Wisconsin’s Creepiest Locations Known for Paranormal Activity
Wisconsin is more than rolling farmlands, beautiful lakes, and charming small towns. While the outside appearance is picturesque, it also has a haunted history with places that hold onto echoes of the past. Over the years, these places have become known for their stories of paranormal experiences, ghostly encounters, and other sightings.
Local legends and curious visitors continue to be drawn to the dense forests, old buildings, and remote places for spine-chilling experiences. If you’re a ghost hunter or enjoy a good scare, these locations will make you shiver.
Old Baraboo Inn, Baraboo
It’s one of Wisconsin’s most haunted spots, with people — and even employees — claiming the Old Baraboo Inn is full of paranormal activity. Once a stop for gangsters, gamblers, and ladies of the night, this historic saloon was built in 1864. It’s said several spirits haunt the bar, among them is the ghost of a woman called Mary dressed Victorian-style. Patrons and staff say they feel sudden chills, hear faint whispers, and even catch shadows out of the corner of their eyes.
Land O’ Lakes: Summerwind Mansion
Summerwind was once an elegant estate but now it’s nothing more than a ruined shell in the Northwoods. Decades of paranormal activity have wracked the mansion, built in the early 20th century. The most famous story is that of a closet door in one of the bedrooms, within which the skeletal remains of a man were said to have been found. Summerwind has a well‐earned reputation as a haunted hotspot and strange noises, floating lights and shadowy apparitions have been reported both locally and nationally.
The Pfister Hotel, Milwaukee
One of Milwaukee’s most prestigious establishments and one of its most haunted is the Pfister Hotel. There are stories from many professional baseball players who have stayed there about eerie things happening, like lights flickering, and things being moved around. According to the legend, the hotel’s founder Charles Pfister still keeps an eye on the place and ensures the guests have a ‘memorable’ stay. Several MLB stars say they’ve been spooked so badly they’ll only stay in certain “safe” rooms.
Ridgeway Ghost, Ridgeway
Ridgeway is a small village famed for sightings of a ghostly phantom that comes and goes randomly along the road at night. This ghost goes by the simple name of The Ridgeway Ghost and there are locals who insist the spectral visitor is the ghost of a settler from the area’s early days. Local folklore has made the Ridgeway Ghost such a part of local folklore that every now and then people will come to Ridgeway to see if they can spot this shadowy figure.
Dartford Cemetery, Green Lake
As much as it’s known for its historical residents, this peaceful cemetery is also known for its paranormal visitors. Several Civil War veterans and other prominent locals rest in Dartford Cemetery, but it’s also the home of something—or someone—unearthly. Particularly misty figures have been reported to be wandering between gravestones, and people reporting feeling like they are being watched. Legend has it that those brave souls who sit atop the tombstone at night, will get sudden chills or even feel some unseen force pushing them away.
Milwaukee, The Brumder Mansion
A bed and breakfast in Milwaukee called the Brumder Mansion has an unusual guest list — some of its guests never checked out. This mansion was built early 1900’s and it’s said some ghostly apparitions and weird noises can be heard in the basement. There has been one spirit, believed to be an old woman’s spirit, sitting in the parlor waiting for something or someone. It has a welcoming atmosphere and, if you don’t mind sharing a room with a possible ghost, it’s also a great place to stay.
Sheboygan Asylum, Sheboygan Falls
This mental institution is abandoned and has a spine chilling reputation for good reason. Centuries old, the Sheboygan Asylum was built in the late 19th century to house patients for decades, where many suffered greatly under treatments common for asylums of the time. Paranormal investigators today come to the site in hopes of contacting the spirits of former patients. All of this is commonly reported: shadowy figures, disembodied voices, and sudden temperature drops. This is not a place for the faint hearted.
Hotel Hell, Maribel
Hotel Hell, Maribel Caves Hotel, has a dark history. It was built early in the 1900s, burned down twice, and is now famous for supernatural activities. Some claim to hear mysterious voices and apparitions are sometimes said to be seen. In addition, the hotel was built over an ancient burial site according to local legend so all of this only contributes to the unhealthy vibe of the hotel. Most of it is in ruins, but people still wander through the area, hoping to catch a glimpse of a ghostly figure.
Stevens Point University of Wisconsin
The Fine Arts Center is a known hotspot on the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point campus because several buildings on campus are rumored to be haunted. They also said students and faculty have heard footsteps down the hallways though empty of people, doors that open and close by themselves and the sightings of ghostly figures of people dressed in old fashioned clothes. Others say these could be the spirits of former students or staff, hanging around.
Oshkosh Grand Opera House
One of the oldest operating theaters in the state, the Grand Opera House in Oshkosh is also, by many accounts, one of the most haunted. The theater was built in 1883 and has hosted ghost sightings of everything from a ghostly woman in a long dress to a spectral stagehand who is thought to still dwell there. Patrons and the theater’s staff have said that they’ve heard strange footsteps, felt unexplained cold spots, and seen apparitions during shows. The Grand Opera House is still an active performance venue, if you’re brave enough, you may get to catch a show and a ghostly appearance here.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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