Step Into the Shadows and Explore Augusta's Haunted History

Throughout the year, the Masters Tournament, the legendary James Brown, and a flourishing arts scene put Augusta on the map. However, as the leaves turn, the Feel Good City’s cobblestone streets reveal a different kind of story, one whispered in the shadows.

As Halloween approaches, Augusta transforms from a city of champions into a haven of the haunted, offering a spooky and sinister travel experience for those who dare to delve into its ghostly past. This fall, take a deep, dark dive into Augusta’s most bewitching legends, and visit the places where past and paranormal collide.

Augusta’s Paranormal Past

Augusta’s spooky side is no seasonal stunt. It’s a terrifying tapestry of local lore with historic locations that speak of the shadow of the supernatural. Read on, and visit these harrowing haunts at your own risk.

Sibley Mill

Sibley Mill, a historic building on the Augusta Canal, tells the tragic tale of Maude Williams, a mill worker in the early 1900s. According to legend, Maude had an affair with coworker Arthur Glover. When Maude ended the fling, Arthur snapped, storming into the mill’s weaving room and fatally shooting her.

Soon after, mill workers began to see Maude’s ghost, still focused on her work. Some tried communicating, but the apparition never acknowledged them. These sightings continued for decades, with Maude’s spirit tethered to her place of death.

Old Medical College

The Old Medical College is a hotspot for paranormal activity, its history steeped in grave robbing. In the 1800s, to obtain cadavers for anatomical study, an enslaved person named Grandison Harris was tasked with secretly exhuming bodies from nearby cemeteries, earning him the nickname “The Resurrection Man.”

The college’s basement was repurposed as a repository for these grisly remains. Visitors have heard disembodied voices, felt chills and spotted Grandison’s ghost at the college and cemeteries, still digging for corpses.

Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art

The Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art is an architectural masterpiece and Augusta’s only nonprofit gallery. Built in the early 19th century, this historic mansion has a history of reports of rattling children’s toys, disembodied footsteps and shadowy figures.

Magnolia Cemetery

As Augusta’s oldest graveyard, Magnolia Cemetery whispers many ghost stories, most notably the tale of gambler Baron Wylly. According to legend, Wylly, a superstitious man, was cursed by a losing opponent, who prophesied that Wylly would have no grave to shelter him after death. To outwit the curse, Wylly purchased a mausoleum and had his body hermetically sealed inside. His mausoleum is indeed unique, having no door or keyhole. Many have heard whispers and felt strange vibrations near his grave. 

Augusta University

The campus of Augusta University boasts a bevy of bone-chilling tales, including the infamous story of Emily Galt. After her fiancé, a Confederate soldier, left for war, she carved her name into a windowpane of Bellevue Hall with her engagement ring, then threw herself to her death. Students have reported hearing footsteps, seeing blinds open on their own and hearing a couple arguing. 

The Cursed Pillar

Lastly, you can visit the corner at the intersection of Broad and 5th Streets where the Cursed Pillar once stood. According to local legend, this stone column was all that remained of a bustling marketplace. In the early 1800s, a traveling evangelist was denied a preaching place at the Augusta market. In anger, he cursed it, prophesying its destruction by storm, but said that one pillar would remain, a testament to the people’s insolence.

As foretold, a tornado leveled the market, leaving (you guessed it) one pillar intact. Legend held that anyone who touched it would face a tragic end. Throughout the years, multiple people, including several highway workers in the 1950s, died mysteriously after approaching the pillar. The column was finally destroyed in a car crash in 2016, ironically saving the life of the driver who leveled it. Augusta has announced plans to rebuild this accursed relic.

Haunted Tours

Don’t face the supernatural alone: take one of Augusta’s unforgettable ghost tours. Start with a guided Haunted History Ghost Tour. Every Friday and Saturday during the Halloween season, Augusta Adventure Tours guides you through historic streets, unveiling the tragic tales of their past. 

Want more haunt? Sign up for Augusta: Haunted Walking Tour with US Ghost Adventures. This women- and minority-led tour is your pathway to the paranormal, taking you to many of the spooky sites mentioned above.

Haunted Houses And Hotels

If you’re looking for thrills beyond the tours, Augusta has several places to face your fears up close. 

Plantation Blood, one of the top haunted houses in Augusta, offers not only the usual clowns with chainsaws, but also fortune-tellers, paranormal pyrotechnics and more.

Prefer to be spooked in your sleep? The Partridge Inn is a historic hotel reportedly haunted by a broken-hearted bride who died there after her fiancé never returned from the Civil War. Her spectral form, adorned in a wedding gown, is said to still wander the hallways.

More Ways To Get Spooky In Augusta

Halloween isn’t all ghost stories and haunted houses in Augusta, GA. Enjoy the season of spook with an array of festive and family-friendly events. 

Camp with kids and swamp creatures alike at Phinizy Swamp Nature Park’s annual Halloween Camping event on October 25-26. Craving a more social scare? Don spooky attire and partake in the Augusta Halloween Bar Crawl, on October 31 and November 1! Want more? Check out the best ways to get spooky in Augusta!

Whether you’re a lifelong local or a curious traveler, Augusta offers a singular Halloween experience. Rendezvous with a city rich in history and mystery, a place where the past is not present on a page, but is rather a living entity that adds an eerie element to the season.

This fall, don’t just visit Augusta, come and awaken your spirit of adventure.