During spooky season, the Wabash Valley has a bubbling, gurgling, overflowing caldron of fright-inducing options to strike terror in your chill-seeking heart. With haunted houses, spooky spots and horrifying haunts, both fictional and not-so-fake (a.k.a. enter at your own risk!), some of these places you can visit year-round, while some are only open for a short season of terror. So beware and choose wisely!
SHATTERED NIGHTMARES
Voted the “Scariest Haunt in Indiana” in 2015, Shattered Nightmares is not for the faint of heart! Created by a local Hautian and still one of the best haunted houses in town, the Shattered Nightmares experience is certain to revisit your dreams as you sleep, giving night terrors!
THE SCREAM
Brand new this year, these haunting grounds cover the 42-acre facility at The Main Event.
There’s a Zombie Paintball Trailer Ride, where wagon riders take aim at zombie attackers using attached paintball guns, as well as a Haunted Corn Maze, where the afore-mentioned undead wander unfazed. A less-terrifying Hayride allows riders to take in a truly Midwestern Fall experience, relaxing & laughing under starry skies in the chill October air on the back of a hay wagon.
TERRE HAUTE HAUNTED WALKING TOUR
Led by a Terre Haute local, this downtown tour takes place on Friday & Saturday evenings as dusk settles on the city throughout October and November. Hear tale of the creepy legends and haunted history in the area! These tours are a good way to be entertained while meeting new people in the community.
SAINT MARY-OF-THE-WOODS COLLEGE
If you haven’t heard of the faceless ghost at Saint Mary of the Woods College, consider yourself lucky! The seemingly quaint and beautiful campus might hold more secrets than it appears… This faceless ghost wanders the campus grounds, but disappears when spoken to, so don’t go looking for answers.
THE ESCAPE ROOM
Open for over a year now, The Escape Room is not seasonal! Use your teamwork and communication skills to get out of the room in time (or near death could prove nearer than expected!). These time-crunching sessions may get your blood flowing and adrenaline pumping while not being too scary for the whole family.
INDIANA STATE UNIVERSITY
There are many different places rumored to be haunted on ISU’s campus: buildings where classes take place and places students sleep (and may not wake!) Eerie noises in Dreiser Hall, a cross that appears on the twelfth floor of Cromwell Hall, and ghosts (yes, multiple!) in Burford Hall. Yikes! There are also tunnels beneath ISU that are extra creepy this season…students can explore them on October 25th.
THE HEADLESS TRAINSMAN
With so many trains passing through Terre Haute, there HAD to be a ghost story involved with the tracks. And sure enough, there was once a train wreck where the conductor died in one piece but the brakeman’s body was found headless. Now, if you wander the Terre Haute tracks at night you may see a figure with a lantern; it’s rumored to be the brakeman still searching for his head. If that doesn’t creep you out, you’re horrific!
For this and more local legends check out...
HAUNTED HALLOWEEN HAPPENINGS
Attend this event for some fearsome fun at Deming Park on October 26th & 27th. There’s a haunted train that shows you all of the park and a hayride to really get you in the cozy, creepy mood. They’ll have food and fun goodies for attendees!
Terre Haute has plenty of hair-raising haunts to explore this season! Whether you want the sinister history or the seasonal haunted houses, there’s something for everyone.