Spooky Spots by IV Stuart
It's spooky season, everybody. And whether you’re a believer or not; ghosts, goblins, and ghouls come with a certain amount of mystery. Ghostlore in North America can be traced back as far as early settlers, with tales of apparitions being shared in taverns for centuries. Next time you’re out shoveling a spot in the wee hours of the night, make sure to keep your head on a swivel, as you never know who could be lurking in the shadows. Or what whispers you might be missing under the hum of the generator.
Redstone House, Montpelier, Vermont
Lucas Magoon, Goon Gear, “Diamond” (2022)
Jesse Gomez, Signal Snowboards, “Vermont Bound And Down” (2025)
Nested in Vermont’s state capital sits the site of Redstone House, commissioned and constructed in 1891 for John Burgess, a Tennessee native and political scientist. Burgess was an outstanding political mind during his time, and given professorship at the law school which would later become Columbia University in 1876.
John Burgess’ first wife, Augusta Jones, died in 1884. Saddened by his late wife's passing, Burgess took a trip to Montpelier, Vermont to visit his friend, Thomas Waterman Wood, a famous American painter. On that trip Burgess would first set eyes on his new love, Ruth Payne Jewett. She was born into a wealthy family, daughter of Elisha P. Jewett, a prominent businessman. Elisha served as the Vermont State Treasurer and later a member of the Vermont House of Representatives in 1855.
Said to be a highly intelligent and creative individual, Ruth studied at Barnard College, the National Academy of Design, the Art Students League of New York, in addition to studying in Europe and painting her way through Italy and Germany. Ruth Payne Jewett would become Ruth Payne Burgess on September 2, 1885; John and Ruth would have one child together, Elisha Payne Jewett Burgess. I wonder how they came up with that one.
The happy couple sold their Vermont home in 1911, and John William Burgess later died 1931. Ruth passed away three years later in March of 1934, though her funeral wouldn’t pass without commotion. Elisha, John and Ruth’s son, was arrested during his mother’s funeral for evading child support payments. In 1934, who knew.
While neither Burgess died on the site in Montpelier, Vermont, it’s rumored that since her death, Ruth Burgess’ spirit roams the estate. From claims of mysterious and nauseating odors, to certain reports of electromagnetic interference, EMF as us paranormal investigators call it; all contribute to the longstanding rumor of poltergeists residing in the manor.
Popular online forums are filled with discourse regarding the credibility of claims. People claiming to have worked in the house describe having no paranormal experiences, even going as far claiming it’s a peaceful building. While others online insist that something is amiss, attribute the putrid smells as a main factor for concern. Someone who once lived in the neighborhood claims to have often seen a lone light in a singular window, that would turn on and off at odd hours, long after anyone would have been there. Sightings of a womanly apparition wearing a long skirt in the basement have been reported. A previous coworker of an employee in the building was told how her colleague was alone late in the building one night and heard an enormous crash from the floor below, prompting her to call security to come investigate. Security on duty deemed no one else was inside the building at the time.
Buckner Building, Whittier, Alaska
Mikey LeBlanc, Videograss, “Bon Voyage” (2010)
Gus Engle, ThinkThank, “Patchwork Patterns” (2006)
Joe Sexton, Videograss, “Balance Beam” (2019)
Jonas Michilot, Videograss, “Shoot the Moon” (2011)
Alex Sherman, Videograss, “Balance Beam” (2019)
Completed in 1953, the Buckner Building covers a vast 275,000 square feet, roughly the size of three major league ballparks, and stands six stories tall. Built during the early years of the Cold War, the Buckner Building was constructed as a stand-alone military complex for the United States, producing its own power and heating. Later leading to the nickname “city under one roof”, the building had every amenity necessary to house the nearly 1,000 soldiers there during that time. Complete with a movie theater, grocery store, a bowling alley, and even an expansive underground tunnel system; the building remained self-sufficient for numerous years.
On Good Friday, in 1964, disaster struck. At approximately 5:36 pm local time, a magnitude 9.2 earthquake occurred in the Prince William Sound, just off the coast from Whittier. In total, the earthquake and subsequent tsunamis cost 139 lives, 13 of which occurred in Whittier. Though there were no reported deaths inside the Buckner Building, and the earthquake had caused no substantial damage to the structure, the military would later pull out in 1966. The Buckner Building would slowly fall into disrepair after leaving government hands and being sold to a private owner in 1972.
With no reported deaths in the facility during its 13 years of military operation, one can only wonder where the haunting claims began. Nonetheless, witnesses have reported hearing whistling, shouting, and other mysterious noises while exploring the now abandoned building. Some report having heard noises of the metallic clanking from carts rolling down sections of the subterranean corridors that have been closed off for decades.
In early 2018, a person known only as Bob submitted an audio recording to the “Funemployment Radio” podcast, claiming it to be from the Buckner Building. After returning from a trip to Whittier, Alaska, Bob was home reviewing recordings, and stumbled across something strange. A section of his audio file appeared to have caught someone asking “what's your name?” Alone in the building at the time of the recording, it left Bob wondering who could have asked that question. While the audio is inconclusive to say the least, one can only speculate what more you may hear when spending time in the Buckner Building.
The spirit of the Buckner Building lives on in what is now Begich Towers, a modern apartment complex in Whittier which operates under the same principles the Buckner Building once did. Begich Towers, originally named the Hodge Building, was completed in 1953 alongside the Buckner Building for the US military. It was later revitalized into a condominium in 1964, in a relief effort after the Good Friday earthquake, and still stands today as a 16-story apartment complex of which most Whittier residents reside.
Oneota Cemetery, Duluth, Minnesota
Lucas Magoon, “The 1817 Movie” (2017)
In the outskirts of Duluth, Minnesota lies Oneota Cemetery, whose origin dates back as far as 1885. The cemetery spans over a sprawling 100 acres and “has been serving the burial needs of the community for 125 years” according to their website.
Numerous sightings over the years report seeing a haunting figure of a large black dog roaming around the grounds late at night. The dog is occasionally accompanied by a tall, lone man walking beside it. Both figures are said to vanish when they near the outskirts of the cemetery property. Eerily enough, some locals are inclined to believe this macabre figure is a hellhound. If you’re unfamiliar, a hellhound is generally described as a beastly, large dog, with glowing eyes ranging in colors from red to yellow, with dark fur, and fangs as sharp as daggers – and claws that could shred apart your body like carnitas on Taco Tuesday.
Fort William Henry, Lake George, New York
Johnny O’Connor, Capita Snowboards, “Johnny O’Connor Pro Part” (2018)
Jake Gaudet, Bookclub, “what do worms do in the winter?” (2020)
Amidst the eruption of the French and Indian War in 1755, Sir William Johnson, a British Army officer, ordered a fort be built towards the south end of Lake George, New York in defense of the opposing French, Canadian, and Native American forces.
August of 1757, a brutal and bloody military siege took place at the fort. French commander Marquis de Montcalm led a troop of 8,000 strong against the measly 2,200 men stationed at Fort William Henry, leading to a six day barrage of military fire. In the end, the fort surrendered to French forces on August 9, 1757 after the loss of nearly 1,500 men (modern historians estimate the death toll is closer to 200). In an act that could only be described as a war crime in the modern era, Montcalm’s native allies violated the agreed upon terms of surrender, and attacked the British as they withdrew from the fort. Numerous soldiers, slaves, and civilians, including women and children, were taken captive, and the remaining ill and wounded prisoners were slaughtered. Some second hand accounts go as far to claim that cannibalism took place on the grounds, as it’s said a few tribes at the time practiced the act in a sort of ritualistic way.
While Fort William Henry was originally burned to the ground shortly after the siege, it was later reconstructed on the former site in the 1950s, as a living-history museum. With the fort standing exactly how it did over 270 years ago, on those same grounds, it’s not surprising reports of ghoulish and ghostly figures are commonplace. From orbs of light, lone objects moving, cold spots, and even accounts of some feeling the sensation of being grabbed, only to turn and see no one; Fort William Henry is a breeding ground for paranormal activity.
Visitors often report seeing a phantom figure, known as “Redman”, which appears merely as a red mist, near the crypt staircase. Another infamous tale involves a young girl who let out a blood curdling scream after seeing “a man with the face of ground beef”, wearing old-timey military garb. Hearing disembodied footsteps is routine around the parade grounds, as it would have been an area frequented heavily by soldiers stationed at the fort.
Riverview Hospital, Coquitlam, British Columbia
Mark Goodall, “Plaid Fence” (2026)
Matt Cochrane, “mount mountain clips to chill/relax to” (2023)
Originally established in 1904, “The Hospital for the Mind on Mount Coquitlam”, later named Riverview Mental Hospital, in Coquitlam, British Columbia, was the byproduct of significant overcrowding at hospitals in the nearby cities of Victoria and New Westminster. Twenty five of the best and brightest patients from “Provincial Hospital for the Insane in New Westminster” would be tasked with helping build the asylum. On the forefront of modern mental treatment at the time, the first building would open in 1913, West Lawn. Initially named the “Male Chronic Wing”, it was constructed to hold around 500 patients, but would go on to house nearly 900 by the end of the year.
At its peak in the 1950s, Riverview Mental Hospital housed approximately 5,000 patients across its expansive 1,000 acre campus. The hospital was to some of British Columbia’s “most psychotic male patients”, and complete with the “Boys' Industrial School for juvenile delinquents”, an Acute Psychopathic Unit, and a Veterans’ Block for "shell shock patients from the First World War”. Using what was once considered cutting edge mental health treatments, like lobotomies, shock therapy, and heavy sedation, Riverview grew to have quite the nasty reputation.
By the 1980s, parts of the hospital had begun to shut down, including the previously mentioned West Lawn, later a hotbed for paranormal activity. In 1999, the government initially announced its closure, and in July of 2012, nearly 110 years after its inception, Riverview Mental Hospital would officially close its doors after a slow 40-year deinstitutionalization process.
Reports of supernatural phenomena have become ordinary for the now decaying and abandoned building. In recent years, Riverview Hospital has become a popular shooting location for various television shows, such as Supernatural (2005-2020) and Prison Break (2005-2017), and many movies. Online forums are filmed with tales of cast and crew experiencing paranormal activity, ranging from shadowy figures to phantom footsteps.
During the filming of , “The X: Files I Want To Believe” (2008), a craft service woman on set claims to have had a chilling experience. While walking through the entrance to the main floor holding a fruit basket, and approaching the grand staircase, she felt a chill go down her back. This craft service woman carried on with her tasks, shrugging off the feeling and continuing her way up the staircase. Later on, while delivering more items, she felt as if she was being watched while placing items on the table. Lastly, the third time delivering to the room, she claims to have felt a chill as a hand was placed on her shoulder. The caterer proceeded to scream loudly, run out the building, and lock herself in her truck.