History Goes Bump: Ghost Tours For The Mind

The Ouija board today is marketed as a harmless game. Most people believe that the boards don't do anything. For those that believe that communication can be established, they sit on two sides: the subconscious is controlling the communication or there is an unseen entity controlling the planchette that is flying across the board. Ouija boards get really interesting when they become integral parts...

As we have found from our episodes featuring ghost towns and locations in the desert of California, Nevada and Arizona, the desert is a strange and mysterious place. There is a home in Desert Center, California that seems to be sitting on a vortex created by the convergence of three deserts. The owner of this home is a woman named Daphne Minks and from the moment she stepped inside of it, she knew...

The Buxton Inn is the state of Ohio's oldest continuously operating inn that has stayed in the same location and same building. Since 1812 it has offered travelers a comfortable place to stay. Perhaps the inn is too comfortable. Based on the experiences of patrons and employees, it would seem that the inn is so inviting, many spirits have decided to stay here in the afterlife. Join us for the hist...

County Durham has a deep mining and farming heritage and is located in the northeast part of England near Scotland. This is the only English county prefixed with the word "County." The history spans so many eras that are reflected in the architecture, from Roman conquest to the Anglo-Saxons to the powerful medieval palatinate ruled by Prince Bishops. And all along the way, spiritual residue was le...

Hundreds of Chicago's most noted historic figures are buried behind the stone and iron gates of the 121 acres that make up Graceland Cemetery and Arboretum. This graveyard is clearly one of the best examples of a garden cemetery, featuring rolling hills, lush landscaping and peaceful winding paths. It was a perfect place for people to bring their picnics as a family and pay their respects to their...

Beaufort County is a typical southern coastal area with old live oaks dripping with Spanish moss and antebellum architecture. The county incorporates 68 islands that include Port Royal Island, Fripp Island, St. Helena Island, Lady's Island, Parris Island and Hilton Head Island. These are part of the Sea Islands that stretch from South Carolina to upper Florida. Beaufort County sits in the heart of...

Canada had an early park movement that spanned from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. Queen's Park in Toronto was one of the parks that came out of that movement. Within it's borders, it holds the magnificent legislative building. The park is encircled by the city that grew up around it and enjoyed by many. Some of those that enjoy the park are doing so in the afterlife. There are a...

Chattanooga is one of our favorite cities that we have visited. This is a charming city, surrounded by the Appalachian Mountains and bordered by the Tennessee River. Chattanooga's history includes several Civil War battles, the Trail of Tears, the Chattanooga Choo Choo, the Tennessee Whiskey Trail and there are several haunted locations. Join us for the history and hauntings of Chattanooga, Tennes...

Paranormal Conversations are random, off-the-cuff discussions on all things paranormal. On this 28th Paranormal Conversation, we are joined by entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Ghost City Tours and the host of the Ghost City Podcast, Tim Nealon. Tim has a passion and respect for history and a fascination with the paranormal and he has used this to realize his vision of a tour company with integrity...

The Thurber House in Columbus, Ohio is a charming home that is now a museum and meeting place for those with literary interests. There is a tragic and haunted history to the abode. The house sits on the outer border of the former Central Ohio Lunatic Asylum, which burned down in 1868, killing seven women in the fire. Jeweler Thomas Tracy Tress accidentally shot and killed himself in the house when...

Maitland Gaol has a reputation of being Australia's hardest jail. For nearly thirty years the gaol has stood empty, but for 150 years this jail housed some of Australia's worst criminals. Behind the sandstone and razor-wire of this modern day tourist attraction, some of the worst brutality occurred from murders to rape and of course, suicides. Inmates claim that the cells were concrete coffins. Th...

Jimi Hendrix was one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. His band, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, was just that, an experience. They blazed a path through music like none other with Jimi leading as band conductor, conjuring music magic. Hendrix music genius burned intense, but not for long as he entered the storied 27 Club when he died at the age of 27. Many claim that Jimi'...

The headline from the Chicago Tribune asked, "Did voice from grave finger murder suspect?" The question is startling, implying that a ghost solved a murder case. This isn't the first time that a ghost solved a murder case in America. The Greenbriar Ghost is a famous case from 1897 that many people believe actually happened. The same is true of the Teresita Basa murder case. Did her spirit inhabit...

Canada is home to some great haunts and Toronto is one of those cities harboring several locations with ghosts stories. We've covered Keg Mansion (Ep. 303) and Queen's Park (Ep. 57 & upcoming Redux) in previous episodes, but there are many other haunted locations in the city of Toronto and on this episode, we are going to explore several of them. There are theaters and jails, but also several litt...

Norwich State Hospital in Connecticut served as a home and place of treatment for the mentally ill for a hundred years. As is the case with many old insane asylums, treatment methods were arcane and in some cases torturous. Mental illness was not understood and people were mistreated years ago. Places that harbor pain and suffering seem to capture the energy for all eternity and that energy tends...

We once again were inspired to research a location that we saw on a series. This one is Mont-Saint-Michel from "The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon." The location in the series is like a safe haven for the good people, at least that is the way it appears on the surface. The castle-like main building is so beautiful and large that it seemed like it had to be a creation of CGI, so we were shocked to look...

The oldest cemetery in the country of Cuba is known by several names. There is La Necropolis de Cristobal Colon or El Cementerio de Cristóbal Colón or Colon Cemetery or in English, the Christopher Columbus Cemetery. Clearly, this city of the dead was named for Christopher Columbus. The Colon Cemetery is in the capital of Havana and was founded in 1876 and has over 800,000 burials. The cemetery app...

Brownella Cottage in Galion is said to be one of the most haunted locations in Ohio and has stood for nearly 140 years. While this is not a small house, it definitely has the appearance of a cottage and it has the distinction of having only the couple that built it, live in it. Bishop Brown was a controversial figure and he and his wife Ella are believed to haunt their former home. Join us for the...

Leap Castle in Ireland had it's beginnings in blood and death and is one of the longest continually inhabited castles in the world. Gothic windows and ivy covered towers give the castle a truly stereotypical look. The history contained within the castle's walls is fascinating and covers centuries of war and tragedies and contains elements of a murder soap opera. Castles and ghosts just seem to go...

The small southern town of Abingdon in Virginia oozes charm with its large maple and dogwood trees lining the brick sidewalks of Main Street, which had once been a pioneer trail through the Blue Ridge Mountains. Quaint shops and eateries fill the 20-block historic district here and there are several haunted locations that make this one of America's most haunted small towns. Join us for the history...

We have shared on previous podcasts that there were asylums that had sterilized patients without their knowledge and without their consent. Now, ratchet that up to doing mind-altering experiments on these patients without their knowledge or consent. That is the Allan Memorial Institute. This building had once been a home, but for a time it was like a prison. The atrocities that occurred here have...

Cheltenham in Britain is a wealthy, historic spa town that is a renowned center of cultural activity featuring wonderful Regency architecture. The town has been described as an unspoiled Cotswold town and it lies in the center of the Cotswolds. The very first major investigation by the Society for Psychical Research took place in Cheltenham and the results inspired the story of The Woman in Black....

No other actress has ever had the notoriety and fame or stirred the emotions quite like Marilyn Monroe. She was a legend in her own time and that legend has only grown since her untimely death. Not only was her rise to fame epic, but her personal life was a tale fit for the silver screen filled with torrid love affairs that included a president, drugs, scandal, tragedy, conspiracy and a mysterious...

Human settlement goes back thousands of years in the region of the Baltics that would become Lithuania. Like so many Baltic states, it went from being a significant regional power to one that was subjugated by the Soviet Union for decades. This is a proud land that has its own legends and haunted locations. Join us for the history and hauntings of Lithuania. This Month in History features Boris Ye...

Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum is located at 4521 Spring Grove Avenue in Cincinnati, Ohio. Horticulturist Adolph Strauch pioneered the "lawn plan" design when Spring Grove was established in 1845. This was a continuing effort to keep graveyards beautiful and inviting. This cemetery is the final resting place for many of Cincinnati's prominent historical figures and a living tree museum. The i...