Haunted Places in CT: Top 23 Spooky Spine-Chilling Locations

an abandoned house in one of the most haunted places in CTConnecticut is known for its wealth, and its undead.

 

That is, a list of haunted places in CT is quite long.

 

In fact, Connecticut has some of the highest amounts of paranormal activity in the entire country.

 

It makes sense, after all, considering that Connecticut is one of the oldest states, and one of the first colonies settled by Westerners. English colonists settled Greenwich in 1640, for example, only twenty years after the Mayflower arrived.

 

And the American colonies’ first witch trials and hangings happened here in Connecticut, a full three decades before the much more famous ones in Salem, Massachusetts.

 

 

And that’s obviously not counting millennia of Native American activity before written history.

Haunted Places in CT

So, it doesn’t require much of a trip to find your first stop on your road trip to find the most haunted places in Connecticut.

 

The ghostly sightings are spread throughout the state. And Connecticut’s small to begin with, anyway.

 

And I keep adding to this list as I discover haunted stories while exploring the state. So keep checking-in for new additions and opportunities for more ghastly day trips throughout Connecticut!


Map design by Stanton House Inn with resources from Flaticon

Haunted Places in Greenwich, Connecticut

When I started researching this post, I Googled the term, “haunted places in Greenwich, Connecticut”.

Stanton House Inn popped up as one of the top results!

Which is ridiculous. I’ve lived here two hundred years, and have never seen a ghost.

But seriously, Stanton House Inn doesn’t appear to have any hauntings of its own.

If we are on the list of haunted Connecticut inns, the ghosts keep to themselves.

 

Or at worst, mess with our WiFi network in one specific room on the property, as our IT specialist has decided.

But a few points in Greenwich have definitely had their own spooky sightings and premonitions.

Most of the Greenwich ghost stories below were curated by Carl White, Local History Librarian at Greenwich Library.

While impressive, little do residents know the troubled past of the house. Well, supposedly. Photo courtesy: Damnedct.com
While impressive, little do residents know the troubled past of the house. Well, supposedly.
Photo courtesy: Damnedct.com

1) Dunnellen Hall

The first location on the list is not necessarily one of the most haunted places in CT so much as one of the most cursed.

Regardless, it’s got a great story. Which is what all good ghost stories are, after all.

Built in 1918 on 26 acres on Round Hill Road, Dunnellen Hall has not had a happy history.

 

In fact, after the first occupying family moved-out, every owner has experienced financial ruin and met their ultimate demise after moving-in.

The most recent victim of the curse is Leona Helmsley, an American businesswoman nicknamed, “the Queen of Mean” for her tyrannical behavior. While this may have just been her comeuppance, after buying the home in 1983 she was sent to prison for tax-evasion and later died in the house after her release.

The house is set too far back from the road and protected by a high fence to permit much of a view.

Instead, you can watch a video that explores the inside of the home (but doesn’t mention the haunted aspects) below:

2) The Bruce Museum

Now, this place is one of the most haunted places in Connecticut, according to local legend.

The (Bad) Luck of the Irish

Two Irish servants working at Belle Haven mansions in the late 1800s fell in love. The boy would play his flute to entertain her, especially near what is now the Bruce Museum.

While the two planned to marry, the boy mysteriously disappeared, leaving the girl heartbroken. She moved back to Ireland, where she died of consumption, the old name for tuberculosis.

Starting in the early 1900s, locals began to report two ghostly apparitions outside the Bruce Museum. Most often, a man would play a small flute for a young girl, listening attentively. On occasion, an observer would hear an evil voice beckoning the two into the mansion to play the flute and sing.

The couple would always refuse to enter what is now the Bruce Museum, claiming that they knew they would never be able to leave. Afterwards, they would then suddenly disappear into thin air.

Today, the Bruce Museum is one of the best things to do in Greenwich, CT. It takes a minimum of an hour to visit, but visitors are welcome to leave whenever they like!

3) Bruce Park

In 1996, a group of teenagers were drinking beer and getting rowdy in one of Bruce Park’s picnic grounds.

When the teens got too loud, a ghost made its appearance.

According to local legend, the body of the ghost was that of a woman. The most frightening aspect, though, was the head, which was a collection of snakes.

As these snakes hissed and twisted at the teenagers, the entire group jumped in their cars and fled.

4) Bush-Holley House

According to local author Anya Seton, a ghost of a slave girl lives in the old wash house of the Bush-Holley House property.

Before Connecticut abolished slavery, owners of the Bush-Holley House owned slaves as servants and kitchen help. These slaves lived in the attic of the house, a setup you can now see in the re-created space of the modern museum.

According to Ms Seton, the young girl likely died of a contagious disease and would scream from time to time.

5) Homestead Inn

One of the top hotels in Greenwich, CT, is the historic Homestead Inn in Belle Haven.

Legend has it that a ship’s figurehead was installed on the porch. It had rosy cheeks, black eyes, and a flowing white robe over a hoop skirt.

Sailors removed the figurehead from the bow of the Lady Lancashire for repair before setting sail on a voyage that resulted in the ship sinking. The man who carved the figurehead gave it to the Mead family, owners of the Homestead Inn.

Over the years, guests complained of strange noises throughout the Inn:

  1. One guest claimed to hear unexplained footsteps pacing all night long in a second floor guest room
  2. Another woman claimed she saw the figure of a ghostly woman in an old fashioned dress looking out the window of another guest room, located directly above the figurehead

 

While the Homestead Inn is currently closed for renovation, you can get your ghost sightings in starting in 2023!

6) Audubon Greenwich

Alright, the Audubon Greenwich Center may not actually be the site of one of the most haunted places in Greenwich, CT.

But it’s close enough to the location of an entertaining local ghost story to provide some sense of place.

At the intersection of Riversville Road and John Street, a girl decided to take a shortcut in the 1990s around dusk.

As she walked up a hill on a curving trail, she heard the sound of rustling leaves. While this wouldn’t have been abnormal considering it was fall in Connecticut, it sounded like someone was following her.

When she walked, the sound followed her.

When she stopped, the sound stopped.

After several bouts of starting and stopping to gage the distance from her (about fifty feet), she finally shouted,

“Who’s there?”

Immediately, the rustling leaves started again, and rushed to within only ten feet of her.

She screamed and bolted up the hill and continued running and screaming all the way home.

Be careful about walking through the Greenwich Audubon Center at dusk. Although I think that would be trespassing, now that I think about it.

Tired of ghost stories yet?

 

Good, because there are plenty more.

 

Read on for some of the most haunted places in the rest of Connecticut.

Haunted Places in Fairfield County, CT

Right next door to Greenwich, in Stamford, Connecticut, is the next possibly haunted place to visit. Famous for a thriving dining scene, great arts, and… Ghosts. Maybe.

 

7) Fort Stamford

In the 1970s, an urban legend started to form among local teenagers that Fort Stamford was haunted.

 

In the 1990s, the Smoking Gun Research Agency, a Connecticut group that looks into reports of unexplained events, conducted investigations at Fort Stamford and found what they claimed were compelling evidence of unexplained activity. The investigators heard footsteps, whisperings, odd blobs of energy hanging in the air, and thermometers showed 10-degree temperature drops in certain spots in the park surrounding the fort. They also reported a feeling of extreme heat, like a fire, and encounters with the apparition of a soldier who seems to be protective of the area.

 

Potential sources of the apparitions could be:

  • Troops stationed here, who suffered from extreme cold, hunger, and fatigue according to accounts
  • Members of the Siwanoy tribe, who occupied the land before disease and war with Dutch and English settlers decimated them
  • Something else entirely

 

Drive up the coast to Norwalk, Connecticut, for the next spot on this list.

 

8) Sheffield Island

Famous for its clambakes and classic New England lighthouse, Sheffield Island and its lighthouse has been host to macabre catastrophes.

 

One of the worst maritime disasters happened off its coast, the Lexington Steamship Fire, in the winter of 1840. And one lighthouse keeper has the distinction of dropping dead for no apparent reason while chatting with tourists in July 1872.

 

An archeologist working on the island in 1991 heard:

  • Strange music
  • A faint foghorn
  • And distant cries for help with no one in sight

She had no idea where the music was coming from and was unable to pinpoint its origin. And other island residents have reported hearing strange noises over the years.

 

Whether you’ll witness anything on your visit for the weekly summer clambake and lighthouse tour depends on your aura. Though it’s one of the most unique attractions in Connecticut, haunted or no.

 

Head up to the quaint little town of Newtown, Connecticut, for the first haunted place on this list.

9) Fairfield Hills State Hospital

abandoned lockers in one of the most haunted places in CTThe site of this former mental institution is now quite a pleasant place, with walking trails and the site of several non-profit organizations.

The abandoned buildings, still standing and closed to the public, speak to the previous use, though. Fairfield Hills State Hospital was a home for the criminally insane.

From when it opened its doors in 1931 until the mental hospital shut down in 1995, the type of treatments now considered barbaric were standard fare here.

Standard treatments included:

  1. Psychosurgery
  2. Hydrotherapy
  3. Electric shock therapy
  4. Unauthorized full frontal lobotomies

The town of Newtown acquired the entire parcel of land in 2004 from the state.

10) Union Cemetery in Easton, Connecticut

Graveyards and cemeteries make repeated entries on the list of the most haunted places in ConnecticutThis cemetery is on every list of the most haunted places in Connecticut.

 

The most famous apparition here is the “White Lady”, described as a woman with long, dark hair wearing a nightgown and matching bonnet.

While no one is sure who she is (obviously), there are a few theories:

  • She’s traveling between cemeteries, looking for her infant son who died in childbirth
  • The ghost is a woman murdered in the 1940s
  • She’s the mother of the woman murdered in the 1940s

One motorist even claims to have accidentally hit the White Lady, leaving a dent in his car.

 

And famed Famous paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren claimed to have caught a glimpse of the White Lady during their visit.

Another entity believed to haunt the Union Cemetery is known as “Red Eyes”.

Witnesses claim to see a pair of glowing red eyes glaring out of bushes in the cemetery. When these witnesses turn to run, they claim to hear footsteps in hot pursuit, though they’re always too scared to confirm anything is actually chasing them.

Locals claim this spirit is that of Earlie Kellog, a man set on fire in the street in 1935.

11) Remington Arms

an abandoned factory, one of the most haunted places in CTThis abandoned factory in Bridgeport, CT, was one of America’s largest munitions factories in the early 20th Century.

Shadowy figures frequently seen on the floor of the factory are believed to be the spirits of those killed in a factory explosion in 1942.

12) Palace & Majestic Theaters

Another entry in Bridgeport, Connecticut, these two empty theaters perennially sit empty in the city’s downtown.

 

According to local legend, these were the base for Dutch Schultz, the infamous bootlegger. Some claim he had his cronies kill people in the building.

 

Today, EVP sessions here have reported orbs of light and shadowy figures wandering the theaters.

13) Saw Mill City Road

This road in Shelton, Connecticut, is quite pretty during the day.

Night is a different story, however.

Reports include seeing orbs, hearing screams from multiple directions at once, even shadowy figures running from tree to tree.

This road is also home of the Mellon Heads, a local legend of inbred, possibly cannibalistic, monsters. Local kids claim to hear them breathing on summer nights, or coming face to face with them.

Haunted Places in New Haven County, CT

Cross the Housatonic River into New Haven County to find even more of the most haunted places in CT.

14) Charles Island

This small island off the coast of Milford is now part of Silver Sands State Park, one of the best beaches in Connecticut.

 

Visitors can visit when low tide exposes the causeway connecting it to the mainland.

 

Don’t visit the center of the island during the summer, though, as it’s a major breeding ground for endangered seabirds.

 

And definitely don’t search for Captain Kidd’s treasure here.

 

Locals know the island as thrice-cursed, due to curses placed on the island in the 17th and 18th centuries.

 

And the most famous curse is from Captain Kidd, who swore that whoever found his treasure buried there would suffer bad luck for the remainder of their (likely shortened) life.

15) Gunntown Cemetery

A small cemetery established in 1790 in Naugatuck doesn’t have any local legends to explain the high amounts of paranormal activity emanating from it.

But there are plenty of claims of random music playing and disembodied children’s laughter.

 

Famed paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren even deemed it haunted.

Still others claim to see sightings of:

  • A man carrying a lantern and leading a horse through the grounds
  • A little boy playing by the back wall, or a large black dog, who both quickly vanish

16) Sterling Opera House

Derby’s opera house was recently refinished on the outside. But the inside is still abandoned, and has been so for decades.

The spirit of a young boy named Andy haunts the halls of the Sterling Opera House. Locals leave toys strewn about the opera house for him to play.

The hidden jail cells under the stage once held a serial killer, just feet below where Harry Houdini performed.

 

The opera house was the focus of an investigation by the team of TV’s Ghost Hunters in 2011.

17) Crypt at Center Church on the Green

There aren’t any reports of haunted sightings here, it’s just an appropriate place to go for Halloween.

Center Church was built over a portion of New Haven’s burial ground in 1813. The church’s crypt was built to hold the graves directly beneath the church, rather than displacing them.

The site holds the area’s founders and earliest citizens, with dates ranging from 1687 to 1812.

 

The entirety of Center Church is on our list of the best free things to do in Connecticut, click over to see why.

18) Grave of Midnight Mary

The local legend of Midnight Mary derives from the grave of Mary E Hart in the Evergreen Cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut.

According to legend, Mary fell in a swoon in 1872 and was buried. A relative suffered nightmares that led them to believe Mary was buried alive, a fairly common occurrence at the time.

Mary’s grave was exhumed, and the family found ghastly signs that Mary was buried alive and tried to escape once she became conscious.

On her epitaph is written a phrase from the book of Job, “The people shall be troubled at midnight and pass away.” In the context of the biblical story, it’s a statement about being resigned to fate.

To locals, however, it’s a curse Mary set as punishment for burying her alive.

Supposedly, anyone caught in the cemetery after midnight or who desecrates her resting ground will quickly die.

Haunted Places in Litchfield County, Connecticut

There aren’t many haunted places in the Litchfield Hills of Connecticut. Apparently, its inhabitants have lived happy, peaceful, and untroubled lives for centuries.

But the most haunted place in the area is a major one.

19) Dudleytown

creepy woods at dudleytown, ctThis abandoned corner of Cornwall, Connecticut, is probably the most famous haunted place in the state.

While never an actual town, the area was settled in the 1700s and abandoned by the turn of the 20th Century.

Supposedly, anyone with the name of Dudley is cursed after a member of the family attempted a coup against Henry VIII. The curse followed the family to America and Dudleytown, which was the sight of everything from demonic possessions to grisly suicides.

Local legend states that anyone who tried to live in the former confines of Dudleytown comes to terrible misfortune, including untimely and harrowing deaths. Visitors report an utter and very eerie silence in the area of the old town.

The storyline of this town is also a source for much of that of the film, The Blair Witch Project.

Dudleytown went a bit crazy after some paranormal experts highlighted it in the 1970s.

Today, Connecticut State Police arrest trespassers with fines starting at $75.

 

20) 1754 House Inn & Restaurant, formerly known as the Curtis House

Gordon Ramsey featured this historic Connecticut inn in his aptly-named show, “Hotel Hell”.

 

He claimed to feel uneasy during his stay, and had trouble leaving his room. Having watched the episode, it seemed to be more of a maintenance problem with the door than any ghostly entities. He also spent more time focused on the dining side of the business, known as the Curtis House restaurant at the time.

 

That said, this historic Connecticut site is often touted as one of the most haunted inns in the entire United States, let alone Connecticut.

 

During its almost three centuries in business, guests have commented of hearing strange music as well as disembodied voices and footsteps.

 

Some of the more common sightings mention:

  • A male spirit wearing clothing more typical of the 17th or 18th centuries
  • A man dressed in Confederate attire in the liquor room
  • A ghost of a former work, Joseph Hardesty
  • A female spirit who actively disturbs visitors to her home

 

Be sure to read our guide to the most romantic restaurants across Connecticut, if you’d rather not risk getting spooked over dinner.

Haunted Places in the Connecticut River Valley and Eastern Connecticut

No list of the most haunted places in CT would be complete without including the house that inspired The Haunting in Connecticut book and film.

 

21) Lake Compounce

roller coaster at lake compounceYes, the oldest amusement park in America is haunted.

 

Supposedly.

 

One of the best parks to visit in Connecticut features a sinister past that has a habit of ruining some people’s lives.

 

Just ask Milli Vanilli.

 

According to Legend, Native American Chieftain John Compound died in the lake while attempting to cross in a large brass kettle. English settlers from Massachusetts named the lake after him.

 

Recent history has included more than a few accidents, including deaths, happening at the park.

 

Coincidence, or correlation?

 

That’s not for this writer to decide.

22) Snedeker House

Head to Southington, Connecticut, to be disappointed.

In 1986, the Snedeker family moved into a white rental duplex home that had been a former mortuary.

According to them, they found all sorts of mortuary tools in the basement, then started to experience evil and unexplained happenings in the house.

Or so they claimed.

Much of the story has been debunked, but that didn’t stop it from becoming popular.

Today, it’s just a house in the suburbs of Hartford, Connecticut. There’s not even anywhere convenient to park nearby so that you can do the only thing you can do: stand on the curb and gawk at the house.

23) Bara-Hack

So keep driving east to the Quiet Corner of Connecticut, home to Roseland Cottage in Woodstock, Connecticut.

 

In nearby Pomfret you’ll find another abandoned village.

 

This one was founded by Rhode Islanders of Welsh descent. The name means, “breaking of bread” in Welsh, in fact.

 

Legends grew within Bara-Hack until it was abandoned by the Civil War. Slaves owned by the families there claimed to see a ghost baby reclining in a nearby tree.

 

After the town was abandoned, the curious and foolish report seeing that same ghost baby, a bearded face in the cemetery, and lights and orbs streaking in front of their faces. Still others hear the sounds of disembodied voices, farm animals, and horse-drawn carriages.

 

24) Devil’s Hopyard State Park

Chapman Falls at Devil's Hopyard State ParkThis Connecticut state park has carried its name since the colonial era.

 

 

In fact, local Puritans believe it was Satan’s hiding place. Visitors who wandered too deep into the woods would lose their soul to the Devil, according to local legend.

 

 

Even modern hikers in Devil’s Hopyard State Park claim to hear demonic voices.

 

 

Hopefully that won’t deter you from seeing Chapman Falls and exploring other fantastic CT hiking trails here.

 

 

25) Norwich State Hospital (closed)

This former mental hospital was a must-see for ghost hunters in the past.

 

The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority has filled-in the most infamous feature, the underground passageways below the complex.

 

Developers have demolished the majority of the Norwich State Hospital campus to add new facilities on the site.

 

Some of the original buildings remain, with plans for new uses.

 

It remains to be seen how the spirits representing the orbs and disembodied voices inside the buildings will like the new changes.

 

It’s close enough to swing by here on your way to visiting the casinos. Or before and after you enjoy the many things to do in Mystic, Connecticut.

Still more to explore after the most haunted places in Connecticut

Now that you’ve finished the list (or looking for more stops along the way), be sure to check-out other fun fall activities in Connecticut:

Or you can download your free copy of the complete guide to Fall in CT.


Updated and republished: July 5, 2023