13 Most Haunted Places in Georgia
Georgia has plenty of eerie places that are said to be haunted. Discover the spine-tingling stories of the most haunted places in Georgia.
For those brave enough to explore, Georgia is filled with homes, hotels, and parks that have been long-rumored to be haunted.
From stunning mansions with dark histories to theaters with supernatural activity, here are the 13 most haunted places in Georgia you should add to your must-see list this spooky season.
Spooky Haunted Spots in Georgia
Grab your flashlight and your EMF meter and get ready to go on a ghost hunt at these creepy haunted spots in Georgia!
1. Windsor Hotel
Americus, Georgia
Windsor Hotel was built in 1892, a red-brick Victorian hotel that was the height of luxury. Now, the hotel is one of the most haunted place in Georgia.
The Windsor Hotel has had numerous incidents of people taking their own lives in the guest rooms. The hotel also had a notoriously faulty elevator in its early years, with multiple accidents involving people falling down elevator shafts (the victims of these falls survived, but the elevator continued to have issues for years).
The most popular local legend says that one day in the early 1900s, a housekeeper named Emily was in the third floor hallway with her young daughter Emma. Emily was arguing with her lover, a local politician, when the lover angrily pushed Emily and Emma into, you guessed it, an empty elevator shaft. The mother and daughter fell to their deaths.
Guests and hotel employees reporter feeling the presence of a little girl, hearing a child’s footsteps on the third floor, and seeing the reflection of a woman in a third floor mirror.
The Windsor Hotel embraces their haunted reputation by offering ghost tours.
You can also stay at the haunted Windsor Hotel for a chance to see some ghosts yourself.
2. The Marshall House
Savannah, Georgia
The Marshall House is one of Savannah’s best haunted hotels, and it has a rich history that contributes to all its hauntings.
Established in 1852 under the stewardship of Mary Magdalene Marshall, it holds the distinction of being one of Savannah’s earliest lodgings and claims the title of the city’s oldest operational hotel.
During the Civil War, the hotel operated as a makeshift hospital for Union soldiers, and once more in the midst of multiple Yellow Fever outbreaks. The lower floors, once a surgery chamber, harbor a chilling secret: in the 1990s, workers unearthed human remains believed to be the amputated limbs of soldiers, concealed beneath the floorboards.
The fourth floor is considered the most haunted part of the hotel. Room 414 is apparently the place to be if you want to experience the paranormal.
During your stay at the Marshall House, be prepared to encounter disembodied voices, electronics and lights going haywire, the sound of footsteps, and doors inexplicably opening and closing on their own.
Guests report seeing the ghost of Mary Marshall still enjoying her hotel. In the former room of author Joel Chandler Harris, the faint tap of a typewriter emanates. You may even hear and see the ghosts of children playing in the hallway or Civil War soldiers with missing limbs in the lobby.
There are so many reports of ghostly activity at the Marshall House, it’s easy to see why this is considered the most haunted spot in Savannah!
But even so, guests seem to enjoy their stay at the historic hotel. If you’re brave enough to stay the night at the haunted Marshall House hotel, you can book your stay here.
3. The Pirates’ House
Savannah, Georgia
The Pirates’ House restaurant occupies one of Savannah’s oldest structures, originally established as an inn in 1753.
It swiftly gained notoriety as a gathering spot for pirates and seafarers. The restaurant comprises several interconnected buildings, including the Herb House, which is considered Georgia’s oldest standing building.
Inside the restaurant, you can still see the entrance to a tunnel used to kidnap and “shanghai” men to make them part of a pirate ship’s crew. Before it was sealed off, people reported hearing voices coming from inside the tunnel.
Reports of shadowy apparitions are widespread, spanning from the upstairs gift shop to the banquet rooms. The staff will readily share their ghostly encounters if asked. During my visit, a waitress graciously gave me a quick ghost tour, directing us to the stairs of the Herb House where the figure of a boy typically appears.
4. Old Dekalb County Courthouse
Decatur, Georgia
The Historic DeKalb Courthouse, now the home of the DeKalb History Center and a wedding venue, harbors a few lingering apparitions. This is easily the most haunted spot in Decatur.
Its tumultuous history, marked by several fires and reconstructions, sets a somber backdrop. In its days as a functioning courthouse, it saw some pretty gruesome trials and even public hangings at the bandstand on its grounds.
One staircase in the building is closed off to the public — this staircase was once used to move prisoners from their holding cells to the courtroom. Workers often sense an oppressive presence here, occasionally accompanied by phantom footsteps echoing on the steps.
People also report seeing the spirit of a man who was publicly executed for killing his wife and children. He is most often seen in the bushes outside the courthouse.
5. The Ellis Hotel
Atlanta, Georgia
The Ellis Hotel, formerly the Winecoff Hotel, is the site of the deadliest hotel fire in U.S. history. It’s no surprise that this hotel is still haunted by spirits.
When the hotel opened in 1913, it was one of Atlanta’s tallest buildings at 15 stories and was deemed “fireproof” despite having no fire escapes, fire doors, or sprinklers.
When a fire broke out in the hotel in 1946, the fire department arrived on scene quickly, but their ladders only reached up to 8 stories, and their nets could only withstand jumps from about 6 stories up.
The fire killed 119 of the 280 guests. Many guests died jumping from the building.
Today, guests of the hotel report the smell of smoke and hearing phantom footstep and chilling screams. Even from across the street people report seeing screaming and terrified faces in the windows of the hotel. The fire alarm sometimes goes off at 2:48 a.m., the exact time of the deadly fire.
The Ellis Hotel is all up to code now. In fact, within days of the fire, cities all over the country began enacting more stringent safety ordinances.
You can book a room at the haunted Ellis Hotel here.
6. The Fox Theatre
Atlanta, Georgia
The Fox Theatre is a gorgeous building built in the 1920’s with Islamic and Egyptian design elements. This is the best place in Atlanta to see a live performance, but it also might be the most haunted spot in Atlanta.
Among the theater’s many apparitions is Roosevelt, the theater’s most renowned ghost who was the overseer of the boiler room until his passing in 1945. He doesn’t like to be disturbed in his work and may slam doors and turn off the lights.
There are even more eerie stories of shadowy figures roaming the building, sudden blasts of cold air, and odd technical glitches during shows.
Every year in October, the Fox holds special Ghost Tours so you can explore the haunted history behind the curtains of this iconic Atlanta landmark.
7. Old Lumpkin County Courthouse
Dahlonega, Georgia
The Old Lumpkin County Courthouse, which now houses the Dahlonega Gold Museum, was originally built in 1836, near the start of Dahlonega’s Gold Rush boom.
The courthouse is said to be haunted by a tall figure in a hooded robe. The staff refer to this apparition as Tommy. People have sighted Tommy in the courthouse windows and on the balcony.
He’s also been known to cause knocking within the courthouse walls and even turn on the small model of the stamp press, which makes a startling loud pounding noise, all by himself.
8. Hall House Hotel
Dahlonega, Georgia
Hall House Hotel is one of the oldest buildings on Dahlonega’s historic square. Throughout the years, it has been a private residence, a boarding house, and apartments for UNG students.
It’s also one of the most haunted place in Dahlonega.
The hotel, as well as the Bourbon Street Grille and the art galleries that share space in the building, has plenty of paranormal activity to speak of.
Your best chance of a ghostly encounter may be to stay in Sara’s Room. When the hotel’s owner was renovating the third floor room, he found a walking stick engraved with the name Sara in the walls. He accidentally broke the stick and took it home to repair it.
The guest who stayed in the room following the renovation, who had no knowledge of the stick, told the owner that something had been taken from the room and needed to be returned immediately. The hotel owner returned the stick to the room where it is now displayed in a shadow box.
If you’re brave enough, you can book a room at the haunted Hall House Hotel and stay in Sara’s Room here.
9. Marietta History Center
Marietta, Georgia
The Marietta History Center is housed in the haunted Kennesaw House building.
This building was first constructed as a cotton warehouse in 1845, later remodeled into a hotel, and then served as a hospital and morgue during the Civil War.
When you visit the museum, you may experience unexplained noises, the elevator moving on its own, and see the specter of a woman that was once caught on the security camera.
A lady in a pink dress, identified as the wife of the former hotel owner, also often makes herself known to children visitors of the museum.
10. Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park
Kennesaw, Georgia
As the site of bloody Civil War battles in the summer of 1864, it’s no surprise that Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park is still home to some lingering spirits.
5,350 people died on these battlefields during the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. The deadliest battles took place at Pigeon Hill and at Cheatham Hill, which became known as the “Dead Angle”.
While hiking the park’s numerous trails, you may catch sight of a ghostly specter, hear the sounds of cannons and gunshots, or even smell blood and gunpowder.
Locals with homes that back up to the battlefields have also reported the ghosts of Civil War soldiers stopping by for a visit.
11. Bulloch Hall
Roswell, Georgia
Bulloch Hall in Roswell is a beautiful Greek Revival mansion that was the childhood home of Teddy Roosevelt’s mother.
It also holds some dark history and is reportedly haunted.
Near where the old slave quarters used to stand, people have seen the spirits of enslaved workers wandering the property.
The home’s alarm system has gone off so many times, for no discernable reason, that the Roswell Police are now weary to investigate the calls. They especially don’t like having to search the creepy attic
Spirits of enslaved workers can still be seen wandering the property near where the slave quarters would have been. The home’s alarm system will go off for no discernable reason, and the Roswell Police are now weary to investigate these calls, especially when they have to search the attic.
And if you’re along on a Roswell ghost tour some night, you might even witness the startling sight of the porch rocking chairs moving on their own. Some spirits are seemingly sitting on their porch, watching you.
12. Lake Lanier
Buford, Georgia
In the summer, Lake Lanier is a vacation hotspot with a waterpark and vast lake. Even in the winter, the waterpark becomes a winter wonderland. But under all that is a haunted, tragic past lurking just beneath the water.
When the man-made lake was created in the 1950s, they displaced a black community and flooded the valley. This submerged cemeteries and unmarked graves, leading to local legend that the lake is cursed.
Since 1994, more then 200 people have died on the lake. There are also reports of something strange lurking beneath the water: unnaturally large catfish, sunken houseboats, debris, and even body parts.
One story says a car carrying two women drove off a bridge in 1958. People report seeing the ghost of one of the women, the Lady of the Lake, wandering the bridge at night.
13. Johnston-Felton-Hay House
Macon, Georgia
The Johnston–Felton–Hay House, commonly just called the Hay House, is a stunning 7-story Italian Renaissance Revival home built in 1855.
But inside its beautiful facade are stories of the paranormal.
There are plenty of odd things going on inside this mansion. Employees have heard unexplainable voices, lights flickering, and even specters.
One person even reported seeing the ghost of former owner Mary Ellen Felton looking through a chest of drawers.
A visit to the Hay House is just one of the many great things to do on a fall weekend in Macon, Georgia.
Want More Haunted Travels?
Check out these other spooky locations around the world:
- 13 Most Haunted Places in Atlanta, Georgia
- 10 Creepy Haunted Places in Dahlonega, Georgia
- 13 Chillingly Haunted Spots in San Antonio, Texas
- 7 Spooky and Haunted Spots in Huntsville, Alabama
- 10 of the World’s Most Terrifying Haunted Castles
- A Tour of Southern Ghosts Review
Ready to visit Georgia? Plan your trip with these tips.
- Book your flight to Macon: Find the cheapest flights using Skyscanner, my favorite flight search engine.
- Find Accommodation: You can find top hotels in Georgia using Expedia.
- Start Packing: Make sure you’ve packed everything you need with my packing list resources.
Cheers!
Paige
Have you visited any of these haunted places in Georgia? Let me know in the comments!
