The Most Haunted Places in America

#1 Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia's Eastern State Penitentiary was America's first solitary confinement prison, it opened it's doors in 1829. Prisoners were completely isolated at all times, when they were moved or transported they had their heads covered with hoods so they could not see the guards or other inmates. This solitary punishment is believed to have driven many of the inmates to various states of insanity. The prison was abandoned in 1971 as the all-solitary setup was deemed too expensive. You can actually go on tours of the former prison and TV shows like Ghost Hunters have spent time in Eastern State Penitentiary to investigate the eerie noises, footsteps, and hallucinations that have been reported by visitors.

#2 The Lizzie Borden House, Fall River, Massachusetts

If you've never heard the story of Lizzie Borden, she was a young woman who stood trial in 1892 for murdering her father and stepmother in their home. The parents were murdered brutally with an axe; although Lizzie was ultimately acquitted, no one else was ever arrested for the murders and it is widely speculated that Lizzie was the killer. The house where the murders occurred still stands, it's about 50 miles outside of Boston and it's believed to be haunted by the ghosts of Lizzie's father and stepmother. There are daily tours of the house, and interested parties can even book a room and spend the night, which includes a special breakfast that is identical to what Lizzie's parents ate on the day they were slaughtered.

#3 The Rancho Los Amigos Hospital, Los Angeles, California

In southeast Los Angeles county, just South of downtown LA, you'll find the city of Downey. In Downey there used to be a ranch called Rancho Los Amigos, and in 1888 a hospital opened on the ranch called the County Poor Farm, which provided treatment to the poor and mentally ill. While part of the hospital is still in operation, the mental health wards were abandoned in the 1950s, but the buildings still stand today. Despite trespassing warnings, thrill-seekers have been known to explore these abandoned buildings and there have been sightings of hospital patients roaming the halls. In 2006 there were some military personnel using the buildings for some drills and they found an old freezer inside that contained legs, feet, and other body parts, yikes!

#4 The Myrtle Plantation, St. Francisville, Louisiana

The Myrtles Plantation, built in 1796, is said to have been the site of over 10 murders when it was in operation. One of the most well known stories is that of a slave named Chloe. Chloe's masters had one of her ears cut off as a punishment for eavesdropping. To get revenge, Chloe poisoned a cake she baked for her master, which ended up killing two of the slavemaster's daughters instead. Chloe was then sentenced to hang on the plantation.

Rumor has it that the ghosts of Chloe and the little girls she poisoned still haunt the plantation to this day. The plantation provides tours to adventurous folks, and die-hard ghost hunters can even rent out one of the rooms in the plantation to spend the night there!

#5 The Villisca Ax Murder House, Villisca, Iowa

In June of 1912, in the quiet residential town of Villisca, Iowa, in the home of Josiah Moore, Mr. Moore, his entire family, and two overnight guests were brutally bludgeoned to death with an axe. To this day the crime has never been solved and the murderer was never found. The house still stands and is now a tourist attraction; paranormal investigators have gone to the house and recorded audio, video, and photos demonstrating paranormal activity in the house.

#6 The General Wayne Inn, Merion Station, Pennsylvania

Originally opened as the Wayside Inn in 1704, the General Wayne Inn in Pennsylvania is a haunted building steeped in history. Notable guests of the Inn include George Washington and Edgar Allen Poe. In 1996 after a disagreement about money, one of the co-owners of the General Wayne Inn murdered the other on the premises. For almost a hundred years there have been reports of ghost sitings inside this building; it is no longer an Inn, in 2004 it was converted into a Chabad Center for Jewish Life.

#7 The Whaley House, San Diego, California

The Whaley House is a house built in San Diego in 1857, it was built on the scene of a notorious hanging. James "Yankee Jim" Robinson was hung on the property for supposedly stealing a boat, but there was very little evidence. Yankee Jim was a very tall man and he was hung from a relatively short gallows, so his toes were touching the floor and he slowly strangled to death while proclaiming his innocence. Visitors to the house report hearing footsteps which they believe belong to Yankee Jim; ghosts of Thomas Whaley and his wife have also been spotted. The Whaley House now offers visitors a late night ghost hunting tour on the last weekend of every month.

#8 Waverly Hills Sanatorium, Louisville, Kentucky

This sanatorium was opened in 1910 to treat and quarantine tuberculosis patients; nearby Jefferson County had a huge TB outbreak in the early 1900s. It closed in 1962 thanks to the tuberculosis vaccine, but it's believed that as many as 63,000 people died within the Sanatorium. There was also an infamous suicide in one of the rooms, it is believed that an unmarried nurse who had become pregnant with the owner of sanatorium's child and then found out she had contracted TB hung herself with a lightbulb wire in one of the patient rooms. Numerous paranormal-investigating reality television shows have sought out ghost activity inside the walls of Waverly Hills.

#9 The Winchester Mystery House, San Jose, California

The Winchester Mystery House was built in 1884 by Sarah Winchester, she was the widow of William Wirt Winchester, who was treasurer of the arms company that produced the Winchester rifle, which was a popular weapon during the Civil War. Sarah believed that the ghosts of the thousands of men who had been killed by Winchester rifles were haunting her and her home, so she moved from New England to California and built a house that she thought would confuse the spirits. The house was never officially completed because Sarah believed that an unfinished house couldn't have ghosts settled inside. There are also doors that lead to nowhere, windows from one room to another, tiny doors, almost no mirrors, and several other weird construction techniques to spook the spirits. Today the Winchester Mystery House is open as a tourist attraction and many still believe that it is haunted by spirits.

#10 The Field at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Gettysburg Battlefield is where one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War was fought. Almost 8,000 men were killed on the field at Gettysburg! Visitors who have spent time on the battlefield have reported seeing and talking to spirits, hearing gunshots and moans, and other paranormal experiences that are believed to be caused by the ghosts of the men who died there during the great battle.