Waltham, Massachusetts Most Haunted Place!
The Metropolitan State Hospital was built back in 1927. It was a mental-health facility that sprawled across parts of Waltham, Lexington, and Belmont. But, you know how things go, and…
The Metropolitan State Hospital was built back in 1927. It was a mental-health facility that sprawled across parts of Waltham, Lexington, and Belmont. But, you know how things go, and by 1992, they decided to shut it down to save some moolah.
What made this place really interesting was its design. They called it the Kirkbride Plan, and it was all about trying to help people with mental health issues by letting in lots of fresh air and natural light. Sounds pretty nice, right? Well, turns out it didn't quite work as planned.
And here's where it gets downright spooky. In 1978, a resident named Anne Marie Davee met a terrible fate at the hands of another person in the hospital. And it's not just the murder that sends shivers down your spine; it's the way the whole thing was handled. The Department of Mental Health dropped the ball and the paperwork on her missing-person case was an absolute mess. They officially closed her case in 1979, but it wasn't until 1980 that they found parts of her body on the hospital grounds. When the murderer was finally identified, he brought investigators to where he had buried her body. He was also in possession of seven of the victim’s teeth. Yeesh.
People think "American Horror Story: Asylum" was based on the old State Hospital. Others swear the grounds are haunted to this day. I ain't going anywhere near there to check if it is or not for you, sorry.
Well now that you're in the spooky frame of mind, let's give you some less real scary places to get your fright on. These are the 7 best haunted houses around New England. I'll also throw in the 3 best haunted attractions in all of America in case you feel the motivation for a very long scary road trip.
So you're looking for the scariest haunted houses in New England, huh? Or maybe you want to kick it up a notch and see where the scariest haunted houses in America are. We have you covered on both fronts below.
I think it's a fascinating thing to see hordes of people come together at night to dish out money to be scared to the point of losing control of pitches of shrieks or even worse, control of bodily functions (yuck). Have you ever wondered why we do this? What those who love getting scared terribly get out of the whole situation? Dr. Olubunmi Olatunji, who is a leading psychology professor at Vanderbilt University, says that scary or thrilling experiences release dopamine into the brain. Some enjoy this feeling, those are us thrill-seekers. Some don't, you probably don't see them running the haunted house circuit for thrills.
The professional American haunt industry is a multibillion-dollar business with nearly 2,000 haunts open each year and over 12,000,000 customers attending those attractions. So to say that Halloween season haunted houses are big business would be an understatement.
Now that we understand the why's of the enjoyment of getting scared, let's look at the WHERE.
These are the 7 scariest haunted houses in New England. Some might be a lengthy road trip but if you're a scare or thrill fanatic, the tank of gas to get there might be worth it. We'll finish off by giving you the 3 scariest haunted houses in the entire country. These would be loooooonnnnnggg road trips.
In addition to the 7 haunted houses we'll obviously give you the address to punch into your GPS or phone and a quick little blurb on each place - plus links when available so you can go get all the info about each place that you can handle.
Alright boys and ghouls, let's go get scared!
#7 in New England: Barrett's Haunted Mansion
WHERE: 1235 Bedford St, Abington, MA 02351
Guests rave about the Hollywood quality make up, hair and costumes. One year they did a haunted hotel theme that still has people talking.
#6 in New England: Haunted Overload
WHERE: 20 Orchard Way, Lee, NH 03861
Scare fanatics appreciate the amount of effort that goes into the scares here, and the amount it changes year aftyer year. Many people come from far away and make the trip just for this place.
#5 in New England: Haunted Labyrinth
WHERE: 804 Dyer Ave, Cranston, RI 02920
Even people who don't scare easily admit to getting scared here. Some even get lost in rooms for longer than anticipated. Eeek!
#4 in New England: DementedFX Haunted House
WHERE: 530 Main St, Holyoke, MA 01040
The best review I saw on this place said "Got Scared, got scared, an oh yeah got scared." LOL The effects and animatronics here are very good.
#3 in New England: Scary Acres
WHERE: Hope, Rhode Island
This haunted attraction has grown leaps and bounds over the years. They have a pretty loyal fanbase you comes back year after year.
#2 in New England: Trail of Terror
WHERE: 60 N Plains Hwy, Wallingford, CT 06492
This is a 45 minute walkthrough! (And that's a previous year, it could be even longer this year.) That's a long time to be scared. I love it.
THE #1 Scariest Haunted House in New England: Fright Kingdom
WHERE: 12 Simon St, Nashua, NH 03060
Those who know say THIS is THE attraction to go to if you're in New England in the fall. I don't want to give anything away, but it's a super fun scare time!!
#5 in the Country: Bane Haunted House
WHERE: Livingstone, New Jersey
They're known as "NY’s Largest and Most Interactive Haunted Attraction!" but it's in New Jersey. They'll scare you so bad you'll have no idea where you are apparently.
#4 in the Country: Statesville Haunted Prison
WHERE: Lockwood, Illinois
A haunted prison? Alright, I'm already scared. Great start.
#3 in the Country: Netherworld Haunted House
WHERE: Stone Mountain, Georgia
Scarier than Jake "The Snake" Roberts - who was also billed from Stone Mountain, Georgia. Watch out for Damien in there.
#2 in the Country: Halloween Nights at Eastern State Penitentiary
WHERE: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
This was called Terror Behind the Walls for years and known as one of the scariest haunted locations in the country. Name change? Still scary AF.
THE #1 Scariest Haunted House in the Entire Country: 13th Floor Haunted House
WHERE: Denver, Colorado
To liken this to the internet phenomenon 'Hot Ones' (if you watch), this haunted attraction is "Da Bomb." Very scary. It's #1... so... obviously.
