From haunted houses to frightening forts, ghost children and horsemen, the Sunflower State has plenty of spooky places and paranormal activity to keep the most avid ghost hunters happy. Ready to get the fright of your life? Here are some of the most haunted places in Kansas.
7 Most Haunted Places in Kansas
1. Fort Leavenworth – Leavenworth
Fort Leavenworth is one of the most haunted military forts in the United States. Locals and visitors alike claim to see and feel many strange happenings. Father Fred is the main spirit here, roaming around St. Ignatius Chapel. Father Fred died in the original building in 1875 when it caught fire. Other people claim to see the spirit of Catherine Sutler, who is searching for her lost children.
2. Sallie House, Atchison
Sallie House is one of the most famous haunted places in Kansas. An Atchison doctor lived in Sallie House, and one day in 1906, a desperate mother, carrying her daughter, visited the doctor. The little girl’s appendix was about to burst. The doctor knew he needed to act quick, so he cut the girl’s stomach open before the anaesthesia had time to numb her. The poor girl couldn’t stand the pain and went pale and limp. The little girl now haunts the house. The house’s tenants claim that their dog barked at nothing, electrical appliances were turned off and on without anyone touching them, and pictures turned upside-down on the wall by themselves. The little girl is not the only ghost. Other people claim you can hear the voices of men, women, and children, too.
3. The Brown Mansion, Coffeyville
Brown Mansion is a gorgeous 16-room sprawling family home. The wealthy family that lived here were the Browns. They owned numerous businesses in town. However, the family was plagued by tragedy. They had five children, but just one survived. Two of them died at birth, one died from pneumonia, and another, Donal, died from diabetes complications. The only surviving child, the daughter Violet, inherited the house and lived there until her death in 1973. Since her death, nobody has ever set foot inside the mansion due to the belief that the ghosts of Violet and Donal haunt the house. People claim to hear crying noises and see the apparitions of Violet and Donald wandering around the rooms.
4. Ellis Railroad Museum, Ellis
The Ellis Railroad Museum is one of the most haunted places in Kansas. The paranormal activity is mostly in the basement, which used to be a jail cell. In 1958, the basement flooded and a prisoner being held there drowned. People claim to head strange noises coming from the basement and see a shadowy figure move in the window.
5. Hollenberg Pony Express Station, Hanover
The Hollenberg Pony Express Station was one of the most famous stops along the Oregon-California Trail. Today, it is a museum where ghosts and ghouls like to stop. Visitors claim to hear the clatter of horses’ hoofs approaching in the distance – the Pony Express was the mail service on horseback. Visitors also claim to see random apparitions and hear the voices of ghostly horsemen. Great Hollenberg built and operated the Hollenberg Pony Express Station, and locals believe his ghost is still in the museum.
6. Great Overland Station, Topeka
Established in 1927, the Great Overland Station is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was a Union Pacific Railroad Passenger Depot, where, during World War II, families would watch as their loved ones would go off to war. Whistle-stop politicians, including President Dwight Eisenhower, would also stop off here. Visitors claim they hear a woman crying, papers and supplies move, and drawers open and shut without anyone touching them. People also claim to experience someone or something tugging at their clothes and pulling their ankles.
7. Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity House, Manhattan
Originally St. Mary’s Parkview Hospital, the Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity House at Kansas State University is full of paranormal activity. When the building was used as a hospital, an ill and weak patient named George fell between the bed and the wall and was stuck there for three days before dying. George now haunts those in Delta Sigma Phi.
