Halloween can’t arrive fast enough. And here to send chills down your spine are 20 creepy stories and haunted locations within driving distance of Cleveland. Special thanks to the book Ghosts and Legends of Northern Ohio by William G. Krejci for much of this information. 

Helltown and the Road to Hell Peninsula The history of Helltown is murky, but it seems that the town was abandoned when the National Parks Service deemed the homes as obstructions of the natural beauty of the area. Legends of a Road to Hell at Helltown claim that drivers on the road find themselves with a sudden urge to drive off the road into the Brandywine Gorge to the north. Others say that the ghosts of car accidents haunt this road, and that a ghostly hearse has been spotted at night. The road is currently closed to the public, but that doesn’t mean you can’t reach Hell on foot. Photo via whoiskjs/Instagram
The West Branch Witch West Branch State Park, Portage County The woods in this state park are said to be haunted by a witch who appears as a woman in black. In 1960, a man named B.A. Evans discovered a small cemetary on his recently-purchased land. The plot contained seven gravestones and was surrounded by a 40-inch wall. The cemetary belonged to the Elliott family, and the graves dated back to the first half of the 19th century. One headstone bears the name “Clamenza Isadore,” the daughter of the Elliotts who died at age 17. The headstone inscription is as follows: Remeber youth as you pass by. As you are now, so once was I. As I am now, so must you be. Prepare for death and follow me.” This creepy poem has been interpreted as a witch’s hex, leading to the legend of a woman in black who chases people away from her grave. Photo via daniel_frost_photography/Instagram
The Ashtabula Bridge Disaster Ashtabula On December 29, 1876, an eleven-car train with two engines and nearly 160 passengers was making its way west when a terrible snow storm began. At 7:28 p.m., the train slowed while approached Ashtabula and carefully crossed the iron bridge over the river. The bridge collapsed, and the train was plunged into the river. Those who weren’t killed in the initial fall were drowned or burned to death, as the oil from the lanterns ignited on the wooden passenger cars. 92 people died and 64 were injured. Of the dead, 48 were unrecognizable and placed in a mass grave at nearby Chestnut Grove Cemetary. But the death toll didn’t stop there: the bridge’s engineer was found dead 20 days later, his death was eventually ruled a homicide. His killer was never found. The president of the railroad that built the bridge then committed suicide a little over six years later. Ghostly figures have been spotted walking the site, with activity increasing aroun the time of the tragedy’s anniversary. Photo via Wikimedia Commons
The Melon Heads Kirtland There was once a man named Dr. Crowe who lived off of Wisner Rd. in Kirtland. He had been stripped of his medical license because of his complete lack of ethics. He decided to open his home to orphans. Some say this was because he and his wife couldn’t conceive, others say that she did conceive, but that their child was born with hydrocephalus–– a condition that causes swelling of the brain and skull. Either way, the orphans started mysteriously developing this condition. It is thought that the evil doctor performed experiments on them, injecting fluid into their skulls. Eventually, the children revolted, killed the doctor, burned down his home, and escaped into the woods. Sightings of these strange-looking people are still reported in the area. Photo via Wikimedia Commons
Gore Orphanage Lorain County Gore Orphanage and Gore Orphanage Rd. have a litany of horrible stories associated with their name. The main legend is that a man named Gore started an orphanage on the edge of Lorain County in the early 1800s. When the orphanage started losing money, he decided to cut his losses and locked all the children into the building, which he then set on fire. Then he collected the insurance money and left town. You can still visit the ruins today, where people have heard ghostly children crying at night. Photo via themidnighttrainpodcast/Instagram
Crybaby Bridges and the True Story of Lizzie Shacht Big Four Railroad Bridge, Cleveland The legend of a crybaby bridge is a common one. Each story involves a young mother throwing her baby off the side of the bridge, where the baby’s ghostly cries linger to this day. While the Big Four Railroad bridge isn’t necessarily known as a crybaby bridge, it is the site of a real child drowning by a woman named Lizzie Shacht. Lizzie had her baby out of wedlock and threw its remains over the side of the bridge, which were later found downriver. Apparently Lizzie tied a strip of linen around the baby’s neck because she was “afraid it would start breathing again.” She was ultimately charged and convicted of murder. Photo via Matthew O’Thompsonski/Flickr Creative Commons
Ghastly Wails at the Front Avenue River Crossing Cleveland Waterfront RTA, West 10th St. and West 11th St. This story haunts the approximate location of the one before. The legend goes that in the early months of 1910, employees of the Big Four Railroad were repeatedly terrified by the sounds of some unseen spirit. The noise, heard every Sunday around midnight, was described as something like the agonized moan of someone in the throes of death. Two policemen investigated, but were baffled by the origin of the wailing. It was believed that the area was being haunted by the ghost of a dock worker who had been hit by a train the previous December. The source of the noise was never officially determined. Photo via macincle/Instagram
The Witch’s Grave of Olmsted Falls Chestnut Grove Cemetery, Olmsted Township The same cemetery that houses the mass grave of the Ashtabula Bridge victims is also home to a witch’s grave. The most popular story is that a woman accused of witchcraft in the 1800s was hung from a large tree in the cemetery. Her body was then cut down and buried at the base of the tree. The creepiest version says that the witch was dismembered after being executed, with her body buried in 13 small boxes around the tree. People in the area embrace these spooky legends with a “Haunt of the Falls” display every October. Photo via vintage.mick/Instagram
The Witch’s Ball of Valley City Myrtle Hill Cemetery, Medina County This witch’s grave is marked by a granite sphere, supposedly to prevent her from climbing back out again. The legend says that the witch killed her sons and abusive husband by dumping arsenic into the well. This may be taken from the real story of Martha Hazel Wise, who poisoned 17 of her family members with arsenic the winter of 1924-25. Supposedly, snow refuses to stick to the witch’s ball. If you touch it and it is warm, it means that the ghost of the witch is active and wandering around the cemetery. Photo via Mat Luschek/Instagram
Chief Sha-Te-Yah-Ron-Ya Olentangy Indian Caverns This true story tells how a great Native American leader named Sha-Te-Yah-Ron-Ya (nicknamed Leatherlips) was executed for witchcraft in 1810. Sha-Te-Yah-Ron-Ya was a noted chief of the Porcupine Clan of the Wyandots who became friendly with colonists after the Battle of Fallen Timbers. Another native leader named Tecumseh grew angry and sent a delegation to Sha-Te-Yah-Ron-Ya with the hopes of persuading him to fight the colonists. The delegation was sent away, and fell ill and died on their way home. Tecumseh then accused Sha-Te-Yah-Ron-Ya of witchcraft and ordered him to be executed by tomahawk blow. His body is believed to be buried near the Olentangy Indian Caverns. Sha-Te-Yah-Ron-Yah was the only known person to have been executed for witchcraft in Ohio. Photo via Wikimedia Commons
The Ghosts at Rider’s Inn 792 Mentor Ave., Painesville Rider’s Inn has a bed and breakfast, a restaurant, a pub, and three ghosts. The first is said to be a man dressed in a Civil War uniform, whose identity remains a mystery. The other two are supposedly the second and third wives of Jospeh Rider, the Inn’s founder. Roxany, his second wife, is said to be a helpful spirit, but Susannah, his third, is more mischevious. On several occasions, people have come up the stairs after hours or gotten into an upstairs bedroom that should have been locked. Each time, they claimed they had been let in by a woman in a white nightgown. When the doors were checked, they were found to be still locked. Photo via The Supernatural Occurrence Studies Podcast/Instagram
Arcadia’s Headless Ghost Nickel Plate Railroad, Arcadia Ohio’s railroads bring us another wandering ghost. The story says that in October 1889, while waiting for the Nickel Plate line to clear, conductor John Welsh noticed that part of his train had become uncoupled. He jumped down to reconnect the train, another section came rolling toward him and smashed his head between two cars. The first sightings of his ghost were reported in 1890: “The engineer and other officials assert that scarely a night passes, but what a headless apparition can be seen coming out of these woods, as the train nears the scene of the accident, carrying… soemthing that looks like a lantern, which it waves backward and forward… as if searching for a lost object.” His head. Photo via lawknight77/Instagram
The Angel at Maple Grove Cemetery Mason Rd., Vermillion For years, the statue of and angel with its hands outstretched stood watch over the burial sites of two women named Lydia and Alice. According to legend, these two were mother and daughter. The mother somehow caused the death of her daughter, and died of grief. Pretty soon farmers began reporting livestock dying off in the area. Children went missing. It was claimed that the statue was coming alive at night and stealing them away. The hands and wingtips of the angel were removed to prevent these nightly wanderings. Later, the face was vandalized, and now all that remains is the base with the women’s names on it. Photo via krispyc87/Instagram
The Specter of Conneaut Conneaut Creek, near Ashtabula This ghost made the Cleveland Plain Dealer in February 1891. The “specter” had been witnessed by many people the previous fall and winter haunting a boathouse on the bank of Conneaut Creek. The ghost was said to be carrying a large, partially concealed lantern with its head thrown back, its eyes partly closed, and making a gurgling sound as if trying to breathe through water. This horrible apparition is said to be the spirit of a young man named Woodward who died trying to cross the creek at the site of the boathouse. Photo via Chris Light/Wikimedia Commons
The Alphabet Railroad Powerhouse Hudson Dr. and south of Second St. The Alphabet Railraod is a nickname for the Akron, Bedford, & Cleveland Railroad (ABC). Hauntings of its powerhouse go back to January 1896, when a ghostly white figure was seen at various locations around the powerhouse very early in the morning. When workers decided to investigate, they saw a white object enter a small closet. The door was thrown open, but the closet was found to be empty. Suddenly, they heard a scream behind them and turned to see the white figure with its arms outstretched. It sank into the floor, but the screeches continued. The ghost has been seen several times since. Photo via Flickr Creative Commons
Cholera Cemetery Battery Park, Sandusky Cholera supposedly came to Sandusky in 1849 by way of two people escaping Cinncinnati on the Mad River Railroad. Almost 400 people died of cholera in the area. They were hastily buried and their graves left untended, as people were afraid of becoming infected. In fact, it is said that some people were buried so quickly that they weren’t actually dead yet. These angry and vengeful spirits are said to haunt the graveyard, and ghostly lights have been spotted. Photo via Midwest 1.9/Wikimedia Commons
The Ohio Grassman Every state needs its own Bigfoot. Supposedly, sightings of the 500-pound Grassman can be traced back to Native American legend in Ohio. It is the most aggressive of all known Sasquatch species. The Grassman either gets its name from its grassy appearance, or from the huts it builds out of grass to live in. It was last sighted in June of 2017. Photo via mralstock/Instagram
The Akron Civic Theatre 182 S. Main St., Akron Built partially on top of the Ohio and Erie, the Akron Civic Theatre has a history riddled with tragedy. Three main ghosts are said to haunt the theater. The first is known as Fred, who is believed to be a janitor who gets angry when anyone messes up the restrooms. The second is a well-dressed man who can be seen on the balcony. The third and final ghost is supposedly a woman who killed herself by jumping into the canal. Her spirit still haunts the canal below the theater. Many other drowning, suicides, and even the Akron riots have deaths tied to the Civic Theatre, but no other spirits are as distinct. Photo via tonyfanizzi/Instagram
Lonesome Lock Lock 31, Peninsula Many of the former canal locks in Ohio are said to be haunted, but this is perhaps the most famous. Tales abound of murders by cutthroats and bandits. A newspaper article in 1891 described the lock as a place where “ghosts and goblins there do congregate” and “phantom forms flit about.” Another headless ghost is rumored to have been sighted here. Photo via nancyluken/Instagram
The Republic Horror Republic This last haunting comes to us from yet another railroad tragedy. In 1887, a fast-moving, westbound passenger train collided with an eastbound freight train. The sleeper cars miraculously avoided serious damage, but a fire broke out in the smoking car and spread quickly. Many passengers were either killed on impact or burned to death in the wreckage. Exactly two months later, a ghost started to appear at the site: the figure of a woman in white, holding up a lantern that shone red. A conductor actually saw this signal and screeched to a stop at the location where the crash had occured, but could not see any obstruction. The woman with the lantern had vanished. Photo via Wikimedia Commons

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