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55 books
about history, hauntings and the unexplained in America for a number of
publishers, including Whitechapel Press, History Press, Stackpole Books,
Barnes & Noble Press, and others. He is the founder and president of the
“American Ghost Society”, a national network of ghost hunters that
collects accounts of ghost sightings and haunted houses and uses
investigative techniques to track down evidence of the supernatural.
Taylor was born on September 24, 1966 in Decatur, Illinois, a Midwestern city that is steeped in legend and lore. He grew up fascinated with “things that go bump in the night”, and, in school, Taylor was well-known for his interest in the paranormal and often took friends on informal ghost tours of haunted places all over downstate Illinois. In 1989, Taylor turned his interest in the supernatural into a career when he began working on his first book, Haunted Decatur , which delved into the ghosts and hauntings of the city where he grew up. The book spawned the Haunted Decatur Tour in 1994, which took guests to locations that he had written about in his book.
In 1996, Taylor organized a group of ghost enthusiasts into an investigation
team and the
American Ghost Society
was launched, gained over 600 members in the years that followed. The
organization continues today as one of America’s largest and most honored
research groups.
In 1998, Taylor moved his operations, which now included the American Ghost
Society, a history and hauntings bookstore and a publishing company called
Whitechapel Press,
to Alton, Illinois, near St. Louis. In Alton, Taylor started his second tour
company,
Alton Hauntings,
which took guests to local haunted places in the small Mississippi
River town. He would go on to put the place on the map as “one of the most
haunted small towns in America.” He also founded the
History & Hauntings Book Co.,
which continues operations with new owner Bill Alsing today. |
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Taylor remained in Alton until 2005, when he returned to Decatur. By then, he had also established two more tour companies, in Springfield, Illinois and another company that arranges overnight stays in haunted places called American Hauntings. These tours, including those in Decatur and Alton, were organized under the heading of the Illinois Hauntings Ghost Tours. Taylor also continued the operation of Whitechapel Press, which specializes in ghost-related titles and has more than a dozen authors working under its banner. In 2006, Taylor also launched the Weird Chicago Tours, which are based on his book, Weird Illinois, which was published by Sterling Publications. In 2007, Illinois Hauntings also launched ghost tours in the Illinois towns of Lebanon and Jacksonville. In 2007, Taylor incorporated as Dark Haven Entertainment, Inc., a parent company for Whitechapel Press, the Illinois Hauntings Tours and for the Ghosts of the Prairie Website and Magazine. The new company also handles the film rights to Troy's ghost books and stories. Currently, there are three of his works optioned for possible film and television production. |
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Along with writing about the unusual and hosting tours, Taylor is also a public speaker on the subject of ghosts and hauntings and has spoken to literally hundreds of private and public groups on a variety of paranormal subjects. He has appeared in newspaper and magazine articles about ghosts and has also been fortunate enough to be interviewed hundreds of times for radio and television broadcasts about the supernatural. He has appeared in a number of documentary films, several television series and in one feature film about the paranormal. He also the executive producer for the series Cringe, which was created by the iClips Network. In April 2008, Troy and his wife, Haven, opened Prairie Fire, a retail store in historic downtown Decatur. The store specializes in teas, herbs, spices, pastas, gourmet food and hot food items and also serves as a retail outlet for the Whitechapel Press line of books and as home to the Haunted Decatur Tours.
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In 2007, Dark Haven Entertainment, Inc. was formed to not only act as a parent company for Whitechapel Press, the Illinois Hauntings Tours and for the Ghosts of the Prairie Website and Magazine but also to handle the film rights to Troy's ghost books and stories. Currently, there are three of his works optioned for possible film and television production. Troy has appeared in documentary productions for TLC, The History Channel, A & E, Discovery Channel, PBS, CMT and in various network programs and syndicated news shows. These programs have included America's Ghost Hunters, Ghost Waters, Night Visitors, Beyond Human Senses, Scariest Places on Earth, Children of the Grave, and others. |
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The St. Francisville Experiment
(2000) "I have taken a lot of flak about my role in this film over the years but what I can say is that it was a lot of fun to make and be a part of and the cast and most of the crew (especially Paul Salamoff) were great people to work with. There is no point in trying to take it seriously -- it's just a movie -- and as long as you don't go into it believing that it's authentic, it can actually be a lot of fun. "I can't say that the St. Francisville Experiment is ever going to be fondly recalled as a highlight of my career but I don't regret taking part in it. It was a great experience and a real look at what happens when things in Hollywood go awry." For more "behind the scenes" details about the making of the film, see Troy Taylor's book Confessions of a Ghost Hunter. |
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(Left to Right) Keith Age, John Zaffis,
Rosemary Ellen Guiley, Troy Taylor
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