Random Terrifying, Haunted Historical Sites (13 items)

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  (#1) The Island Of The Dolls

  If there's one common fear right up there with clowns, flying, spiders, and maybe spontaneous human combustion, it's dolls. With their soulless eyes, marionette-like gait, and constant desire to be given free will to murder us in our sleep, any location that features a doll certainly deserves a spot on this list.  

  But instead of one doll, let's ratchet things up... how about thousands of them? Oh, and they're not simply lying around a house, or stuffed into an attic, or calmly plotting your demise from the corner of a room either - they're strung up on various trees on an entire island.

  Well, that's what you're in for if you ever feel like escaping the relaxing, doll-less safety of life and moving to Xochimilco, Mexico, where you'll be met by the gazes of countless plastic baby-people.

  Thankfully, these are not naturally occurring dolls, but the real reason they exist on this island is perhaps even more frightening. Legend has it that a man named Julian Santana Barrera moved to the island and, soon after, found the body of a girl floating in a nearby canal. He also found a doll floating near her, which he hung from a tree as a memorial. But once he hung the doll, he claimed to hear footsteps, whispers, and screams. He hung more dolls to try and appease her but had no luck; she haunted him until the day he died in those woods.

  Unsurprisingly, Julian had zero luck with contacting the spirit of the young girl. Now, the island is a tourist attraction, and visitors claim the dolls' eyes will follow them wherever they go. 
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  (#6) The Tower Of London

  Built over 900 years ago by William the Conqueror, the Tower of London stands as one of the most haunted buildings in the UK - perhaps because of how many famous individuals are said to still inhabit its walls. 

  In addition, Lady Arbella Stuart, Queen Elizabeth's one-time-successor-turned-prisoner of the Tower (all because she went and got married without King James's permission), has also been said to haunt The Queen's House structure on the Tower Green, a space inside the Tower of London. 

  But perhaps the most well-known royal specter inside the great tower is none other than Queen Anne Boleyn herself, who was executed in 1536. Her headless spirit is said to inhabit Tower Green as well. 

  While the Tower of London seems to be a veritable who's who of boos and ghouls (sorry), there have been several other instances of paranormal activity that don't involve any royal figures stuck in a limbo state. Among them, the so-called "White Lady," who is often seen waving from a window, and a pair of children wandering the halls holding hands. 
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  (#5) The Sultan's Palace

  Located in New Orleans' French Quarter, rumor has it that this now-infamous mansion was originally built in 1836 by a Turkish man who claimed to be a sultan, though no one at the time could actually find out the truth. As time went on, neighbors began to grow suspicious of the Turkish man, who would throw wild, opium-fueled parties that went on for hours. 

  Then, one morning, a neighbor noticed a horrifying sight: blood was dripping down the side of the home. When authorities were called, nothing could prepare them for the nightmare they saw upon entering 716 Dauphine Street: Body parts were littered throughout the home.

  There were dismembered arms. Legs. Heads. Blood had been spilled in seemingly every corner of the house. As officers investigated the crime scene, they discovered the body of the sultan himself, buried alive in the home's courtyard, with his hand sticking up from the soil, as if in a last-ditch attempt to free himself. 

  It's been said that even today, one can hear the screams of the sultan - as well as countless others - echoing throughout the massive home.
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  (#10) Monte Cristo Homestead

  Representing Australia on this list is none other than the Monte Cristo Mansion, located in Junee, New South Wales. While most of the other entries have been larger historical sites with hundreds of tortured souls lost within, the Monte Cristo falls under the category of "classic haunted house." So, in that case, it must be pretty haunted to be in the same league as the others, right? 

  Just ask the Ryan family, who still live there to this day. The Ryans say there have been power outages. Cold spots. Visions of shadow people, lurking around the mansion's corners.

  Going back to the time it was built in 1885, there have been a series of bizarre and tragic events that occurred at Monte Cristo: a young boy perished when he was dropped from the top of the stairs. A maid took her own life. The former caretaker was slain on the property in 1961. A young stable boy burned alive in his straw bed. And the Monte Cristo's housekeeper was said to have kept his mentally unstable son tied to an outhouse for decades. 

  With this much paranormal activity going on, it's easy to see why the Monte Cristo stands among the other entries as one place you wouldn't want to spend the night.  
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  (#11) The Sea of Trees

  Officially known as Aokigahara forest, located in Japan, the Sea of Trees has also been known to carry a third name - the Suicide Forest.

  The Sea of Trees has become an infamous site of numerous tragedies, with nearly 100 suicides occurring under its dense green canopy in one year alone. And because of the nature of suicide, spiritualists in Japan have come to believe that as a result of so many deaths, the forest itself is actually growing denser - in addition to the amount of paranormal activity reported within. 

  Some visitors have reported hearing the screams of the deceased, doomed to roam the woods until their body is eventually found. The number of suicides has become so high that authorities have even had to put up signposts to deter anyone from taking their own life once inside.
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  (#4) Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

  Originally built in 1850s, this asylum in Weston, WV, was later called the Weston State Hospital and was designed to hold a mere 250 patients. But as time went on and the hospital began admitting additional alcoholics, addicts, and "mental defectives," the structure's capacity ballooned to nearly 2,600 patients. 

  Because of this immense level of overcrowding, resources of the hospital were stretched extremely thin. This resulted in poor sanitation, failing light fixtures, and poor heat circulation throughout the building. Basically, everyone inside was suffering in more ways than one.

  And although those who resided and worked in Trans-Allegheny experienced physical horrors, it was said they also reported seeing the spirits passing through the hallways - as the site was originally a Civil War outpost.

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