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| (Photo: Athens County Convention and Visitor Bureau ) | Image Source: indystar.com |
Every Midwest town has a ghost story or two, but some places seem to attract more ghostly activity than others.
In Paulding, Mich., locals report a mysterious phenomenon called the Paulding Light. In Decatur, Ill., the ghosts of bootleggers and theater stagehands haunt buildings throughout the city. And in Athens, Ohio, a former mental hospital is packed with the ghosts of disgruntled patients.
All three are perfect choices for a spooky Halloween road trip this weekend.
1. Paulding, Mich.
Located on Michigan's Upper Peninsula, the tiny town of Paulding is known for a phenomenon called the Paulding Light.
Pull up alongside U.S. 45 in the evening, and you're likely to see a series of mysterious lights, which appear to float about five feet in the air.
Legend says the lights are the ghostly lanterns of a railroad brakeman who was killed trying to prevent a train accident.
The Paulding Light appeared on Syfy's "Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files" in 2010, and the investigation found no source for the phenomenon.
But students at Michigan Technological University recently suggested otherwise, showing that the lights are actually the headlights and taillights of cars on a nearby highway. Because of atmospheric conditions, the light becomes distorted, giving it a ghostly appearance.
Despite that explanation, a steady stream of visitors still comes to see the phenomenon firsthand.
2. Decatur, Ill.
According to legend, Decatur has been doomed from the beginning, when it was built atop a cluster of Native American burial grounds.
In the 1850s, the town became known as Hell's Half Acre because of its brothels, distilleries and gambling activity. For decades it retained its reputation as a hotbed of political corruption, prostitution, bootlegging and other criminal activity, including plenty of murders.
Today, one of the city's most haunted spots is the Lincoln Square Theater, which opened in 1916. It replaced a hotel that had burned down the previous year, killing two men.
Locals say the theater is haunted by multiple spirits, including a vaudeville stagehand named Red.
The theater is one of several stops on the Haunted Decatur history tour (www.haunteddecatur.com), which has been named one of the "most authentic" ghost tours in the Midwest.
3. Athens, Ohio
Athens has been named one of the most haunted cities in America — perhaps because five of its cemeteries allegedly form the shape of a pentagram on a map.
The epicenter of ghostly activity is The Ridges, formerly a mental hospital. The ghosts of former patients are said to roam the halls. Locals have also noted unusual activity at the The Ridges cemeteries, where some graves were marked with patient numbers rather than names.
Ghost hunters also visit the Moonville Tunnel, which is allegedly haunted by a railroad worker who was killed there.
Hungry for more hauntings? Head to the West State Street Cemetery, where a stone angel presides over the graves of unknown soldiers. If you're lucky, you may catch her crying.
Go to this Pete Scamardo Facebook page for more travel destinations.
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