Halloween Haunts of New York City

Most Haunted Places of New York 

• Algonquin Hotel 59 W 44th St.
  
    Many guests at the Algonquin Hotel have claimed to spot members of The Round Table, a group of writers that met at the Algonquin for lunch daily after World War I. Members of The Round Table (who called themselves the Vicious Circle) include Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, Franklin Pierce, Robert Sherwood, Harpo Marx, Alexander Woollcott, Herold Ross, George S. Kaufman, Heywood Broun, Marc Connelly and Edna Ferber.
  
  
  
  
• Bridge Cafe 279 Water St.
  
    The building dates back to 1794, but the Bridge Cafe's life as a drinking establishment first began in 1847 when it was opened as a porter house, making it New York City's oldest bar.
  Just under the Brooklyn Bridge, rumors of ghosts of the pirates who frequented the bar continue.
  
  
  
  
• Belasco Theatre 111 West 44th Street
  
    Numerous accounts of haunting at one of New York City's oldest theaters including sightings of the building's builder and namesake, David Belasco, who lived in an apartment at the top of the theater before his death in 1931. His ghost is said to interact with actors, offering kudos and handshakes, and many have reported hearing footsteps and the disconnected elevator running. Sightings of the Blue Lady, possibly Belasco's companion, have been reported numerous times.
  
  
  
  
• Beth Israel Hospital First Ave. at 16th St.
  
    Many people have reported hearing unexplained footsteps, noises, and voices throughout the hospital.
  
  
  
  
• Brittany Hotel 55 East 10th Street
  
    Now an NYU dorm, mysterious music, lights and footsteps have been reported. People have also claimed to feel like someone is "watching them".
  
  
  
  
• Chumley's 86 Bedford St.
  
    This West Village speakeasy claims to be visited by former barmistress and owner, Henrietta Chumley, who comes to drink a Manhattan. The former owner also makes her presence known by messing with the restaurant's jukebox.
  
  
  
  
• The Dakota Central Park West at 72nd St.
  
    In the sixties, the ghost of a young boy/young man was seen by a couple of construction workers at The Dakota. A girl dressed in turn-of-the-century clothing was seen by painters working at the building several years later. John Lennon, who was murdered outside the Dakota in 1980, is also rumored to haunt the area around the undertakers gate. To add to the eerieness, the building was also the setting for Roman Polanski's Rosemary's Baby.
  
• Ear Inn 326 Spring St.
  
    Haunted by Mickey, who was killed when he was hit by a car in front of the Inn, a sailor who lived in the Ear Inn when it was a boarding house.
  
  
  
  
• Empire State Building 350 Fifth Avenue
  
    Various sightings have been reported of suicide victims who jumped from the Empire State Building's observatory.
  
  
  
  
• Hotel Des Artistes 1 West 67th St.
  
    Rumors of a ghost that touches people have been circulating for years.
  
  
  
  
• Landmark Tavern 626 11th Ave (46th St)
  
    Opening in 1868, waiters at the Landmark Tavern believe the restaurant is haunted by an Irish girl and a Confederate soldier.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• "The House of Death" 14 West 10th Street (near Fifth Avenue)
  
    This classic brownstone was constructed in the 19th century and is believed to be haunted by the 22 people who have died in the house, as well as Mark Twain. Twain, who lived there from 1900-1901, is rumored to haunt the stairwell of the house. In addition, attorney Joel Steinberg lived in the house in 1987 when he was accused and later convicted of beating his 6-year-old adopted daughter Jessica Steinberg to death.
  
  
  
  
• Manhattan Bistro 129 Spring Street
  
    This SoHo building is haunted by a young woman, Elma Sands, who was murdered in December 1799 and dropped in a well which is now in the restaurant's basement. Sands alleged murderer, Levi Weeks, was never convicted despite strong evidence. Evidence of the ghost's presence include ashtrays knocked off tables, plates being broken on the floor, and bottles flying off shelves.
  
  
  
  
• Morris-Jumel Mansion 65 Jumel Terrace (between West 160th and 162nd Streets)
  
    Built in 1765 as a summer home for British Colonel Roger Morris and his wife, the Morris-Jumel Mansion is the oldest remaining house in Manhattan. Several ghosts are reputed to haunt the mansion: Eliza Jumel, former mistress of the mansion, has been seen wandering the house in a purple dress, rapping on walls and windows; the ghost of a young servant girl who committed suicide by jumping out a window has been seen in the mansion's servants quarters; and a soldier from the American Revolution, who's picture hangs on a wall in the mansion, has also been seen.
  
  
  
  
• New Amsterdam Theatre 214 West 42nd Street
  
    The ghost of Olive Thomas, a Ziegfeld Follies chorus girl who killed herself by overdosing on her alcoholic, womanizing husband's syphilis medication, has been spotted on stage and in one of the dressing rooms of the theater. She wears her green beaded Follies dress, her beaded headpiece and her sash and holds a blue glass bottle that is supposed to have contained the pills that killed her. Typically, she only appears after audiences have left, though she's rumored to appear when her contemporaries are in the theater.
  
  
  
  
• Old Merchant's House 29 East 4th Street
  
    Gertrude Tredwell, the daughter of wealthy merchant Seabury Treadwell, is believed to haunt the home built by her father in 1832 (it is now a museum). She never married and died in an upstairs bedroom in the house in 1933, shortly after the birth of an unwanted baby of which her family strongly disapproved. Gertrude's ghost is most often spotted in the kitchen, though she's also been seen in her bedroom, appearing as an elegant, petite woman dressed in mid-19th century style.
  
  
  
  
• Old St. Patrick's Cathedral 263 Mulberry
  
    The cemetery of city's oldest Catholic Church is haunted by Pierre Toussaint, a slave who became a hairdresser in the early 19th century. The ghost of Bishop Dubois, who is buried below the entrance to the cathedral, has been seen frequently in the church.
  
  
  
  
• One If By Land, Two If By Sea Restaurant 17 Barrow Street
  
    The ghost of Aaron Burr, vice president of the United States who is famous for killing Alexander Hamilton in a duel, haunts this restaurant located in what was once his carriage house. Many visitors and restaurant employees have observed flying dishes and chairs being pulled out from under patrons. Burr's daughter, Theodosia Burr Alston, who vanished off the coast of North Carolina en route to visit her father in New York, is also rumored to haunt the carriage house. Female patrons at the bar are rumored to have had their earrings removed by Theodosia.
  
  
  
  
• The Palace Theatre 1564 Broadway
  
    Vaudeville acts dreamed of a chance to "play the Palace" and over 100 ghosts are supposed to haunt the Palace Theatre, including a while gowned cellist playing in the pit, a young girl looking down from the balcony, and Judy Garland, who is sensed near the rear orchestra door built for her. The one ghost you don't want to run into at the Palace is that of the acrobat who died when he broke his neck there -- legend claims that those who see him will soon die.
  
  
  
  
• Radio City Music Hall 1260 6th Avenue
  
    On opening nights, Radio City Music Hall's builder, S.L. "Roxy" Rothafel, accompanied by a glamorous female companion, have been seen.
  
  
  
  
• St. Marks-in-the-Bowery Church 131 E. 10th St.
  
    The ghost of Peter Stuyvesant, the 17th-century Dutch Governor, is rumored to roam around the chapel. Stuyvesant was buried in a vault under the chapel in 1678.
  
  
  
  
• St. Paul's Chapel Burial Ground Broadway and Fulton Street
  
    The burial ground of this Episcopal Church is haunted by the headless ghost of English actor George Frederick Cooke. Cooke died in September 1811 and was buried headless after donating his head to science to pay for doctor's bills, and his skull was used in numerous productions of Hamlet.
  
  
  
  
• Trinity Church Broadway and Wall Street
  
    There's a tombstone in the graveyard that many people claim to have heard laughter when they pass.
  
  
  
  
• Washington Square Park West 4th Street and MacDougal
  
    Used as a hanging ground during the American Revolution, Washington Square Park was also a burial ground and 15,000 bodies remained buried there today.
  
  
  
  
• Ye Waverly Inn 16 Bank St.
  
    Employees claim to have seen ghostly figures and blame the ghosts for starting fires.
  
  
  
  
• Wollman Rink in Central Park
  
    Apparitions of two young girls skating figure 8s have been reported.
  
  
  
  
• White Horse Tavern
  
  567 Hudson Street at West 11th Street
  
    Dylan Thomas died in New York City after consuming 18 shots of whiskey at the White Horse Tavern in November 1953. His ghost is believed to appear from time to time and rotate his favorite corner table, as Thomas did when he patronized the bar.
  
  
  
  
• 21 Club
  
  21 West 52nd Street
  
    Once a glamorous speakeasy, today '21' is one of the most celebrated restaurants in New York City. In addition to its two restaurants, the Bar Room and 'Upstairs', this four-story townhouse features quite a few spirited guests from the Prohibition Era.