Top 5: American Ghosts

It’s October, so here are five real American ghosts to keep you up at night.

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Resurrection Mary

Vanishing hitchhikers are a staple of American folklore, but Resurrection Mary might be the most frightening. Legend has it Mary was walking home after an argument with her boyfriend at a ballroom dance, only to be killed in a hit-and-run accident. She was buried in Resurrection Cemetery, and since the 1930s there have been several reports of a young hitchhiker on Archer Avenue asking men for a ride, wearing a white party dress, dancing shoes and holding a small clutch.

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The DeFeo Family

In 1974, 23-year-old Ronald DeFeo was arrested for murdering his parents and four siblings. Lying face down in their beds and showing no signs of struggle, police were perplexed how DeFeo could have done the murder, and later tenants of the house reported paranormal occurrences which eventually forced them out. The case has been made famous in Jay Anson’s book The Amityville Horror and its subsequent films.

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The Bell Witch

The Bell Witch is a famous legend from Southern folklore. The story begins with John Bell Sr., a farmer in Adams, Tenn., who cheated his neighbor Kate Batts out of a land deal. On her deathbed, she swore to haunt the man and his descendants, who subsequently experienced strange and unexplainable activity at their home. Sugar would disappear while children would feel slaps and pinches out of nowhere. Bell himself suffered violent seizures before being poisoned.

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Residents of The Stanley Hotel

Stephen King was inspired to write The Shining after a stay in room 217 of this iconic hotel, though staff will tell you it’s room 418 that’s the most haunted. Guests regularly complain of children playing in the hallway. One couple reported being kept up all night to the sound of kids in the next room despite it being unoccupied. Many report hearing phantom footsteps and feeling their clothes getting yanked, while others have woken to find their sheets taken off the bed and folded neatly.

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Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln actually anticipated his assassination, telling his bodyguard he had recurring dreams of his own funeral. Since then, many visitors and occupants of the White House have had strange experiences related to the man. Eleanor Roosevelt reported feeling his presence while her dog would bark at empty space. Winston Churchill himself said he saw the ghost while walking around his room naked smoking a cigar. Upon seeing Mr. Lincoln at the fireplace, Churchill politely said, “Good evening Mr. President, you seem to have me at a disadvantage.”