The 18 most eerie haunted houses in the U.S.

What is it? A sprawling 160-room mansion with an incredible backstory.

Why go? You'll learn about how Sarah Winchester's husband developed the "gun that won the West," a decision that would come back to haunt her: literally. After losing her husband and young daughter, the widow consulted a spiritualist who alleged the family was haunted by Native Americans, Civil War soldiers and anyone killed by her husband’s famous Winchester rifle. She was recommended to use her $20 million inheritance to build a home to appease the spirits. What began as an eight-room farmhouse was added onto for 26 years between 1886 and 1922, becoming a 160-room mansion with 2,000 doors, all to confuse pursuing spirits. If you take a tour, bring your compass.

Time Out tip: There are usually special events and tours during spooky season. In 2025, check out the Festival Fright Nights from September 26 through November 1, a three-part horror event in partnership with Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group. 

What is it? One of the most haunted houses in America.

Why go? the Sallie House's bad energy allegedly stems from a botched appendectomy—the six-year-old girl who haunts the house died during a desperate procedure without anesthesia at the turn of the century. In the 1990s, a family who lived in the Sallie House documented their experience on the TV show Sightings, which spoke of flying objects, frequent apparitions and a mix of scratching, gouging and shoving (all mainly directed at the male owner). The vacant home is now a popular pick for paranormal researchers, and even regular folks can book the house to stay the night. 

Time Out tip: The house’s website claims that “skeptics leave as believers.” If you truly want to test your beliefs about ghosts and other paranormal activity, try an open-minded visit.

What is it? The site of an 1892 double hatchet murder.

Why go? Some say that at the Lizzie Borden House, a ghostly face appears in the cellar over the sink where bloody clothing may have been washed right after the 1892 hatchet murders of Andrew and Abby Borden. The possible perp? Andrew's daughter, Lizzie, who was acquitted at the trial of the century, perhaps by the jury's error. She, Andrew and her stepmother Abby are said to linger in the house, along with children who roll marbles on the attic floor, victims of a drowning by their mother in the basement well next door. The home is open daily for tours, ghost hunts and even overnight stays. Don’t forget to stop next door at Miss Lizzie’s, the most haunted coffee shop in the world! 

Time Out tip: If you’re into anniversary reenactments, head to this house on August 4, the day of the murders.

What is it? A haunted cabin with a haunted cave.

Why go? The Bell Witch Cave illustrates the age-old tale of neighbors at war: Kate Batts believed her neighbor, John Bell, cheated her out of some land. Lying on her deathbed in the early 19th century, she swore she would haunt him forever. The result was mayhem for the Bell family, who said they experienced physical attacks and heard chains dragged across floors and noises in the walls. They even saw odd-looking animals on their farm, like a dog with a rabbit's head. You can now tour the Bell Witch Cave and the replica of John Bell's log cabin from May through early November.

Time Out tip: Adding paranormal fear (cabin) to claustrophobic fear (cave) is a wonderful mix—but you can up the stakes with a lantern tour of the property to add in fear of the dark.

What is it? A beer baron’s home with a horrible backstory.

Why go? To teach yourself that all the beer in the world won't lead to happiness. So is the case with the Lemp family, purveyors of Lemp Brewing Company, a stalwart in St. Louis before Prohibition hit. Four family members killed themselves between 1904 and 1949, three inside the 33-room Victorian mansion where they allegedly still reside and haunt guests. It has since been turned into a restaurant and inn where you can explore the Gothic arched underground tunnels and even partake in a ghost tour—just go a little easy on the beer during your stay, okay?

Time Out tip: Before your visit, read Rebecca F. Pittman’s book The History and Haunting of Lemp Mansion, which outlines the history of the original family and includes some never-before-seen photos.

What is it? A mansion with a violent past in NOLA's French Quarter.

Why go? American Horror Story: Coven reignited interest in this famous French Quarter haunt. In the series, Kathy Bates plays Madame Delphine LaLaurie, a real-life socialite and serial killer who orchestrated a torture chamber for enslaved people at the Royal Street mansion in the early 1830s (before responders to a fire uncovered her dark secret). LaLaurie's victims are said to haunt the property to this day—from the street, pedestrians have heard shouts, moans and weeping, while some even claim to have seen ghostly faces in the upstairs windows. Even still, the house's ghastly history hasn't stopped wealthy buyers. Before losing the home to foreclosure in 2009, actor Nicolas Cage owned it, and in 2024 it sold for $9 million the week before Halloween.

Time Out tip: If you have a strong stomach for upsetting stories, take a ghost tour in New Orleans to see this house and other haunted spots.

What is it? A sea merchant’s home made famous by the spooky novel 'The House of Seven Gables.'

Why go? Immortalized in the novel of the same name by Nathaniel Hawthorne (who changed his surname from Hathorne to avoid connection to his ancestor who had served as a Salem witch trials judge), this foreboding 1668 seaside house was built for a hat and shoe merchant. Check out the bonus eighth gable and the secret staircase replete with stair-climbing ghosts, the giggling ghost boy in the attic and a woman who peers out the windows, said to be Hawthorne’s cousin Susannah. The not so scary part: Immigrants are welcomed to take free ESL and citizenship classes here, thanks to continuing the mission of turn of the century philanthropist Caroline Emmerton, who restored the home and turned it into a museum.

Time Out tip: Besides reading Hawthorne’s novel? Check out the seasonal after-hours candlelight tours of the home, called Shadows of the Seven Gables. 

What is it? An 1830 plantation with a ‘witch’ buried on its property.

Why go? This home built on Native American hunting grounds boasts a raft of ghosts, from passengers of a shipwrecked ferry to a boy who fell from a window. Docents have watched the ghost of an enslaved man walk across the room and tend a long-boarded-up fireplace. Another paranormal presence is Grace Sherwood, accused of witchcraft in the 1700s and found guilty by 'ducking' (a process in which she was bound and dropped in deep water; if she had drowned, she would have been found innocent). Thankfully, after seven years in prison, she was released and lived to be an old woman. She’s buried in the Ferry Plantation Cemetery. In 2006, she was officially exonerated. 

Time Out tip: Go find the lifesized statue of Grace Sherwood on the property with a raccoon pawing at her skirts.

What is it? A horrific true-crime house.

Why go? In 1912, Josiah and Sarah Moore, their four children and two visiting children were murdered by ax in their beds inside what is now called the Villisca Ax Murder House. The crime remains unsolved, and to try to figure it out, you can book a tour or spend the night. But stay at your own risk: In 2014, a paranormal investigator stabbed himself (non-fatally) by morning. He still won't talk about what happened. 

Time Out tip: Don’t have time to buy your own paranormal detection equipment? You can rent an EMF (electromagnetic field meter) detector for $7.

What is it? An 1810 house named for the Union’s Brigadier General Elon John Farnsworth, who led a charge which claimed his life and the lives of 65 of his men.

Why go? The waiters at the Farnsworth House Inn won't be the only ones dressed up in Civil War-era clothes—keep an eye out for long-dead Confederate soldiers clad in similar outfits. During the Battle of Gettysburg, many of the South's soldiers died while hiding in this home, which explains the one-hundred-plus bullet pocks in the brick walls. After the fighting in the area was over, the house became a hospital for soldiers. You can learn about the weird supernatural occurrences that continue to take place on the property by booking a ghost tour or an overnight stay.

Time Out tip: If ghost hunting makes you hungry, there are three separate dining spaces at the house, including an outdoor beer garden.

What is it? A Gilded Age manor with a Titanic connection.

Why go? This gorgeous behemoth of a ruined house looks like a state capitol met Jane Austen’s boyfriend’s house. At 70,000 square feet, this home has a lot of floor space for ghosts to ramble (its ballroom can hold 1,000 people). Although the house is abandoned with a lot of work to do, it’s in fairly intact shape. So who haunts this ‘last American Versailles’ which once held literal furniture from the French palace? Apparently, tycoon Peter A. B. Widener, who built it, and his son and grandson, who sank with the famous ship. Volunteers are currently fundraising to preserve the mansion and its 34 acres.

Time Out tip: A $125 minimum donation is good karma for the restoration and ensures you’re in the loop to be invited for events held at the house (in the past, photography workshops and fancy-dress balls, among others).

What is it? An unfinished tragic castle on an island.

Why go? Boldt Castle is lovely and forlorn on its heart-shaped island in St. Lawrence Seaway’s 1,000 Islands. Underway as a summer home for a millionaire’s wife, the castle’s construction was not yet complete in 1904 when she died of heart failure. The heartbroken Mr. Boldt walked away, and the castle was abandoned until its 1977 rescue. Strange lights are said to come on in the castle, and some have even seen Mrs. Boldt haunting the home that death robbed from her.

Time Out tip: Download the castle’s app to learn more about the sad history here.

What is it? A 1784 brick mansion with a witchcraft connection.

Why go? Built for prominent merchant Joshua Ward, this home sits where High Sheriff George Corwin (a significant figure in the Salem Witch Trials) once lived. Corwin was the man who used his cane to poke back in the tongue of a dying Giles Corey, a so-called witch executed by piling stones upon his body. Three ghosts are now associated with the house: Corey himself, "the strangler" who chokes visitors and "the witch," who was famously captured in all her disheveled glory by a realtor taking photos at a Christmas party at the property. Is it Photoshop, or is it Poltergeist? We’ll let you decide. Today the space is a beautifully decorated boutique hotel called The Merchant.

Time Out tip: Bring your sneakers. The home is a short walk to The Salem Witch Museum and the Peabody Essex Museum, and a slightly longer walk to Salem Harbor and the House of the Seven Gables (see our listing for this one above).

What is it? A Civil War era home. 

Why go? The Welty House is haunted by soldiers and civilians, including a boy who appears at a window. During the war, a family on the Union side hid in the cellar while fire from both sides riddled the home (“Our house was under fire of boath [sic] armies from Thursday morning until Saturday morning,” wrote neighbor John Rupp, who had joined the Welty family in hiding, in an 1863 letter.) Later, the home was converted and added on to the nearby Brickhouse Inn. Take a ghost tour here—or better yet, stay the night in one of 15 guestrooms.

Time Out tip: Take time to explore the Gettysburg battlefield sites across 25 acres—where 51,000 soldiers from both sides were killed, wounded, captured or went missing during the three day battle.

What is it? A spooky and illustrious New England home turned into an inn.

Why go? The place is filled with fascinating history. On land won in a card game, Colonel Ebenezer Crafts built his residence in the late 18th century, converting part of the home to operate as a roadside inn with 13 guestrooms upstairs. Cool fact: Crafts later moved to Vermont, founding the town of Craftsbury. Another cool fact: Lafayette slept here! Later, another card game made the then-dilapidated structure change hands again. But you’re here for ghost talk, and sure enough a ghost in Colonial attire has been spotted, possibly Crafts himself doing paranormal arts & crafts, ha ha.

Time Out tip: The inn is next to one of those ancient New England cemeteries with the tall, narrow stones so old you can’t read the writing anymore.

What is it? A Titanic survivor's home in Denver. 

Why go? Homeowner Margaret Brown championed workers' rights, fought for suffrage and won the French Legion of Honor award for her help in France during WWI. But she is best remembered for surviving the Titanic's sinking, dubbed posthumously the "Unsinkable Molly Brown." It's said that she (along with her husband and mother) still haunts her prized Victorian home, now a museum. Visitors say they’ve seen apparitions in the dining room, smelled mysterious pipe smoke from Margaret's husband and noticed rearranged furniture and unscrewed lightbulbs. (How many ghosts does it take to...?)

Time Out tip: This time of year, look for the Victorian Horrors events which pair ghost stories with room visits through the house. This year’s theme in honor of Molly’s Irish heritage means that all the stories are from Irish authors.

What is it? A home with many deaths connected to it.

Why go? The Franklin Castle mansion was built 1881-83 by German immigrant Hannes Tiedemann, who tragically lost his four children. It was later called Eintracht Hall and used for German culture clubs. It wasn't until the 1960s that the then-owners began to say it was haunted by Tiedemann's wife (and one daughter who died before the house was even built!) and declared it 'evil.' There are hidden rooms, crying babies, organ music and ghosts who snatch blankets off you at night. One owner of this "most haunted house in Ohio" was Judy Garland's last husband. You can see the house by attending one of the tours or events like Friday Fright Nights—or better yet, book a room to spend the night.

Time Out tip: Get together a group of friends to take over the entire castle for the night.

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What is it? A year-round social club with a dramatic history.

Why go? This ski club exists in a farmhouse that hosted some of the turn of the century’s most convincing Spiritualist happenings. In 1874, siblings Horatio, William and Mary Eddy (descendants of a Salem ‘witch’) saw so many supernatural beings that Chittenden earned the nickname ‘Spirit Capital of the Universe.’ Mysterious poundings, children vanishing from their cribs and a giant Native American ghost were just some of the phenomena (more tragic is hearing how the family abused its young trance-prone sons). A convinced skeptic wrote People from the Other World, a book about the 400 beings witnessed there during séances.

Time Out tip: Before you swing by, listen to Aaron Mahnke’s Lore podcast episode on the events here.