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Lincoln College
Lincoln, Illinois
13.8 miles from Waynesville, IL
Lincoln College is rumored to have ghosts in the 1866 University Hall, where a face appears in the bell tower and white misty forms appear in the windows. The ghosts, whose footsteps also are heard from time to time, are believed to be a boy and girl who passed away ...
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Stanford Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Stanford, Illinois
14.3 miles from Waynesville, IL
Built in 1901, the Stanford Cumberland Presbyterian Church had been loved and enjoyed by it's congregation until it was sold in 2004. Between 2004 to 2012 it has changed hands four times since. The first owner lived it for a very short time. It was then ...
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Stanford Pour House
Stanford, Illinois
14.4 miles from Waynesville, IL
Originally built at the turn of the century as a mercantile grocery store, it was shortly after used by a local church for their temporary place of worship until their regular church building was completed. It was then used for many years as a funeral home. It ...
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Kemp Hall - International House
Bloomington, Illinois
18.7 miles from Waynesville, IL
Kemp Hall International House, or I-House, is said to be haunted by a ghostly Lady in Red. She is believed to be Mrs. A. E. DeMange, former owner of the mansion. She passed away after living here only a year, in 1908. Mr. DeMange sold it to the Illinois Weslayan ...
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Atkin-Colby Hall
Normal, Illinois
19.7 miles from Waynesville, IL
Atkin-Colby Hall at Illinois State University is rumored to be haunted on its 11th floor. One witness claims to have been pushed down the stairs by the ghost. Also described by witnesses are doors opening, whispers, strange noises, and an overwhelming feeling of discomfort and that you are not wanted ...
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Williams Hall
Normal, Illinois
19.9 miles from Waynesville, IL
Illinois State University's Williams Hall was the site of the university's first library, and is thought to be haunted by the spirit of the first librarian, Angie Milner. Even though a new library was eventually built in her name, and the old one was turned into Williams Hall, the ghost ...
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Millikin University
Decatur, Illinois
28.5 miles from Waynesville, IL
Many ghosts are said to haunt the historic Millikin University, including Rail Girl, who haunts the Albert Taylor Theater. Her ghost appears, as her name suggests, along a rail in the upper part of the theater. Students have a tradition of leaving her three pieces of candy before a show ...
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Avon Theater
Decatur, Illinois
28.6 miles from Waynesville, IL
Staff members at this theater report disembodied laughter, footsteps, missing objects, and voices and applause that come from the auditorium when it is empty. The apparition of a man in his 50s or 60s also has been seen.
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Lincoln Square Theatre
Decatur, Illinois
28.8 miles from Waynesville, IL
This historic 1916 theater building was built atop the fire-ravaged Priest Hotel that once stood here. It is said that the ghosts of the fire victims still linger in the theater. Red, a former theater worker, is a friendly ghost here. Witnesses have heard his whispers, seen his shadowy form, ...
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Greenwood Cemetery
Decatur, Illinois
29.3 miles from Waynesville, IL
This large and very actively haunted cemetery is known for the ghostly weeping Greenwood Bride, and it's also home to many Confederate soldiers' spirits. The soldiers were prisoners in the Civil War, and died of yellow fever only to be cast into unmarked graves. The soldiers have been known to ...
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Allerton Mansion
Monticello, Illinois
30 miles from Waynesville, IL
The Robert Allerton Park, with its 1900 Georgian Revival mansion and incredible gardens, are both open to the public. Here visitors may see some ghostly goings-on in the form of a Lady in White, believed to be a guest at the mansion long ago. It is said that she is ...
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Safari Bowl
Morton, Illinois
31.8 miles from Waynesville, IL
You will hear footsteps on the lanes when it is jaut you in there. You can hear pins be thrown across the back of bowling ally when no one is back there. There are dog barking. There is also a little girl that is 8 yrs old that haunts ...
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Emack and Bolio's
Peoria, Illinois
39.5 miles from Waynesville, IL
This ice cream parlour is haunted by former owner Jim Schwab, who died after falling headfirst down a flight of stairs. Staff have reported disembodied footsteps descending the staircase, while others have encountered a male apparition on the upper floor. (Submitted by Callum Swift)
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Peoria Public Library
Peoria, Illinois
40 miles from Waynesville, IL
Peoria Public Library, according to local lore, was built upon cursed ground. So the story goes, Mrs. Andrew Gray lived in a house here around 1830. Family and financial hardships led to a foreclosure on her home, and Mrs. Gray cursed the property and all of its future owners. Her ...
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Peoria State Hospital
Bartonville, Illinois
40.2 miles from Waynesville, IL
This abandoned mental hospital, now in the planning stages for restoration, is said to be haunted by Manuel A. Bookbinder, or Old Book. Old Book was a patient who worked with the burial crew at the hospital until his own death.
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Dana-Thomas House
Springfield, Illinois
41.5 miles from Waynesville, IL
Witnesses who visit or work at the historic house have reported humming voices, chairs being thrown down the stairs, curtains that move by themselves, and an apparition of a woman in black. The woman is believed to be the home’s original owner, Susan Lawrence Dana, who is rumored to have ...
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Inn At 835
Springfield, Illinois
41.7 miles from Waynesville, IL
This inn was originally built in 1909 as a private home. As to the identity of the haunt who resides here, very little is known. Guests have witnessed apparitions and heard voices coming from rooms that are vacant, and the elevator runs by itself. Also, some people here have seen ...
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Peoria Players Theatre
Peoria, Illinois
43.1 miles from Waynesville, IL
Peoria Players Theatre is said to be haunted by a playful ghost named Norman, a former theater director who died in 1960 at age 34, and a more sinister entity whose identity is unknown.
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Lawford Theatre
Havana, Illinois
49.7 miles from Waynesville, IL
Folks who have visited or worked at the Lawford Theatre have seen faces appear in photographs and have felt cold chills behind the curtains on opening nights.
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The Harrison Street Inn
Sullivan, Illinois
52 miles from Waynesville, IL
Eyewitnesses report apparitions, footsteps, diesmbodied voices, showers and toilets that work by themselves, and many other strange phenomena at this historic inn.
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Anderson Cemetery - Cemetery X
Taylorville, Illinois
53.2 miles from Waynesville, IL
According to tales told about this cemetery, there is a secret passage that opens up at night, when trees part and a path appears to an ancient graveyard. It's said to be protected by a phantom wolf who chases trespassers. (The cemetery is not to be confused with another Anderson ...
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East Otto Cemetery
Lewistown, Illinois
57.3 miles from Waynesville, IL
Local legend has it that the specters of two headless women can be seen at this cemetery late at night, screaming as they're being chased by an axe-wielding maniac. No word on exactly how a headless woman is supposed to be able to scream, but you know, details, details...
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Moon Point Cemetery - Moon Creek Cemetery
Streator, Illinois
60.4 miles from Waynesville, IL
Moon Point Cemetery, aka Moon's Point Cemetery or Moon Creek Cemetery, is older than the Civil War and legendary with those who like to tell ghost stories. It was thought to have begun as a family cemetery for early settlers Jacob Moon and his family. The cemetery's most-talked-about ghost is ...
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Ridge Cemetery
Tower Hill, Illinois
65.6 miles from Waynesville, IL
Ridge Cemetery at Williamsburg Hill is said to be visited by apparitions, eerie lights and a disappearing old man. Phantom crowds and horses also have been seen and heard around the area. Rumors of sinister cult activity surround this place as well, and one report tells of a 3-year-old girl ...
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Illinois College
Jacksonville, Illinois
69.1 miles from Waynesville, IL
Illinois College, founded in 1829, is rumored to have several haunted buildings. Among them are Sturtevant Hall and Beecher Hall, where folks have reported apparitions, footsteps, and other noises. Beecher Hall, according to campus talk, was formerly a medical building and the top floor was a space for storing cadavers. ...
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Pemberton Hall - Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, Illinois
72.4 miles from Waynesville, IL
The ghost of Mary Hawkins, a former dorm mother, is said to be the head haunt here.
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Saint Omer Cemetery
Ashmore, Illinois
74.1 miles from Waynesville, IL
At Saint Omer Cemetery, legend has it that there is a witch's grave. According to the story, Caroline Barnes was hanged by the townspeople for witchcraft. As she went, she cursed the town and vowed to come back for revenge on the anniversary of her death. To trick her, the ...
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Starved Rock Lodge
Oglesby, Illinois
74.9 miles from Waynesville, IL
At this circa 1900 historic lodge, folks say, reside the ghosts of Native Americans who once fought a battle nearby. Guests have reported seeing a black apparition and strange orbs of light, and they have felt cold spots and experienced doors that open and close by themselves. It should be ...
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Ashmore Estates
Ashmore, Illinois
75.1 miles from Waynesville, IL
Reportedly a former almshouse, this building was purchased for use as a haunted attraction. It was reportedly haunted by many ghosts, including Elva SKinner, a woman who died in a fire in the former almshouse. The house has been featured in several books and TV shows including Ghost Hunters and ...
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Kaskaskia Hotel
LaSalle, Illinois
75.4 miles from Waynesville, IL
This historic hotel opened in 1916. Locals tell a story of a young woman who committed suicide by jumping from the top floor in the 1920s, but some will tell you she was pushed by her boyfriend. It is said that employees there would hear the click of her heels ...
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Ghosts of Springfield and Southern Illinois & Other Haunted Tales from the Prairie State
Rachel Brooks Posadas
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Abandoned Train Bridge
Spring Valley, Illinois
75.6 miles from Waynesville, IL
Shadow figures have been seen on and around the abandoned bridge that goes over the train tracks in DePue, Il. The sounds of screams, train whistles, and a train stopping have been heard in the location when the train that runs the track is nowhere near the village. Many ...
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Ninth Street Pub
LaSalle, Illinois
75.8 miles from Waynesville, IL
According to local tales, the Ninth Street Pub's ghost is Mrs. Sonnenburg, an elderly woman who lived adjacent to the pub and often complained about its noise. After her death, the owner of the pub purchased her home and made it into a pub addition. A staff member who was ...
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Massock Mausoleum
Spring Valley, Illinois
76.1 miles from Waynesville, IL
The Massock Mausoleum stands in a small graveyard called the Lithuanian Liberty Cemetery, and it's the stuff of legends. Locals tell of a Hatchet Man, a scary ghost who guards the cemetery, and the mausoleum door is said to remain warm and has been sealed closed since the 1960s when ...
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Ramsey Cemetery
Effingham, Illinois
77.2 miles from Waynesville, IL
Ramsey Cemetery, established in 1851 with the burial of namesake Alexander Ramsey, is also known as Casbar Cemetery and is a nighttime teen hangout. Besides the graves, rock shelters and sandstone caves are nearby, covered with carvings from its many visitors. A young man committed suicide inside a chapel that ...
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Friendly Cafe
Abingdon, Illinois
77.5 miles from Waynesville, IL
The café is rumoured to be haunted. Employees have been touched by unseen hands, and a woman in a long dress appeared to a former owner in the main kitchen. (Submitted by Callum Swift)
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Fischer Theater
Danville, Illinois
79.2 miles from Waynesville, IL
Fischer Theater was a 19th century opera house located in Danville, IL that has served many purposes over the years including housing, stores, and of course, a theater. While now a generally unknown location, the Theater has been known to be haunted when a volunteer of the Vermillion Heritage ...
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Vennum House - The Watseka Wonder
Watseka, Illinois
81.9 miles from Waynesville, IL
The Vennum House was the home of Lurancy Vennum, a teenaged epilectic girl who was said to have been possessed in the incident known as the Watseka Wonder. The story of the late-19th-century possession was related in the 2009 film "The Possessed." The house may be open for ghost tours ...
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Roff House - The Watseka Wonder
Watseka, Illinois
82.2 miles from Waynesville, IL
The Roff House was one of the two houses in which the Watseka Wonder took place. The Watseka Wonder was a spiritual possession said to have happened in the late 19th century to an epileptic girl named Lurancy Vennum, who was 14 at the time. One of the spirits who ...
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City Tavern
Kankakee, Illinois
89.5 miles from Waynesville, IL
Employees and diners at this popular restaurant and bar have reportedly encountered a male spirit. Known as 'David', patrons have had their hair pulled and have been pushed around by unseen hands. (Submitted by Callum Swift)
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Majestic Theater
Kankakee, Illinois
89.8 miles from Waynesville, IL
Dating back to 1912, the historic theater achieved notoriety when the 'Marx Brothers' performed a vaudeville act there in 1916. However, the theatre is also renowned for its ghostly inhabitants, including a ghostly child and Julia Remmington, a former owner. (Submitted by Callum Swift)
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Aux Sable Cemetery
Morris, Illinois
91.2 miles from Waynesville, IL
Aux Sable Cemetery is believed to be haunted by the ghost of a mischievous young girl who has been known to play pranks, such as lowering electrical car windows when the key is not even in the ignition. The site is also said to be a portal from a ghostly ...
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King Cemetery
Dieterich, Illinois
91.7 miles from Waynesville, IL
There are vague reports online about orbs and shadow people being seen here. This cemetery is on private property, so be sure to secure the proper permissions before even thinking about visiting.
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Julia Markham - Death Curve
Cambridge, Illinois
92.7 miles from Waynesville, IL
Locals say that a woman wearing a white flowing gown glides across the field on quiet nights. It is said she is the spirit of Julia Markham, who in 1905 killed her 7 children with an ax and then set her house on fire, killing herself.
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Lee-Baker-Hodges House
Carrollton, Illinois
94.1 miles from Waynesville, IL
Built in the early 1830s, the historic mansion fell into disrepair in the 1970s and was saved by preservationists. It is sometimes open to the public for pre-scheduled nighttime paranormal investigation and history tours. A ghost child is said to reside in one of the bedrooms, and another child's ghost ...
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Manteno State Hospital
Manteno, Illinois
97.3 miles from Waynesville, IL
The 1930s Manteno State Hospital suffered a typhoid fever epidemic in 1939, and more than 50 patients and staff members died. The hospital eventually was renamed the Manteno Mental Health Center; it ceased operations in 1985 and the complex became business rentals, a bank, part of the Illinois Diversatech Campus ...
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Eldred House
Waynesville, Illinois
99.3 miles from Waynesville, IL
The 23-room James J. Eldred House was completed in 1861, and was the setting for some sad events. All three Eldred daughters died of tuberculosis here: Alma, 4, in 1861; Alice, 17, in 1870; and Eva, 17, in 1876. A traveling salesman is said to have passed away here as ...
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Cheney Mansion
Jerseyville, Illinois
100.3 miles from Waynesville, IL
Numerous reports of ghosts include the apparition of Miss Dorothy, a former nursemaid who roams the hallways and the bedroom bearing her name. Reports of people hearing talking upstairs, like women holding a conversation. Sounds of dining room chairs moving, like somebody's pulling out the chairs getting ready to sit ...
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Amboy Pharmacy
Amboy, Illinois
102.5 miles from Waynesville, IL
This old-fashioned pharmacy is haunted by at least seven spirits, according to a visiting psychic. Dating back to the early 1860's, the main haunting here is by a former pharmacy owner who was displeased by recent renovations. Known as 'Steve', he has been known to knock objects off shelves, ...
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Patrick Haley Mansion
Joliet, Illinois
103.7 miles from Waynesville, IL
Egyptologist and architect Frank Shaver Allen built this mansion that's been popular with ghost hunters since the '70s. Among the spirits believed to be active here are the architect himself as well as a little boy, an older woman who died on the premises, and a nanny. Perhaps adding to ...
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206 N. Broadway
Joliet, Illinois
104.1 miles from Waynesville, IL
Built in 1882, the Victorian house at 206 N. Broadway St. was originally a private residence, but was a school and a boardinghouse for women until the 1970s when it again became a private home. It is said to be haunted by the ghost of a 19-year-old who was shot ...
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