Spooky States
Why Texas claims the creepy crown as the most haunted state in America
It's the season for all things spooky, especially if you live in Texas. Why? Because we're supposedly the most haunted state in the entire country, at least according to SlotSource.com.
Why an online gambling review site is putting together this study is a mystery, but it does supply data to back up its claim. By analyzing the number of ghost sightings per state from GhostsOfAmerica.com, the site determined that 6,845 ghostly sightings have been experienced in the Lone Star State since 2005.
Second is California, at 6,444 creepy experiences, and third is Ohio at 2,555.
The least haunted state? Delaware, which ranks just ahead of U.S. territory Puerto Rico.
It makes sense that Texas and California top the list, having the two highest populations in the country and, therefore, more people to experience a supernatural encounter.
But Texas is also a supremely haunted state, with plenty of bloody history in its books.
In Galveston, some who check into Hotel Galvez appear to never check out. "The Playground of the Southwest" has hosted a cadre of the rich and famous since its opening in 1911, but there have been so many haunted happenings that the hotel even began promoting the tales. Guests can take a 25-minute audio tour and a 25-minute ghost tour through the hotel's app, and explore such sites as room 501, where a seaman's fiancee took her own life when she received the news her love's ship had sunk.
Another haunted hotel is the Rice Hotel, where John F. Kennedy spent his last night before traveling to Dallas-Fort Worth and getting assassinated. Now converted into private lofts, the historic building is said to feature cold spots, rattling doors and beds, orbs of light, and "a presence," all centered around where JFK's room was located.
Also on track to be renovated is the former Spaghetti Warehouse building, a downtown landmark that began life as a pharmaceuticals warehouse. Legend has it that in the early 1900s, a pharmacist fell to his death in an elevator shaft, leaving behind a grieving wife who died soon after. The couple is said to now rearrange furniture, tap guests on the shoulder or pull their hair, and create cold, clammy breezes.
Last year, Condé Nast Traveler magazine named San Antonio's San Fernando Cathedral one of the 30 most haunted places in the U.S. Visitors have reporting seeing everything from ghostly orbs to shadowy figures of soldiers and monks and even a white stallion galloping in front of the church.
There are also plenty of spooky road trips within a few hours of Houston (though not all attractions may be open due to COVID). Take in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre house, a haunted roadside tavern, and a jail that's sat untouched since 1983.
