With a history of bandits, gangsters, Civil War battles, earthquakes, and one of America’s most infamous prisons, there are enough tales of grisly goings-on in Missouri to keep ghost hunters very busy. Whether you just want a quick overview or a more in-depth paranormal experience, the Show Me State offers a wide range of tours -- from a fun-filled couple of hours to a hair-raising all-nighter.
Walking Dead
- By day, the city of St Charles can be explored on a traditional walking tour, but try an evening ghost walk for a more otherworldly experience. Your steps could take you to the reputedly haunted Tricot House or the so-called Lost Graveyard, where bodies were abandoned when the headstones were moved. St Charles Ghost Tours makes stops at these spots on its Friday and Saturday night walks. Take a nighttime stroll through Branson to learn about the supposedly haunted Owens Theater and the ghost of a bank robber shot dead at the train depot. Branson Ghosts and Legends runs 90-minute tours of these sites and more. According to some ghost hunters, a Civil War battle site, past earthquakes and floods make New Madrid one of the most haunted small towns in America. Find out for yourself on a walking tour with New Madrid Ghost Tours, which braves the dark streets on walks in October.
Buildings that Go Bump in the Night
- Missouri State Penitentiary, in Jefferson City, said goodbye to its last prisoner in 2004, but the site now welcomes visitors hoping to encounter the spirit of a former inmate. Take a spooky two-hour guided tour, or a three-hour ghost hunt class to visit cells, death row and the gas chamber as experts in the paranormal share their knowledge along the way. In Springfield, Pythian Castle was built in 1913 as an orphanage, and has also been used by the US military. Fans of spooks and ghouls can check out the castle’s haunted status on one of its regular daytime or nighttime ghost tours. Guided walks last up to 90 minutes and take in dungeons, a ballroom and theater.
Ride and Hide
- If your legs are too weak with fright, try taking a bus tour of the spooky sights of Missouri. Hannibal’s darker side is explored on a guided 90-minute coach tour run by Haunted Hannibal Ghost Tours. Enjoy tales of murder and mayhem during Mark Twain’s early years, and take in the supposedly haunted houses of Millionaires’ Row before looking for signs of paranormal activity among the graves of Old Baptist Cemetery. Hop aboard the Ghoul Bus in Kansas City and you’ll experience the spookiest sights the city has to offer. Stops include the Hotel Savoy, rumored to be haunted by the ghost of a guest who died but never checked out, and St. Mary’s Church, where the spirit of Father Henry David Jardine is said to prowl. The Ghosts and Gangsters Tour runs on Friday and Saturday evenings.
Fright Night
- For hardened ghost enthusiasts, a tour might not be enough. Spend the whole night on the hunt for spirits with experts from the Paranormal Task Force at the Tri-County Truck Stop in Villa Ridge. You might hear the disembodied voices and apparitions that have been reported at the former restaurant. In Jefferson County, check in at the Morse Mill Hotel as a guest of experts from American Hauntings. Together you’ll try to establish why the building, which has been a speakeasy, Civil War hospital and a brothel, has such a chilling reputation. But if one night isn’t enough, make it a weekend-long event in St. Joseph, where Jesse James once lived. The two-day, one-night ghost extravaganza will take in Jesse James’ farm, the Pony Express Museum and a nighttime ghost hunt at the Glore Psychiatric Hospital Museum.
