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Ghostly Sites - West Virginia

West Virginia is dotted with haunted sites and happenings. The following are just a few spirited samples, but to find more, visit our links page.

The West Virginia State Penitentiary (818 Jefferson Avenue, Moundsville, WV 26041, 304-845-6200) (website: www.wvpentours.com)

Even though this state penitentiary has been closed for years, ghostly sightings, noises and unexplained photos keep it alive with visitors in search of answers. Today the “Pen” appears just as it was left abandoned in 1995, after operating since the late 1800s. It was home to more than its share of inmate deaths, and many say that the spirits of those murdered there are trapped inside its imposing stone walls. The "Pen" features a museum, and tours are conducted regularly. Paranormal experts conduct all-night ghost hunts during warmer months for those brave enough to search for their own proof.

Haunted Parkersburg Ghost Tours (917 26th Street
Parkersburg, WV 26104, 304-428-7978) (website: www.hauntedparkersburg.com)

Join experienced ghost hunters for a walking tour of Parkersburg, home of a number of buildings and areas where visitors have seen ghostly figures and hear eerie, unexplained sounds. A key site is the Blennerhasset Hotel, built more than 100 years ago. The area saw a lot of Civil War-era activity and was home to makeshift hospitals and graves for injured, sick and dying soldiers. Visitors who take the tour visit local haunts, including the hotel, houses and cemeteries, and are given a brief history of Parkersburg.

Haunted Graveyard Tour Martinsburg (P.O. Box 1411
Hedgesville, WV 25427, 304-754-6983) (website: www.wvsocietyofghosthunters.com)

Participants are encouraged to keep their eyes open during this chilling walk through two of the most actively haunted graveyards in the Eastern Panhandle. Visitors have actually darted out of the graveyards during the tour after spotting the "Lady in Black" or ghostly children among the tombstones. Participants can bring cameras to capture their own sightings and tour organizers lend participants an EMF reader and a ghost detector. The Eastern Panhandle is rich with paranormal activity, attributed to uneasy spirits from the Civil War.