Spectre-cular photos! Ghostly figures ‘caught on camera’ lurking in windows and doorways of a 19th-century mansion in Alton… America’s ‘most haunted small town’
- Alton, in Southwest Illinois, has a long roll-call of ghostly residents
- The spooky snaps we present here were taken at the town’s McPike Mansion
- READ MORE: Why these are the places you MUST visit in 2024
These eerie photographs are said to have captured ghostly goings on in the most haunted small town in America.
Alton, in Southwest Illinois, has a long roll-call of ghostly residents, from phantom nuns to a bank robber who haunts the local Irish pub and hotel guests… who can never leave.
The spooky snaps we present here were taken at McPike Mansion, one of the town’s most popular attractions.
It’s owned by Sharyn Luedke and her husband, George. They bought it as a bed and breakfast but then turned it into ‘a historical and paranormal destination’.
One picture shows what appears to be a dark figure standing in the open doorway. Mrs Luedke told MailOnline Travel that it was taken in 1995 with a 35mm camera by a previous owner called Rick Dixon.
This image shows what appears to be a dark figure standing in the open doorway of McPike Mansion in Alton, Southwest Illinois – known as the most haunted small town in America. Owner Sharyn Luedke believes it’s the original owner of the 19th-century mansion, Henry Guest McPike
LEFT: ‘Energy’ flying through the air. RIGHT: This image, according to Mrs Luedke, shows Henry Guest McPike ‘looking out the window’
She believes the figure in the doorway is the original owner of the 19th-century mansion, Henry Guest McPike, adding: ‘Rick and his wife Sugie were the last people to live in the house.’
Another image, said Mrs Luedke, shows Mr McPike looking out of a window, while a third window image shows a ‘little African boy we believe is called Zach, perhaps a child of domestic help’.
A fourth picture, meanwhile, taken in the mansion grounds, shows ‘energy flying through the air’.
This photo shows a ‘little African boy we believe is called Zach, perhaps a child of domestic help’, said Mrs Luedke
McPike Mansion (above) is a popular historical and paranormal destination
Mrs Luedke said: ‘We absolutely had no idea the mansion was haunted when we purchased it. One of my first experiences was when I saw a man in the window seven weeks after we bought the house. He had a shirt and tie on and I had not seen any pictures of anyone at that point. I later saw a picture of the family that lived there and I identified one as the man I had seen in the window.
‘I have seen many spirits in the cellar including Henry McPike as a dark shadow.
‘One time I was in the cellar with some young adults and family and heard loud banging on the door, and inside I thought “I’m out of here!” But I did my best not to show that I was afraid to the guests.
‘The spirits here like people and like to communicate with people that visit the mansion.
‘One time I took a friend to the house and she asked if I felt the floor moving. I did not, but then I heard the spirits shouting, “How could you bring her here!” She must have reminded the spirit of someone from their past. My friend then later heard them say to her, “Don’t covet my house.”
Alton has a long roll-call of ghostly residents. As well as the McPike hauntings there is a bank robber who haunts the local Irish pub and hotel guests… who can never leave
‘My husband was outside in front of the house and saw two women running at him so he stood out of the way and they vanished inside the house. He went to look for them inside but did not find them.
‘When I asked them how they were dressed, he said like native Americans. This makes sense because there were tribes that inhabited the area.’
Mrs Luedke added: ‘Our visitors on our tours often capture images of people in the windows of the home that they will share on our Facebook page.’
For more information on Alton and its spooky attractions visit www.riversandroutes.com/things-to-do/haunted.
Source: Read Full Article