History Goes Bump: Ghost Tours For The Mind

McMenamins Edgefield is located in Troutdale, Oregon and it is an historic hotel that features a little bit of everything from fine dining to concerts to a movie theater to a distillery and brewery to a spa and golf.  The spot once housed the county poor farm and as we know from prior experience with other podcasts, these locations sometimes leave an essence of negativity that lead to hauntings. T...

The Occidental Hotel is a historic hotel in the town of Buffalo, Wyoming. The area is a place that has seen gold diggers come through during the Gold Rush and people making their way West on the Oregon Trail. Outlaws have been through as well as heroes of the American West. And a well known battle of class warfare took place here during the days of cattlemen. The town is also the setting for A & E...

Newport, Rhode Island has been the summer playground for Presidents like Eisenhower and Kennedy and also for the rich, which is evident in the many mansions that dot the seaside town. Some of these mansions date back to the Colonial Era. The Cliffside Inn is one of the mansions here and today it serves as a bed and breakfast. The most notable family to live at the Cliffside Inn is the Turner Famil...

Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum is one of the oldest cemeteries in the United States and it is themed around the idea that cemeteries make great places for gardens. It was founded in the center of the Gem City - Dayton, Ohio - in the 1800s. The graveyard is the final resting place for some well known individuals and the 200 acres are dotted with beautiful and unique monuments featuring Greek theme...

The Apache warrior Geronimo is a legend, but he was once just a man who had a family. The death of his loved ones at the hands of the Mexicans pushed Geronimo into becoming a fighter. The Anglos would constrict the Apache way of life and Geronimo would retaliate in ways that would embarrass the US government. He escaped capture time and again. Eventually, he would surrender and then he would becom...

Fairfield Hills State Hospital was a state run mental health facility in Connecticut that was opened to alleviate the overcrowding in other asylums. The facility was pleasing to the eyes from the outside, but within its walls unspeakable acts were taking place. This was not a place of rehabilitation, but more a place of experimentation. Just as we have found to be the case at other asylums during...

The Ben Lomond Hotel is located in the Historic Downtown of Ogden, Utah. This is one of the last three "Grand Hotels" in Utah that still operates as a hotel. Built in the latter part of the Victorian Era, the hotel has changed over time. The original five stories now rise to eleven. Ogden was a major railroad junction and brought people from all over. And while a hotel is meant to be a place of co...

The Driskill Hotel was built in Austin, Texas and it's no surprise that this location was chosen as it is the terminus of the Southern most route of the Chisolm Trail. The hotel was built in the late 1800s and serves guests to this day. It emanates a timeless charm and the hotel claims that "every room tells a story." There are stories here for more than just the living. Some consider this to be t...

The Golden Lamb Inn is the state of Ohio's oldest hotel. The hotel has been the gathering place for residents of Lebanon for over 200 years. Through the years, it has changed ownership and names and hosted a variety of presidents and famous people. But the one constant has been the symbol for which it is named: the Golden Lamb. The deep history of this inn includes a connection to war, stage coach...

The Battle of Antietam was a twelve-hour fight that would go down in Civil War history as the bloodiest day of the war. Many would say this was the bloodiest day in American history. The setting would be a cornfield that contained a lonely little white church near the Antietam River. General McClellan's army would clash with General Lee's, sending the Confederates away in a draw not worth continui...

Theaters have always shared a special place in history. We crave to be entertained and many of us desire to entertain. Theaters are a place of strong emotions, both those played out by actors and those evoked in the audience. Paranormal activity feeds off of those kinds of emotions. The Capitol Theater was built in the center of Salt Lake City and has entertained Utahans for more than a hundred ye...

When it comes to San Diego, few other homes carry the historical significance of the Whaley House. It was built in 1856 by Thomas Whaley, Jr., who had followed the call of the Gold Rush from New York. The home would become a social center in San Diego and over the years it would serve as a courthouse, theater, school and many other businesses. The spot Whaley chose to build his home upon seemed li...

The Athens Lunatic Asylum is an institution that operated in Athens, Ohio from 1874 until 1993. This hiospital not only has a strange and morbid history, but it has gone through a series of name changes. Today it is known as The Ridges, a name it took on in the 1990s. While it was operational the hospital served thousands including Civil War vets, children and violent convicted criminals. The Ridg...

Butte, Montana has its roots in mining. The town came to be known as the "Richest Hill on Earth" and gold, silver and copper were all mined here. As was the case with so many mining towns, a successful red light district grew within the town. One of the most successful and high-class brothels in town was the Dumas Brothel. Rich clientele could have their fantasies met here, but there was also plea...

The barrier island of Folly Beach, South Carolina appears picturesque with its images of waves lapping against the sand. Locals refer to it as the "Edge of America." Below the surface of painted sunsets and beautiful beaches lies a dark history of mysterious and tragic losses. Folly Beach really has it all from shipwrecks to the Civil War to pirates. Blackbeard himself took cover at Folly Beach. A...

From the Aztec Sun Stone with the sunken eyes of Tonatiuh, the Aztec sun god, peering out from the center of the stone to the Alley of the Kiss to the Devil's Alley, the country of Mexico is rich with legends and superstition. On this episode, we are joined by our Research Assistant Kristin Swintek who is going to share some of the legends of Mexico with us. There is La Llorona, the Ironed Lady an...

Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina is one of the more uniquely designed hotels in America and it fits its setting in the mountains of North Carolina perfectly. Those mountains have a number of claims to fame. People come from all around to see the leaves change colors in the fall, to take part in winter sports such as skiing and snowboarding, and to hike its dozens of trails on the beauti...

This is an episode with some great recordings of both audible and EVP sounds! Paranormal investigator and listener Josh Kitchen joins us to share his experiences and evidence from Moundsville State Penitentiary! The West Virginia Penitentiary is located in Moundsville, so most people know it as Moundsville State Penitentiary. In its day, it was one of the most violent prisons in the United States....

North Brother Island has a rich history that is still reflected in its abandoned landscape and buildings. This is an island off of New York and now owned by New York. New York City saw the worst tragedy in American history on September 11, 2001. Before that day, the worst tragedy was the sinking of the General Slocum, which has connections to North Brother Island. The island also was home to River...

During the second world war, sea battles became a much more prevalent and impactful form of warfare. Great battleships and aircraft carriers became massive assets and a nation with an abundance of them was a power to be feared. This was proven in December of 1941 with the attack on Pearl Harbor which forced the hand of the US Government and set off America's involvement in WWII. Many ships were lo...

Eastern State Penitentiary was built to start a reformation when it came to America's penal system. Prison was making the move from a place of punishment to a place of reform. Eastern State became the most expensive building in America when it was built in the late 1800s and it was the most famous prison in the world. Al Capone even spent time here. Officers and inmates have reported haunting acti...

Australia is a rugged land and due to the fact that much of the country started as a series of penal colonies, it is no wonder that gaols have become an intregral part of its history. Fremantle is a major port city located in Western Australia, which is the biggest territory in Australia at 2,529,875 square km (976,790 sq ml.) Jennilee Watt is a tour guide in Fremantle and she is going to take us...

The University of Montevallo in Alabama has roots back to the Civil War and even back beyond that time period. The college started off as an all girls school using many antebellum buildings in town to serve as campus buildings. It was an educational experiment that worked and eventually led one day to the college becoming a co-ed institution. It's success continues to this day. The campus is part...

The Felt Mansion was meant to be a beautiful and spacious place of escape during the summer for the Felt family. It was a representation of a successful life set on the shores of Lake Michigan. Death doesn't care about family or success. It comes when we least expect it and at cruel times. And that is what happened to the Felt family. Now it would seem that family spirits have chosen to stay here...

It's March Madness at History Goes Bump! This Haunted True Crime is being made available to everyone. When you become an Executive producer at the $5 and above level, this is the kind of bonus material you get. From the outside, the Lalaurie family appeared successful, glamorous and respected. And why wouldn't they? Leonard Louis Lalaurie was a doctor and the home he shared with his wife Delphine...