Bermuda
Triangle
Location: Atlantic Ocean
A writer named Vincent Gaddis
first used the term "Bermuda Triangle"; to describe the area from
South Florida to Bermuda to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and back to
South Florida in a 1964 magazine article. It was a phrase that
named the place that had, for years, been a watery grave for
countless travelers. Some say aliens captured the unfortunate
souls; others maintain that some aberrant energy field creates a
time warp that envelops anything. Scientific evaluations have
concluded that the number of disappearances in the region is not
abnormal and that most of the disappearances have logical
explanations. Regardless, it's a place many people avoid, including
some pilots and ships' captains.
Roswell
Location: Roswell, New Mexico
In 1947, resident William "Mac"
Brazel found pieces of debris from what he claimed (and others came
to believe) was a crashed UFO. Since then, Roswell, a tiny desert
town guarded by the southern Rocky Mountains, has become synonymous
with UFOs and mystery. The dozens of alien-themed shops and the
area's International UFO Museum, located in downtown Roswell, only
perpetuate the mystery. At the museum (which calls itself the
worldwide center of UFO information), visitors can see exhibits
ranging from pieces and pictures of alleged UFOs to evidence that
claims the town's sheriff and government concocted an elaborate
scheme to cover-up the incident.
Winchester Mystery
House
Location: San Jose, California
When rifle heiress Sarah
Winchester began construction on her Victorian-style mansion in
1884, she pledged that building would never end during her
lifetime, thinking the continuous pounding of hammers would appease
the ghosts that plagued her after the deaths of her husband and
daughter. Only Winchester herself knows whether or not the plan
worked, but the Winchester House stills stands today, now a museum
to the oddities and mysteries that were part of this woman's life.
Among the most strange, doors open into blank walls; one chimney
rises four floors; and a set of stairs leads to the
ceiling.
Gettysburg
Location:
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
One of the deadliest battles of
the Civil War took place in 1863 in the tiny Pennsylvania town of
Gettysburg. Union soldiers, low on ammunition, were losing the
fight, nearly capitulating to the advancing Confederate army. Then,
as they used up the last of their gunpowder, a ghostly George
Washington on a white stallion appeared before them, commanding
them to continue and win a battle that ultimately turned the tide
of the war. That's the way the legend tells it, anyway, and to this
day, the people who live in and around Gettysburg maintain that
George Washington's ghost rides regally across that same
battlefield every summer.
Salem
Location: Salem,
Massachusetts
During the winter of 1691 and
1692, in the tiny New England village of Salem, two young girls
(9-year-old Betty Parris and 11-year-old Abigail Williams) accused
three local women of coming to them in "spectral" (ghost) form and
of causing the girls to have fits, cry out in pain, and go mute,
among other afflictions. The village elders who heard the girls'
story came to believe that the accused women were witches. This set
off a hysterical wave of accusations of witchcraft, and led to the
now infamous Salem witch trials. Ultimately, 14 women and 5 men
were hanged, another suspect was pressed to death under heavy
stones when he refused to take part in his trial, 4 people died in
jail awaiting their trials, and nearly 200 other people were
arrested. Rumor has it that the ghosts of the people who lost their
lives still haunt the town, and the Salem Wax Museum and Witch
Museum allow visitors to experience the terror that reigned during
the trials and come face-to-face with the accused (in wax or,
perhaps, ghostly form).
Tower of
London
Location: London, England
Diaphanous apparitions, rattling
chains, howling winter winds... The Tower of London has it all (or
so the legends say). In the 900 years since it was first
constructed, the Tower has served as, among other things, a tourist
attraction, a prison, and a place of execution for some of
England's most notorious characters--Henry VIII's infamous second
wife, Anne Boleyn, lost her head there, and rumor has it that a
chained Sir Walter Raleigh still prowls the Tower grounds. The
inner fortifications include Bloody Tower, so called from the
tradition that the English child-king Edward V and his brother
Richard Plantagenet, duke of York, were murdered there in 1483; and
Devereux Tower, where, in 1478, George Plantagenet, duke of
Clarence, supposedly was drowned in a barrel of wine. Whether
haunted or not (that's for visitors to decide), the Tower displays
many eerie mementos of times past.
Paris
Catacombs
Location: Paris, France
Hidden beneath the streets of
Paris are the city's famed catacombs, long an escape route for
revolutionaries, smugglers, and the French Resistance movement
battling the Nazis. In this dark, dank underground world rest the
remains (primarily the bones) of long-departed Parisians who died
when there was no room for them in the city's cemeteries. Many of
the bones are arranged neatly, like carefully laid bricks, and
visitors (on their walking tour of about 500 yards) shouldn't be
alarmed if they encounter hundreds of human skulls - some with
teeth missing, some bashed in, some with grinning jaw
bones.
Haunted
Hollywood
Location: Hollywood,
California
Since the
first Tinsel Town star walked the first red carpet, celebrities
(dead and alive) have been fascinating creatures. Today, visitors
in search of a supernatural celebrity sighting can venture into
Hollywood at night and discover the places where the deceased rich
and famous like to spend their time. Among the most notorious--the
Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel's room 928 (supposedly haunted by actor
Montgomery Clift), the Laugh Factory (and its nightly visits by
late comedian Groucho Marx), and the old Hollywood Reporter
building (rumored to house reporter William Wilkerson, who died in
1962). If a walking tour isn't your thing, catch a ride on Tour
Land's Haunted Hearse, a guided tour that takes visitors to places
around town supposedly haunted by celebrities.
Lizzie Borden Bed and
Breakfast
Location: Fall River,
Massachusetts
In 1892, Andrew Borden and his
wife, Abby, were brutally murdered by someone wielding an ax.
Although ultimately acquitted of the crime, Borden's youngest
daughter, Lizzie, never regained her precrime innocence, and many
folks in Fall River (and around the country) remained convinced
that she got away with murder. Today, the house in which the
Bordens lived and died is a city landmark, a museum, and a bed and
breakfast. Anyone interested can visit the murder scene; peruse the
collection of Fall River and Borden memorabilia; or shop for any
number of souvenirs, including coffee mugs, sweatshirts, and even a
brick from the Borden chimney (complete with a certificate of
authenticity). For those who want an extra creepy experience, the B
& B owners treat their overnight guests to a replica of the
Bordens' last meal: a breakfast of bananas, johnnycakes, sugar
cookies, and coffee.
