Consider this: Your group visits a historic home, and while at the site, one of the members sees in her peripheral vision a human figure dressed in period clothing. Curious, she turns her head to see who it is, but when she does, she doesn’t see anyone there. The group member is not afraid by what she just witnessed, but the experience sends a quick chill up her spine. Are her eyes playing tricks on her, or did she just see a ghost? Another group member feels a tap on the shoulder, but when he turns, no one is behind him to do the tapping. Did he just feel a phantom?
It is true that many accounts of alleged spirit encounters tell of people claiming to have seen ghostly visages or dark shadow figures out of the corner of their eyes. Others say they have felt the sensation of being touched when no one is there. There also are stories about individuals hearing disembodied voices or phantom footsteps, seeing lights and doors that seem to act on their own volition, or experiencing an overall sense of uneasiness while at a certain place.
Figments of imagination? Who’s to say? But if you ask those who have experienced such phenomena, they will likely swear on a stack of holy books that the encounters they have had were real. Whether you’re a die-hard believer or born-again skeptic, or somewhere in between, planners looking for a different kind of experience for their travel groups might consider a journey to some of the country’s allegedly haunted historic sites. The Northeast region has plenty of options. There is no guarantee, of course, that any of your group members will have a supernatural encounter, but they likely will walk away with some fun memories and a little more knowledge of local history and lore.
Ghost Tours Galore
Luckily for the thrill-seekers in your group, there are plenty of places to chase spirits in the Northeast. It’s good to start your paranormal history tour with those in the know. The “NYC Gangsters and Ghosts Tour” in New York City, which chases “ghosts of gangsters past,” offers three two-hour tours that run daily. Covering the areas of Chinatown, Five Points, Little Italy, and the West Village, guests on this tour visit old crime scenes and haunted locations, all from more than a century ago. As such, it is sure to please any history buff and paranormal enthusiast in your group.
Gangsters, crime—both often lead to prison time for the culprits; and old prisons are a prime setting for more ghostly experiences. Plan a group visit to Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, dubbed “America’s Most Historic Prison.” Built in the early 1800s, its haunting appearance of crumbling cellblocks and empty guard towers hints at what unseen presences might lie within. Infamous criminals who stayed for a time at this old pen include “Scarface” Al Capone and “Slick Willie” Sutton.
Credit: Eastern State Penitentiary/Albert Vecerka
Pennsylvania’s haunts include more than man-made structures; they also include battlefields. According to local lore, many ghosts—some dressed in military attire—have been seen at Gettysburg and other historic locations of the Civil War. Gettysburg Ghost Tours offers several candlelight tour options, among them the “Battle Cry,” “Black Cat,” “Craft Beer & Spirts,” “East Cemetery Hill,” and “Haunted Field Hospital” tours. Others include the “Live or Die” tour, which offers an immersive, character-driven experience, and the family-friendly “Daytime History Tour.”
In Maryland, put “Annapolis Ghost Tours” on your itinerary. Authorized by “Haunted Annapolis” author and local historian Mike Carter, these popular ghost walks and pub tours depart from the Maryland Inn. The “Haunted Pub Crawl” is a “spirited” gathering combining drinks and ghost stories. Also in the Old Line State is Baltimore Ghost Tours, which hosts haunted walking tours for all ages and pub crawls for those 21 years and older. Several options are available, including special events for groups.
No haunted tour of the Northeast is complete without a trip to the nation’s capital. Washington, D.C., abounds with history and allegedly haunted sites. Get spooked with any or all of the following: “Capitol Hill Haunts,” “DC by Foot,” “Ghosts of Georgetown,” “Ghosts of Lafayette Park,” “Horror on the Hill,” and “Scary DC.” There are many other tour options and sites to visit. One of them is The Octagon House, built in the shape of an octagon between 1798-1800 by Col. John Tayloe and now a museum. The house is said to have lights that turn on by themselves, chandeliers that swing of their own volition, and the sounds of mysterious footsteps on the stairway and upper levels.
“Visitors report cold spots and uneasy feelings when climbing the stairs, and some have heard piercing screams,” according to the DC History Center. “It is said that one of the Tayloe daughters fell to her death from that stairwell, and sightings of her have been reported since at least 1908. … Flickering lights and doors mysteriously opening and closing have plagued the new museum since its founding.”
By Andrew Weeks
Main Image: Gettysburg National Military Park, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Credit: Adobe/Tim
