Chicago's Most Haunted

Ghost Tours

You don’t have to believe in ghosts to enjoy a ghost tour, though it’s better if you do! Generally most tours take place at night and you’re with a large group of people. Still, I recommend bringing a buddy along, not only as comfort, but possibly as a witness!

Whether you love them or you hate them, it’s pretty difficult not to get spooked. Call it the paranormal or hype, but a lot of people tend to experience spooky things while on this tour. I took a tour a few years ago. A woman in my group claimed to have felt a hand running up and down her back. Others have claimed to see faces in windows while at Hull House or heard gun shots at the location of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. I was so afraid that I made someone come into the bathroom with me when it was time to go!

It’s not all educational though. Our group stopped at the Billy Goat Tavern for some dinner and a story about the Cub’s Curse. We were able to shop a bit while in Chinatown and after our tour we hung out at a bar near Resurrection Cemetery, where, if you’re lucky, you’ll see Richard Crowe perform some karaoke!

There's Something About Mary

Chicago’s most well known ghost is that of Anna Norkus, aka Resurrection Mary. After attending a dance at the Willowbrook Ballroom, she got into a fight with her boyfriend and began to hitchhike down Archer Avenue. Somewhere between the ballroom and Resurrection Cemetery she was struck and killed by a car.

The first sighting of Mary happened when Jerry Palus met a woman at a dance. He remembered her being cold to the touch. As he drove her home that night, she requested to drive along Archer Ave, near Resurrection Cemetery. As they neared the gates she began acting strange, left the car and ran. Before he could catch her she disappeared. Later he met a woman who mentioned her daughter had been dead for some time. When she showed him her photo, it was the girl he had been dancing with.

Many have claimed to see this blue-eyed, blonde-haired beauty. One went as far to call the police when he saw a girl apparently stuck inside of the cemetery gates. When the police officer arrived, no girl was to be found. Instead he discovered that two of the bars had been bent apart. When he looked at the bronze gates he noticed hand prints scorched into them. I believe the gates have since been replaced.

Bachelor's Grove Cemetery

Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery, located in Midlothian, IL, hasn’t been used for burials in a number of years, but is far from empty. If you were to ask any ghost hunter where to go, Bachelor’s Grove would be pretty high on their list of paranormal hot spots. In other words, this place will scare the crap out of you.

Knowing the stories associated with BG might make your experience more enjoyable. Can I say that about a haunted cemetery? BG was once considered a dumping ground for murder victims who were “taken for a ride” by 1920’s gangsters. One of the grove’s most famous ghosts is the White Lady (pictured above.) The picture was taken by a research group around 1990. The woman was said to be semi-transparent as well as wearing an outdated dress.

Other stories include a farmer who died after his horse got spooked and pulled him into the creek. A two-headed man and disappearing house also lurk around the now-abandoned cemetery. Faces in the mist and blue lights hopping from grave to grave have also been reported. Yeah, not creepy at all.

Jane Addams Hull House

Being the lucky ghost hunter I am, Hull House just so happens to be on my school’s campus. In fact, I am looking through one of the windows right now. After Googling why this place was haunted, I decided it was not a good idea to look through the windows anymore.

Rumored to be haunted by Ms. Hull, the house is also said to be the place where the devil baby was born. Think Rosemary’s Baby! The house has since been turned into a museum, but it’s a frequent stop by amateur ghost hunters and skeptics alike.

A photo taken at Hull House in November 2006. Notice how there is a blur in the middle of the photo, yet no where else? Weird!