We’ve all heard (and been scared by) some spooky story, freaky urban legend or scary myth that happened right in the neighborhood. You might even consider yourself an authority on paranormal behavior. But how well do you really know America’s ghost history?
FindTheHome and FindTheCompany teamed up to identify the most haunted city in each state. To discover the most haunted cities, we found the places with the most cemetery businesses, funeral services, and antique shops (to find the places most likely to be riddled with lingering ghosts of the past). Consider traveling to one of these ghoulish haunts this Halloween. Perhaps you can even go trick-or-treating in these cities with a year-round ghostly reputation.
#10. Asheville, NC
Population: 84,883
Haunted Index: 61.6
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 1.06
Antique shops per 10k people: 3.65
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 2.71
Asheville‘s Haunted Story: Perhaps the ultimate penalty for James Sneed and James Henry was that they’d be doomed to roam the earth as ghosts. In 1835, they were convicted of stealing a horse and hanged at the intersection of Merrimon and Broadway. Though the location has changed in Asheville over the last two centuries, the eerie sounds of horse hooves, rolling wagon, and the death knell of a gallows trap-door are heard here.
#9. Cleveland, TN
Population: 41,898
Haunted Index: 62.18
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 0.72
Antique shops per 10k people: 1.43
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 4.3
Cleveland‘s Haunted Story: The blood stains on the white stone arch above the Craigmiles Mausoleum paint a stark contrast, and signify the tragedy that fell the pioneer family. Four members of the Craigmiles all died young from fatal illnesses, freak infections and auto accidents — and as each one was interred at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, the blood stains got deeper and darker.
#8. Conroe, TX
Population: 59,429
Haunted Index: 62.19
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 2.02
Antique shops per 10k people: 3.03
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 1.85
Conroe‘s Haunted Story: Not every haunting comes from a ghost centuries old. Ever since a fatal 2008 explosion at the Huntsman Petrochemical Plant that killed two workers, many witnesses have seen and heard doors slamming, voices talking, and the transparent image of a tall, pale man. In the company’s training building, which was used as a temporary hospital following the explosion, some people feel as though they’re being watched — or even followed.
#7. Greenville, SC
Population: 59,944
Haunted Index: 62.52
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 1.84
Antique shops per 10k people: 2.67
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 2.34
Greenville‘s Haunted Story: Haunted hotels don’t need to be old, dilapidated and abandoned, either. At Greenville’s modern Embassy Suites, doors open and close at random, and lights go on and off in empty rooms. It’s prompted hotel staff to call the police to investigate unauthorized guests — only when authorities arrive, there’s nobody there. Grass doesn’t grow on the golf course in three spots, and even a group of hotel investors backed out after getting the creeps.
#6. Charleston, WV
Population: 51,135
Haunted Index: 62.64
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 1.17
Antique shops per 10k people: 1.17
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 3.91
Charleston‘s Haunted Story: Have they had too much to drink, or is this joint really haunted? At the Empty Glass Cafe, the spirit of a former bartender — killed in a car wreck — is reported to change the jukebox music when he doesn’t like what’s playing. He’s also been seen appearing and vanishing on a whim.
#5. Pensacola, FL
Population: 52,268
Haunted Index: 63.52
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 1.15
Antique shops per 10k people: 3.64
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 3.06
Pensacola‘s Haunted Story: Pensacola certainly has its share of haunted activity — it even has its own paranormal society! One uncharacteristically haunted spot is the Landmark Skate and Fun Center, where an old man wearing plaid and overalls is frequently seen walking the grounds. Why doesn’t he set off motion detectors at night? He’s the ghost of Mister Vic, the Landmark’s former owner.
#4. Wilkes-Barre, PA
Population: 41,374
Haunted Index: 63.95
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 0.48
Antique shops per 10k people: 0.24
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 5.56
Wilkes-Barre‘s Haunted Story: The Welles House has been called Wilkes-Barre’s own version of the Amityville Horror for all the gruesome death and danger surrounding the seemingly innocent home. Anyone who lived in or went near the house through the years seems to have met an untimely end to their lives; ghost hunters still regularly hear unexplained shrieks, screams and moans that do more than make blood curdle, but literally come through the walls.
#3. Danville, VA
Population: 42,996
Haunted Index: 65.33
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 1.63
Antique shops per 10k people: 1.16
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 3.95
Danville‘s Haunted Story: Nobody has lived in the Colonial-era Sutherlin Mansion for years since it was turned into a museum, though you’d never guess it. Visitors report seeing the figure of a man peering out the windows during the day, and inside, the smell of cigar smoke fills the air though nobody is smoking. A girl is often heard moaning from the other side of the wall.
#2. Prescott, AZ
Population: 40,003
Haunted Index: 68.57
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 1.75
Antique shops per 10k people: 5.25
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 2.75
Prescott‘s Haunted Story: A feline phantasm? The ghosts of a woman and her cat are known to still reside at the Hotel Vendome in Prescott. The way the story is told, the woman was the former owner of the now-historic establishment, but after her husband left her, she died of a broken heart. Too despondent to feed the cat, it starved to death, and joined her in the ghostly afterlife on earth.
#1. Alexandria, LA
Population: 47,938
Haunted Index: 71.96
Cemetery developers and managers per 10k people: 2.29
Antique shops per 10k people: 2.71
Funeral, burial and cremation companies per 10k people: 3.96
Alexandria‘s Haunted Story: The crew of Ghost Hunters once paid a visit to the Alexandria Zoological Park, where the spirit of Robert “Les” Whitt, the zoo’s former director, remains. Whitt, who died of heart problems in 2008, loved his animals so much, that we’d like to think he watches over — rather than haunts — his beloved park.
