10 Eerie Sites In Virginia That Will Send A Shiver Down Your Spine

Think Virginia is all about historic charm and scenic beauty? Think again.

Beneath the surface of this storied state lies a darker side, one filled with restless spirits, cursed buildings, and roads where the living aren’t the only travelers. From former asylums echoing with tortured screams to colonial prisons still rattling with chains, Virginia’s haunted locations offer more than just ghost stories.

They’re windows into tragic pasts, unsolved mysteries, and encounters that defy explanation. Whether you’re a skeptic or a believer, these spine-chilling sites will make you question what really lurks in the shadows after dark.

St. Albans Sanatorium (Radford)

Walking through the crumbling halls of St. Albans feels like stepping into a nightmare you can’t wake up from. This massive structure started as a boys’ school where cruelty was commonplace before transforming into a psychiatric hospital that operated for decades.

The walls still seem to hold the anguish of patients who suffered within them. Investigators and thrill-seekers flock here because the paranormal activity is off the charts.

Shadow figures dart across empty corridors. Disembodied voices call out names of visitors they couldn’t possibly know.

Equipment malfunctions without explanation, and cold spots appear in rooms that should be sweltering in summer heat.

Professional ghost hunting teams consider this one of their most productive locations. The basement alone has produced countless hours of unexplained audio recordings and visual anomalies.

Visitors have reported feeling pushed by invisible hands and experiencing sudden, overwhelming dread. Some refuse to return after a single visit, shaken by encounters they can’t rationalize.

The building’s decay adds to its menacing atmosphere. Peeling paint, collapsed ceilings, and rusted medical equipment create a setting straight from a horror film.

Tours are available for those brave enough, though guides warn that sensitive individuals often become overwhelmed. The energy here is palpable, heavy with decades of suffering and unrest.

Located at 498 Dearing Rd, Radford, VA 24141, this former sanatorium stands as a monument to Virginia’s darkest chapter in mental health treatment. Every creaking floorboard and gust of wind through broken windows reminds visitors that some places never truly empty out.

Peyton Randolph House (Williamsburg)

Standing before this Georgian beauty, you’d never guess it harbors more ghosts than any other residence in Virginia. Built when Williamsburg was still the colonial capital, this house has witnessed centuries of tragedy, death, and alleged curses.

More than thirty spirits supposedly call this place home. That’s not a handful of restless souls but an entire congregation of the dead refusing to move on.

The basement is particularly notorious. Visitors have described being physically restrained by unseen forces, unable to move or scream for help.

Others report scratches appearing on their skin moments after entering certain rooms.

Tour guides share stories of people fleeing the house mid-visit, too terrified to finish. The oppressive atmosphere can be overwhelming, especially in areas where violent deaths allegedly occurred.

Colonial Williamsburg offers tours, but they come with warnings. Pregnant women and those with heart conditions are advised to skip the basement entirely.

Historical records show the property changed hands frequently, with families abandoning it after brief, troubled stays. Some blamed financial ruin, others blamed something far more sinister.

Paranormal researchers have documented unexplained temperature drops, electronic voice phenomena, and objects moving on their own. Cameras malfunction regularly, and batteries drain within minutes of entering the house.

The curse supposedly stems from land disputes and untimely deaths connected to the original owners. Whatever the source, the negative energy is undeniable.

You’ll find this infamous residence at 524 Nicholson St, Williamsburg, VA 23185. Walk past during twilight, and you might see shadows moving behind windows in rooms that should be empty.

Crawford Road (Yorktown)

Most roads are just pavement and paint, but Crawford Road has earned its terrifying reputation through decades of unexplained phenomena and tragic accidents. This seemingly ordinary stretch has become legendary among paranormal enthusiasts and locals who know better than to drive it after dark.

The graffiti-covered bridge serves as a landmark for the strange. Teenagers dare each other to stop their cars here, waiting for the infamous handprints to appear on foggy windows.

Nobody puts those prints there. They just materialize, small and childlike, pressing against glass from the outside even when no one is near the vehicle.

Then there are the red eyes. Multiple witnesses describe glowing crimson stares emanating from the abandoned structure along the route.

These aren’t reflections or animal eyes but something altogether different and deeply unsettling.

Drivers report their engines stalling without cause, radios switching stations on their own, and sudden temperature drops inside their vehicles. Some hear tapping on car roofs when parked beneath the bridge.

The road’s deadly history includes multiple fatal crashes, and locals believe the victims never truly left. Apparitions of accident victims have been spotted walking along the shoulder, vanishing when approached.

Thrill-seekers visit regularly, though many leave with stories they wish they could forget. The atmosphere shifts noticeably as you approach the bridge, becoming heavy and charged with something unnatural.

Cell phones lose signal mysteriously. Photographs develop strange orbs and mists that weren’t visible to the naked eye.

Even skeptics admit feeling watched by unseen observers.

Crawford Road runs through Yorktown, VA 23690, and remains one of Virginia’s most documented paranormal locations. Drive it if you dare, but don’t say you weren’t warned.

Hollywood Cemetery (Richmond)

Cemeteries are supposed to be peaceful resting places, but Hollywood Cemetery has a resident that defies that expectation entirely. Two U.S. presidents lie buried here alongside thousands of Confederate soldiers, yet it’s the Richmond Vampire that draws the curious and the brave.

Legend centers on a mausoleum marked with the name W.W. Pool.

Locals claim a creature with fangs and pale skin dwells inside, emerging at night to hunt.

The story gained traction after a tunnel collapse at a nearby church. Workers reported seeing a dark figure with jagged teeth fleeing toward the cemetery.

Eyewitness accounts spread quickly, cementing the vampire legend.

Visitors describe an overwhelming sense of dread near the Pool mausoleum. Some report seeing a shadowy figure darting between gravestones at dusk, moving with inhuman speed.

The cemetery’s Victorian-era monuments and winding paths create an already eerie atmosphere. Add the vampire legend, and nighttime visits become genuinely unnerving experiences.

Photography enthusiasts capture strange anomalies here regularly. Unexplained mists, shadow figures, and orbs appear in images taken near certain graves and mausoleums.

Ghost tours operate year-round, with guides sharing tales of Civil War soldiers still marching through the grounds. Some visitors claim to hear distant drum beats and cannon fire echoing through the hills.

The Richmond Vampire remains the star attraction, though. Whether real or imagined, the legend has endured for over a century, drawing paranormal investigators from across the country.

Hollywood Cemetery sits at 412 S Cherry St, Richmond, VA 23220. Wander among the elaborate monuments and you’ll understand why so many believe the dead here aren’t resting quite as peacefully as they should.

Public Gaol (Williamsburg)

Imagine being locked in a freezing cell with nothing but stone walls and the ghosts of pirates for company. That’s the reality visitors face when touring Williamsburg’s Public Gaol, where Blackbeard’s crew once awaited their fate.

This colonial prison held some of the most dangerous criminals of the era. Conditions were brutal, with inmates shackled in darkness, suffering from cold, hunger, and disease.

Tour participants regularly report hearing heavy chains dragging across floors when no one is moving. The sound echoes through empty cells, metallic and deliberate, as if someone is pacing while bound.

Screams pierce the silence without warning. These aren’t modern sounds but guttural, anguished cries that seem to come from the walls themselves.

Guides have grown accustomed to visitors freezing in terror mid-tour.

The temperature inside drops dramatically in certain cells, even during summer. Frost has been observed on walls in spots where no moisture should accumulate.

Paranormal investigators have recorded electronic voice phenomena here, capturing voices speaking in old English dialects. The messages are often pleas for release or cries of innocence.

Sensitive visitors report feeling hands grabbing at their clothing and sudden, intense pressure on their chests. Some become physically ill and must leave immediately.

The gaol’s history is steeped in suffering and death. Many prisoners never left alive, perishing from illness or execution.

Their spirits seem determined to make their presence known.

Colonial Williamsburg operates tours, but this isn’t a lighthearted historical stroll. The building retains an oppressive energy that even skeptics acknowledge feels wrong.

Located at 410 Nicholson St, Williamsburg, VA 23185, the Public Gaol stands as a grim reminder of colonial justice and the souls who never escaped its walls.

Bacon’s Castle (Surry)

Castles aren’t supposed to exist in Virginia, yet here stands one with a reputation for shoving visitors and throwing furniture around like a poltergeist playground. Completed before the colonial era truly took hold, this structure has witnessed rebellions, battles, and mysterious phenomena that continue today.

Ghosts here aren’t subtle. They stomp down staircases with heavy boots, making enough noise to wake anyone sleeping in the building.

The sounds are so distinct that staff can track the phantom’s progress from floor to floor.

Visitors have been physically pushed by invisible hands, sometimes hard enough to stumble or fall. Objects fly across rooms without explanation, and doors slam shut with violent force.

The property’s connection to Bacon’s Rebellion adds historical weight to its haunting. Violence and death marked those turbulent times, and some believe the spirits of rebels and loyalists still clash within these walls.

Then there are the cosmic fireballs. Multiple witnesses over the years have reported glowing spheres of light appearing on the grounds, moving with apparent intelligence before vanishing into thin air.

These aren’t meteors or conventional explanations. The lights hover, change direction, and seem to respond to human presence.

Scientists and paranormal researchers remain baffled.

Inside, furniture rearranges itself overnight. Staff arrive to find chairs stacked, tables moved, and items relocated to rooms they weren’t in the previous evening.

The castle’s age and architecture contribute to its unsettling atmosphere. Narrow staircases, low ceilings, and dim lighting create spaces where anything could be lurking just out of sight.

Bacon’s Castle sits at 465 Bacon’s Castle Trail, Surry, VA 23883. Tour it during daylight if you prefer, but know that the spirits don’t limit their activities to after dark.

The Exchange Hotel (Gordonsville)

Hospitals are meant for healing, but when thousands die within your walls, the building remembers. The Exchange Hotel served as a Confederate receiving hospital during the Civil War, treating wounded soldiers who often didn’t survive their injuries.

Blood-soaked floors, amputations without anesthesia, and screams of agony characterized daily life here. That suffering left an indelible mark that paranormal researchers detect immediately upon entering.

Visitors report seeing full-bodied apparitions in Civil War uniforms wandering the halls. These figures appear solid and real until they vanish through walls or fade into nothing.

Phantom sounds are constant. Moaning, crying, and desperate pleas for water echo through rooms that now house museum exhibits.

Footsteps pace overhead when no one is upstairs.

Medical equipment moves on its own. Antique surgical tools shift positions, and display cases rattle without anyone touching them.

Some visitors smell chloroform and blood despite the building being meticulously clean.

Paranormal investigation teams consider this a goldmine for evidence. Electronic voice phenomena recordings capture conversations between what sound like doctors and patients discussing treatments and conditions.

Electromagnetic field detectors spike randomly, indicating energy sources that shouldn’t exist. Temperature guns register cold spots in patterns that suggest human forms standing in empty spaces.

The emotional residue is overwhelming. Empaths and sensitive individuals often become distressed, picking up on fear, pain, and desperation that saturated this place over a century ago.

Museum staff share countless stories of unexplained incidents. Locked doors open, lights turn on and off, and exhibits reset themselves after closing time.

The Exchange Hotel stands at 400 S Main St, Gordonsville, VA 22942. It’s now a Civil War medical museum, but the past refuses to stay behind glass displays.

Swannanoa Palace (Afton)

Perched atop a mountain like something from a Gothic novel, this crumbling palace combines heartbreak with conspiracy theories that venture into truly bizarre territory. Built as a monument to love, it became associated with occult rituals and secret societies.

The original owner’s wife supposedly haunts the mansion, eternally roaming rooms that once held her most treasured possessions. Visitors describe seeing a woman in period dress gazing sadly from windows, her face etched with longing.

But she’s not the only presence here. Rumors of Illuminati connections and strange ceremonies conducted by a later resident have given the palace an additional layer of dark mystery.

People report feeling watched by multiple entities, some benign and others decidedly hostile. The atmosphere shifts dramatically between different areas of the building, from melancholy to menacing within steps.

Occult symbols have been discovered carved into walls and floors. Whether authentic or added by trespassers, they contribute to the location’s sinister reputation.

The palace’s deterioration makes it physically dangerous, but that hasn’t stopped urban explorers and paranormal enthusiasts from sneaking inside. Many emerge with stories of shadow figures, disembodied voices, and overwhelming feelings of dread.

Photographs taken here often show unexplained anomalies. Mists, orbs, and what appear to be faces in windows populate images captured by visitors.

The building’s isolated location adds to its eeriness. Surrounded by forest and accessible only by winding mountain roads, it feels cut off from civilization and normal reality.

Equipment malfunctions are common. Cameras drain batteries instantly, flashlights fail, and cell phones lose all signal despite towers being relatively nearby.

Swannanoa Palace is located at 3650 Swannanoa Ridge Rd, Afton, VA 22920. Its grandeur has faded, but whatever dwells within these walls remains very much alive.

Ferry Plantation House (Virginia Beach)

Few homes can claim eleven distinct ghosts, but Ferry Plantation House wears that distinction like a badge of honor. Dating back to Virginia’s earliest colonial days, this property has accumulated spirits the way other houses collect dust.

The Lady in White is perhaps the most frequently encountered. She fell to her death down the stairs, and visitors still see her descending, only to vanish before reaching the bottom.

Then there’s Grace Sherwood, the Witch of Pungo, whose trial took place near these grounds. Accused of witchcraft and subjected to dunking, she survived the ordeal but her spirit apparently never left the area.

Other ghosts include Revolutionary War soldiers, a young girl searching for her lost doll, and a man who died violently in one of the upstairs bedrooms. Each has their own story, their own tragedy.

Tours here feel like speed dating with the paranormal. You might encounter multiple spirits in a single visit, each manifesting differently.

Footsteps, voices, cold spots, and shadow figures all make regular appearances.

The plantation’s age contributes to its haunted status. Centuries of births, deaths, celebrations, and sorrows have layered energy upon energy, creating a hotspot for supernatural activity.

Paranormal investigators love this location because activity occurs during daylight hours, not just after dark. Spirits here don’t follow conventional rules about when ghosts should appear.

Staff members have their own encounters regularly. Objects move, doors lock from the inside, and voices call out names when the building should be empty.

The witch connection adds particular intrigue. Grace Sherwood’s story is well-documented historically, making her one of the few ghosts with verifiable identity and backstory.

Ferry Plantation House sits at 4136 Cheswick Ln, Virginia Beach, VA 23455. With eleven ghosts in residence, you’re almost guaranteed an encounter if you visit.

Edgewood Plantation (Charles City)

Spending the night at a bed and breakfast is usually relaxing, unless that bed and breakfast comes with a permanent guest who died waiting for a love that never returned. Edgewood Plantation served as a Civil War lookout post, and one young woman’s vigil continues to this day.

Lizzie is the plantation’s most famous spirit. She stands at an upstairs window, gazing toward the road where her fiancé promised to return from battle.

He never did, and she never stopped watching.

Guests sleeping in certain rooms wake to find her standing at the foot of their beds, her face sad and searching. She never speaks, just stares before fading away like morning mist.

Some visitors find her presence comforting, a reminder of enduring love and loyalty. Others find it deeply unsettling to share their room with a ghost who doesn’t acknowledge their existence.

The plantation’s Civil War history adds additional layers of haunting. Soldiers used the property as a strategic position, and some apparently never left their posts.

Phantom footsteps march through hallways at night. Guests hear voices discussing military strategies and the sounds of horses approaching the property, though nothing is visible outside.

The current owners embrace the paranormal activity, sharing stories openly with guests. They’ve experienced enough phenomena themselves to know the spirits are real and active.

Breakfast conversations often revolve around who saw or heard what during the night. Comparing notes reveals patterns in the haunting, with certain rooms and times producing more activity than others.

Despite the ghosts, or perhaps because of them, the bed and breakfast stays booked solid. People travel from across the country hoping to encounter Lizzie or one of the other resident spirits.

Edgewood Plantation is located at 4800 John Tyler Memorial Hwy, Charles City, VA 23030. Book a room if you want history with your haunting, but don’t expect a quiet night’s sleep.