New Jersey: Flanders Hotel

The 1923 hotel is associated with the “Lady in White,” reportedly seen wandering the hallways and accompanied by stories of singing, laughter and unexplained activity.

La Fonda on the Plaza

New Mexico: La Fonda on the Plaza

The current La Fonda on the Plaza opened in Santa Fe in 1922, continuing a long history of lodging on the site and adding a few ghost stories over the decades.

Morris-Jumel Mansion

New York: Morris-Jumel Mansion

The Morris-Jumel Mansion, built around 1765, served as George Washington’s headquarters during the Revolutionary War and later became known for reports of ghostly figures.

Grove Park Inn During

North Carolina: Grove Park Inn

Asheville’s Grove Park Inn opened in 1913, and its best-known ghost story centers on a mysterious guest remembered simply as the Pink Lady.

North Dakota, Medora, Chateau DeMores State Historic Site, Chateau Summer Home of DeMores family 1883-86

North Dakota: Chateau de Mores State Historic Site

The 1880s mansion built by the Marquis de Mores is one of North Dakota’s most distinctive historic buildings. It has also been included in the state’s modern haunted-location lore.

Amerika,Gefängnisse - Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield

Ohio: Ohio State Reformatory

The Ohio State Reformatory opened in Mansfield in 1896, and visitors to the former prison often hear stories about strange sounds and figures inside its cellblocks.

Skirvin Hotel

Oklahoma: Skirvin Hotel

Oklahoma City’s Skirvin Hotel opened in 1911, and a century of guests has produced a steady collection of stories about unusual noises and sightings.

The Pittock Mansion, Portland, Oregon

Oregon: Pittock Mansion

Completed in Portland in 1914, Pittock Mansion now operates as a historic house museum, where visitors have occasionally reported unexplained sounds and movement.

Eastern State Penitentiary

Pennsylvania: Eastern State Penitentiary

Philadelphia’s Eastern State Penitentiary opened in 1829, and the abandoned prison blocks have inspired ghost stories for decades.

Belcourt Summer Estate Of Oliver H.p. Belmont Newport R.i. Lccn2014650254

Rhode Island: Belcourt

Newport’s Belcourt was completed in 1894, and the Gilded Age mansion has become associated with stories about strange sounds and unexpected figures inside.

South Carolina, Charleston, Francis Marion Hotel, guest check in with clerks

South Carolina: Francis Marion Hotel

Charleston’s Francis Marion Hotel opened in 1924 and has since gathered stories of unexplained footsteps, flickering lights and a mysterious figure said to linger inside.

The Bullock Hotel, built in 1886 by Seth Bullock, the Wild West town first sheriff. Deadwood, South

South Dakota: Bullock Hotel

The Bullock Hotel opened in Deadwood in the 1890s, and local stories claim former owner Seth Bullock still makes the occasional appearance.

Ryman Auditorium In Nashville, TN

Tennessee: Ryman Auditorium

Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium opened in 1892, and more than a century of performances has also produced stories about mysterious figures and sounds after the crowds leave.

50 Haunted Buildings Gettyimages 1476762643

Texas: Menger Hotel

The Menger Hotel opened beside the Alamo in 1859, and generations of guests have contributed stories about former visitors who supposedly still wander its halls.

Ornate 19th Century mansion Salt Lake City Utah

Utah: McCune Mansion

Built in Salt Lake City in 1901, the McCune Mansion has served several purposes over the years and has also become known for reports of ghostly figures inside.

Green Mountain Inn

Vermont: Green Mountain Inn

The Green Mountain Inn has welcomed guests in Stowe since 1833, though some visitors say footsteps and tapping sounds continue after everyone has settled in for the night.

Virginia, Virginia Beach, Aerial, Historic Cavalier Hotel, Built 1926

Virginia: The Cavalier Hotel

The 1927 hotel has a long history of celebrity guests and Prohibition-era stories, along with reports of apparitions and unexplained activity.

50 Haunted Buildings Gettyimages 520524370

Washington: Manresa Castle

Built in Port Townsend in 1892, Manresa Castle began as a private home before becoming a hotel with stories about unexplained sounds and sightings.

US-HISTORY-ASYLUM 1/26

West Virginia: Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum began receiving patients in Weston in 1864, and today its tours cover both the former hospital’s history and the ghost stories that followed.

Milwaukee Cityscapes And City Views

Wisconsin: Pfister Hotel

Milwaukee’s Pfister Hotel opened in 1893, and guests over the years have reported unusual sounds and sightings in the historic hotel.

Occidental Hotel Wyoming

Wyoming: Occidental Hotel

The current Occidental Hotel in Buffalo dates to the early 1900s, and one of its best-known stories involves the ghost of a young girl seen around the property.

The post 50 Haunted Buildings That Show Every State Has a Ghost Story appeared first on Family Handyman.



Article source here: 50 Haunted Buildings That Show Every State Has a Ghost Story

50 Haunted Buildings That Show Every State Has a Ghost Story

Alabama: St. James Hotel Built in 1837, Selma’s St. James Hotel has spent much of its life welcoming travelers, some of whom say the histori...