With the sheer amount of history that West Virginia has, it is no surprise that there
is no shortage of hauntings and spooky tails to surface from the state.
For years, residents and tourists have reported paranormal activity from across the land,
with some more notable than others.
So today on Top 5 Scary Videos, I’m going to be counting down our list of the Top 5
Scary Haunted Places In West Virginia.
Let’s jump in.
5 West Virginia Penitentiary Opened all the way back in 1875, the West
Virginia Penitentiary in Moundsville is said to be one of the most haunted prisons in the
states.
The first building constructed on the site was the North Wagon Gate, which was made with
hand-cut sandstone.
The state used prison labor during the process, and work continued on this first phase up
until 1876.
Following completion, the prison consisted of the North Wagon Gate, North and South cellblocks,
a Kitchen, dining area, hospital and chapel, as well as a 4-story tower connecting the
two administration buildings.
The prison also included space for female inmates and personal living quarters for the
warden and his family.
One the prison opened, it houses 251 male inmates, including some who helped construct
the prison where they were incarcerated.
The condition of the prison worsened throughout the years, and the facility was eventually
ranked as one of the Top 10 Most Violent Correctional Facilities.
On Wednesday, November 7th.
1979, fifteen prisoners escaped from the prison, one of them being Ronald Turney Williams who
was serving time for murdering Sergeant David Lilly of the Beckley Police Department.
He managed to steal a guards weapon and reached the streets where he encountered 23 year old
off duty State Trooper Phillip S Kesner who was driving past with his wife.
Kesner attempted to take action against Williams but he was shot in the process.
The prison was home to riots, fires, and nearly 100 executions during its time in operation.
To this day visitors have reported sightings of phantom inmates and a shadow man wandering
the premises, as well as unexplained voices and cold spots.
You can take tours around this haunted Penitentiary, and even view the electric chair dubbed Old
Sparky.
For you brave souls out there, you can even do an overnight session if you dare.
4 North Bend Rail Trail Tunnel No. 19 North Bend Rail Trail is located in Ritchie
County in West Virginia and is a favorite for hikers, cyclists and horseback riders
traversing the 72 mile long trail.
However, proceed with caution if you wind up in the area, particularly around Tunnel
No.19 also known as the Silver Run Tunnel.
History goes that on one foggy evening in 1910, an engineer spied a young woman in a
flowing white dress standing on the tracks.
He brought the train to a stop but when he searched for the woman she had vanished.
He wasn’t the only one to spot her either, many of his predecessors had as well.
No one quite knows the origin of the woman in white although some bones were found under
a house near the tunnel.
Some people say you can still spot her.
Now, those who explore the tunnel are advised to bring a flashlight, even during the day,
with the tunnel being over 1,376 ft long which is beyond sunlight’s reach.
You have been warned.
3 Droop Mountain Battlefield On November 6th, 1863, The battle of Droop
Mountain occurred in Pocahontas County, West Virginia during the American Civil War.
Confederate forces engaged but failed to prevent Union forces under General W.W.
Averell from a rendezvous with other Federal troops in a joint raid on Confederate railways.
Droop Mountain was one of the largest engagements in West Virginia during the war, and essentially
resulted in the Confederate collapse.
The battlefield site is now preserved and administered by West Virginia as a state park,
and the unknown Confederate dead are buried in the confederate cemetery at Lewisburg.
A wooden observation tower, hiking trails and picnic tables mark the grounds where the
Civil War soldiers fought, died, and some say, still remain.
Many visitors have reported sounds of galloping horses and sightings of the ghosts of headless
Confederate soldiers, as well as a soldier lying asleep against a tree.
2 Lake Shawnee Amusement Park In the late 1700s, the Clay family moved to
West Virginia, which is presently known as Mercer County.
The Clay family, comprised of Mitchell and his wife, settled on an 800 acre farm and
raised 14 children, however, in 1783 tragedy struck while Mitchell was out hunting.
A few members of the Shawnee tribe killed two of the Clay children and burned another
at the stake.
In retaliation Mitchell hunted down a handful of Native Americans and killed them.
The land in turn became unoccupied for years, up until the early 1900s when Conley T. Snidow
purchased the land and built a small amusement park on it.
However, the amusement park had just as unfortunate luck as the Clay family.
The park featured a ferris wheel and a swing ride and was popular among locals, particularly
families of coal miners who resided in the area.
In the early 1950’s a young girl on the swing ride was killed when a truck delivering
sodas accidentally backed into the ride, striking her.
Another child also drowned in the swimming pool, which was subsequently filled in to
prevent further accidents.
During its operation, at least six people died at the park, which resulted in the park
ultimately closing in 1966.
In 1985, Gaylord White, a former employee of the park, purchased the land with plans
to reopen.
It happened, for a brief period that is before the park closed again after a 1988 archeological
dig uncovered numerous Native American artifacts, as well as human remains on the property that
has been buried prior to the arrival of Anglo-European settles.
In total, thirteen skeletons were uncovered, mostly of young children.
Perhaps the property is cursed, or perhaps it is just a series of unfortunate events.
Who knows.
But one thing is for sure, it is one of the most haunted places in the world.
1 Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, also known
as the Weston State Hospital, was a Kirkbride psychiatric hospital that operated from 1864
to 1994 by the government.
Originally built by Richard Andrews, it was constructed from 1858 to 1881 and was originally
designed to hold 250 people however, it became overcrowded in the 1950’s, with the hospital
housing 2,400 patients resulting in it being forcibly closed in 1994 due to changes in
patient treatment.
Following its closure it was then purchased by Joe Jordan in 2007, and is open for tours
and other events to raise money for its restorations.
During tours of the facility, witnesses have reported doors slamming, shadowy figures and
even blood curdling screams from within the building’s walls.
The Asylum has garnered such a spooky reputation it has appeared on shows such as Ghost Stories,
Ghost Hunters, Ghost Adventures, and Paranormal Lockdown.
It was also featured in Bethesda’s 2018 video games Fallout 76 under the name “Fort
Defiance”, and acted as a base for The Brotherhood of Steel, one of the game’s main factions.
Well, there we have it!
Do you guys agree with our list?
Were there any haunted places that we missed?
Leave us all your thoughts and feelings in the comments down as well as what place you
would like us to tackle next.
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And until next time, see ya later.