Why Alton is America's Most Haunted Small Town

It was a dark and stormy night ... well, maybe not so stormy but definitely dark ... as a group of fellow ghost hunting travelers walked through the Mississippi River town of Alton, IL seeking spirits, specters and spooks.

That isn't an unusual sight in downtown Alton. The city is considered "One of the Most Haunted Small Towns in America." So take your authentic ghost hunting adventure to the next level. Get a glimpse of the shades, shadows and souls that reportedly walk the historic streets and haunted the ancestral buildings of the region. Experience Haunted Alton for yourself!

Experience Haunted Season in Alton, Illinois

A sordid past of murder, war, death and destruction has led to Alton’s haunted present. Through the years, many travelers have investigated and inquired about the unexplained happenings and psychic phenomena found throughout Alton. Several locations that are noted to be extremely haunted, including the infamous McPike Mansion, The First Unitarian Church, and Milton School, have been featured on television shows on the Travel Channel and Syfy Channel. Mark Twain once referred to Alton, IL as a "dismal little river town," but little did he know what more Alton was.

This small river town has now been named one of the most haunted small towns in America. Could this be because of the history of death, disease, violence, the Civil War, the Underground Railroad? Or has Alton simply been deemed one of the most haunted towns because of the ghosts and hauntings that occur regularly?

That's for you to decide on one of our Haunted Tours.

Most Haunted House

McPike Mansion

Alton's Most Haunted House...Built in 1869, the notorious McPike Mansion has been featured on several television shows and investigated by numerous paranormal investigators who have found the haunting of the McPike Mansion to be authentic.

McPike Mansion

The original owner of the Mansion was Henry Guest McPike. The McPike family owned 15 acres of land, which they called Mount Lookout Park. The house has not been occupied since the 1950s.

Before weather and vandals brought extensive damage to the structure, it was a regal addition to the Illinois town of Alton. McPike Mansion today is owned by Sharyn and George Luedke who have been trying to nurture this great house back to its regal state. When they purchased the house, they had no idea that it was haunted. Now, people see orbs, balls of light, even figures of people in the background of pictures taken at the mansion.

Some claim the haunts date back to the property before the mansion was even built with detections of Native American ghosts and a residue from a possible Underground Railroad stop. Other mysterious stories include servants of the building, a cook in the kitchen and the strange death of a woman in the bathtub.

Some even believe that Eleanor and Henry McPike still roam the corridors of their former home.

The Cellar has been a focal point of many energies felt in the mansion. This Grand Ole House is thought to still house many of the spirits that once lived here.

First Unitarian Church

The First Unitarian Church was built in 1830 and was first called St. Matthew's Catholic Church. 20 years later, the church burned to the ground. The Unitarian Society purchased the land and rebuilt a church for themselves. Another fire occurred in 1901, burning the church down to its foundation yet again. The church that stands now was rebuilt in 1905.

First Unitarian Church -- could it be haunted?

Reverand Phillip Mercer became a well-respected preacher at the Unitarian Church at the young age of 18. Moving here from England, he had a way of speaking in his sermons that made people from all over come to hear him preach.

One night in November of 1934, he found himself ill. Shaking and unable to speak properly, he went to visit a friend, James McKinney. After a few days of not seeing Mercer, McKinney went to the church to check on him. Mercer was found hanging in the doorway of the minister's study.

Since the reverends death, there have been reports of voices and shadowy figures coming from the basement of the church. The piano seems to play itself sometimes and doors open and close with no explanation.

Milton School

The Milton School House was built in 1904 and was up and running successfully until it's official close in 1986. This school served as the main school in Alton until its close. After the school shut down, it became a factory for Intaglio Design. Since then, other businesses that have taken up residence in this building.

The story of its haunting came about when the story of a little girl, Mary, started circulating the area. One day after school, Mary was finishing up a seasonal bulletin in her classroom while everyone else in the building had left for the day. As the sun started to go down she realized that she ought to get home before her mother worried about her. As she was skipping down the stairs towards the gymnasium doors, she heard a noise behind her.

The next morning, Mary was found in the girl's locker room battered with blood all over her and her torn up clothes.

When Intaglio Design took over the building years ago, they noticed that there were weird happenings in the building. They heard footsteps, things started missing and then reappearing from the office, and one man even believes he saw the figure of a young girl. Was it Mary?

Find out for yourself on a tour of Alton's most haunted school.

a group of people sit together during a haunted ghost tour in Alton Illinois

Is that a ghost caught on film? Find out when you visit Great Rivers & Routes!

Haunted Tour Providers

In order to truly experience Haunted Alton, we would invite you to contact our various haunted tour providers to take you in the trenches with stories and hunts for Alton's hauntings.

Alton Haunted Odyssey

Alton's Haunted Odyssey began in 1992 when Marlene Lewis and Antoinette created the area's first haunted tour. They now offer three different trolley tours that begin at My Just Desserts and takes you through the most haunted parts of Alton including the McPike Mansion, the Alton City Cemetery, Jacoby Arts Center and more. For more info or reservations, go to AltonHauntedTours.com or call (618) 462-3861.

Learn More

Alton Hauntings

Based on the book Haunted Alton by Troy Taylor, Alton Hauntings Tours offers an entertaining and spine-tingling trip into the unknown. Visitors will see sites that have become nationally known, like the old Alton penitentiary, First Unitarian Church, Enos Sanitarium and others. Nowhere else can you learn as much about the real, haunted history of Alton. Private tours are also available for groups of 20 or more. Reservations must be made in advance for all tours. For more info or reservations, go to AltonHauntings.com.

Learn More