Tag: October Ghost Story Series

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Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs

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For the last post in the 2021 October Ghost Stories Series, we head south of Joplin, to the pretty town of Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Tucked into the Ozark Mountains, this small community offers Victorian charm, an artsy attitude and incredibly interesting energy!

Although I typically offer five haunted locations from the cities I write about, I’m only featuring two in this post. Both of these spots have such a density of hauntings that I could write multiple posts documenting them.

Grab a cup of tea and curl up under a cozy blanket and read ghost stories from Eureka Springs.

Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs title meme

Eureka Springs Arkansas

Located in northwest Arkansas, Eureka Springs is home to about 2,300 people. The town clings to the mountains…in Arkansas, these are more like big rocky hills…earning it the nickname of Little Switzerland.

Native American legends told of the Great Healing Springs in the area. Indigenous peoples long visited the springs and considered them sacred. When European settlers arrived, they found the springs restorative as well.

Eureka Springs incorporated as a city in 1880 and by 1881 became the fourth largest town in Arkansas. Within a few years, the city attracted thousands of people who built Victorian style homes and established commercial enterprises.

The city continues as a tourist town, offering unique shops, cafes, arts and crafts. It’s a mecca for artists, writers and those who appreciate a creative, diverse lifestyle. Check out more of the town’s history HERE.

Perhaps because of all the springs…at least 62 of them…and the limestone in the area, it presents strong, unusual energy. Additionally, Eureka Springs lays claim to the most haunted hotels in the US.

Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs downtown
Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs – historic downtown

The Basin Park Hotel

Located next to Basin Park, in historic downtown Eureka Springs, this hotel was constructed in 1905, on the site of the former Perry House. That first structure burned to the ground in 1890.

The current lodging contains 100 rooms and a top floor ball room. It is considered the second most haunted hotel in Eureka Springs! Ghost tours are offered daily in the hotel, beginning at 10:30 PM.

Some of the spirits that checked into the hotel…and never checked out.

A six foot tall cowboy occupies room 309. Guests report waking up and seeing him at the foot of the bed, dressed in boots, spurs and a long duster.

Guests in room 321 report sharing that space with a man wearing a brown suit. He’s known to enter the room…but not through the door!

A young girl with pigtails, wearing a yellow dress, skips through the lobby. Visitors also encounter a blonde-haired woman, in turn of the century clothing, drifting along on the third floor. Although smiling, the translucent spirit stares at those who see her with penetrating icy blue eyes, leaving them feeling unsettled.

Another ghostly woman, with curly red hair, frequently drinks milk and eats cookies in the coffeehouse. Or you might encounter the woman in white wandering the hallways.

And wait…there are more ghosts!

A tall thin man sporting a long brown beard, tan suit and hat appears in two places, the upstairs ballroom and room 519. And a friendlier spirit pops into room 408.

Other Paranormal Activity in the Basin Park Hotel

Besides apparitions, staff and visitors report orbs floating by, footsteps that follow you, disembodied voices, doors that slam close on their own and the sensation of being watched.

Guests also experience objects moving about in their rooms. Or items falling off tables, shelves and counters. And perhaps because of the fire in 1890 that destroyed the former hotel, people sometimes capture what looks like flames in photos.

Shadow figures lurk in the ballroom and faces appear in windows…on the top floor. Staff and guests pass through inexplicable cold spots. And one paranormal investigator claims invisible hands chocked him while in the ballroom.

The hotel maintains a log of spooky experiences and encourages guests to report any paranormal encounters.

Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs basin park hotel
Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs – Basin Park Hotel, as seen from the other side of the park.

The Crescent Hotel

History

This building carries the distinction of being one of the most haunted hotels in the US. Built in 1886, the Crescent opened as a luxurious resort. It sits majestically on West Mountain, overlooking the town below.

Due to slow business during the winter months, Crescent College opened in the building, providing education to young women until 1934. In 1937 Norman Baker bought the former hotel and college, remodeling it into the Baker Cancer Clinic.

This charlatan claimed to have a cure for cancer. His spurious treatments and practices did not heal patients. Rather, they suffered, worsened and died. In the morgue set up in the basement, bodies were hidden away and eventually secretly removed from the “hospital”. At least 44 people died in the Crescent, during the 20 months that Baker ran his clinic. However, according to a tour guide, 300 patients who checked into the hospital were never accounted for afterward. Baker was arrested on mail fraud charges in 1939, for defrauding his victims out of nearly 4 million dollars.

In the years following, the Crescent changed hands frequently, until a couple bought it and the Basin Park Hotel in 1997 and restored them.

This hotel also conducts nightly ghost tours. Check out info HERE.

The Crescent Hotel Ghosts

Numerous spirits roam the Crescent. Some of the most frequently spotted ghosts include the following.

During construction of the hotel, an Irish stone mason fell to his death, landing in what is now room 218. This is the most paranormally active location in the hotel. Guests report hands poking out of the bathroom mirror, a man’s cries coming from the ceiling, orbs and distortions in the room and a door that opens and slams shut on its own. The staff refer to the entity as Michael.

In the hotel dining room, staff and guests report spirits in Victorian dress. Objects move around in this space, typically overnight while the dining room is closed. A Victorian couple, looking at each other as if in a wedding, appear and disappear. Others see a man sitting by the window, waiting for someone, while others come across ghosts dancing around the room, in the wee hours of the night.

As might be expected, several ghosts from Norman Baker’s time in the building haunt the Crescent, including the fake “doctor” himself. He appears in the hotel lobby wearing his favorite lavender shirt. A nurse pushing a gurney rattles down the hallways and former cancer patient Theodora haunts room 419. In the basement where the morgue once existed, washers and dryers sometimes turn on by themselves…all of them at once.

There’s the ghost of the college student, who jumped to her death from a balcony. And another spirit of a young girl lingers around the stairs. She fell to her death from the fourth floor railing soon after the hotel opened.

Other Paranormal Activity in the Crescent Hotel

In the kitchen pots and pans fly off shelves. And a little ghost boy wearing glasses plays in that room.

The smell of pipe smoke emanates from room 212, once the office of the legit on-site hotel physician, who loved to smoke cherry tobacco in his pipe.

Staff and guests report cold spots, orbs and misty shapes captured in photos. People feel touches from invisible hands. Cameras and recording devices lose their battery charges in the former basement morgue. And some feel nauseated in that space.

Others, while on the nightly ghost tour, faint at the same location on the third floor. That exact spot is where an annex was added, when the hotel served as Baker’s hospital.

There’s even a cat ghost, Morris, who likes to lay in a chair in the lobby.

Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs crescent hotel
Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs – The Crescent Hotel

My Experiences in Eureka Springs

I tell you truthfully, that as much as I love exploring this beautiful little town, I cannot spend the night within the city limits. The energy there is that strong for me. When I stay overnight, I choose lodging outside of town.

I’ve been in the Basin Park Hotel lobby, without difficulty. I hoped to attempt an overnight in the hotel this month and experience their ghost tour. A minor accident prevented me from carrying out my plans, due to pain and swelling in my left foot. Staying in the Basin is a future adventure.

I pick up on pools of tragedy in Eureka Springs, and no where as intensely as the Crescent. When I’m within a mile of that hotel, I feel it as discomfort across my back and scalp. At the Crescent, my chest feels heavy and I eventually get a headache and feel ill.

After attending a wedding there, I returned to my hotel room outside of town, unable to sleep due to hearing screams and cries in my head all night long. It was after that experience 12 years ago that I looked up the history of the hotel and learned it served as a hospital for cancer patients under Norman Baker. I feel despair there, and the hopelessness of those who suffered.

Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs crescent at night
Look at that orb of light over the hotel.

Crescent Hotel Ghost Tour

In 2010, my family gathered in Eureka Springs, to scatter my father’s ashes. He loved riding his motorcycle in this hilly town. While family members all stayed at lodging outside of town, my sisters and I, and our children visited the Crescent one evening, for the ghost tour.

What an incredible experience we had. We saw orbs and caught images in digital photos. And in the famous room 218, haunted by the Irishman Michael, I felt so dizzy and disoriented. I caught bizarre light distortions in that room with my camera.

Heading downward, into the morgue area, we all checked our phones and cameras, to make sure batteries remained fully charged. Within minutes of entering that dark space, all batteries were drained. I felt like I couldn’t breathe down in the basement. It was past time for me to leave the building.

Sadly, all the photos I took at the Crescent disappeared forever when the computer they were stored on crashed a couple of years later. However, I have one left from that night, emailed to me from my niece Ashley who captured something in the dark. It’s posted below, an enlargement of the orb in the photo above

Do you want to see what a ghost looks like? There it is, hovering above the hotel.

While I intend to attempt an overnight in the Basin next year, I do not think I can ever spend the night at the Crescent.

Could you? Would you?

Ghost Stories from Eureka Springs ghost
Is that a ghost above the Crescent?

The Rest of the 2021 Ghost Stories from Posts

The end of October means the end of the ghost stories, for this year! Thank you for reading along. Are you a believer yet? Have you had paranormal experiences of your own? Share them with me in the comments below.

And if you missed any of the earlier post from this month, they are listed below:

Charleston

Glasgow

Carthage

Rome

Peace, Love and Eureka Springs Arkansas tee. Click picture to order.

 

 

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Ghost Stories from Carthage

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my Disclosure Policy for details.

For the third installment in this year’s spooky series, I feature a town close to home. Located 15 miles northeast of Joplin, Carthage, Missouri is the county seat of Jasper County.

This charming town offers stately Victorian homes, an annual Maple Leaf Festival and Parade and a magnificent 126 year old courthouse that dominates the downtown square.

While Joplin has strong roots in the mining industry, Carthage is deeply connected to the Civil War. The first major battle of that war between the states took place in Carthage. Subsequent skirmishes severely impacted the community and ultimately, most of the town was burned to the ground.

Perhaps that’s why this community is home to so many restless spirits. These are five of the ghost stories from Carthage.

Ghost Stories from Carthage title meme

A Divided Community

Carthage, named after the ancient Phoenician city, became the county seat in 1841. The federal government bought the land that formed Jasper County from the Osage Tribe 33 years earlier. Gradually settlers arrived and the community grew around a public square. By 1851 a two story brick courthouse occupied the center of that square. Businesses opened up around the perimeter, providing goods and services to the citizens of the growing town.

Civil War

By the time of the Civil War, Carthage claimed about 500 residents. The area divided over the issue of slavery. Many of Carthage’s early settlers arrived from the south. Others participated in the Underground Railroad movement.

Missouri, a border state, did not secede from the union. To the north lay Union states and to the south, the Confederate states. Missouri contained both pro-Confederate and pro-Union governments. Southwest Missouri additionally experienced violent skirmishes due to guerilla warfare along the Kansas border.

On July 5, 1861, 16 days before the Battle of Bull Run, armies of the North and South clashed in Carthage. The Second Battle of Carthage occurred in October of 1863. Multiple battles and skirmishes in the area resulted in the burning of the town, including the brick courthouse, by pro-Confederate guerrillas in September 1864.

After the war the community built back and thrived. Businesses reopened and Victorian style houses rose along wide streets. Nearby limestone quarries contributed to the prosperity of the community. And Route 66 brought travelers and tourists.

That energy from the Civil War still lingers in Carthage. Stories abound about people hearing cannons booming, where none now exist, and the cries of soldiers in battle, long after the war ended. These are the ghost stories from Carthage.

Ghost Stories from Carthage battle
Ghost Stories from Carthage – battle marker

Kendrick House

On the northern edge of Carthage sits the oldest surviving house in Jasper County. The Kendrick house, completed in 1856, is one of only three area houses that did not burn during the Civil War.

William and Elizabeth Kendrick finished the big house on the prairie, that another owner began in 1849. They planted crops and orchards on the land and operated successful blacksmith and gunsmith shops for many years. The Kendrick Family descendants occupied the house for 130 years until Victorian Carthage bought the property in the 1980s.

During the Civil War both Union and Confederate troops used the house as a hospital. The Kendrick’s enslaved woman was tortured and hung in the orchard by Confederate guerrillas who thought she hid a Union soldier.

And the Kendricks experienced tragedy in the house. Three of their sons died during the war years. William died in 1868, followed four years later by his wife. A granddaughter and her husband raised their family in the home and lost their young daughter Pauline there. The last person to die in the house was Carol Sue, the great granddaughter of William and Elizabeth, who passed away from polio just shy of her third birthday.

The Ghosts of Kendrick House

A great deal of paranormal activity occurs in this house. Locally owned Paranormal Science Lab conducted research during Haunted History tours of Kendrick House.

Among the evidence collected:

  • EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) all over the house, many of which refer to local Civil War battles and generals. In total, EVPs captured 12 distinct voices.
  • shadow people caught on camera and seen visually
  • orbs, bright balls of light that move
  • apparitions in the house and yard, including a man in a war uniform and a young girl in a plaid dress that often walks to a neighboring house and passes through the back door
  • cold spots and hot spots
  • objects that move on their own, especially curtains in upstairs windows that are frequently disturbed even when no on is in the house
  • the sounds of children laughing and playing upstairs
  • the ghosts of Pauline and Carol Sue, the young girls who died in the house
  • footsteps going up and down the stairs, when no one living is walking there
  • a black mass that appears at the top of the stairs
Ghost Stories from Carthage kendrick house
Ghost Stories from Carthage – Kendrick House

Jasper County Courthouse

The massive courthouse presiding over the square is impressive. Built in 1895 from Carthage stone mined in the nearby quarries, the turrets, towers and arches give the Romanesque Revival building the look of a fortified medieval castle. It took the place of the brick courthouse that burned during the war. Two workmen supposedly died during the construction. One fell from the clock tower. Another died from a fall while installing the elevator.

Besides battles fought on the grounds, public executions took place on the courthouse lawn and many, many dramas played out within the formidable walls. It’s no wonder that ghosts appear on this property.

Apparitions flit across the lawn. Footsteps are heard in the attic and bell tower, when no one is up there. Shadow figures appear there as well. When paranormal investigators set up equipment in the courthouse, batteries quickly drained and filming and audio interruptions occurred. It’s believed that ghosts pull energy from such devices, to strengthen their own presence.

The most activity occurs on the third floor, occupied by the courtrooms and court offices. Disembodied voices are heard and a shadowy figure frequents the women’s restroom on the third floor. I find this interesting. While in the women’s restroom in the Charleston Courthouse, I experienced the shadowy figure of a man standing in the corner. He faded away as I watched him.

Ghost Stories from Carthage courthouse
Ghost Stories from Carthage – Courthouse

Burlingame and Chaffee Opera House

Across the street from the courthouse stands the Burlingame and Chaffee Opera House building. It occupies the footprint of two former buildings, destroyed during the Carthage battles. Francis Chaffee constructed the current building in 1878, opening a hardware store on the lower level while the opera house took up the entire second floor. For years the people of Carthage enjoyed a variety of entertainment in the opera house. Then tragedy marred the space.

John McCrillis, who had purchased the lower level hardware store, found love letters written to his wife, from another man. After inviting the offending man to breakfast, the two ended up in the hardware store, where McCrillis shot him. The man died outside in the street.

Over the years, the building changed hands frequently, housing a variety of businesses. Then it sat empty until a couple from California bought it, with the intention of living on the upper floor while running a business from the lower level. During renovations the couple encountered numerous strange experiences including unexplainable noises and footsteps in the dark building during the night. They abandoned the building after hearing what sounded like cannon fire in the middle of the night.

Opera Ghosts

The current owner operates McBride’s Antiques on the main level. The most common paranormal activities include:

  • hearing footsteps upstairs, in the empty opera house
  • being followed around the shop by an unseen presence
  • apparitions of a grandmotherly woman and young boy seen and heard on the main level
  • disembodied voices
  • the sound of a cash register ringing and coins falling in the old opera house upstairs…where no cash register exists anymore
  • a dark, heavy presence on the backstairs leading up to the opera house
  • a shadow figure captured on film, standing at an upstairs window
  • at 3:00 pm most days, the sound of someone falling down the backstairs
  • the sound of a piano playing in the basement, where a saloon once was
  • cannon fire, musket fire and a woman crying, all in the basement as well
  • the ghost of a young girl seen walking through the basement, and interestingly, in the basements of other buildings around the square
Ghost Stories from Carthage opera house
Ghost Stories from Carthage – Opera House

Grand Avenue Bed and Breakfast

Built in 1893, this Queen Anne Victorian features stained glass windows, hardwood moldings and a grand staircase. For the past 23 years this beautiful “painted lady” functioned as a bed and breakfast offering guests a peek into the past with Victorian wallpapered rooms and antique furnishings.

One resident seems reluctant to leave this cozy space. No smoking is allowed in the house. However, guests report the strong and inexplicable scent of a cigar on the main level, in the parlor and dining room, when an unseen presence is around.

The smoking ghost is believed to be a former owner, Albert Carmean, who died in 1933.

Sadly, Grand Avenue Bed and Breakfast closed due to COVID. Visit their website though, for photos of the interior. You might understand why Albert chooses to stay.

Ghost Stories from Carthage - Grand House
Ghost Stories from Carthage – Grand Avenue Bed and Breakfast

Historic Phelps House

Also located on Grand Avenue, the Phelps House, built in 1895 from Carthage stone, is a whimsical mix of Beaux Arts, Classical Revival and Romanesque styles.

Colonel William Phelps built the home. An attorney, he became prominent in state politics and was actively involved in Carthage businesses. He knew tragedy however.

His first wife died in St. Louis in 1894, in a runaway carriage accident. She never got to live in the house. One of William’s daughters died at the age of 29, from tuberculosis. And a young son from William’s second marriage died while riding his bicycle in front of the house, after a car struck him.

The colonel’s second wife Bridgey sold the house to St. Ann’s Catholic Church Parish. Nuns who taught at St. Ann’s School occupied the house and used rooms on all three floors plus the basement as classrooms.

The Carthage Historic Preservation bought the deteriorating house in 1988 and restored it to its former grandeur. Today the property hosts weddings and events.

The ghosts at the Phelps House are benevolent. They turn off lights. Their footsteps are heard on the stairs. And unexplainable breezes spring up in closed rooms.

I include this haunting primarily because of my experience there. See my story about the Phelps House in the next section!

Ghost Stories from Carthage Phelps House
Ghost Stories from Carthage – Phelps House

My Experiences in Carthage

I love this charming community. My son and daughter in law and their family live in Carthage, so I visit this town often. And I’ve had several paranormal experiences there, including one while shooting photos in town earlier in the week. I wrote a post in 2015 about my experience in the old opera house. Read it HERE.

Kendrick House

Twice I’ve explored the Kendrick House, with the Paranormal Science Lab. It is fascinating, watching them use their meters and sensing tools and even more interesting observing the results. During my first visit a humorous thing happened to me. Sitting in the parlor, listening to Lisa with PSL speak, I became distracted by the sound of another voice. I could hear a woman speaking quietly, behind me, even though I sat in a corner against the wall. I even peered outside, through the window, but didn’t see anyone. So I mentally asked, “Who are you?” Immediately, the song Elvira began playing in my head. Just as I thought “that’s weird”, I tuned in to Lisa talking about one of the Kendricks…Joshua’s wife ELVIRA. Her ghost often makes itself known…in the parlor where we sat.

Phelps House

I first attended an event in the Phelps House with my mother in the early 2000s. A photographer captured our photo and then we explored the house with a large group and enjoyed a sumptuous dinner. I told my mother that I felt like spirits were following me around throughout the house. As we prepared to leave, we stopped by the photographer’s table to collect our photos. He apologized, explaining he didn’t know what happened. Distortions appeared in our photo and apparently, no other photographs except ours were affected. I’ve included that photograph at the end of this post. I’ll let you decide what’s going on!

Civil War Battlefield

And Wednesday, as I traveled around Carthage snapping photos for this post, I stopped by one of the battlefields, for the first time. Truthfully, much of the city classifies as a battlefield. This one, marked with a stone, is now a park with playgrounds and a soccer field. I felt strangely disappointed at how modern it all looked. Then I drove through the park. My scalp began to tingle, which is a signal to me that spirit energy is present. When I parked my car and walked over to read the engraved stone, my chest felt heavy and ached, an even stronger sign that negative energy is present. Finally, as I returned to my car, I could “hear”, in my mind, the sounds of battle and the cries of wounded men.

Do you believe in ghosts? As my tour guide John said, in Charleston, I’m not here to try and convince you. I’m sharing stories, mixed with history, and letting YOU decide. Next week, we are off to Rome, Italy.

Ghost Stories from Carthage spirits
What do you see in this photo from the Phelps House?

October Ghost Stories Series 2021

Ghost Stories from Charleston

Ghost Stories from Glasgow

Check out this book from Lisa, with Paranormal Science Lab:

 

 

Cindy Goes Beyond is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. This affiliate program provides a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com, all at no extra cost to you.

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Ghost Stories from Edinburgh

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Off to Edinburgh, Scotland for the third installment in the October Ghost Story Series. I decided to hold off for another week on my own hometown spooky tale.

Ah Edinburgh, my favorite city in the world. The capital of Scotland, this magical city offers much to enchant the visitor. With its charming cobblestone streets, medieval castle and historical stone buildings, Old Town delights while it hides a few secrets.

Check out these ghost stories from Edinburgh.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh title meme

Edinburgh’s Long History

This city, nicknamed Auld Reekie, possesses a long, colorful history full of acts of bravery and the macabre. A center for education, philosophy, arts, literature, science and engineering, Edinburgh typically attracts millions of visitors a year. In fact, it is the second most visited city in the UK, right behind London.

Ghost hunters considered it a hot spot for paranormal activity. That’s not surprising considering its history that spans thousands of years and the labyrinth of passageways and rooms hidden beneath the streets and bridges of Old Town. I find the energy of Edinburgh electrifying and interesting, rather than frightening or dark.

“Scotland incorporates magic so thoroughly into its everyday life that the official national animal is the unicorn and its capital city, Edinburgh, counts “being haunted” among its local industries.” Unknown

Check out these five tales. And as a three time visitor to Edinburgh, I’ll share a couple of my own ghostly encounters.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh unicorn
Magical Scotland claims the unicorn as its national animal so you know anything can happen here!

Greyfriars Kirkyard

This kirkyard, Scottish for churchyard or cemetery, is known to house a number of ghosts. Among the most famous, and on opposite ends of the scary spectrum, are Greyfriars Bobby and Bloody MacKenzie.

Greyfriars Bobby

Greyfriars Bobby is the small Skye Terrier dog that loyally remained at his owner’s grave, long after the man passed away. For 14 years the pup stayed nearby, surviving due to the kindness of the fine people of Edinburgh, until he too died and was buried in the kirkyard. Today visitors wandering in the kirkyard tell of hearing a small dog barking, near Bobby’s grave, when no dog is present. It seems that Bobby guards his owner’s resting place still.

Bloody MacKenzie

And then there is the more frightening ghost of the man called Bloody MacKenzie. A wealthy lord and lawyer, George MacKenzie punished thousands of Scots in the late 1600s, who refused to change their religion to the national one. It’s believed he’s personally responsible for more than 18,000 gruesome deaths, earning him the name Bloody MacKenzie.

MacKenzie rests in his mausoleum in Greyfriars Kirkyard. Or at least, he did until his tomb was disturbed by a homeless man who broke in late one night. The frightened man fell through the floor of the mausoleum, into a mass grave filled with plague victims from centuries before.

Since that night, MacKenzie prowls the graveyard. And although his mausoleum is closed to the public, ghost tours routinely take people inside. More than 450 people claim vicious attacks occurred, from an invisible assailant, while they were inside the building. Injuries include bruises, burns, scratches, lacerations and even broken bones. One woman passed out when unseen hands strangled her.

Others report hearing strange noises near the mausoleum or feeling nauseated as they walk by it. An exorcism was attempted at the mausoleum, in 2000, by minister Colin Grant. He claimed he felt the torment of hundreds of souls and the presence of evil. He left Greyfriars Kirkyard, distressed, and died a few weeks later of a heart attack.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh MacKenzie Mausoleum
Ghost stories from Edinburgh – Bloody MacKenzie’s mausoleum

Grassmarket

Every medieval town used a square for public executions. This is true for Edinburgh as well. Nestled in the heart of Old Town, with fine views of nearby Edinburgh Castle, Grassmarket’s history includes a dark side.

Hundreds of criminals and people accused of witchcraft died there, up until 1886.

As you might imagine, especially for those labeled as witches, many people were innocent of their supposed crimes. Women thought to practice witchcraft suffered sleep deprivation until they finally confessed to crimes they did not do. As a result, the punishment was hanging or worse, burning alive.

Those innocents now haunt the Grassmarket area, sighing and sobbing over their unjust deaths.

Additionally, the White Hart Inn, located in Grassmarket, is one of Edinburgh’s oldest, and most haunted pubs. Parts of the pub date back to 1516. Paranormal activity there includes accounts of hair pulling, bottle throwing and apparitions captured in photos. Staff often hear footsteps upstairs, after the bar closes, and ghost hunters recorded a voice in that space saying “help me”.

Pub visitors also report seeing a pair of detached legs walking about and a ghost that hovers in the center of the cellar.

Historically, the murdering duo Burke and Hare lured victims away from the pub and killed them nearby. And a prostitute died in the pub in the 1800s.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh Grassmarket
Ghost stories from Edinburgh – Grassmarket

Haunted Tolbooth Tavern

On the Royal Mile, Edinburgh’s Canongate area is home to one of the city’s iconic buildings, the Tolbooth. Dating back to 1591, tolls were collected here, from people traveling into the city.

The building housed an administrative center, courthouse and a prison before transforming into a pub in 1820.

Several ghosts, possibly the spirits of former prisoners, create havoc in the Tolbooth Tavern. Their antics include knocking pictures off the walls, flinging drinks from the tables and making banging and knocking noises.

Pub visitors report seeing ghosts dressed in old fashioned military uniforms. Historians speculate they are the departed spirits of jailer James Park and his assistant, who found themselves incarcerated in their own prison after helping prisoners escape.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh Canongate Tolbooth
Ghost stories from Edinburgh – Tolbooth Tavern

Mary King’s Close

In Edinburgh, closes are narrow covered alleyways that branch off the Royal Mile. Mary King’s Close is named after a merchant burgess who resided on the close in the 17th century. Many people shared the close with Mary, packed into tall buildings. With no proper sewer system in the city, residents dumped waste into the streets, which attracted rats.

Those rats carried diseases such as the bubonic plague to the inhabitants, bringing death to Mary King’s Close. Legend says that the close was walled up, leaving the tenants to die horribly. In reality, the people were cared for as well as they could be, for those times. Many people died in the close, regardless of which story is true. The last occupant of Mary King’s Close moved out in 1902 and the area was sealed up.

The close lay abandoned and inaccessible for many years, buried beneath the Royal Exchange. Stories of hauntings began after workers reopened the area when they drilled down into the close accidently. The site is a popular tourist attraction today.

Annie’s Room

One of the most famous ghosts in the close is Annie. In 1992 a Japanese psychic picked up on feelings of hunger, sadness and pain inside a room. The psychic spoke to the ghost of a young girl named Annie, who claimed she was abandoned during the plague and died in the room. She said she couldn’t find her doll.

Feeling sad for Annie, the psychic purchased a new doll for the girl. Since that day, visitors from around the world honor Annie and try to make her happy by bringing her dolls, toys and jewelry. First responders such as police officers and firemen leave their badges as a sign of respect.

People that enter Annie’s Room report feeling inexplicable cold spots and claim a little hand grabs theirs.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh Mary Kings Close
Ghost stories from Edinburgh – Mary King’s Close and Annie’s Room

Edinburgh Castle

High atop a volcanic rock, Edinburgh Castle perches majestically above the city. Surrounded by tall granite walls that shield 900 years of history, many ghosts supposedly haunt the castle grounds.

There’s the young piper who, two hundred years ago, set off to explore the castle’s hidden passageways that lead to the Royal Mile. He played his bagpipes so that people above ground knew his location. The music suddenly stopped and the boy disappeared without a trace. His body was never found but the haunting sounds of his bagpipe echo beneath the castle.

In the dungeons, a headless drummer boy wanders about. And a group of French soldiers, captured during the  Seven Years War, often make appearances in the dungeons as well.

Other activity includes shadowy figures walking around, sudden temperature drops and unseen hands tugging on shirt sleeves and trousers.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh castle
Ghost stories from Edinburgh – the castle

My Own Ghost Stories from Edinburgh

I visited Edinburgh in 2014, 2017 and 2019. On two of those three visits, I experienced my own supernatural encounters.

Haunted Vaults

In 2014, two of my cousins and I explored Edinburgh’s underground on the Haunted Vaults Tour. Experienced primarily in the dark, with only the guide’s lantern for illumination, the vaults are extremely creepy. After leaving one of the vaults, the tour guide stopped talking as we all heard a loud crash from the dark room we’d just left. We all crept back into the room where she shone her light around, looking for the source of the sound. Nothing appeared out of order and no explanation for the noise was discovered. As I stood in the deep shadows at the back of the room, I felt a small cold hand take my right one. Surprised I turned to look. No one stood next to me on my right. I continued to feel that hand holding mine until we left the next room.

Shadow Figure in the Apartment

And in 2019, my sister and I shared a cute renovated apartment for the duration of our stay in Edinburgh. The building, hundreds of years old, formerly housed offices.

We experienced several instances of electrical things turning off on their own but we shrugged them off. However, one night, after a long day of walking in the city, I struggled to fall asleep. Restlessness overtook me. I began to hear popping noises in the kitchen and then the dining area and finally the living room. For me, restlessness and popping sounds are signs that spirit is with me.

Peering into the dimly lit living room, through the bedroom door, I saw the dark figure of a man walk by. He headed toward the window on the far side of the room, then suddenly changed directions and walked to the bedroom door. As I watched, the shadowy figure stopped at the door and looked around before turning away and disappearing. We slept with a light on in the living room, after that, so I could see better if the shadow man returned. He didn’t appear again.

However, I woke up a couple of mornings later, with two small burns on my left forearm, that weren’t there when I went to bed. I have no explanation for how I received those burns.

Will I visit Edinburgh again? Absolutely! I love this city with all my heart and I’d happily stay in the same apartment. For me, the veil between this world and the spirit world is thin. That fact no longer stops me from exploring and experiencing the world.

Ghost Stories from Edinburgh - burns
Unexplainable burns while in Edinburgh

More Ghost Stories

Check out these stories from Ireland and Italy:

Ghost Stories from Dublin

Ghost Stories from Venice

Do you have a ghost story to share? Add it to the comments below!

Ghosts Stories from Edinburgh group photo
Group photo in Greyfriars Kirkyard

 


 

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Ghost Stories from Venice

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In the second installment of the Ghost Stories from… series, we turn to beautiful Venice, Italy. This magical city, occupying a cluster of islands in the Venice Lagoon, captivates with its canals, history and charm. My daughter, grandson and I loved exploring this amazing city.

Haunting is another word that describes Venice. Like most cities, Venice has its dark side too. Wandering the narrow streets after sunset, especially when the fog rolls in, sends a chill down the spine that isn’t entirely caused by the weather.

The city’s long history is filled with stories of rebellions, conquests and death. It’s not surprising that energy lingers there. Check out these ghost stories from Venice, for a peek at the city’s mysterious side.

Ghost Stories from Venice title meme

Ghost Stories from Venice

Water is a great conductor of electricity and also of supernatural energy. Hauntings and water seem to go together. Whether from deep dark pools, rivers or even the moisture that accumulates within the walls of a house, water often amplifies ghostly activity. With its lagoon and 150 canals, water literally surrounds Venice and flows through it. And because the city is slowly sinking into the lagoon, many buildings and cathedrals have flooded subfloors and crypts.

No wonder Venice is not only one of the most uniquely beautiful cities in the world, but also one of the most haunted.

As you explore Venice, keep these locations and ghost stories in mind.

Ca’ Dario

Also known as Palazzo Dario, or Dario Palace, this house is also dubbed “the house that kills”.

Giovanni Dario, a local official, built the gothic palace on the Grand Canal in the late 1400s. After financial ruin and death, his daughter Marietta and her husband inherited the house. The husband died soon after, murdered, and Marietta committed suicide by throwing herself into the Grand Canal. Their son died a short time later in an ambush.

Over the centuries the palace continues to change hands. The owners have all been murdered, committed suicide, suffered horrible accidents or illnesses or experienced disastrous financial ruin.

Even leasing the palace comes with risks. In 2002 bass player John Entwistle died of a heart attack a week after renting the palace for a vacation.

A US company purchased Ca’ Dario in 2006, on behalf of a wealthy American woman. It’s currently undergoing renovations. Would you stay there? I would not!

Ghost Stories from Venice Ca Dario
Ghost Stories from Venice – Ca’ Dario, the house that kills.

Ghost of the Venice Bell Ringer

There once lived a man who rang the bells in the bell tower, or campanile, on St. Mark’s Square. Because he was quite tall, a Venetian scientist offered the bell ringer a large sum of money for his skeleton, after death.

Spurred on by greed, the tall man accepted the cash in exchange for giving his skeleton to the scientist. With this unexpected wealth, he promptly drank himself into an early grave.

After death, the bell ringer apparently regretted the deal he made. His ghost haunts Bressana Court where he begs visitors for money so that he can buy back his skeleton.

The actual skeleton of the man resides in Venice’s Natural History Museum. The skeleton shows that the man was indeed very tall. It is also said that the skeleton creeps out of the museum at night to ring the twelve bells of St. Mark’s Campanile.

Ghost Stories from Venice clock tower
Ghost Stories from Venice – the ghost of the bell ringer

The Bride Ghost of Venice

Those who walk Venice at night risk running into the ghost of a young bride.

Tosca, a beautiful but poor young woman from Treviso, was betrothed to a wealthy, older nobleman. However, she fell in love with a young hunter and the pair ran away to Venice. The jilted groom tracked down the couple and killed the hunter. He cut off Tosca’s ring finger, declaring that no man would wed her if he didn’t.

Tosca took her own life on September 22, 1379. Her ghost, wearing a wedding dress, wanders Venice after dark, searching for her missing finger.

Ghost Stories from Venice bell tower
Ghost Stories from Venice – watch for the Bride Ghost wandering Venice after dark

The Serpent of Punta della Dogana

Ghosts aren’t the only supernatural inhabitants of Venice. Punta della Dogana is the triangular shaped land mass jutting out between the Grand Canal and The Guidecca Canal.

Allegedly, a cousin of Scotland’s Loch Ness Monster inhabits the swirling waters just off the tip of Punta della Dogana. This beast’s body resembles a large, dark colored snake while the head looks horse-like.  It hides in a hollow beneath the land.

Fishermen swear that the sea serpent appears out of the dark waters on moonless nights, earning it the nickname “the black water monster”. One witness, in 1933, claims he saw the serpent rise above the surface to catch and eat a sea gull in a single gobble.

Ghost Stories from Venice grand canal
Ghost Stories from Venice – the domed buildings in this photo are on the Punta della Dogana

Poveglia Island

Known as one of the most haunted places in the world, Poveglia Island, located between Venice and Lido, originally served as a port. During the bubonic plaque, the small island became Venice’s dumping ground for dying and dead Venetians. Over the centuries, anytime an epidemic came along, the infected went to Poveglia. Most remained there until they died. The dead were buried in huge mass graves.

In 1922 Venice established an asylum on the island as a place to hide the city’s mentally ill and seriously ill citizens. Sadly, one of the asylum doctors performed cruel experiments on patients, in the island bell tower. He met his death by falling from that very tower. Some claim the ghosts of his victims pushed him. The story goes that he actually survived the fall, but a mist surrounded him and swallowed him up, finishing him off.

More than 160,000 deaths reportedly occurred on Poveglia, earning it the name of “the island of no return.” Visitors are no longer allowed on the island. Past visitors, including paranormal researchers, call it the final restless place of thousands of diseased and insane people who died there.

Ghost Stories from Venice Poveglia Island
Ghost Stories from Venice – Poveglia Island, one of the most haunted places in the world

October Ghost Story Series

You can check out last week’s Ghost Stories from Dublin, the first post in this month long series. Next week, watch for a local ghost tale from my own city. I’ll be checking out the famous Joplin Spook Light.

Have you ever had an ghostly encounter?

Share your stories in the comments below.

Ghost Stories from Venice
Ghost Stories from Venice

When in Venice, check out this walking ghost tour.

 


 

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Ghost Stories from Dublin

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Beautiful Dublin is an enchanting and magical city.  The capital of Ireland, Dublin contains many historic buildings, including a 13th century castle and the stately St. Patrick’s Cathedral, founded in 1191.

So it’s no surprise that the ancient city offers up more than a few ghost stories and haunted places. Some of those quaint stone buildings on cobblestone streets have darker stories to tell.

During the month of October, when spookiness abounds, I’m excited to present a series of Friday travel posts featuring ghost stories from five different countries. Read along each week, if you dare!

Ghost Stories from Dublin title meme

Bram Stoker

Besides being a city of haunts and ghosts, Dublin gave the world a master of horror, Bram Stoker. Best known for his 1897 gothic novel, Dracula, Stoker drew inspiration from a cemetery near his childhood home. A sickly child, Stoker spent hours on his own, wandering in Ballybough Cemetery. In this graveyard reserved for criminals and suicides, people drove wooden stakes through the victims’ hearts, to make sure they were dead and stayed that way. That grim custom became the origin for killing vampires in Stoker’s famous story.

Bram Stoker’s family owned a crypt in St. Michan’s Church and as a boy, Stoker often visited the below ground vault. Today it houses a collection of mummified bodies that fell out of their coffins as the wood disintegrated. As you might imagine, this vault beneath the church is labeled as haunted.

The next time you visit Dublin, check out these famous, spooky places.

Dublin Castle

This 13th century castle served for centuries as the headquarters for the British administration in Dublin. The castle was the center for invasions, battles, military strategies and countless persecutions. As a result, many people met untimely and often horrific deaths there.

During its early years, under King John of England, the heads of would be invaders were spiked upon the outer wall as a deterrent to enemies. The headless bodies rotted on the ground below. People claim to hear the moans and cries of the victims.

And in the dark dungeons many suffered torture and death for their crimes or their faith. Stories tell of convicted thief Roger de Fynglas and a poor widow who refused to renounce her faith, both left to starve within cells in the dungeon. De Fynglas’ spirit supposedly remains in his cell to this day. And the widow, whose own son imprisoned her, weeps in the dungeon, brokenhearted.

Ghost Stories from Dublin castle
Ghost Stories from Dublin – Dublin Castle

The Green Lady

Considered Dublin’s most famous ghost, the Green Lady haunts the grounds near St. Audoen’s Church, built in 1190. Many people claim to have seen the specter. She is believed to be Dorcas Kelly, executed as a witch for the murder of her unborn child.

The Sheriff of Dublin, Simon Luttrell, put her to death. He was a member of a secret occult group called the Hellfire Club, and supposedly fathered Kelly’s child. Allegedly, Kelly threatened to out Luttrell as a member of the club. The accused woman publicly burned to death at St. Stephen’s Green in 1746.

The Green Lady haunts the area near the bottom of the 40 steps leading to the church. She appears dressed all in green.

Ghost Stories from Dublin St Audoens tower
Ghost Stories from Dublin – The Green Lady haunts St Audoen’s grounds. This is St Audeon’s tower.

Ghost Girl in the Shelbourne Hotel

On St. Stephen’s Green, the famous Shelbourne Hotel welcomes guests from around the world. However, one uninvited guest refuses to leave. Built in 1824, the elegant hotel replaced townhouses built along the edge of the Green.

A seven year old girl, Mary Masters, apparently died of cholera. She lived in one of those townhouses. Staff report seeing Mary in the basement while they do laundry or stock the wine cellar. Hotel guests share chilling tales of encountering the ghost girl in their rooms.

One recent guest, an actress working in Dublin on a film, reported a presence in her room, when she awoke in the dark. She heard a giggle and then felt an unexplained breeze across her body, followed by slamming doors. Not finding anyone in her room, she shared her story with staff the next morning and learned about Mary.

Other guests tell of a presence sitting on the bed, the sounds of a small girl crying and invisible touches on the cheek or arms.

Ghost Stories from Dublin St Stephens Green
St Stephen’s Green is surrounded by haunted buildings, including the Shelbourne Hotel.

Rubrics Building, Trinity College

Trinity College houses some of Ireland’s precious historical artifacts. It’s also the site for a haunting.

Former college lecturer Edward Ford lived in the Rubrics Building on campus, in 1734. Considered an ill tempered man, he did not appreciate it when a group of rowdy students threw stones at his window. He sought to scatter the students by firing a pistol at them.

The students did disperse, however they sought revenge. The drunken young men returned to their rooms, picked up firearms of their own, and decided to teach Edward Ford a lesson. Although it’s thought they didn’t intend to kill Ford, they fired through his window, mortally wounding him.

Students and staff report seeing a sad man in a powdered wig and Georgian attire wandering around the Rubrics Building.

Ghost Stories from Dublin Trinity College
Ghost Stories from Dublin – Trinity College

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

Jonathan Swift, known for his book “Gulliver’s Travels”, was appointed Dean of St. Patrick’s in 1713. He died October 19, 1743 and he’s buried beneath the floor. The cathedral displays Swift’s chair, table and bookcases and two of his death masks.

Swift supposedly haunts two areas, the cathedral itself and the deanery beside the church, where he lived until his death.

The story goes that any worshipper who dares to fall asleep during a sermon might wake up to find an angry Swift looming over him.

And tenants living in the deanery after Swift’s death, up to the present day, tell of sensing a benevolent presence in the house. Some have reported seeing the ghost of an older man slowly climb the stairs to the dean’s bedroom above. At least one later occupant of the house, feeling sure an intruder broke in when he saw the older man, searched the house thoroughly and found no one there.

Ghost Stories from Dublin St Patricks Cathedral
Ghost Stories from Dublin – St. Patrick’s Cathedral

Do You Believe in Ghosts?

There are many other haunts in Dublin and a wealth of ghost stories. These five are among the most famous. Currently, with COVID travel restrictions, most of the city’s ghost tours are temporarily closed. However, someday, perhaps by next October, visitors will once again walk the narrow streets of Dublin, seeking the paranormal…and finding it.

If you want to experience Dublin’s darker side, in a fun way, try the Gravedigger Ghost Tour.

Do you believe in ghosts? I do. I’ve experienced the supernatural since birth. I’d love to read your spooky stories in the comments below. And watch this space next week, where I’ll offer ghost stories from Italy.

Ghost Stories from Dublin St Patricks clock tower
Ghost Stories from Dublin – St. Patrick’s clock tower.

More Tales from Ireland:

St. Stephen’s Green Dublin

Explore Dublin’s Temple Bar Area


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Cindy Goes Beyond is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. This affiliate program provides a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com, all at no extra cost to you.