Categories: Local

A Haunted Tour of Dayton, Ohio

Dayton, Ohio, is one of the most haunted places in the country. Of course, I might be biased since I spent more than 20 years of my life living here, but I digress. From full-on body apparitions to ghostly voices to things that go bump in the night, Dayton has it all.

Our tour of Dayton’s haunted places begins with Memorial Hall, one of the performing arts buildings in the city. Memorial Hall is haunted by a janitor who died after an accident in the building; he broke a hip after falling into the orchestra pit, and died in the hospital from complications. Now he returns to play with the plumbing, run across the catwalk, and sometimes give other workers a friendly shove.

The next haunted spot in Dayton is the Victoria Theater. One ghost in the Theater is a former actress who simply disappeared from one night in the middle of a performance, and was never seen again. This ghost is sometimes erroneously referred to as “Victoria”, with people claiming that the Theater was named after the actress. Legend states the woman disappeared in the 1910s though, and the theater was named in 1899 as the Victoria Opera House. People sometimes smell her rose perfume, or see her walking across the stage. Another ghost at the Victoria Theater is a violent spirit who was murdered in one of the boxes off stage. She seems to be especially irritated by male patrons who sit in her seat.

Our next stop in downtown Dayton is Sinclair Community College. Blair Hall is the main theater on campus, and also the most haunted location. The things people experience there range from the strange, to the scary. Strange noises are a common place, with noises that shouldn’t be heard in a college theater, like cats howling and crying babies. Others have felt people pulling on their hair, or leaning against them when no one else was in the room. The former head of security has also been known to make an appearance; he doesn’t try to interact with anyone, just goes about the inspection he did while alive. The Sinclair Community College website lists three areas on campus where ghostly activity has been reported; Building 2, 7, and 13. For more information you can call (937) 512-2319.

If you haven’t yet had your fill of ghosts, head out to the Woodland Cemetery. Woodland Cemetery has 2 ghosts; one of a little boy and his dog, and the other a young woman. According to the legends, the little boy is Johnny Morehouse, who died after falling in the Erie Canal. His faithful dog slept on his grave until it too passed. Now the pair joyfully romp through the Cemetery at dusk, or just after dark. The other ghost is a young woman who is distraught at being buried across the cemetery from her father. This long haired beauty is often spotted sitting on his grave, always wearing white tennis shoes, a striped shirt, and jeans. Don’t worry about being afraid; she seems to be more scared of you, and will most likely run away if spotted.

Then head right next door to the University of Dayton to continue your haunted tour of the city. There you might see a limping old man with bad teeth who haunts Liberty Hall. After that head over to the Theta Phi Alpha house where a male ghost haunts the sorority. Girls have felt his presence, and this prankster is known to hide keys and pictures. Some say he’s the father of a former sorority sister, still keeping an eye out for the girls. The University of Dayton is a private Catholic University, and was once a School for Boys. That might explain some of the other ghosts spotted on campus. A priest in old fashioned clothing is sometimes spotted walking beside the Chapel of Immaculate Conception. Children are also spotted in this area, but quickly disappear when someone approaches them. Maybe the boys had so much fun at the school that they aren’t yet ready to move on?

The last stop on our tour of haunted places in Dayton is the Patterson Homestead. The house is now owned by the Montgomery County Historical Society, and many schoolchildren, myself included, have taken a tour inside. This ghost is another playful one; moving things around, including a bust of the original owner John H. Patterson, and only occasionally appearing in a human form to visitors.

If you’re looking for real haunted places in Dayton, Ohio look no further than Woodland Cemetery, the University of Dayton, Patterson Homestead, the Victoria Theater, Memorial Hall, and of course Sinclair Community College.