Haunted Illinois




I've spoken before on the blog during my research into my haunted formula, about how the very geology of a certain section of the US combined with its history, has created a kind of "Haunted Alley" like what the states between Appalachia and the Rockies are for "Tornado Alley."

For those who might not have been following the blog several years ago when I started my haunted formula research, it involved me taking 50 haunted sites around the US and comparing the qualities of each to find commonalities and then come up with a scoring system that took into account those features and find out what sites scored high by having all the features. Eventually, this has led to Julie and I's research for our upcoming book "Spirit Vessels: Why Some Buildings Are Haunted."

What the map above shows us is a rich swath of geology from Illinois to Indiana, Ohio to Kentucky and on to Pennsylvania. These regions are not only geologically rich, but historically, as well. The Ohio Reformatory in Mansfield, Gettysburg in PA, Waverly Hills Sanitorium, Resurrection Mary, Bachelor's Cemetery are all examples of the degree to which powerful hauntings occur or perhaps even lay down their necessary support to exist when the elements are just right.

Here's a fantastic and well respected team from Illinois, ChIPS-Champaign Illinois Paranormal Society. (video below) I am extremely impressed with their methods and their attitude. They live in an area rich with great haunted action and they uncover it place to place to begin to make conclusions about how hauntings work and how to detect them.



And, like a really conscientious team, they also strive to educate the public and do charity events to help the living as well. They are a part of the Paranormal Kicks Cancer event in September. A total blast for a fantastic cause. I, myself, am a 32-year cancer survivor and appreciate this cause. Julie and I donated a signed copy of our "Abandoned Places: Abandoned Memories (Desert Edition)" book and the "Invisible Annie" doll that was read by me psychically for Chapter Five.

Illinois has haunted lighthouses, a vast mobster history, fires, shipwrecks, tons of institutionalization over the centuries, heavy industry, all in an atmosphere of sometimes rough weather. It has the right broth for the haunted soup, and the geology and stone construction from local quarries makes it even better!

Here's some ghost tours if you're in Illinois. The huge amount of tours tells me that this is a very recognized known haunted state. Learn about the rich history for hauntings - 

Illinois Haunting Tours
Historic Ghost Tours of Naperville, Illinois 
Haunted Decatur Tours
Chicago Hauntings
Weird Chicago Tours

Comments

  1. Kind of off topic. Did you hear about Ryan Buell. .. .. the young man from Paranormal State?
    Pancreatic Cancer.

    It's very sad.

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  2. so many things i didn't know... some sad, some happy. most of all i didn't realize that there we so many local groups in my area. i live here and the historical ghost tour is just up the street. i will be checking it out... thank you.

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  3. Funny how all that Illinois stuff rarely leaks into Michigan... must be all that water surrounding us!

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  4. That little graph of America is pretty dang cool.

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