WEIRD ILLINOIS / HAUNTED ILLINOIS

I was born and raised in the state of Illinois and I have spent the greater portion of my life here. Over the years, I have become pretty familiar with the state's ghosts, haunted spots and mysterious (and sometimes bloody) history. I have traveled all over Illinois in search of strange tales and dark places and have never been disappointed! This section of the website is a labor of love for me. I have long been fascinated with the high strangeness that Illinois has to offer and my need to seek out stories and tales that do not fit into the "proper historical record" has not only spawned a book called HAUNTED ILLINOIS, but this web page and a book called WEIRD ILLINOIS from Barnes & Noble Press as well.

WEIRD ILLINOIS travels the back roads of the state in search of unwritten history, modern folklore, ghosts, abandoned places, roadside oddities, bizarre beasts, mysterious places and more. While I am best known for chronicling the ghosts of Illinois, that's only part of what can be found here. In some cases, these accounts of fabled places and bizarre people will not involve ghosts at all but are such a part of the unusual past and weird present of the state that they had to be included here!

No matter what else they are, the collected stories are both familiar and strange. Many of them, you will have undoubtedly never heard before. Some of them may be old favorites, but regardless, every single one of them comes from the landscape of Illinois. They are tales of haunted houses, old cemeteries, terrifying locations, unusual people, bizarre legends and more. Even with that said, I am sure there are tales of Illinois that have still managed to elude me. There are haunted and strange places here that have remained unknown since the first settlers came to the prairie and these spots remain hidden, or forgotten, today. I do not claim to have uncovered every weird story in the state of Illinois, but I do feel that after browsing through these pages, you will likely never look at the Prairie State in the same way again.

Know of a weird place or story in Illinois?
Send an Email to Troy Taylor!

WELCOME TO
WEIRD & HAUNTED ILLINOIS!
The Travel Guide to Illinois' Ghosts, Local Legends & Best Kept Secrets takes readers along on a journey in search of the "weird" people, places & legends of the Prairie State.

Looking for Books about Weird & Haunted Illinois? Click on the Link Below for titles by Troy Taylor & Other Illinois Authors!
Illinois Hauntings Books!

DISCLAIMER
Click on the Link Above for Important Information about WEIRD ILLINOIS!

SOME OF THE WEIRD & HAUNTED
REGIONS OF ILLINOIS

HAUNTED CHICAGO
The most haunted places, weird legends and dark history of the Windy City, including the story of Resurrection Mary, Bachelor's Grove Cemetery, Flapper Ghosts, The Murder Castle of H.H. Holmes, Al Capone, John Wayne Gacy, Leopold & Loeb, the Great Chicago Fire, the Fort Dearborn Massacre, the Eastland Disaster, the Grimes Sisters, and much more! Based on the books Haunted Chicago & Bloody Chicago by Troy Taylor!

The Last Days of a Weird Chicago Landmark!
The House of Crosses
A look at the strange history and fabled past of one of the most bizarre houses in Chicago and Illinois history! See this exclusive article from Troy Taylor and the Weird Chicago Tours about the final days of the House of Crosses.

HAUNTED SITES & STRANGE TALES OF ALTON
Ghosts, Legends & Haunted Places along the Mississippi River, including the Alton Confederate Prison, the Piasa Bird, the infamous McPike Mansion, the hauntings of Elijah Lovejoy, the Cracker Factory, the Mineral Springs Hotel and others! Based on the book Haunted Alton by Troy Taylor!

HAUNTED DECATUR SITES
Strange legends and ghostly locations in the haunted heart of Illinois, including Greenwood Cemetery, Millikin University, the Lincoln Theater, the Avon Theater, the Harrold House, the Culver Mansion, the haunted former speakeasy in downtown Decatur and many more! Based on the best selling series of "Haunted Decatur" Books by author Troy Taylor!

WEIRD EGYPT
History, Haunts & Lore of Southern Illinois

DARK HISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS What violent and tragic events shaped this particular region of Illinois?	BLOODY WILLIAMSON This famous county saw more bloodshed, death and violence than any other part of the state and was the only Illinois county to secede from the Union during the Civil War!
WAR IN ILLINOIS: CHARLIE BIRGER & THE SHELTON GANG War came to Illinois in the 1920's when violence erupted between the notorious Birger and Shelton gangs!	THE ORIGINAL SPRINGS HOTEL Okawville's Mysterious Mineral Springs Have Left Behind a Legacy of History & Haunts!
THE LEGEND OF ANNA BIXBY A mysterious healer and the cave that now hides her gold - and her ghost!	THE OLD SLAVE HOUSE The most haunted house in southern Illinois and listed as one of the 10 Most Haunted Houses in America! Find out Why!

CAHOKIA MOUNDS
This ancient civilization mysteriously vanished hundreds of years ago... find out why many consider this a "place of power" today.

HARTFORD CASTLE
Lost Legends of this Abandoned Place

MCMACKIN HOUSE
A Former family mansion, turned restaurant, in Salem is haunted by spirits from the past!

THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE AND DEVIL'S BAKE OVEN
One of the most mysterious haunted places along the Mississippi River

THE CURSE OF KASKASKIA
Learn the fate of Illinois's first state capital and how an Indian curse caused the dead to rise from their graves!

THE OLD STATE CAPITOL
The early capital in Vandalia is rumored to be plagued with its own hauntings!

THE PHANTOM FUNERAL OF FORT DE CHARTRES
This ghostly funeral brings hundreds of visitors to the remains of the fort on a certain occasion... find out when it is!

THE MCPIKE MANSION
Many claim this dilapidated mansion is the most haunted house in Alton... a town that is already known as one of the most haunted small towns in America!

THE MINERAL SPRINGS HOTEL
Originally opened as a health spa, this place still retains the look of an old hotel and you can almost expect to see guests come strolling down the corridors... and according to some, they still do.

GHOST OF THE MONTICELLO SEMINARY
Now known as LEWIS & CLARK COLLEGE, ghost hunters still seek out the ghost of the school's former headmistress, Harriet Haskell

THE THREE MILE HOUSE
Although it burned down in a terrible fire in 1985, the stories of the Three Mile House still linger to thrill new generations of ghost enthusiasts.

BURROWS CAVE
Could this secret cache in southern Illinois really be the remains of ancient visitors in Illinois? Judge for yourself!

THE MURPHYSBORO MUD MONSTER
One of the most famous Bigfoot "flaps" in Illinois history!

THE ENFIELD HORROR
What was this strange creature that frightened the southern Illinois town?

WEIRD HEARTLAND
History, Haunts & Lore of Central Illinois

ILLINOIS COLLEGE Some believe this may be the most haunted university in the Midwest!	MILLIKIN UNIVERSITY Another of the Most Haunted Colleges in the Midwest!
PEMBERTON HALL The Ghost of Mary Hawkins on the Eastern Illinois University campus	UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS GHOSTS School Spirits from Champaign-Urbana
URBANA HIGH SCHOOL Is this Urbana high school really haunted?	CHESTERVILLE WITCH'S GRAVE The curious legend of this small town

THE SPEAKEASY: BELL'S JEWELRY STORE The most actively haunted place in the city of Decatur ! Dozens of documented reports of paranormal phenomena!	THE LOOMIS HOUSE A Haunted Former Hotel in Carlinville CLEMENTS CEMETERY The mysterious "Blue Man"...fact or legend?	ILLINOIS' PHANTOM BLACK PANTHERS Out of place panthers have terrorized Illinois for years, becoming especially famous around Decatur	GREENWOOD CEMETERY One of the Most Haunted Graveyards in Illinois with hundreds of documented tales of strange phenomena, ghosts, and unexplained phenomena!
PECK CEMETERY This vandalized cemetery is considered to be one of the strangest and most frightening places in Central Illinois, with tales of occult activity and strange happenings.	THE HAUNTED SITES OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN Spooky spots in Springfield connected to our most haunted president STEALING ABRAHAM LINCOLN The myths and mysteries hauntings Abraham Lincoln's Tomb	THE LINCOLN HOME Is it really haunted? And if so, is the ghost that walks here one of the Lincoln's?	THE LINCOLN THEATER This spooky theater is haunted by the ghost of a former stage-hand who still roams the theater.... more than 70 years after he died!
HAUNTED NEW SALEM History & Hauntings of this Lost Illinois Town	"ACCORDING TO LEGEND..." The Strange Case of Nathaniel Van Noy	MURDER OF REBECCA HOULDEN A Tale of Illinois Homicide & The Ghosts It Left Behind	THE AVON THEATER Perhaps Decatur's Most Haunted remaining theater with many reports of strange activity, apparitions and weird goings-on!
FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT'S DANA HOUSE The historic home of Susan Lawrence Dana, one of Springfield's most noted Spiritualists	OLD UNION CEMETERY A secluded Central Illinois cemetery with reports of ghost lights	THE SPRINGFIELD THEATRE CENTER Home of "Joe", the city of Springfield's most notorious ghost	WILLIAMSBURG HILL Cold Spring Cemetery and the strange happenings on this hill
VOORHIES CASTLE One of the most famous haunted spots in Central Illinois	BIGFOOT IN ILLINOIS Mysterious encounters with the North American Ape in Illinois	THE MAD GASSER OF MATTOON One of Illinois' most enigmatic creatures - was he real or merely imagination? And Was Illinois His Second Haunt?	THE LAKE CLUB Although the site burned down years ago, this remains one of Springfield's most famous hauntings

WEIRD WATERS
History, Haunts & Lore Along Illinois' Rivers

THE DEVIL'S BAKE OVEN One of the most mysterious haunted places along the Mississippi River	CAVE IN ROCK The Bloody History & Haunts of Southern Illinois' Most Famous River Site!
GHOSTS OF QUINCY Ghosts and legends along the Mississippi River	SPOON RIVER PHANTOM A Mystery Riverboat Haunts an Illinois River!
VILLA KATHRINE The Legendary Quincy Landmark and its Four-Legged Ghost!	HAUNTSTOWN TREASURE Did the Ghost of an Old Miser Haunt his Former Home in Calhoun County?

WEIRD NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Legends, Haunts & Lore of Illinois' Northern Regions

VISHNU SPRINGS
This former town and ghostly hotel are Haunted by Spirits from the Past!

HAUNTED CHICAGO
History, Haunts & Weird Tales of the Windy City!

BARTONVILLE STATE HOSPITAL
The classic tale of the ghost of "A. Bookbinder" and the hauntings that have followed at the old state mental hospital

GHOSTS OF GALESBURG
The Old Knox County Jail, Orval's House, mysterious fires and more!

THE "WATSEKA WONDER"
The strange case of Lurancy Vennum and Mary Roff

ILLINOIS STATE UNIVERSITY
Haunted Williams Hall and the ghost of Angie Milner

THUNDERBIRDS OVER ILLINOIS Giant airborne creatures are no strangers to Illinois. Was that sudden darkening of the sky merely a cloud above you... or something else?	VIRGIN MARY SIGHTINGS IN ILLINOIS Does the Holy Mother really visit Illinois?	THE WOODSTOCK OPERA HOUSE The legend of Elvira	THE STICKNEY MANSION Ghosts and legends behind the "house with no square corners"
THE MACOMB POLTERGEIST The story behind the events on the Willey's Farm in 1948	WHITE CEMETERY Strange tales along Cuba Road