Local Haunts: 5 Haunted Spots In Illinois

It's that time of year again — time for hayrack rides, pumpkin patches, corn mazes and, of course, haunted houses. With Halloween just days away, there are plenty of local haunts to be had in Illinois. In fact, Chicagoland is home to some of the most notorious sites for hauntings in the state.

Here are 5 places to stop if you're looking for a Halloween haunting.

1. Congress Plaza Hotel in Chicago: Chicago has no shortage of ghost stories. Legend has it that victims of the Eastland disaster, which claimed 844 lives in 1915, took up residence at Oprah Winfrey's now-demolished Harpo Studios, and the alley behind the present-day Oriental Theater (originally the site of the Iroquois Theater, destroyed in a 1903 fire that killed more than 600) is also said to be haunted. But Travel + Leisure recently named the Congress as Chicago's most haunted place, noting that gangster Al Capone headquartered his shady dealings there, and it's also said to be haunted by victims of infamous "Devil in the White City" serial killer H.H. Holmes. The hotel also hosts a large Halloween ball every year.

2. Resurrection Cemetery in Justice: Late Chicago ghosthunter Richard Crowe documented dozens of sightings of hitchhiking ghost Resurrection Mary, most often seen by men driving along Archer Avenue near the Willowbrook Ballroom (which, sadly, burned down last year). According to the story, Mary would hitch a ride, and then ask to be let out of the car near the cemetery — where she would simply vanish. A bar across the street from the cemetery, Chet's Melody Lounge, has purportedly seen its fair share of shaken-up drivers who claimed to encounter the legendary ghost, and it's a favorite spot for those hoping to catch a glimpse of her.

3. Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet: Built as a vaudeville theater in 1926, the Rialto is rumored to be the site of multiple ghostly hauntings, including a long-dead actress, a young boy and a couple who allegedly jumped to their deaths from the theater's balcony. It's long been an attraction for local paranormal investigators, and the cast of the now-defunct Syfy channel show "Ghost Hunters" visited the site more than once and called it a "holy grail" for paranormal investigating. But the Rialto is far from the only haunt in Joliet, home to the Scutt mansion — which as seen several deaths over the years — as well as the Frank Shaver Allen House, Patrick C. Haley Mansion and more.

Haunted Joliet: Website Profile's the City's Spookiest Sites

4. Bachelor's Grove Cemetery in Midlothian: This suburban Cook County graveyard has a legendary reputation as the most haunted cemetery in the United States. The site has been a cemetery since 1840 but is home to just 82 plots — many of which were left unused. It's famous as the rumored site of the "White Lady" or "Madonna of Bachelor's Grove," who, according to legend, was buried next to her child and whose apparition can sometimes be seen holding a baby in her arms. While it's OK to visit the cemetery during the day, police are always on the lookout for nighttime trespassers unless you're part of an authorized ghost tour.

5. Manteno State Mental Hospital in Manteno: The hospital, which opened in 1930, was said to be one of the most cutting-edge mental health facilities of its time — until a typhoid outbreak in 1939 killed 47 patients. In the years that followed, the hospital, designed for 3,600 patients, became overcrowded and understaffed. By 1954, there were more than 8,000 patients. Rumors of deaths due to malpractice continue to plague the hospital, even after it closed in 1985 and was converted into a veterans home. While some original buildings have been demolished, the veterans home still operates on a portion of the grounds, which are also home to a golf course and a residential treatment center for youths.

Originally published in 2017