Throughout Pennsylvania the locals have lore about haunted places. In upstate Pennsylvania there are numerous tales of a worm infested scarecrow terrorizing haunted fields. Locals in York County, Pennsylvania tell of Rehmeyer’s Hollow, a place haunted by the murder of a Pow Wow witch. But the following places are the most well documented haunted places in Pennsylvania.
Gettysburg National Military Park
Places where great trauma has occurred are often haunted. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania is definitely such a place.
Mark Nesbitt, a former ranger at the park, has written about the ghosts of Gettysburg. This November he hosts a candlelight ghost tour of the haunted battlefield. One of the ghost stories Nesbitt writes about is how Devil’s Den is haunted by a Texan soldier. Other ghosts have been spotted all around Gettysburg by many haunted witnesses.
General Wayne Inn in Merion, Pennsylvania
During the Revolutionary War visitors of the General Wayne Inn, formerly the Wayside Inn, included Generals Wayne and Washington. Hessian soldiers who frequented the inn became prank playing ghosts. The haunted General Wayne Inn is now owned by the Chabad Center for Jewish Life.
Baleroy Mansion, Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia
Until recently Baleroy Mansion was owned by a direct descendant of General Meade of Civil War fame. The former owner, George Meade Easby, lived in the house with his younger brother Steven.
Easby and others have been haunted by the ghost of Steven. Some have seen a ghost who looks like Thomas Jefferson. A ghost named Amanda has cursed a blue chair. Four people have died soon after sitting in Amanda’s haunted chair.
The mansion’s driveway is sometimes haunted by a 1930’s car which can be heard pulling up. Tours of this haunted place are available.
Eastern State Penitentiary
Also in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Eastern State Penitentiary offers shadowy ghosts and haunted laughter. The most often reported haunted places are Cell Blocks 6 and 12 and the Central Guard Tower. The ghosts of the Infirmary and Death Row give visitors chills.
Ghost of John Brown
That rebellious abolitionist John Brown is a ghost at two places. Both Harper’s Ferry in West Virginia and John Brown’s Tannery in Pennsylvania are haunted by his ghost.
Perhaps the tannery is haunted by John Brown because his wife is buried there. Now an Underground Railroad Site, John Brown’s Tannery is in Crawford County near New Richmond.
Haunted Places In and around Altoona
There are at least three haunted places in the area of Altoona, Pennsylvania. Baker Mansion in Altoona is the caretaker of a haunted wedding dress.
The Mishler Theatre is haunted by the ghost of its founder Isaac Mishler. Mishler’s cigar smoking ghost is said to appear in a variety of curious hats. Ghosts of the theatre appear in early 1900’s costume. The women’s restroom is an especially haunted place.
Near Altoona is the famous Horseshoe Curve of the Allegheny Mountains. Irish ghosts still work to build the curve. There are tales that the tunnel at the curve is haunted by an Irish girl ghost. The Rail Roaders Museum also has visitor ghosts.
Sideling Hill’s Haunted CCC Camp
In the Allegheny Mountains near Breezewood, Pennsylvania, this haunted place at Sideling Hill was a CCC camp in the 1930’s and then a POW camp for WWII Germans. Ghosts of this place include GI guards, an older man ghost shouting in German, young working men ghosts, and two teenager ghosts who were killed in a car accident.
Ghost apparitions, voices, cold spots, unidentified footsteps: all add to the creepiness of the most haunted places in Pennsylvania. Most of these haunted Pennsylvania places are open to visitors. Explore and see for yourself if the ghosts of the past really do exist.
