The ghosts that roam the halls of the most haunted schools in the U.S. are a blend of terrifying and mysterious. From the lingering spirits of children still playing games in the hall to the apparition of an animal whose bones are in a public display case, these campuses are filled with paranormal activity.
Tales of invisible marbles. A helpful security guard who walked through a student. A video of a ghastly balloon that follows a janitor at night — You’ll find these spirits and more at America’s ghost-infested campuses.
Most Annoyingly Haunted Campuses in the U.S.: East Tennessee State’s ‘Marble Boy’ Bothers Resident Students
Falling asleep in a college dorm can be difficult with students’ varying schedules. This is especially true at East Tennessee State University’s Lucille Clement Hall, where a young specter reportedly plays marbles in the fifth-floor hallway.
Students and staff have reported hearing marbles clinking on the top floor. In addition, numerous people have claimed to hear a disembodied voice say “hello” when they’re alone. Both sounds can be quite annoying when studying for finals or trying to catch some shut-eye.
According to East Tennessean Online, the legend says the ghost is a young boy whose father helped construct the building. He regularly accompanied his dad and played marbles while his father worked. Tragically, the boy fell down an elevator shaft while chasing an errant marble and died — hence the name “Marble Boy.”
Efforts to communicate with the lad are generally unsuccessful — with one caveat: Yelling at the spirit to stop playing his irritating game results in him angrily dropping all his marbles.
#1 Most Haunted Schools in the U.S.: Penn State, Where Ghosts Are Everywhere
Not every haunted campus confines its ghosts to one building or location. Penn State, one of the most haunted schools in the U.S., seems to have spirits all over — and not all of this haunted campus’s ghosts are human.
Old Main was the first major structure the school built, constructed from a limestone block. According to Penn State’s Campus Life, among those who labored tirelessly to quarry the material was a mule named Old Coaly.
Students, many of whom worked beside the beloved animal, lobbied to preserve his skeleton after his death. Since then, the school has displayed Old Coaly’s remains in many buildings on campus. Wherever the bones go, students and staff report hearing hoofsteps and the braying of a mule.
Other spirits also reportedly call Penn State their home. One, unsurprisingly, is buried in a grave on campus.
George Atherton, Penn State’s president from 1882 until he died in 1906, is credited with saving the school from financial disaster. In addition, he expanded the curriculum and launched a building boom. In return, the board of trustees sought to honor him with a burial in front of Old Main. His wife declined, however, preferring a quieter place beside Schwab Auditorium instead.
Atherton’s spirit is not alone, ghost spotters maintain. They say he haunts the auditorium alongside the building’s namesake, Charles Schwab, and an unnamed Revolutionary War soldier.
In a nearby building, Old Botany, reports circulate about a woman who stands at one of the windows. Many believe she’s Frances Atherton, wife of George Atherton. Legend has it that she is keeping vigil over her husband’s grave.
The Friendliest Most Haunted Schools in America: Wells College’s Helpful Security Spirit
Unfortunately, Wells College closed its doors in the spring of 2024. However, it’s still one of the most haunted schools in the U.S. Since we’re dealing with dead spirits, why not a dead school?
Like Penn State, this school has accumulated several ghost stories over its 156-year history. One of those tales features a brave and helpful security guard.
Wells replaced an older building destroyed in a fire with the more recent Morgan Hall. As the fire blazed, a single security guard rescued the students inside. Tragically, the guard couldn’t escape the flames himself — and some think his spirit stayed on the job after death.
On one occasion, a political science major was studying at the Morgan Hall Library. She called security, hoping to be escorted back to her dorm instead of braving the night alone. Almost immediately, an officer arrived.
“That was fast,” she said. Instead of responding, the guard walked through the girl and vanished into thin air. Although the student finished her degree, she never went back to Morgan Hall.
An old newsletter from Wells College claimed the guard would appear anytime a student called security from the top floor. Students have also reported feeling the spirit’s encouraging push while descending the stairs at Morgan Hall, helping to guide them out of the building.
Read about more haunted places in the United States!
The Red Door at the Haunted Wells College
Another of the many haunting Wells College stories concerns a mysterious door that once separated the living from the dead.
Over the winter of 1918–1919, a harsh winter storm trapped students and faculty on campus. At the same time, the deadly Spanish Flu epidemic hit Wells, infecting several members of the staff and student body. As a result, staff set up a makeshift hospital on the fourth floor of the school’s main building.
Several of the afflicted died, and the school established a makeshift mortuary in one room to store bodies until the weather broke. They painted the door of this room red to distinguish it from other rooms on the same floor.
Once the crisis had passed and families had removed the bodies of their loved ones, the school painted over the red door. According to Wells College, the red paint began to seep through within a few weeks. Many took this as a spiritual sign, marking the tragedy that took place during the epidemic.
Subsequently, the school remodeled the main building, and now no one knows where the red door once stood.
The Most Haunted Schools in the U.S. Caught on Camera: Hibbing High School’s Haunted Theater
This Art Deco haunted high school contains marble staircases with brass railings and counts a Nobel laureate of pop culture as an alum. Yes, Robert Zimmerman graduated from Hibbing High before running off to New York and becoming Bob Dylan. Before he left, however, Dylan may have run into the theater department’s stage manager, Bill.
The urban legend says:
Bill managed the theater department from 1927 to the late 1960s and was probably on hand for the talent show that featured Zimmerman/Dylan in the late 1950s. Even now, if Dylan returned to the school’s auditorium, he might meet old Bill — though the latter died over 55 years ago.
A chandelier fell on Bill, killing him, and now his spirit forever haunts the theater he loved. Bill even has a favorite seat — J-47.
Unfortunately, Dylan would’ve only met Bill’s ghost during the time he attended Hibbing. According to Pioneer Press, the stage manager died in 1942. However, there’s plenty of evidence to suggest someone haunts the theater, and that someone might be Bill. But he likely never had ties to Bob Dylan.
You’ll notice we didn’t mention Bill’s last name, and you aren’t likely to find it anywhere else. Allegedly, Bill’s family members still work at Hibbing High, and divulging his surname would bring them unwanted attention.
The Phantom Who Sits in Seat J-47 at the Haunted Hibbing High School
The most significant evidence from this haunted high school is a collection of photographs. In 2000, Hibbing High stage manager Chuck Perry snapped six Polaroids of a spectral man sitting in J-47.
Students and staff told Perry about strange occurrences in the auditorium when he first started with Hibbing. As time went on, he experienced phenomena himself. For example, tools would move to different places when he left the room. The thing that prompted the stage manager to take photos, however, was how seat J-47 refused to remain folded up.
The photos, as seen in the Mesabi Tribune, show a clear — albeit translucent — figure of a man in the famed seat. Many believe these images are hoaxes produced through double exposure. Many paranormal investigators, however, think they’re the real deal.
The Most Haunted Schools in America by a Murderer and His Victim: Old Portland, Michigan High School
Old Portland High School operated from 1881 to 1992 when it became a housing project. During its time, it became known as one of the most haunted schools in the U.S.
This school haunting began in the early 20th century after collapsing gym bleachers crushed a 14-year-old student. Supposedly, the janitor had neglected to repair the bleachers after discovering they were faulty, though this is likely a myth.
The janitor went missing shortly after the girl’s death, and people widely believed the girl’s father had murdered him. The killer supposedly disposed of the man’s body by setting the Portland High School fire in 1918. This fire was real, according to WKAR, but there’s no evidence to suggest that this story is more than an urban legend.
The Portland School Hauntings Begin
The city rebuilt the school, and it reopened in 1920. As soon as it reopened, the reported hauntings started, and the ghosts of rumored victims allegedly roamed the halls.
The building was converted into a housing project in 1992, but that didn’t end the old school haunting. Tenants began reporting odd things almost from the beginning. Several residents simply spotted the girl, while others claimed the spirit slapped them on the back. More accounts tell of objects moving on their own, but that’s just one small piece on the list.
According to WFMK, the spirits supposedly took things out of refrigerators only to stack them in other rooms. They slammed doors, spoke in eerie voices, and made scratching sounds on the walls. In addition, the school bells, which hadn’t been operational for a long time, would ring periodically.
The Most Haunted American Schools Built on a Graveyard: Cathedral High School and Its Ghastly Balloon
If you build a high school on top of a cemetery — what do you think will happen? Apparently, your facility will become one of the most haunted schools in the United States.
That is what happened after Archbishop John Joseph Cantwell opened Cathedral High School in 1925 on the former site of Calvary Cemetery — one of the oldest graveyards in Los Angeles.
All human remains from the old cemetery were already relocated before the school opened. Some of the tombstones and at least one coffin, however, didn’t make the trip. According to MaxPreps, tombstones started popping up during the haunted school’s later renovations.
Rather than being spooked, the school embraced the macabre association. One donor even paid to have the recovered tombstones embedded around the outside of the football field. The school’s sports teams also adopted the name “Phantoms” to drive the vibe home.
Some see this as hanging a metaphorical “vacancy” sign for poltergeists.
Most paranormal activity reportedly occurs after hours, for the maintenance staff to witness. The most famous evidence of the school’s haunting comes from a janitor who recorded a balloon stalking him through the halls. Here is his video.
You’ll notice that the balloon starts in a classroom and chases the janitor down the hall. You can’t see a string in the video, but many believe it’s a simple hoax. It’s up to you to decide where you stand.
The Most Terrifying Haunted Schools in the U.S.: Flagler College Sends Guests Running
Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida, is only 57 years old. You might think that is not old enough to become one of the most haunted schools in the U.S., but you’d be wrong.
St. Augustine is the oldest city in America. In addition, the focal point of Flagler’s campus is the former Ponce de Leon Hotel, renowned for its paranormal activity.
Industrialist Henry Morrison Flagler built the hotel in 1888 as a lavish resort for the ultra-rich. Now, it serves as a dorm for first-year students and a place for ghost tours.
“One time I was giving a legacy tour in the Flagler room,” May Col told Odyssey. “I was giving a life summary of Henry Flagler. Every time I said his name, the lights would flicker.”
Col goes on to describe how she didn’t notice the lights flickering until a guest mentioned it. To test the theory, she mentioned Flagler again. This time, the light that shone on his portrait shorted out completely. It was then that her guests learned why Flagler College is one of America’s most haunted campuses, and they didn’t like it.
“Guests were so scared they actually walked out of the tour,” Col adds.
A Woman in Black Haunted a Flagler Freshman
Making friends as a freshman can be difficult, but not for former student Cori Orcasitas. She recounted how she made friends — even in her sleep.
“One night while I was sleeping, my roommate said that she saw someone standing at the foot of my bed all in black,” said Orcasitas. “…She said that the figure didn’t move, didn’t react to her talking, she just kept looking at me.”
That was the first occurrence Orcasitas remembers, but it wouldn’t be the last. The Flagler alumnus says the spirit, a “lady all in black,” would periodically stand in the corner, staring at her when she fell asleep. And it didn’t stop until Orcasitas graduated.
Another spirit people report in the dorm is a little boy who is supposed to have fallen to his death from a balcony in the rotunda. Students and staff have said they can sometimes hear him running and stomping in the halls at night.
Perhaps someone could arrange a playdate for him and the Marble Boy of East Tennessee State.
Other Most Haunted High Schools in the U.S.
Since we’ve covered such a long list of the most haunted schools in the U.S., we’ve decided to make the valiant contenders more digestible. It was a close call, and these entries very well could’ve made our main list. As such, we’ve decided to serve them in bite-sized pieces. So, here are the honorable mentions for the most haunted high schools in America…
Most Haunted High Schools in America: Tennessee High School
While the eerie happenings at Tennessee High School may not be the most famous haunting in Tennessee, it is one of the most haunted schools in the U.S.
Tennessee High School in Bristol is now abandoned. While it was still active, however, the community believed it was haunted by the ghost of a deceased student. According to the urban legend, Agnes drowned in the school’s swimming pool on Class Night — an evening celebration for graduating seniors.
Her spirit now haunts the oldest sections of the building.
Most Haunted U.S. High Schools: Pocatello High School
Many believe Pocatello High School in Pocatello, Idaho, is one of the most haunted schools in the United States. According to an account in Idaho Magazine, the building is a hotspot for paranormal activity.
In 1914, Pocatello High burned in a blaze that consumed the interior of the original building and part of the newer additions. The stone walls remained standing, and the city rebuilt the school around them.
Paranormal investigators have visited the school on multiple occasions and often claim to have found evidence. The most common proof is sensory in nature, ranging from hearing voices and seeing apparitions to smelling unexplained scents.
Most Haunted High Schools in the U.S.: El Paso High School
According to the El Paso Independent School District, El Paso High School is over a century old, dating back to 1916. It’s had 109 years to become one of America’s most haunted schools, and the legends within its halls don’t disappoint.
The ghost myths at this haunted high school reach every area of campus — from the football field and school building to the underground tunnels. People claim to have seen the famous “Ghost Girl,” who first appeared in a class photo in 1984. Her story is a tragic one — allegedly the result of suicide — and she’s the most active specter at the facility.
Most Haunted High Schools in the U.S. Where the Staff Never Leave: Elizabeth V. Edwards School
As one of the most haunted schools in the U.S., Elizabeth V. Edwards School has drawn the attention of news outlets and paranormal enthusiasts for decades. Although the school closed in 2004, it hasn’t stopped people from investigating the building’s alleged haunting. Even Ghost Hunters featured the building in 2014.
According to USA Today, the school’s former staff experienced a wide array of strange occurrences: Lockers slammed shut on their own, lights flickered, and old-time music played through the halls. Some even believe the building is haunted by the spirit of Elizabeth Edwards and claim to have seen her apparition.
Some of the Most Haunted Elementary Schools in the U.S.
Many of the most haunted schools in the U.S. are high schools and colleges. However, we believe the creepiest haunted schools are elementary schools, as child ghosts are among the eeriest of them all. Here are our honorable mentions for haunted elementary schools…
America’s Most Haunted Elementary Schools: Old Milton Elementary School
The old Milton Schoolhouse operated from 1904 to 1986 in Alton, Illinois. It then went on to become a glass factory before being permanently vacated. Now, it tops the list of most haunted elementary schools in the United States.
As the Ghost Research Society explains, the myth surrounding Milton School’s haunting goes as such: A young student named Mary stayed after class to finish an optional project. As twilight settled in, the girl realized she’d stayed too late and needed to get home. Before she could leave the school, however, someone brutally assaulted her. The next day, students found her lifeless body in the girls’ shower.
Some locals believe Mary never left the building and still haunts it to this very day. Others claim her attacker is also in the schoolhouse, forever on the hunt.
Most Haunted Elementary Schools in the U.S.: Fallsvale Elementary School
We can’t have a list of the most haunted schools in the U.S. without including Fallsvale Elementary in Forest Falls, California. This haunted elementary has the creepiest infestation there is — child ghosts.
Rumors claim that Fallsvale is so filled with youthful specters that children play with them at recess. The students are allegedly used to these friendly spirits and don’t see anything unusual about their presence.
Most Haunted Elementary Schools in America: Farrar Elementary School
Farrar Elementary in Farrar, Iowa, ran for roughly 80 years before closing in 2001. Since then, this haunted school has become a paranormal icon for the Hawkeye State. The owners offer private ghost tours, easily booked through their website.
Though Farrar Elementary School doesn’t promise unexplained happenings on one of their investigations, guests who’ve reviewed the experience haven’t been disappointed.
With disembodied sounds and vanishing apparitions, do you think you could handle a hunt in the haunted Farrar School?
If you like scary places like these, here are ten terrifying and haunted places where you can spend the night!
