5 Unbelievably Creepy Haunted Locations in West Virginia

The West Virginia Penitentiary opened in 1875. Though it is now decommissioned, it stands as one of the most haunted prisons in the United States.

Tours of the lockup areas and prison yards are available year-round, but even before the prison was shut down, strange paranormal activity was experienced by visitors, workers, and prisoners alike.

It's no surprise there's negative energy lingering behind. After all, while the penitentiary was in operation in was the site of violent riots, multiple fires, and more than 100 executions in the legendary electric chair “Old Sparky.”

Visitors of the prison have reported walking through strange cold spots and hearing unexplained noises, voices, and screams. They've also had sightings of phantom inmates, as well as a “shadow man” who wanders the grounds.

In the 1920s, a local businessman erected the Lake Shawnee Amusement Park on a patch of land in Mercer County. But it seems that, though this place was intended to be a center of revelry and joy, it brought only suffering.

During its time of operation, several people died in a variety of gruesome accidents at the park. By 1966, the park had shut down—permanently.

Legend has it that the amusement park's misfortune stems from a curse placed on the land back in the late 1700s.

During a violent altercation between the local Shawnee Indians and a white settler by the name of Mitchell Clay, multiple Shawnee warriors and three of Clay's children were tragically slain. Their loss is said to be the source of the continued strife on the land.

Those who visit the abandoned remains of the amusement park can expect to feel a lot of negative energy. You may also catch sight of the apparitions of a man and a little girl dressed in pink wandering around by the rusted Ferris wheel and swings.

On November 6th, 1863, Brigadier General William Averell and his Union troops won a definitive victory over the Confederates.

In this, the last significant battle West Virginia saw during the Civil War, the Confederates were driven south into what is now known as Virginia.

In 1929, Droop Mountain Battlefield became a national park, memorializing all who lost their lives there. Among the wooden observation tower, hiking trails, and picnic benches, visitors may see the spirits of those casualties still milling about.

Those who have spent time in the park have reported the sounds of galloping horses, an apparition of a soldier napping against a tree, and even terrifying encounters with a headless Confederate soldier.

Built back in the late 1800s, this Queen Anne-style hotel is reportedly haunted by William Chancellor, the man who opened it.

This historic hotel is full of paranormal activity—so much so that the hotel itself offers ghost tours as part of a “Haunted Parkersburg” package.

Hotel staff reports that plenty of shifts are full of mysterious knocking, unexplained music drifting from the ballroom, and other peculiar sounds.

Guests claim they've run into ghostly children playing games in the hallways, and have even seen the apparition of a man in a tuxedo in the mirrors.

This feat of Gothic architecture is fairly notorious to the paranormal crowd. Even one glance at the outside of the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum gives passersby the impression that it's deeply haunted.

Fortunately for the scare chasers, the inside doesn't disappoint.

In 1858, construction began on the asylum. However, progress was briefly put on hold so the grounds could be used as a camp for Union soldiers.

The structure was originally designed to house a mere 250 patients, but overcrowding became a major issue when the facility reached its peak in the 1950s, holding around 2400 patients. Those who were under the asylum's care faced extremely poor living conditions, given the circumstances.

In 1994, the hospital was permanently closed to patients. But before long, the building was reopened as a grim tourist destination.

Inside these deeply haunted halls, visitors have reported doors slamming unexpectedly, as well as terrible, blood-curdling screams and shadowy figures drifting around.