Well, its that time of year, the days are getting shorter, water's colder and the mountains will be covered with powder: Fall is here! Fall brings these attributes, but also a pseudo holiday called Halloween. Halloween is known for scary stories, jack o lanterns, trick or treating and mischief. However, are there any actual, true scary stories? There could be as some locations have reported eerie incidences including ghost sightings. These true scary stories include haunting at the Hotel Del Coronado, Whalen House, Fort Warren and Long Island, NY.
Hotel Del Coronado
The Hotel Del Coronado is located in sunny San Diego, CA and is one of the oldest hotels in the US. The Hotel Del Coronado was founded in 1888. This hotel is quite famous and has hosted many celebrities like Marilyn Monroe and numerous US presidents such as George W. Bush. Also, the hotel has been featured in movies including Some like it Hot starring Marilyn Monroe. With it's 130 year old history, this hotel has many crazy stories, especially about the ghost of Kate Morgan.
Hotel Del
Kate Morgan, a.k.a Lottie A. Bernard, was a 24 year old guest at the Del during 1892. Ms. Morgan took a long train ride from middle america to see San Diego. Old accounts describe her as a beautiful stranger that kept to herself. A few days after her arrival, Kate was found dead on the beach side steps of the hotel. The death brought fame to the area and was ruled a suicide. However, there are many theories about her death, including the possibility of foul play because the bullet in her skull didn't match the bullets in her gun. This theory also mentions that she had a con artist lover named, Tom Morgan, who could have responsible for her death.
Today, there have been accounts of lights flickering randomly, feelings of being watched, Kate Morgan's face appearing on an off tv and her apparition. These incidences have occurred near where she stayed, currently room 3327. Another haunted room is 3519, which is where a hotel maid who worked with Kate lived. Shortly after Kate's death, the maid disappeared, never to return again. Many people have reported spooky occurrences in the area, including a secret service agent who demanded to switch rooms in the middle of the night.
The Whaley House
Like the Hotel Del Coronado, the Whaley house is also located in San Diego. This house is located in old town San Diego, 5 minutes away from sea world. Besides being the Whaley Family home, it has served many purposes like being a granary, a Court House, San Diego's first commercial theater, a general store, a ballroom, pool hall and polling place. In addition to having many purposes, events like the suicide of Violet Whaley in 1885 greatly impacted Thomas and Anna Whaley. These events, along with several hangings that occurred prior to its construction have given the Whaley House a mysterious vibe and reputation as more than simply a California State Historic Landmark.
Whaley House
The Whaley house has had many scary events, which has earned it the reputation as the most haunted house in the US per Travel Channel's America's Most Haunted. One key event that earned it this title was the hanging of James Robinson (Yankee Jim). James Robinson was a thief and outlaw that was hung on the land where the house currently stands. Although Tom Whaley saw this gruesome event, he wasn't deterred, bought the land and built the current Whaley house. Lillian Whaley, the youngest Whaley daughter, lived in this house until the 1950's. However, she was driven away by random window movements and the thudding sounds of a large man walking. She believed these events were caused by none other than Yankee Jim.
Fort Warren
The previous destinations were in San Diego, which was settled much later than the east coast. The east coast was settled much earlier, so it must have several true scary stories. These stories involve Fort Warren, located in Boston harbor. This fort served many purposes like being a training location for union troops during the civil war and a prison for confederate sympathizers. In fact, one of its most famous prisoners was Confederate Vice-President Alexander H. Stephens. He was imprisoned here in 1865, but this location is infamously known for its lady in black.
The lady in black was known as Melanie, a newly wed who traveled from the south to free her husband from Fort Warren. Melanie's husband was a confederate soldier who among others were captured and imprisoned there. Somehow, he was able to notify her of his capture, causing her to start the rescue. She traveled many miles, snuck into the prison disguised as a man and almost rescued her husband. Unfortunately, union soldiers discovered their escape plan, killed her husband and captured her. Later, Melanie was sentenced to death as a spy, but requested to be hung in women's clothing, a long black gown.
Since then, there have been many strange events thought to be caused by her spirit. There have been reports of rocks moving suddenly, strange voices, and random foot prints in the snow. These stories have occurred long after her hanging, with some guards fleeing their posts from a black specter.
Boston Scarlet Lady
Similar to the woman in black, this ghost is known for its clothing: a scarlet dress. During the american revolution, a young couple was fleeing the chaos of Boston when the woman was shot in the back of the head with a cannonball. Miraculously, she survived this injury to die of head trauma a few days later. Before her death, she told her husband to bury her on land, not the sea. The husband wrapped her body in a scarlet blanket and hastily buried her in the sand dunes on Long Island. He promised to return to give her a proper burial, but never returned.
Is the Scarlet Lady in these Dunes?
The scarlet lady never forgot his promise and continues to haunt this area. Currently, visitors have reported seeing a pale faced women in scarlet clothing tumbling over the sand dunes. They've also seen her bleeding from a hole in her head, where the cannon ball injured her.
Fall can mean epic surf conditions and the slow transition into snowboarding season. It also includes Halloween and its spooky tales. There are many places that have supposedly true ghost stories that add to the excitement of this quasi-holiday. Hotel Del Coronado, the Whaley House, Fort George and the scarlet lady stand out for being the spookiest true scary stories in the country.
What other true scary stories do you know and do ghosts really exist? Please share below!