The official Fort Monroe was completed in 1834, although the spot has housed some sort of headquarters or fortification since the early 1600s. Witnesses claim that the site is haunted by the ghost of Abraham Lincoln, as well as that of Jefferson Davis, who was imprisoned here after being falsely accused of plotting President Lincoln’s assassination. The ghost walks the ramparts at night, and Davis’ wife’s presence is signified by a vibrating window. Electronic voice phenomena also was captured of a little girl calling for her cat, Greta in an area now used as office space, and in fact, workers there have seen a phantom gray cat disappear around corners. Also witnessed at the fort are disembodied voices, horse-hoof sounds, photos that show orbs, knocking, and the apparition of an arrogant-looking man standing by the dining room fireplace in mid-18th-century garb. A ghostly White Lady is thought to have been the wife of a captain who shot her after she had an affair. She appears on the boardwalk and in a spot known as Ghost Alley. At the nearby Chamberlin Hotel you may find Esmeralda, a ship captain’s daughter seen on the eighth floor, waiting for her father to come home, as well as a ghostly man in a top hat who appears on the porch and is believed to be Edgar Allan Poe, believed to have visited here about a month before he died and recited poems to a young woman on this very porch. Poe served as a sergeant major of the artillery at Fort Monroe, but after being commissioned he decided he no longer wanted to be in the Army and began to show up on the parade field wearing nothing but his hat.
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Geographic Information
- Address:
- Bernard Rd
Hampton, VA
United States
Get Directions » - GPS:
- 37.0039058, -76.3072229
- Nearest Towns:
- East Hampton, VA (2.7 mi.)
Hampton, VA (2.8 mi.)
Newport News, VA (6.9 mi.)
Poquoson, VA (8.5 mi.)
York Haven Anchorage, VA (10.6 mi.)
Norfolk, VA (10.9 mi.)
Portsmouth, VA (11.7 mi.)
Chesapeake, VA (12.9 mi.)
Portsmouth Heights, VA (13.1 mi.)
Carrollton, VA (14.5 mi.)
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Disclaimer: The stories posted here are user-submitted and are, in the nature of "ghost stories," largely unverifiable. HauntedPlaces.org makes no claims that any of the statements posted here are factually accurate. The vast majority of information provided on this web site is anecdotal, and as such, should be viewed in the same light as local folklore and urban legends.
It couldn’t be Edgar Allan Poe because he’s buried in Baltimore MD
Then why does Lincoln haunt the white house if his tomb is in Springfield?
was stated he visited , ghost don’t tend to reside where they passed away. Ghost can reside where they spent most of their time or a place they had memories at!
I lived there years ago. Had a spirit in my home. Heard several stories from other military people too. Most sightings were inside the moat.
I worked there first at the chamberlin hotel the years later as a base maintenance many encounters but the wierdest was room 301 it was so bad there we had to turn it into as day time office but was still very active
Fort Monroe was also called Fort Comfort & allowed Slaves who were trying to leave their Masters entry by labeling them ‘Contrabands of war’. One of the outside upper area walkways is actually home to a pet cemetery (probable reason for the cat). I was there with my husband & daughter one day & kept seeing a lady in Civil War era clothes, when I asked one of the Docents if there were Reenactors working there, they shook their head and said ‘Congratulations you spotted our resident ghost’.
As far as Edgar Allen Poe goes, he did serve there for a short time (VERY SHORT) before convincing someone to take his place for a set amount of money. It wasn’t uncommon in those days for men who didn’t want to be soldiers & could afford it,to pay someone to take their place. There is some debate over whether or not Poe actually came thru with the funds or reneged after the person took his place.