Spooky Season Reads

Author Katlyn Jones takes readers on a bone-chilling journey of haunted spots throughout the Panhandle. Dare to venture into the darkest depths Florida’s Panhandle. The scalded ghost of Elizabeth Bellamy roams Bellamy Bridge in Marianna. Prisoners sentenced to eternity traverse the cells at Gulf Correctional Institution in Wewahitchka. Guests at Crawfordville’s Wakulla Springs Lodge check in, but some never check out. From spectral surgeons at the Old Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola to the kindly ghosts at the Knott House in Tallahassee, meet the ghosts that lurk beyond the Gulf's sandy shore.

Author Heather Leigh guides readers on a spine-tingling tour through Florida’s haunted roadside attractions. Florida roadways teem with amusements designed to extract a few bucks from weary travelers passing through. While most visitations are brief, some are eternal. Indeed, many of these Sunshine State amusements are inhabited by spirits who make their presence known. Blue beams ensnare tourists at the UFO Mecca that is Shoreline Park in Gulf Breeze. A bevy of specters can’t stop performing for guests at the Ringling Brothers Museum in Sarasota. Visitors to the are advised to be on their best behavior when they happen upon the infamous haunted doll at the East Martello Museum in Key West—the doll, Robert, is known to bring misfortune to those who disrespect him. 

Author Heather Leigh guides readers on a swashbuckling journey into the ghostly remnants of Florida pirates. From the legendary Blackbeard to the infamous Captain Kidd, the tales of Florida pirates have captivated readers for generations--hidden treasure, daring escapes, larger-than-life personalities. But, of course, the ghost stories are just as intriguing. From haunted ships to spectral pirates still searching for their lost loot. Florida is full of history and mystery, and the tales of its pirates are some of the most exciting parts of that legacy.

With its sweeping vistas and rugged beauty, the Pacific Northwest is a natural setting for the extraordinary.



Strange tales of paranormal phenomena and other wild stories thrive among the trees and waterways, including sightings of Bigfoot, werewolves, and other mysterious cryptids. Is there a curse tied to the worst streetcar disaster in Tacoma—and America—that resulted in 44 deaths? Rumor has it that a model carved from the wooden remains of the crash claimed at least three more lives. A tree stump in Crater Lake is said to have power over the weather, and Terrible Tilly, a lighthouse on Tillamook Head, claimed several victims both before and after it was built.

Author and historian Ira Wesley Kitmacher explores the mysterious side of the Pacific Northwest. 

Folktales, hidden treasures and witchcraft.

The towering skyline of New Brunswick stands in stark contrast with the swampy ceder forest it emerged from in the late 1600s. While the city grew over the original Lenape settlement of Ahanderamock, its history was passed on through whispers of tales both real and imagined. In the Buccleuch Mansion, a skeletal figure dressed as a British Grenadier is said to stagger the halls with a lantern, and at Rutgers University tales of secret societies swirl through campus. Long-lost pirate treasures, some rumored to be connected to mysterious clues etched in stone, remain undiscovered to this day.

Author Mark Neurohr-Pierpaoli uncovers the mysterious stories lurking below the surface of New Brunswick. 

Marianna Randazzo reveals terrifying legends, historical accounts and firsthand testimonies, offering readers a thrilling journey into the dark underbelly of Staten Island's haunted past.

Staten Island is known as the mystifying borough, and it is home to numerous ghosts and eerie tales. The Alice Austin House was once home to a pioneering photographer, but ghostly images of a different sort now appear among the beams. The Moravian Cemetery in New Dorp holds tales of supernatural echoes, while over at the Old Bermuda Inn, the specter of Martha Mersereau, waiting for the return of her dead husband, appears at candlelit windows each evening. On some of the island’s most desolate roads, a spectral hitchhiker appears, vanishing from the car mid-ride, leaving only an eerie chill. Countless travelers have encountered her, a haunting reminder of the thin line between the living and the dead. Local author Marianna Randazzo uncovers the secrets behind Staten Island’s haunted houses, spectral sightings and enduring legends.

Discover ghostly history from Arlington to Occoquan, Leesburg to Lorton



Across the river from Washington, D.C. lies one of the most haunted areas in the country. From Arlington National Cemetery to countless battlefields, old towns, historic houses and memorials, all contain spooky stories that are longing to be told. The screams of a young girl taken too soon vibrate through the woods, to be heard by unsuspecting drivers. A bitter soldier keeps watch over a battlefield more than a century old. An angry wife guards her former home, preserving her husband’s legacy long after her own passing.

Author and paranormal researcher Alex Matsuo delves deep into ghostly lore to tell tales that haunt.

From Muncie’s past come weird tales of supernatural encounters, creepy ghostlights, haunted houses, and eerie hoaxes.

In the years before the Civil War, wraiths routinely harassed travelers on turnpikes southeast of the city. A poltergeist once terrorized a family farm in northeast Center Township in 1890. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, ghosts appeared frequently at local businesses, theaters, office buildings, factories, and turnpikes.

Delaware County historian Chris Flook delves deep into local historical archives to reveal dozens of uncanny encounters, ghostly pranks, and strange paranormal phenomena of the Magic City.

The North Carolina coastline is a tourist destination, a paradise for locals and visitors alike—during the day.

Its proximity to the Graveyard of the Atlantic gives it other, darker associations after nightfall. When the sun goes down and shadows appear, it becomes the haunted coast. Then, the quaint towns and islands that hours earlier played host to happy inhabitants are peopled by long dead pirates, specters, poltergeists, and some things that defy description. The ghost of a blind mother searches for her lost son, her wooden staff tap…tap…taping through the night. Five hoof prints give silent testimony to a cocky rider’s race to hell.

Author Thomas Smith walks though places best not explored alone.

Explore the mysterious past of Long Island and learn about the spirits that haunt the historic American island.

Take a ghostly journey through Long Island's history, from Native American legends and beyond. Ghosts lurk at the Execution Rocks Lighthouse, where Revolutionary War Patriots were brutally tortured and killed by the British during the Battle of Long Island. Popular gathering places have otherworldly tenants, including Bayport's Grey Horse Tavern and the Cutchogue Village Green, where several old buildings - and their former inhabitants - are preserved. Long Island's history is unearthed and preserved through its ghost stories and spirits that have made their presence known. Through extensive research, interviews and investigations, award-winning author and historian Kerriann Flanagan Brosky, alongside medium and paranormal investigator Joe Giaquinto, uncovers Long Island's eerie history.

Discover the tales of the ghosts and specters that linger in northwest Arkansas.

The mountains and deeply wooded valleys of Northwest Arkansas have a mysterious side to match their pristine beauty. Eureka Springs is home to more than a few hotel guests who have never checked out. The lingering spirits of fallen Civil War soldiers are said to haunt the battlefields of Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove. Many former patients of sadistic doctor Norman Baker are believed to roam the grounds of his former hospital, now the Crescent Hotel. Elkhorn Tavern, a well-known stop on the historic westward thoroughfare, is still plagued by lingering apparitions from its days as a field hospital. Join paranormal investigator and author Bud Steed on a tour of some of the most haunted spots in Northwest Arkansas.

Roanoke, VIrginia is a town with a hidden haunted history and many unique and chilling tales are revealed here.

Roanoke, in the heart of southwestern Virginia, is one of the most haunted cities in the commonwealth. The Star City is brimming with eerie and unexplainable stories, such as the legendary ""Woman in Black,"" who appeared several times in 1902 but only to married men on their way home at night. There are also macabre stories in many of Roanoke's famous landmarks, such as the majestic Grandin Theatre, where a homeless family is said to have lived and the cries of their deceased children can still be heard. Travel beyond the realm of reality with author L.B. Taylor Jr. as he traces the history of Roanoke's most unique and chilling tales.

Replete with the bizarre behavior of elevators, the numerous deaths of inhabitants and paranormal sightings by a writer in residence.

""Mayflower Apartments,"" represents just one of the extraordinary tales that Al Chewning documents in his latest book. By delving into the creepy, unexplored avenues of Virginia Beach's past, Chewning entrances the reader with the spectral details of Blackbeard's buried treasure, a deadly stretch of road inexplicably responsible for eighty-nine fatalities in the past thirty years and the untimely death of a military wife, devilishly titled ""Don't Make Mom Mad""--just to name a few.

In a collection of forty stories gleaned from newspapers and personal interviews, Chewning sheds an eerie light on the prosperous tourist hot spot that is welcoming by day, otherworldly by night. A long-time resident of the Virginia Beach area and the owner of Ghost Tours of Virginia Beach, the author tells not only of reported sightings but also of his own spectral encounters.

From a ""wailing woman"" in the old Coast Guard Station to supernatural activity provoked by the association of two friends, Chewning offers up spine-tingling apparitional tales that will shock and delight visitors and locals alike.

It should come as no surprise that one of the nation's oldest cities brims with spirits of those who lived and died in its hundreds of years of tumultuous history.

Boston, Massachusetts, boasts countless stories of the supernatural. Many students at Boston College have encountered an unearthly hound that haunts O'Connell House to this day. Be on the watch for an actor who sits in on rehearsals at Huntington Theatre and restless spirits rumored to haunt Boston Common at night. From the Victorian brownstones of Back Bay to the shores of the Boston Harbor Islands, author Sam Baltrusis makes it clear that there is hardly a corner of the Hub where the paranormal cannot be experienced as he breathes new life into the tales of the long departed.

Discover the haunted history of Grand Rapids, Michigan, complete with ghostly hotel guests, urban legends, and true stories of Grand Rapids spine-chilling past.

Come nose around in the creepier corners of the Grand Rapids of yesteryear. Discover why Hell's Bridge persists as such an oft-told urban legend and what horrific history earned Heritage Hill the title of Michigan's most haunted neighborhood. Mingle with the spooky inhabitants of the Phillips Mansion, Holmdene Manor, San Chez Restaurant and St. Cecilia Music Center. Meet the guests who never quite checked out of the Amway Grand. Read the true stories behind the Michigan Bell Building and the Ada Witch Legend. Nicole Bray, Robert Du Shane and Julie Rathsack illuminate the shadows of local sites you thought you knew.

Nestled in the heart of North Carolina's share of the Smoky Mountains, Asheville is one of the South's most haunted cities.

The picturesque landscape of this charming mountain destination belies what is in truth a violent, ghoulish past. Asheville has seen its share of horror, ranging from the suicide of the city's financial manager during the throws of the Depression, to hosting a tuberculosis sanitarium, to a night of murderous rampage in 1902. With wit and style, authors Ken Traylor and Delas House use their years of experience as the owners and lead guides for the 'Haunted Ghost Tour of Asheville"" to steer readers on a journey through the city's eeriest sites, from Riverside Cemetery to the Battery Park Hotel. Drawing on an unmatched repertoire of spectral lore, Traylor and House present a variety of ghastly accounts that are both thrilling and chilling. Traylor's personal experience as a guide and interpreter of local ghostlore adds a unique twist to this collection of macabre stories. Through years of research, he has amassed an intriguing collection of the area's haunted tales, and with Asheville Ghosts and Legends he seeks to share the gruesome details of Asheville's wicked past.

Discover some of Southwest Pennsylvania's most harrowing ghost tales.

The ghostly woman of Summit Cut Bridge, a black hound that guards the Gates of Hell and the whispering dead entombed beneath the Black Crossthese are the spirits of southwestern Pennsylvania. Join local author Thomas White as he recounts such chilling stories as that of Revolutionary War witch Moll Derry and the phantom bride of White Rocks and the hair-raising tale of the angry specter of a steel millworker burned alive in a ladle of molten iron. Ascend the secret stairs of the Cathedral of Learning in Pittsburgh and wander the dim stretch of Shades of Death Road in Washington County to encounter the otherworldly denizens of the Keystone State.

Behind Put-in-Bay's breathtaking scenery and wild nightlife is a side of the island that will make your hair stand on end.

Passersby claim to see the ghost of assistant lighthouse keeper Sam Anderson, who jumped to his death in the turbulent water of Lake Erie during an 1898 smallpox outbreak. Doors open and close of their own accord, and some say a spirit named Benny tosses things around at the Put-in-Bay Brewery and Distillery. Stage actor T.B. Alexander married the granddaughter of famous abolitionist John Brown and became one of the island's most noted mayors. His ghost is said to linger in the historic barroom of T&J's Smokehouse. Author William G. Krejci hosts this tour of the darker aspects of island life.

Slumbering beneath a shroud of deep forest and deliberate secrecy, Bachelors Grove Cemetery still exerts a powerful pull on paranormal pilgrims and curiosity-seekers around the world.

Shielding the orphaned burial ground from ritual and idle vandalism has also buried the rich history of this magical place. Still, its eerie presence has dominated the folklore of the southwest side of Chicago for every generation since 1838. Brave the woods with Ursula Bielski to unearth decades of mysteries and myriad ghost stories, from the Magic House to the Madonna of Bachelor's Grove.

Explore the origins of Wood County lore .

Ghostly tales abound from fallen war heroes of Bowling Green State University to the darkened woods of Holcomb Road. The spirit of Frank Simonds, a venerated World War I veteran who nearly got away with murder, may linger around Main Street in Bowling Green. A soldier who died in a desperate attempt to save hundreds still guards Fort Meigs. Though nothing stands there now, the spot of the infamous Woodbury House remains a terror—just as it was for the earliest settlers in the area./

Wonder-seeker and amateur folklorist Melissa Davies reveals the stranger side of local history./

Explore the spirits of Michigan's watering holes

From the picturesque shores of Manistique to the crystalline waters of Diamond Lake in Cassopolis, Michigan overflows with pubs and bars swirling with chilling legends. The decrepit ghost of Wattie Mullins welcomes visitors into Coonan's Irish Hub. The spirit of a black-eyed girl has been spotted playing on the steps of the C-Pub at Canterbury Village, and her appearance has left many feeling shaken and stirred . A mysterious soul inhabits a bizarre doll at The Agitated Grape and comes alive when you least expect it.

Local author and paranormal investigator Nicole Beauchamp leads this eerie literary road trip perfect for anyone who likes to eat, drink and be scary.

Strange and unusual things lurk behind the calm façade of Dearborn County.

Several legends surround Hillforest Mansion, the home of one of Aurora's founding families. Many have seen the ghost of a farmer and his mule at Carnegie Hall in Moores Hill. The glowing grave at Riverview Cemetery may connect to the 1941 Agrue family massacre. St. Mary's Church rectory is said to be haunted by the former priest, and the spirits at Whisky's in Lawrenceburg are not just in the drinks. Several schools in the area echo with the sounds of former students and staff, and numerous local residences house the spirits of former owners who never left.

Join Mary Ellen Quigley and Rebecca Wilhelm on a chilling tour from Lawrenceburg to Lawrenceville and beyond.

Spokane is brimming with haunted buildings and shades reluctant to leave their beloved city.

Patsy and Mary Clark have refused to leave their glorious mansion even after their passing, and the ghost of Ellen, who plunged to her death from a skylight in 1920, still whispers to current guests at the extravagant Davenport Hotel. In Greenwood Cemetery, a set of haunted stairs attracts visitors who come to see if the spirits will prevent them from reaching the top.

Join author Deborah Cuyle as she explores the Lilac City’s haunted landmarks and the colorful stories of its former residents.

Residents of Kernersville have spent lifetimes looking after each other--and sometimes they continue after death.

Nestled between Winston-Salem, Greensboro and High Point, Kernersville transformed from a sleepy little village stop on the Great Wagon Road into a thriving community in the nineteenth century--one with its share of ghost tales. Does a young soldier haunt the Kernersville Museum, flirting with the women who work there? Learn the truth of the ghost of the old McCuiston House. Local institutions like the P&N Store and Snow's Diner also claim their share of spooky stories.

Kernersville Museum director Kelly Hargett and local theater founder Scott Icenhower tell ghost tales that are sometimes comical, sometimes heartwarming, and sometimes a little hair raising.