Eastern State Penitentiary: The History Behind One of America's Most 'Haunted' Prisons

The ghost stories below are legends and reported experiences, not verified fact. The prison's history is real and documented.

Few buildings in America look more haunted than Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia. Its reputation rests on decades of visitor stories, but the history behind it is real, and that's where the story starts.

A prison built on isolation

According to the historic site's own history (opens in a new tab), Pennsylvania approved funding for Eastern State in 1821. It was designed to encourage "penitence" through a strict system of solitary confinement with labor. Architect John Haviland's radial plan put cellblocks around a central hub like the spokes of a wheel. The first prisoner arrived in 1829.

The site notes that Charles Dickens visited in 1842 and called its practices "rigid, strict and hopeless solitary confinement." The prison was built for 250 people, but its population peaked at about 1,700 in the mid-1920s. The state closed it in 1970. It was briefly used as a city jail, then stood empty until preservationists stepped in. Hard-hat tours began in 1994.

What visitors report

NPR reported in 2013 (opens in a new tab) that the prison's history of "suicide, madness, disease, murder and torture" makes it easy to imagine restless spirits. NPR also described repeated stories of eerie experiences by visitors, staff, guards and inmates. According to NPR, Cellblock 12 is associated with echoing voices and cackling, Cellblock 6 with shadowy figures, and Cellblock 4 with ghostly faces. Some visitors say they've seen a guard's silhouette in a tower.

The best-known story, according to NPR, comes from a man who maintains the prison's old locks. He said that in the early 1990s a powerful force held him in place after he opened an old lock in Cellblock 4. The site's official audio tour (opens in a new tab) includes author Charles Adams describing a locksmith who encountered what he called "an incredible and powerful energy" while removing a roughly 142-year-old lock.

What the site says

Eastern State itself doesn't claim the building is haunted. A tour guide told NPR, "We at Eastern State do not claim that the prison is haunted. We run a haunted attraction." He added that the staff prefers to focus on the real people who lived there. The audio tour takes a similar line, saying the building "is certainly 'haunting' if not haunted."

Visiting

Eastern State is a museum and historic site. Check its official website for tours and hours. Please treat it as the place where tens of thousands of real people served time.