Sweet Home Alabama. To the many other worldly entities, that is exactly what it is. Here are our 10 Most Haunted Places in Alabama :
- Sloss Furnaces – Birmingham – On the National Registry of Historic Places, Sloss Furnaces was a post- Civil War mecca of pig iron for the country. James “Slag” Wormwood was a graveyard shift foreman in the early 1900s. Reportedly Wormwood’s reign of terror led to the death of over 40 workers. Numerous others were permanently maimed or blinded due to his recklessness. In October 1906, Slag met his own death at the furnaces , reportedly, at the hands of his own men. Over 100 official reports show that “Slag” is still trying to run the show today.
- The Drish House – Tuscaloosa – Named the Most Haunted House in Alabama – Built on a 450 acre plantation, John Drish was a bit of a gambler and drunk. The latter led to his death by falling down the stairs in 1867. His distraught wife planned an elaborate funeral and saved the candles from it for her own funeral. When she died , no one could find the candles. She is said to haunt the house in anger, even setting it on fire once post-mortem.
- Old Bryce Hospital – Northport – Built in 1861 as Alabama’s first home for the criminally insane. (pictured above)
- Bill Sketoe’s Hole – Newton- Bill Sketoe is reported to haunt the bridge over the Choctawhatchee River in Newton, Alabama. In 1864, Sketoe was ordered hung off the bridge. Why? That’s up for debate. One story says he had deserted from the Confederate Army to take care of his wife. The other, he was helping Union Soldiers escape. Either way, Sketoe was a big man and they had to dig a hole under his feet to finish the job. That hole remained un-fillable until 1979. People would try, but, each morning, sometimes hours later, the hole would be back. In 1990 the hole was covered with large rock due to flooding.There is a marker, and Sketoe’s grave sits not far away.
- Gaines Ridge Dinner Club – Camden – The Most Haunted Restaurant in Alabama, is home to a family of ghosts often seen and heard around the popular establishment.
- St. James Hotel – Selma – One of the oldest hotels in Alabama built in 1837, St. James Hotel survived the Battle of Selma, The James Gang and more. Jesse and his girlfriend and dog are often seen roaming the halls. The St. James is currently undergoing renovations of new ownership. No word on whether the James Gang are staying.
- Highway 5 – Lynn – Stretch of Highway 5 outside of Lynn, is the spot where a woman was killed by a trucker. She supposedly steps on the sides of trucks and peers in windows looking for her killers. Truckers admit to taking alternate routes.
- Fort Morgan– Gulf Shores – The cries and screams of soldiers who died during the bloody Battle of Mobile Bay are said to still be heard.
- Jack Cole Road – Hayden – Off Highway 7 in Blount County since 1890, 68 deaths have been reported on Jack Cole Road, 60 of which were due to an outbreak of Cholera in 1900. The other eight were caused by stranger events, including murder. Lights, screams, and the sighting of a half-man, half-wolf, bigfoot type creature are said to have been seen down this unpaved road in the middle of the woods.
