Thread: The Neighborhood Haunted House

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They say every neighborhood has a haunted house.

Wherever you spent your childhood, chances are there was a place, a dim and storied locale that residents muttered dread things about. Some dared each other to approach that forbidden ground, knock on the door, cross the threshold. Some places were so shunned the windows were intact and no graffiti marred the walls.
Mayhap it was some centuried house, or an abandoned manse with an overgrown yard. It may have been a forgotten church or an ill-tended graveyard. It may have been a run-down warehouse or a ruined hospital, an dismal barn, a rickity old bridge, a forest or even a playground.

Something supposedly stalked the place, hunted it, haunted it, called it home, horrors like child-eating monsters, murderers, madmen, ghosts, demons or criminal cultists. Whatever walked that place, to quote Shirley Jackson, walked alone, for no kid was fool enough to hang around to chat with it.

Inspire us. What was your neighborhood haunted house, and how was your... visit?

The neighborhood where I grew up in Milwaukee was built in the 1950s, and virtually all the houses — most of them ranch style — were occupied. Didn't really lend itself to stories of haunted houses. I did have a friend who lived next to a large cemetery. Driving the curvy roads to and from his house at night, with the gravestones in my headlights, was … atmospheric … especially when covered in fog.

But the house that really piqued my imagination was the magnificent Romanesque Revival Plankinton Mansion, which I would pass daily on my way from high school to my after-school job. It even had a story reminiscent of Disney's Haunted Mansion: it was built as a wedding present for heiress Elizabeth Plankinton, but the wedding never occurred, she died a spinster, and she never lived in the mansion. Unfortunately, it was one of three mansions that neighboring Marquette University later purchased and razed for the land, much to my dismay.

That architectural thrill still comes back today when I look at the artwork of Lew Lehrman at his Haunted Studio.

In my neighborhood there is one house that has been abandoned for about 5-6 years. Moss covers the house now and the weeds in the front have grown out of control since it hasn't been taken care of for awhile now. An older women lived there for awhile. Everyone used to say that no one liked her and that she was mean to anyone she saw or talked to. Even when it wasn't halloween she would set up props of witches, scarecrows, etc. all around her yard to keep children from going on her property. Well about 5-6 years ago the women suddenly died. No one had seen or heard from the lady for a couple days and that's when the police went to check out her house. They searched the whole house and found nothing but when they checked the garage they found the old women lying there. They said she had frozen to death. Ever since then the house has been abandoned and people say at night you can hear strange noises coming from the garage.

There's my neighborhood's abandoned/haunted house

We lived on the edge of developement, growing up. In fact, to this day, there are no houses further up the road than my parent's subdivision. Reason being, it's Govt Property. USAF.

Now, our back yard stretched, and at the fence, there was an IMMEDIATE, STEEP, man-made hill up to the base. And this ran parrallel with the developement. We'ld all walk along this fenceline up a gradual slope to "the north gate" of the airforce base, where there was a guarded shack and gate guarding the road that ran along the top of this hill. Also along the top was a man-made canal, which went in and out of the airforce base. We'ld often tube down the canal.

Now, this subdivision was BUILT when I was 3, and thus, it hadn't been around long enough for there to be a lore about places. One day tubing in the canal, we went all the way to where it enterred the base for the first time. There, the canal enterred into what was clearly an abandoned power station. Rusted up, wires showing age, broken windows, the whole works.

But, the canal did not come OUT the other side. Instead, 2 HUGE metal pipes ran STRAIGHT down the hill, under the highway, and continued down the hill on the far side of the highway, and what's more, a staircase followed them.

For a year, we went back and watched. Never a guard, never a sign of any life. Some govt experiment obviously had gone awry and the place was dangerous. We had to go check it out.

In the fall, the canal was always emptied. We waited for this, and took advantage of the rusted out bottom of the fence in the canal to tresspass onto USAF property to check out this power station.

I still recall the bats. Or, more specifically, one of my friends thinking he was going to fight off the bats with his pocket knife. Their sound...the smell...and the smell and taste of rust in the air. The floor was a metal grate, warped, rusted, and even MELTED in places (bad welding job, but we were 9, it was melted) 1 big turbine still lumbered over one of the pipe openings. The other had been torn off, it seemed. Bare wires exposed, ripped from the wall. We peered down into the vast emptyness of the exposed pipe. We could easily stand in it. And the light just wouldn't reach far enough.

Slime from the water covered it, rust everywhere, and a horrific moan seemed omnipresent from it's depths. (the cars on the highway)

One of my friends slipped, and impaled his leg on an exposed piece of rebar. The other two freaked, so I sent them for help. With my friend losing consciousness, I pulled his leg out, and bandaged it with my shirt. (I was really into medical stuff at the time due to a horrific story, but was taking any first aid courses I could. It's surprising what people will teach an interested kid.) The other two, idiots, went back down the hill looking for help back home. I ended up dragging my injured friend to the road and flagging down a passing car on base. He got an infection and was bedridden for about a month or so, but that's it.

Turns out the place was shut down for some contamination, as the made me do a ton of breathing tests afterword. I don't remember really getting in 'trouble', either. More worried we were exposed to something. Never did go back, wasn't all that much to see, really.

Now I'm older, I've heard the younger kids in that neighborhood telling how my friend died up there and I was never found again. Haven't bothered correcting them.

Originally Posted by UnOrthodOx

We lived on the edge of developement, growing up. In fact, to this day, there are no houses further up the road than my parent's subdivision. Reason being, it's Govt Property. USAF.

Now, our back yard stretched, and at the fence, there was an IMMEDIATE, STEEP, man-made hill up to the base. And this ran parrallel with the developement. We'ld all walk along this fenceline up a gradual slope to "the north gate" of the airforce base, where there was a guarded shack and gate guarding the road that ran along the top of this hill. Also along the top was a man-made canal, which went in and out of the airforce base. We'ld often tube down the canal.

Now, this subdivision was BUILT when I was 3, and thus, it hadn't been around long enough for there to be a lore about places. One day tubing in the canal, we went all the way to where it enterred the base for the first time. There, the canal enterred into what was clearly an abandoned power station. Rusted up, wires showing age, broken windows, the whole works.

But, the canal did not come OUT the other side. Instead, 2 HUGE metal pipes ran STRAIGHT down the hill, under the highway, and continued down the hill on the far side of the highway, and what's more, a staircase followed them.

For a year, we went back and watched. Never a guard, never a sign of any life. Some govt experiment obviously had gone awry and the place was dangerous. We had to go check it out.

In the fall, the canal was always emptied. We waited for this, and took advantage of the rusted out bottom of the fence in the canal to tresspass onto USAF property to check out this power station.

I still recall the bats. Or, more specifically, one of my friends thinking he was going to fight off the bats with his pocket knife. Their sound...the smell...and the smell and taste of rust in the air. The floor was a metal grate, warped, rusted, and even MELTED in places (bad welding job, but we were 9, it was melted) 1 big turbine still lumbered over one of the pipe openings. The other had been torn off, it seemed. Bare wires exposed, ripped from the wall. We peered down into the vast emptyness of the exposed pipe. We could easily stand in it. And the light just wouldn't reach far enough.

Slime from the water covered it, rust everywhere, and a horrific moan seemed omnipresent from it's depths. (the cars on the highway)

One of my friends slipped, and impaled his leg on an exposed piece of rebar. The other two freaked, so I sent them for help. With my friend losing consciousness, I pulled his leg out, and bandaged it with my shirt. (I was really into medical stuff at the time due to a horrific story, but was taking any first aid courses I could. It's surprising what people will teach an interested kid.) The other two, idiots, went back down the hill looking for help back home. I ended up dragging my injured friend to the road and flagging down a passing car on base. He got an infection and was bedridden for about a month or so, but that's it.

Turns out the place was shut down for some contamination, as the made me do a ton of breathing tests afterword. I don't remember really getting in 'trouble', either. More worried we were exposed to something. Never did go back, wasn't all that much to see, really.

Now I'm older, I've heard the younger kids in that neighborhood telling how my friend died up there and I was never found again. Haven't bothered correcting them.

Haha that last part is pretty funny Glad you and your friends are ok

Alright, I'll tell you about the haunted house in THIS neighborhood.

Now, I've only lived here 5 years now, and this only came to my attention this year, now that we trust some of the teenageers to babysit and all.

We live in a relatively new neighborhood. Our house was built in 1988. Walk out our front door, to the left, you have houses built from the 70's and newer. To the right, houses started being built in 2000, it's all HOA stuff.

So, off to the right a half-block, turn right, and there's a street to a subdivision of the newest homes. In fact, the last lot just got finished.

Well....ALMOST the last lot. There is a 1 acre lot. It's not for sale. Stuck right between 2 brand new, immaculately trimmed, HOA homes both with their identical colors and white fences lays this lot.

NO grass, NO landscaping, the thing is covered in weeds, and surrounded by a barbed wire fence, and an ancient wooden gate. No path, no driveway, NOTHING. Along the VERY BACK of this property lies one of those silver twinkie style mobile homes of yore, AND one of those campers that go on the back of a pickup backed up end to end, with a crudely man made wall connecting the two. I'm assuming you can walk between them on the inside, by the looks of the outside.

The windows are rusted, the curtains inside are in disrepair. I am told an old man lives there by the local teenagers. And, that he enjoys STARING at them on the way to the bus. Some even go so far as to claim he's attempted to get kids to come onto the property.

I admit, I have seen someone prowling the property on an evening walk before. A wrinkelled shell of a man with a broad hat, but one who smiled and waved pleasantly as we strolled. I don't KNOW if he actually lives there or not. Or what the deal is. There appears to be no plumbing or power to the place. I don't know, maybe I'll stop by with some treats around Christmas and find out.

i think the best ghost stories are the ones you don't expect.

my sister moved to a house on 27th oct - I visited exactly one week later. houses are only about 30 years old.
1st night i stayed I woke up during the night because i felt someone touching my face - very gently. although I woke up with a fright - i felt very calm & went back to sleep very easily. didn't tell my sister about it as she had just moved in.

came back nearly 2 months later. couple of strange things happened that she mentioned. she has an underactive thyroid - only keeps her tablets in one place - found them on top of her wardrobe - along with the tv remote she had been looking for. we couldn't find the salt & pepper pots - they turned up next morning inside the cornflakes packet. i asked her if she had smelt any smells in the house - she said yes - lavender ( i asked a sign of ghosts can be smells - pleasant smells are non aggresive - but foul smells are usually aggresive ghosts). neice told us she ran upstairs to her room one night & someone pushed her out the way as she got to the top!( like a child was playing a game) Also one night she was in bed she thought she heard someone walking round her bed - she put the light on & nobody was there. her friend stayed one night & when she got up to go to the toilet someone rattled the bathroom door - but nobody was there. lots of other small things - then i stayed again & there were 4 of us in the room - me, my daughter, neice & her friend. apparently I woke them all up because I was talking in a strange language! (i don't speak any languages)

sister found out from neighbours that this moves around the houses - almost everyone in the street has experienced something at sometime - whether it be voices or other unexplainable things. one woman called the police because when she ame home she saw people sitting on her sofa.

activities ceased at sister's house after about 2 years - she only stayed there for 4 - but other people still reported happenings.