Creepiest Haunted Places in Chicago You Can Actually Visit
What to Do in Chicago that's Unusual?
In such a historic city, old folklore and mysteries have long filled the streets, luring adventurers to explore the creepiest haunted places in Chicago. From sinister houses to windswept graveyards, stories of spirits and ghosts have left their mark in more places than you’d expect.
Visit the eerily silent cemeteries, where tales of restless phantoms take you through the overgrown tombstones and whisper of uncanny tales. Explore spooky museums where legends of a devil child cloaks the building in a fog of puzzles. Whether you believe in ghosts or just enjoy the chill of a good story, step closer to these most haunted corners in Chicago and witness a darker side to the city’s past.
1. S.S. Eastland Memorial
Haunting memories of a tragic disaster from a century ago
Good for: History, Photo
The S.S. Eastland Memorial honors the victims of one of Chicago’s deadliest maritime disasters. In 1915, the overloaded passenger steamer S.S. Eastland capsized in the Chicago River, leading to a grave tragedy where 844 people lost their lives.
The memorial stands by the river’s edge, only a few feet from the exact spot where the incident happened, and the haunting reality of how many people drowned in an urban harbor merely a few feet from shore gives the site an eerie heaviness. According to locals, it’s not uncommon to feel cold drafts or chills when they pass by the memorial plaque, and some have shared stories of seeing figures in early 20th-century clothing walking near the dock before vanishing.
Location: Chicago Riverwalk, Chicago, IL 60601, USA
S.S. Eastland Memorial
2. 875 North Michigan Avenue
Iconic skyscraper with a creepy reputation that goes beyond its height
Good for: Families, Photo
875 North Michigan Avenue in the Magnificent Mile district of Chicago is one of the tallest skyscrapers in the USA. Formerly known as the John Hancock Center, it’s now home to a mix of offices, luxury condominiums, restaurants, and attractions.
Perhaps thanks to its sheer scale and height, the building has earned quite a reputation for a strange, creepy vibe. Many unexplained deaths have occurred here, including multiple suicides from its upper floors and the observation deck, making it one of the most haunted places in the city. Many believe it to be cursed, and even local residents sometimes report hearing pained moans, feeling a sudden drop in temperature, or seeing fleeting shadows in the dark.
Location: 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
Open: Monday–Friday from 8 am to 5 pm (closed on Saturdays and Sundays)
875 North Michigan Avenue
3. Battle of Fort Dearborn Park
Historic battleground where deadly encounters turned into ghostly stories
Good for: Families, Budget
Battle of Fort Dearborn Park in Chicago is a small historic site commemorating a violent clash during the War of 1812. A team of U.S. troops and civilians under evacuation were ambushed by the British, and the confrontation ended with 54 dead.
Over 200 years later, the park still carries an odd stillness that gives off a quiet, unnerving energy. It’s said that in the 1980s, street repair work at the site uncovered human remains dating to this violent episode. Shortly thereafter, locals started reporting sightings of semi-transparent apparitions dressed in early 19th-century attire, such as moccasins, leather, and coonskin hats. The ghost images often appeared to scream silently, and some also kept running in disarray.
Location: 1801 S Calumet Ave, Chicago, IL 60616, USA
Open: Daily from 6 am to 11 pm
Battle of Fort Dearborn Park
4. Graceland Cemetery
A hub of local stories and eerie myths
Good for: History, Unusual
Graceland Cemetery is one of Chicago’s most storied cemeteries, filled with legends and ghost stories that float amongst its tombstones. The most famous version is related to the statue of Inez Clarke, a young girl who died in the 1880s. Although the life-sized sculpture is enclosed in glass, security guards and visitors have witnessed it disappear mysteriously during storms, only to return later after the weather has calmed.
Another chilling story surrounds a black statue marking the tomb of Dexter Graves. Locals call it “the Statue of Death,” allegedly because of the feelings of dread that it makes you feel while standing before it. According to some people, the statue might even grant visitors visions of their own demise.
Location: 4001 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60613, USA
Open: Monday–Friday from 8 am to 6 pm, Saturday–Sunday from 9 am to 4 pm
Graceland Cemetery
5. Jane Addams Hull-House Museum
The legend of a devil baby and a portal to another world
Good for: History, Unusual
The Jane Addams Hull-House Museum preserves the legacy of Jane Addams, a social reformer and activist. Housed in a structure that dates back to 1856, the museum has long held a spooky side to its reputation.
One of the most widespread legends is the Devil Baby, a monstrous child with scaly skin, cloven hooves, pointed ears, and glowing eyes. Jane Addams was said to have saved the baby when it was deserted by its parents, and she had kept it hidden inside Hull-House ever since. Another story pertains to the remnant of an old fountain in the courtyard, said to be a portal to hell. Locals have witnessed the “Fountain Girls,” spectral children playing and darting evanescently through the greenery.
Location: 800 S Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
Open: Tuesday–Friday from 10 am to 4.50 pm, Saturday from 10 am to 3 pm (closed on Sundays and Mondays)
Phone: +1 312-413-5353
Jane Addams Hull-House Museum
6. Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery
A secluded graveyard with disturbing tales and even photos to prove them
Good for: Families, Budget
Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery is a small burial ground about 25 miles (40 km) southwest of downtown Chicago. Nestled within the secluded Rubio Woods Forest Preserve, this quiet site is shrouded in mysteries and reputed to be one of the most haunted locations in the Midwest.
Visitors have frequently witnessed a ghost wearing a flowing white dress, sometimes carrying a baby or placing flowers on graves. In 1991, an infrared photo captured such an image of a translucent figure seated on a headstone. A white farmhouse is also said to be seen near the cemetery’s edge, visible one moment and gone the next, along with phantom cars gliding silently along the old Midlothian Turnpike and ghostly horses vanishing into the woods.
Location: 5900 W Midlothian Turnpike, Midlothian, IL 60445, USA
Open: Daily from 6 am to 8 pm
Phone: +1 708-429-4210
Bachelor's Grove Cemetery
7. Chicago Water Tower
Where gloomy legends linger from the Great Chicago Fire
Good for: History, Budget
The Chicago Water Tower, now home to the City Gallery in the Historic Water Tower, is one of the most iconic landmarks in Chicago thanks to its castle-like architecture. As one of the few buildings to have survived the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, it’s cloaked in unnerving stories dating back to the tragic event.
Based on the legends, a watchman had stayed behind during the fire to operate the pumps. Trapped at the top of the tower when the flames closed in, he took his own life to escape being burned alive. Ever since then, people have spotted a shadowy figure through the tower’s upper windows, standing or pacing, even when the building is locked and empty.
Location: 806 Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
Chicago Water Tower
8. Holy Name Cathedral
Echoes of gunshots that took down Al Capone’s bitter rival
Good for: History, Photo
Holy Name Cathedral is famously tied to Chicago’s gangster era, specifically the 1926 hit that took down Al Capone’s most bitter rival, Hymie Weiss. A hail of machine-gun fire caught Weiss right outside the cathedral, leaving pockmarks in the stone wall that can still be seen today.
Those bullet holes are alleged to possess supernatural qualities. Visitors and churchgoers claim that they would see a fleeting figure dressed in a fedora and long coat lingering near the front steps, or hear the echo of gunshots when no one else is around. Especially during morning hours, around the same time when Weiss was ambushed, a cold draft would sweep over the church and make passersby shudder, even on warm summer days.
Location: 735 N State St, Chicago, IL 60654, USA
Open: Monday–Saturday from 9 am to 4 pm, Sunday from 9 am to 2 pm
Phone: +1 312-787-8040
Holy Name Cathedral
9. Site of St. Valentine’s Day Massacre
A gangster history so violent that even the air remembers
Good for: History, Photo
St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is a violent event that occurred on the morning of February 14, 1929. Seven gang members were lined up against the wall of a garage and murdered by 4 men, who were widely believed to be working under the orders of Al Capone.
The garage was demolished in 1967, but the site still carries a disturbing energy to this day. The area is unnervingly quiet despite the busy neighborhood around it, and people have claimed to hear gunshots ringing in the early morning, sometimes along with moans and the sound of bodies falling to the ground. Even the odor of gunpowder seemed to remain, and shadowy figures were seen where the garage wall used to stand.
Location: 2122 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60614, USA
Site of St. Valentine's Day Massacre
10. Iroquois Theater
Lingering sounds and images of a deadly fire that never cease
Good for: History, Unusual
The story of the Iroquois Theater is one of the most tragic in Chicago’s history. On December 30, 1903, a fire started during a sold-out musical matinee where over 1,700 people were present. Six-hundred and two died, making it the deadliest single-building fire in U.S. history.
The unsettling disaster has left a permanent mark on the building, now functioning as part of the Oriental Theatre complex. Locals have long whispered of apparitions of well-dressed Edwardian women and children, often seen in the balcony area or running toward where the exits used to be. Occasionally, the smell of smoke drifts inside the building despite the clear air, accompanied by a faint crackling that sounds like paper or fabric burning.
Location: 24 W Randolph St, Chicago, IL 60601, USA
Iroquois Theater
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