Philadelphia and the Countryside - Press Room

Explore the gophila.com Visitor Site

Releases: Expanded View

Sep 5 2008

Haunted Philly: A Little Bit Scary And A Whole Lot Of Fun

Discovering Some Of The Philadelphia Region’s Spookiest Spots

Ghosts and goblins are nothing new to Philadelphia and The Countryside®, an area known for historic sites, Colonial-era graveyards and centuries-old buildings, some dating back to pre-Revolutionary War times. What many people don’t know is that many of the original residents of Historic Philadelphia never left town. The area is one of America’s most fun haunted destinations and a region rich with colorful ghostly lore. Here’s a look at Philadelphia’s scariest spots:

Haunted Hotels:

  • The charming, antiques-filled Bucksville House Bed & Breakfast has several guests who never checked out. Spirits have been confirmed in at least one of the inn’s guest rooms, where a psychic felt the presence of a man pacing between the fireplace and the window. The former owner’s son saw a man wearing a string tie and a flat-tipped black hat who sometimes appeared at the foot of the bed in one of the rooms. There are marked “cold spots” in the inn, and items tend to disappear and appear in the most unexpected places. Even the Ghost Hunter’s Alliance of Philadelphia recorded voices and found otherworldly activity in the inn. 4501 Durham Road, Kintnersville, (610) 847-8948 www.bucksvillehouse.com
  • A ghost has been known to pay a visit to Suite 309 of The Radnor Hotel. First sighted hovering on the ceiling, the woman proceeds down the wall to the door and then vanishes into the hallway. Some guests have even seen her presence in the hallway in the early morning. 591 E. Lancaster Avenue, St. Davids, (610) 688-5800, www.radnorhotel.com
  • Several guests at the historic Black Bass Hotel in Bucks County could be considered long-term tenants. Guests have seen a woman in white walking the halls and sometimes sitting in a guestroom with a pearl-handled revolver in her lap. Old Hans, an original innkeeper who was stabbed to death in a tavern brawl, is another restless spirit. A pool of blood appears periodically on the tavern floor as a reminder of his violent death. 3774 River Road, Lumberville, (215) 297-5770, www.blackbasshotel.com

Otherworldly Restaurants:

  • At City Tavern, a historic restaurant in Old City Philadelphia, a former waiter is always on the job. Legend has it that he was the unintended victim of a bar room duel. To this day, proprietor/chef Walter Staib reports that table settings are moved and silverware clatters. A specter in a bloodied white shirt is sometimes seen falling to the floor before it disappears. 138 S. 2nd Street, (215) 413-1443, www.citytavern.com
  • Cresheim Cottage Café, now a friendly neighborhood café in Chestnut Hill, was the first house built along Germantown Avenue in 1748. Through the years, a young female ghost in pink Victorian clothing with a satin bow and dark corkscrew curls has been sighted; the owners call her Emily. An attic door mysteriously opens and shuts and unexplained thumps in the halls spooked contractors when they were renovating the building several years ago. 7402 Germantown Avenue, (215) 248-4365, www.cresheimcottage.com
  • In New Hope, a Bucks County arts town known for its otherworldy happenings, the Logan Inn continues to entertain a Revolutionary War soldier sometimes sighted in the main dining room and bar. He’s not alone…in room number six, a ghostly reflection has been spotted in the mirror, and the smell of lavender sometimes surrounds a portrait of a woman who favored the scent in her long past lifetime. 10 W. Ferry Street, (215) 862-2300, www.loganinn.com

Ghostly Attractions:

  • Eastern State Penitentiary, a grim 179-year-old former state prison, was once home to famous inmates Al Capone and Willie Sutton. Pained former prisoners are said to haunt Eastern State’s dark Gothic halls. Halloween staff regularly reports seeing the “Soap Lady” dressed in white in the last cell on the second floor. Terror Behind the Walls, a Halloween tour of the 12-acre site, is offered by candlelight, with visits to The Asylum, and the Cellblock of Lost Souls. 22nd Street & Fairmount Avenue, (888) 763-NITE, www.easternstate.org
  • Perhaps the city’s most haunted spot, St. Peter’s Church Cemetery has been home to ghosts for more than a century. Some spectators have seen a horse-drawn carriage charging through the center of the graveyard and through the church. Others say restless Native American chiefs roam the grounds and the spirit of a Colonial African-American man can sometimes be seen walking in the graveyard by moonlight. 4th & Pine Streets
  • Ghosts of the Revolution, lost souls of the Confederacy and even a screaming woman from a second floor balcony have been heard and sighted at Fort Mifflin, the last working fort in America, now in the shadow of Philadelphia International Airport in Delaware County. Historic Nights of Frights tempt the restless spirits with candlelight ghost tours through the scariest parts of the fort. October 10, 17, 29 and 30, 2008. Fort Mifflin & Hog Island Roads, (215) 685-4167, www.fortmifflin.us
  • Historic Waynesborough, an 18th-century mansion and home of Revolutionary War General Anthony Wayne, is said to be haunted by one of his descendants, Hannah Wayne. On her way up to the attic with a candle, Hannah got caught in the trap door and accidentally set herself on fire. No one heard her screams, until she threw the candleholder and broke the window. Over the years people have reported hearing the crash of broken glass followed by screaming and crying, but no broken glass is ever found. 2049 Waynesborough Road, Paoli, (610) 647-1779
  • The Spirits of ’76 Ghost Tour offers thrills and chills during a 75-minute stroll that visits 20 historically supernatural Philadelphia frights and sights. From haunted folklore to famous thriller movie locations, this ghoulish walking adventure casts a ghostly glow over the City of Brotherly Love. Tours meet at Così Restaurant, 325 Chestnut Street, (215) 525-1776, www.spiritsof76.com
  • For 90 minutes of haunting tales of plague and pestilence, graveyards and potter’s fields and heroes and traitors, Ghost Tours of Philadelphia combines history with gruesome stories of the not-so-dearly departed. Tours leave from Signers Garden, 5th & Chestnut Streets. Or, take Haunted Trolley Tour, a fright fest on wheels through Old City and Society Hill that reveals what Edgar Allan Poe forever left behind in Philadelphia and which Founding Father still haunts Independence Hall. Trolleys depart from The Bourse, 111 S. Independence Mall (on 5th Street between Market & Chestnut Streets), (215) 413-1997, www.ghosttour.com

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) makes Philadelphia and The Countryside® a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases business and promotes the region’s vitality. For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit www.gophila.com or call the Independence Visitor Center, located in Independence National Historical Park, at (800) 537-7676.

Contact(s):
  • Bookmark
  • E-mail
Tagged: Events, Fall, Family-friendly, Holidays