More Photos from The Haunted Places that I've Blogged about so far: Alcatraz, Salem, Winchester Mansion, Eastern State Penitentiary, St. Louis Cemetery and Tombstones infamous Boothills Cemetery

   I've searched for some different photos to go with the "Most Haunted Places is the U.S. That I Want to visit", Blog I've been writing. I have tried to locate some pictures that weren't as common. Enjoy!

Alcatraz Photographs

Ghostly visitor captured by a visitor

Shadow Ghost on Staircase

Alcatraz Prison Cells

Rare View of Alcatraz

Salem, Massachusetts Pictures From Witch Trials

I suppose you could consider this a sad attempt at a memorial for all of the innocent people that lost their lives in the Salem Witch Trials.

A witch Trial

                                   The hanging of Bridget Bishop, an accused with on June 10, 1692.

                                                                        The Salem House

Eastern State Penitentiary Pictures

                                                              A hallway in the Creepy Prison.

Winchester House in San Jose, California

                                                     A ghostly garden appiration.

                                                                     Overview of the House

                                               A random corner in the strangely built mansion





    Most Haunted Cemeteries:

  St. Louis Cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans voodoo Legend says that when you are at the Voodoo Queen's tomb, to awaken Marie Laveaus Powerful Voodoo Magic, you knock, three times (to wake her from her sleep of the dead) upon the face of her tomb. Mark the tomb with XXX in chalk or brick, knock three times again and make your wish. Then you must leave an offering.

A very obvious ghostly image appearing in a tourist's photograph. One must separate real photos from fake, computer generated photos nowadays. We can only guess. But there's a part of our minds that wants to believe. That wants to see it.

Tombstone's Boothill Cemetery

This photo was taken by a tourist of his friend in Boothill Graveyard. It was developed and they claim it wasn't tampered with. The photo was shot in black and white because his friend wanted old west looking pictures of himself dressed up in clothes from 1880 period. There was no other person in the photo. But there is a guy crouched down in the background supposedly holding a knife.

                    This is the closeup of the ghost in the background of the previous picture.

                                                        The Losers of the OK Corral Shootout

Tombstone's "Boothill Cemetary and Louisiana's, "St. Louis Cemetary," two of America's Most Hauted Cemetaries

    Everybody gets the chills when they walk through a cemetery, particularly at night, mostly, it is all in our heads. Walking through hundreds of deceased people that are buried six feet under, could get you thinking that there's a possibility of encountering a ghost. There is however, always speculation surrounding the existence of ghosts in cemeteries, but those who have witnessed strange phenomenon and ghostly apparitions will assure you spirits dwell near their final resting places. Come and take a walk through some of America's most haunted cemeteries and read about the ghosts that choose to linger there. Open your mind and turn on your imagination.
    I'm writing about two of the most haunted and famous cemeteries in the United States, adding to my list of Haunted Places to visit.  Both St. Louis Cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana and Boothill Cemetery in Tombstone, Arizona; are known for their ghostly inhabitants. These spirits often stay near their final resting place, stuck in between this world and the next.

    Many ghosts are believed to haunt St. Louis Cemetery. As the oldest cemetery New Orleans, it is filled with ornate tombs built above ground (due to the marshy land) and mysterious mausoleums. Visitors have experienced the sounds of weeping coming from within the tombs, witnessed phantom figures, Civil War ghosts and yellow fever victims restlessly stalking through the maze of crypts.

     The movie, "The Exorcist",  was made from the story about,the St Louis Exorcism which happened in 1949. The real exorcism happened at the old Alexian Brothers Hospital and the true exorcism has been a story told over and over down through the years. The story has earned St Louis a real place in the paranormal history of America. St. Louis Cemetery is the oldest and most famous. It was opened in 1789, replacing the city's older St. Peter Cemetery (no longer in existence) as the main burial ground when the city was redesigned after a fire in 1788. The diversity and integration of the early city's population is as evident in death as it is in life. Some of its more famous inhabitants include.; Etienne de Bore, a wealthy pioneer of the sugar industry and the first mayor of New Orleans; Homer Plessy, the plaintiff from the 1896 Plessy vs. Ferguson Supreme Court decision on civil rights; and Ernest N. "Dutch" Morial, the first African American mayor of New Orleans. Also, the renowned Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau believed to haunt the crypt that she was buried in. On June 16, 1881 the New Orleans newspapers announced that Marie Laveau had died peacefully in her home. This is noteworthy if only because people claimed to have seen her in town after her supposed demise. Onlookers say that her ghost appears in the cemetery as a large black Voodoo cat with fire red eyes. If you let the cat see your back, legend has it, you will be cursed forever. Other notable New Orleanians here include Bernard de Marigny, the French-Creole playboy who brought the game of craps to the United States; Barthelemy Lafon, the architect and surveyor who allegedly became one of Jean Lafitte's pirates; and Paul Morphy,one of the earliest world champions of chess. Delphine LaLaurie is also believed to lay in rest here. Architect and engineer Benjamin Latrobe was buried there after dying from yellow fever in 1820 while doing engineering for the New Orleans water works; as well as fallen soldiers from the Civil War and the victims of the cholera epidemic of 1849. That event made it more critical for the city to have room for burials cemetery spans just one square block but is the resting place of many thousands. A Protestant section (generally not vaulted) lies in the north-west section.  St. Louis Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. It benefited greatly from a huge restoration project in 2004. Now it is a hot tourist spot. If you get lucky you just may see the spirit of Marie Laveau, they say she still conducts voodoo rituals, from the grave.

 
   Now we can continue onward with our haunted cemeteries tour onto the final stop; Boothill Cemetary, in Tombstone, Arizona. Tombstone was once a thriving silver rush town, Tombstone is now the true embodiment of a ghost town. The scenes of incredible violence that took place in its lawless streets still resonate, especially the infamous gunfight at the O.K. Corral among the Clantons, the Earps and Doc Holliday. Three of the Clanton gang were killed in the fight, which only lasted about 30 seconds. They now rest in Boothill Cemetery, alongside gamblers, smugglers and outlaws. Outlaws were buried midway down the hill amongst other thieves, people who were shot, stabbed or just found dead somewhere and were brought to be buried there. There are even people who are buried there on the hill that have "UNKNOWN" on the headstone because they never knew who it was that had died. There were always people dying. It was unusual when someone died of natural causes. There are dozens of "boot hill" cemeteries across the country, especially the West. The name refers to those who "died with their boots on" or in a violent way. But Tombstone's cemetery, and the entire town, is considered to be one of the most haunted. Ghosts of outlaws and the Clanton gang are often seen in the cemetery, hoping to avenge their death. Here is Tombstone's original Boothill hearse below.

     Located on the northwest corner of the town, the Boothill graveyard is believed to hold over 300 persons, 205 of which are recorded. This was due to some people (especially Chinese and Jewish immigrants) being buried without record. There is a separate Jewish cemetery nearby with some markers restored, and there are also marked graves of Chinese. However, most of the loss was due to neglect of grave markers and theft of these wooden relics as souvenirs.  For example, when former Tombstone Mayor John Clum visited Tombstone for the first Helldorado celebration in 1929, he was unable to locate the grave of his wife Mary, who had been buried in Boothill. Does her ghost haunt the graveyard with the many others that reside there? Is she looking for her husband?

     The Tombstone "boothill" cemetery was closed in late 1884, as the new "City Cemetery" on Allen Street opened. Thereafter, Boothill was referred to as the "old city cemetery" and neglected. It was used after that only to bury a few later outlaws (some legally hanged and one shot in a robbery), as well as a few colorful Western characters and one man (Emmett Crook Nunnally) who had spent many volunteer hours restoring it. Currently, the Boothill Graveyard is open to the public without fee, and is a popular stop for tourists visiting Tombstone. It seems like a great place to visit. There must be at least a few gunslingers haunting the grounds of the Cemetery, seeking revenge. Are you brave enough to dare to go there? To feel the icy breath of a ghost on your neck and your arm hairs raise? I am. So St. Louis  and Tombstone Cemeteries are on my list of Haunted places to visit.

The Ghosts of Eastern State Penitentary

 I've now officially added the Eastern State Penitentiary to my list of America's most haunted places I'd like to visit. It is a former federal prison in Philadelphia, PA and was operational from 1829 until 1971. The Eastern State Penitentiary was the largest building in America when it opened in 1829. Its grounds still cover a dozen acres; its 30-foot-high walls extend for nearly a mile. The penitentiary refined the revolutionary system of separate incarceration which emphasized principles of reform rather than punishment. Notorious criminals such as bank robber Willie Sutton and Al Capone were held inside its unique wagon wheel design. When the building was erected it was the largest and most expensive public structure ever constructed, quickly becoming a model for more than 300 prisons worldwide.

    At the same time,  Proponents of the system believed strongly that the criminals, exposed, in silence, to thoughts of their behavior and the ugliness of their crimes, would become genuinely penitent. In reality, the guards and councilors of the facility designed a variety of physical and psychological torture regimens for various infractions, including dousing prisoners in freezing water outside during winter months, chaining their tongues to their wrists in a fashion such that struggling against the chains could cause the tongue to tear, strapping prisoners into chairs with tight leather restraints for days on end, and putting the worst behaved prisoners into a pit called "The Hole", an underground cell block dug under cell block 14 where they would have no light, no human contact, and little food for as long as two weeks.

    In 1966 the Eastern State Penitentiary was designated a National Historic landmark. Then the prison was closed and abandoned in 1971. During the abandoned era (from closing until the late 80s) a "forest" grew in the cell blocks and outside within the walls. Then in 1988, the Eastern State Penitentiary Task force successfully petitioned Mayor Wilson Goode to stop redevelopment. In 1994, Eastern State opened to the public for historic tours. Many people believe that Eastern State Penitentiary is haunted. As early as the 1940s, officers and inmates reported mysterious visions and eerie experiences in the ancient prison. And the ghost sightings have only increased since Eastern State was abandoned in 1971. With the growing interest in paranormal investigation, Eastern State Penitentiary may now be the most carefully studied building in the United States. Dozens of teams visit to explore the site each year.The prison was abandoned in 1971, and rumors of strange happenings have plagued the stone penitentiary ever since. Visitors to the prison (there are many, for Eastern State is now a museum and Halloween haunted house) report footsteps in the yards, the sound of someone pacing in the cells, eerie noises, and lonely wails that drift through the cold, dark corridors. Cell Block 12 is famous for its disembodied laughter, and one guard tower appears, on some nights, to be occupied by a shadowy figure keeping watch over the empty prison.

 How many souls are still imprisoned within the walls of the Eastern State Penitentiary? If I were a ghost, and had been imprisoned and tortured in the penitentiary, and saw that today they have turned it into a haunted house, I'd be angry. They've literally turned it into a haunted house. You can tour the penitentiary itself and there's also " a haunted house" section. It seems comical to me. And probably offensive if you were a ghost stuck there. Do any of the guards who tortured the inmates have guilty souls walking around? Despite them going a bit overboard and creating an actual haunted house within the penitentiary, I think it'd be an awesome place to visit.

Haunted Places that I'd like to visit including Salem, Massachusetts

   In 1692, Salem, Mass. became the sight of a series of infamous trials after three local women were accused of using witchcraft to terrorize a trio of young girls; thus beginning the Salem Witch Trials.  They were started by gossipy, lying girls who pretended the "the witch" was casting spells on them and controlling them. But they didn't find this out until it was too late. People were caught up in the literal "Witch Hunt.", anyone who exhibited strange behavior or any other minor offense, sometimes nothing at all, would be accused of witchcraft. The ignorance spread, as it tends to do, and the "trials" soon escalated as towns people, scared and angry, started accusing  neighbors and acquaintances, almost all of them unmarried women, of being witches. They would torture these poor accused people. They were probably innocent and just the victims of ignorance and hysteria, as often occurs throughout history and even today.
    There were many ways they "tested" to see if someone was a witch. Their methods were not only highly unintelligent, inaccurate, but barbaric. Had they really learned nothing from centuries before of violence and madness? Apparently we still haven't learned too much in those areas. The accusers would tie up the accused and dunk them in a river or a pond. If the accused floated, they were considered to be in collusion with Satan, a Witch. But if they sank, they were cleared of the charges of witchcraft. That seems pointless in my mind. It makes me want to go back and ask, "Really? I mean really? Guess what, people float, the world isn't flat and gossipy people love to make trouble."  Also, a method not as written about, they would make "Witch Cakes", from human urine mixed with rye flour and once the cake was baked a dog was brought in and fed the cake. If the dog ate it the accusers assumed that each bite the dog took would send the so-called witch accused into great pain and groans and howling. Most dogs will eat anything, including their own feces. So why wouldn't they eat a nasty Witch Cake? 1 of the 6 men Giles Cory who was 80 years old refused to condemn any women in the village of witchcraft and refused to admit he too was a witch so they laid him out in a field and piled heavy stones on him hoping that he would admit to being a witch. He did not and he died. But you have to respect him for trying to do the right thing, even though it didn't work out for him too well at the time, perhaps he is one of the few souls at rest, since he did the right thing. Over 150 people were arrested and charged, and as many as 19 were eventually executed by hanging.
     Given the conditions, the idea that the Salem witch trials may have been fuelled by ergot poisoning is quite plausible. Salem, like many other communities in the past and present, harvested rye and it was a staple in their diet. But it turns out that rye grass is susceptible to a particular fungus called Claviceps purpurea which infects the edible portions of the plant. During the ergot stage of this fungus’ development, a combination of interesting alkaloids are present which will cause problems with circulation and neurotransmission when ingested by humans. Ergot poisoning, or ergotism, can cause a distressing array of side effects. The initial symptoms are gastrointestinal, then it reaps havoc on the central nervous system. These usually start with relatively benign sensations such as headaches, “pins and needles,” and burning/itching sensations on the skin; but then it escalates into spasms, convulsions, unconsciousness, hallucinations, and psychosis. In severe cases, the body tissues experience physical side effects such as loss of peripheral sensation, swelling, blisters, dry gangrene, and sometimes death. The ergot poisoning in Salem could not have been severe, however, otherwise more dramatic side effects would have occurred. Salem was a community stricken with inequality, fear of the native Indians, bitter disputes over land, sexual repression and apparently ignorance. It is likely that Ergot of Rye was merely a catalyst in an already volatile situation, and mass hysteria took care of the rest.
     Today, the town of Salem encourages its reputation as “Witch City, USA” and has one of the biggest Halloween celebrations in the country. Alongside the tourist shops and museums, though, stand several infamous ghostly locations related to the witch trials. One of particular concern is Gallows Hill, the site of several hangings, which is said to be haunted by the spirits of the 19 people lynched for being witches.It very much reflects the mentality of people, especially back then. Mass hysteria caused by ignorance, and people's inability to accept things they can't understand. To this day people continue to do that, all of the time.
     One of the ghosts haunting Salem may be The Joshua Ward House, on Washington Street. It was the home of Sheriff George Corwin and was also his grave, though his remains have been moved. He was so hated by the victims and their families, that his family was afraid of his grave being desecrated, understandably. Considering the things he'd done, he should consider himself lucky if grave decimation was the worst thing to happen to him after his death. Corwin was known as "The Strangler", because of his gruesome torture methods; which included tying his victim's necks to their ankles until the blood ran from their noses. He also was in charge of the "pressing" murder of Giles Corey. In the mid 1980s, the house was owned by a realtor who used the building as a business office. Employees and clients reported choking or suffocating sensations while in the building. Was that Corwin's hands of death? There was also a woman with dark hair and a long coat spotted in a photo, when she wasn't physically there. Was she murdered by Corwin as well?There have been many alleged hauntings in Salem even to this very day. There are more than a 100,000 visitors each year and many report strange encounters, including a rocking chair rocking by itself. And there are many other haunted sites where people have reported seeing ghosts.
  In conclusion, what a great place to visit!

Visiting Alcatraz

   Alcatraz is a former maximum-security prison and also home to some of the city’s strangest ghost stories. In the late 1850s, it's first inmates were military prisoners who were put to work building a new prison that later became known as "The Rock." The U.S. Army used the island until 1933, until the Federal Government stepped in, and decided to open a maximum-security, minimum-privilege penitentiary to deal with the most incorrigible inmates.It's a small surprise once the government got "The Rock" built that they wanted to use it to make money, not be used by the United States Army. That wasn't nearly as lucrative. Alcatraz was designed to break rebellious prisoners by putting them in a structured, monotonous routine until their release. Prisoners only were given four basic things - food, clothing, shelter and medical care.Anything beyond that had to be earned. Famous criminals, such as Al Capone, George "Machine-Gun" Kelly, Alvin Karpis and Arthur "Doc" Barker, spent time in Alcatraz. Mobsters in other prisons often managed to manipulate special privileges from guards, but not at Alcatraz.

Because of the huge cost to refurbish the prison it was closed in 1963. Later the island and parts of the prison were reopened by the Parks Services for daily public tours.The fact that Alcatraz was built on an island and kept so isolated from public view, caused tales of inmates being tortured and of their bitter spirits coming back to haunt the halls of Alcatraz began to circulate. One of the areas which some claim is the most active with paranormal activity is a utility corridor where inmates Coy, Cretzer and Hubbard were plummeted with bullets after a failed prison escape. It is there that in 1976 a night security guard reported hearing unexplained eerie clanging sounds coming from inside. Cell 14D, one of the 'hole' cells is believed by some to be very active with spirits. Visitors and employees have reported feeling a raw coldness and at times a sudden 'intensity' encompasses the cell.  There's a story told of an event in the 1940s, when a prisoner locked-in 14D screamed throughout the night that a creature with glowing eyes was killing him. The next day guards found the man strangled to death in the cell. No one ever claimed responsibility for the convict's death, however the next day when doing head counts, the guards counted one too many prisoners. Some of the guards claimed seeing the dead convict in line with the other inmates, but only for a second before he vanished. Also, a Warden faced a bizarre event while showing some of his guests around the prison. Warden Johnston and his group heard someone sobbing from inside the prison walls, and then a cold wind whisked past the group. Johnston could never explain any reason for the occurrences visitors to cell blocks A and B. claim they have heard crying and moaning. A psychic visiting wrote that while in Block C he came upon a disruptive spirit name Butcher. Prison records show that another inmate in block C murdered Abie Maldowitz, a mob hit man known as Butcher. Al Capone, who spent his last years at Alcatraz with his health in decline from untreated syphilis, took up playing the banjo with a prison band. Fearing he would be killed if he spent his recreational time in the "yard," Capone received permission to spend recreation time practicing his banjo in the shower room. We've all seen the movies. Is the shower room really a lot safer all considering? That's just my opinion, but I'm not a prisoner doing time, so what do I know? There were no special facilities for physical tortures at Alcatraz. The hooks, the electric shock treatments, the medical experiments, and other horrors found in other world prisons of the time (and, sadly, still to this day) were abhorred by Warden Johnston and the BOP. Johnston is rightly credited with eliminating these punishments in the California prison system's most popular and safest method. He did not stand for them at Alcatraz. But he did allow for other torturous techniques with the inmates. Throwing prisoners in "The Hole" was the  "safe technique" for the security guards, as it left no bruises. There was also; what was called "force-feeding". This involved forcing a rubber tube down the throat of a convict on hunger fast and forcing him to ingest a mixture of milk, sugar and eggs . A blackjack is a small rubber-covered, lead club. Their possession and use is illegal. Nevertheless, senior officers used these at times to knock prisoners unconscious.
      In recent years, a park ranger claimed he heard banjo music coming from the shower room. Not familiar with the history of Alcatraz, the ranger could not find a reason for the sound and documented the strange event. Other visitors and employees have reported hearing the sound of a banjo coming from the prison walls. Other odd events experienced over the years include guards smelling smoke, but finding no fire; sounds of unexplained crying and moaning; unexplained cold spots in areas of the prison and claims of seeing ghosts of prisoners or military personnel.Could it be Alcatraz is haunted? Ghost hunters have said they feel parts of the island and Visitors to the island often claim to see apparitions walking the cell blocks, and sometimes hear voices emanating from what was once the cafeteria. This would be a cool place to visit. There are so many ghostly encounters and stories told about this famous prison; by guards, prisoners and visitors. Even though they were there for a reason, no one would be happy at all about being behind bars; making the tales of inmates being tortured and of their bitter spirits coming back to haunt the halls of Alcatraz more feasible.

 According to records, there were eight people murdered by inmates at Alcatraz. Five men committed suicide.  Fifteen died from natural illnesses. Also, one little girl died on the Island.The Island had a morgue, but no autopsies were ever performed there. Instead, the dead bodies were brought back to the mainland and released to the San Fransisco County Coroner. So that's at least 29 people who died there, on record. Most were prisoners, miserable souls confined in 5'9" cells, and at least some of them probably walk haunt Alcatraz to this day.
     One lost soul is believed to be Yvuonne Oakes, the 13 year old daughter of occupants during the 1969-1971 Native American Alcatraz Occupation Period. Yvuonne tragically fell to her death in January 1970. She was the only known casualty of the Native American Alcatraz occupation period. She fell down 3 flights of stairs to her death. How did she fall down 3 flights of stairs? Was she playing and stumbled down stairs? Was she perhaps looking for her mother? Perhaps she simply wanted to show her mother a new picture she had drawn. But she never did. Does she still wander the hallways looking for her mother?  Does she haunt the stairway where she died?
    Perhaps the inmates that were murdered wander the prison with vengeance in their very souls. Do the guards killed during a riot haunt the hallways? Still patrolling? Are their still lost souls connected to their jail cells, confined for eternity? What an interesting history and most likely a pretty haunted stop.
 Stay tuned for the next Coolest Place in the United States to Visit! If you are into ghosts and paranormal activity of course. It is definitely not for the faint of heart!

The Top Haunted Places to Visit in the United States

   The United States has been filled with culture, history, blood, sweat and tears from the very beginning. A lot of lives were lost in the earlier wars to declare freedom and make the United States what it is today   There quite possibly might be quite a few ghosts lurking about; lost souls, searching  for what keeps them here. There have been an uncountable amount of supernatural occurrences all over the world. There have been ghost stories, legends, and folklore throughout time that have stemmed from people's encounters and beliefs. Civilizations have been built on these foundations of supposed encounters and people's beliefs, and perceptions of these supposed encounters.
    Incalculable amounts of people have experienced many different types of  paranormal encounters; that cannot be explained, even by the most intelligent, logical people and scientists. I myself have always been fascinated by ghost books, stories, supernatural phenomena, and even ghost hunting television shows. I'll admit that I have had ghostly encounters myself. That is why I'm so interested in supernatural phenomena. These phenomena are random, illogical, and confuse scientists, proving what they know to be wrong. As a result of my curious nature and the intrigue of all of this, this blog was inspired by such encounters and my enthrallment with human nature, the studies of Psychology and Sociology are extremely fascinating to me. They both focus on studying human behavior and the mind. So how does that tie into ghosts and supernaturals? It's people's reactions that are so insightful to me. How they deal with and describe what they have seen. It affects everyone different.
     I have a list of haunted places in America that I want to visit. First of all, I'm starting with San Fransisco, CA, a hotspot for paranormal activity; especially Alcatraz. San Fransisco has had a history of natural disasters like earthquakes have helped it develop a reputation as a Mecca of all things haunted, as well as The Winchester House in San Jose, CA. The earthquakes actually made the Winchester house shorter, interestingly enough. I'd also like to visit the Eastern State Pennitentary and Salem, Massachusetts, among many more haunted places. The rest is a surprise!