10 Haunted NJ Spots To Visit During Spooky Season

NEW JERSEY - Anyone who has grown up in the Garden State is aware of the many urban legends in the historical canon. From the timeless lore of the Jersey Devil to the modern story of The Watcher, it’s not surprising that New Jersey is home to several allegedly haunted or cursed landmarks. But is there any truth to the tales?

You can see the mysteries for yourself in several spots around the state, as towns such as East Brunswick and Haddonfield boast guided ghost tours; other haunted houses in the region function as museums you can visit during the day.

Regardless of where you are in New Jersey, if you’re looking for spooky activities to get into the Halloween spirit, there are countless options to get your spook on. Here are 10 landmarks from around the state that just might leave you with goosebumps:

1. Emlen Physick Estate, Cape May

As the only Victorian museum in Cape May, the Emlen Physick Estate hosts tours throughout the year, including ones in October that focus on paranormal activity within the home. The legend is that after Dr. Physick, his mother and sister died, no other families stayed very long in the house, according to New Jersey Haunted Houses.

Some visitors have claimed being touched and seeing a woman in vintage clothing wandering through the home. The museum's management has also captured the disembodied voice of a child in an audio recording at the home, according to reports.

This year, Country Living named the house as one of the "27 Most Haunted Places In America," making it the only New Jersey entry on its list. Read more: Cape May Victorian Among Most Haunted Houses In America

2. Seabrook-Wilson 'Spy' House, Middletown

This Colonial house was built in the early 1700s as a private home, but during the Revolutionary War it functioned as a tavern that was popular among the British troops occupying Monmouth County at the time. The Seabrook House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 and is currently owned by the Monmouth County Parks System. It is open during the week for tours.

But although it's known by many as a historical landmark, others have declared its reputation as the most haunted house in America - and for a good reason.

"There's one story of a couple, a man and a woman, who came in for a tour of the house," said Monmouth County Assemblyman Gerry Scharfenberger, who knows the history of this area well. "They were met with a docent (guide) fully dressed in colonial period garb who gave them the most extensive tour of the house, I mean really showing them all the rooms and this person knew so many impressive facts about the time period.

"Well, the next day the man realized he had left his wallet behind and he returned to the Seabrook-Wilson House. When he got there, the guide on duty told him it was impossible, the house had been closed to tours yesterday and nobody had been on the property."

And Scharfenberger has more: "There were so many incidents of vandalism and weird stuff going on at the Seabrook-Wilson House that the Middletown Police Department at one point had to station a police officer outside the building. He was there all night, standing outside, and swore that nobody went into the house. Except the next morning, people went inside and found all types of furniture moved, a hammer had been shoved into the dry wall." Read more: Middletown Is Home To One Of NJ's Spookiest Haunted Houses

3. The Big House at Allaire Village, Farmingdale

An entire self-sustaining village once stood at Allaire Village in Farmingdale, where visitors can now roam around and explore the 19th-century buildings. It was known as Howell Works and was the site of an iron-making town. Many moons have passed since then, but some of the old residents might still linger — at least according to accounts from volunteers who have spent time there.

Hal Allaire is reportedly one of the ghosts people claim has stuck around, playing tricks on visitors and workers. He was the son of James Peter Allaire, the businessman that founded Allaire Village and in 1832 moved there from New York City because of a cholera outbreak. The family settled into the residence known as the Big House.

"We noticed the candles were flickering strangely. The flame would almost go out and then go bright again, repeatedly, like someone was taking all the oxygen away from it," one volunteer told Weird NJ.

"People would report seeing candlelight and faces looking back at them in some of the windows of the Big House, long after we had closed down for the night," the volunteer said. "We would also notice things going missing, chairs moved around, strange voices, and images in the mirror that weren't actually there. None of it was ever threatening, though." Read more: Farmingdale's Allaire Village Has Haunted History

4. Herbert Appleby House at the Historic Village of Old Bridge, East Brunswick

The New Jersey Ghost Organization regularly hosts Saturday tours in October around the pre-Civil War homes of the Historic Village of Old Bridge in Middlesex County, with one of the more popular haunts being the Herbert Appleby House. Once a private residence built in the mid-19th century, the building was converted into a library in memory of Appleby's daughter.

“The history is Old Bridge is so interesting. There’s is murder, mayhem, and lots of spooks,” said New Jersey Ghost Association co-founder and East Brunswick resident Karen Timper. Several murders have been reported at the site of the library - which has been closed for over 30 years - including a 1727 murder of a tavern owner and a 1906 killing of a local woman.

The Ghost Walk attracts a lot of curious attendees, especially in October. The ghostly tales go back to pre- Civil War, the Victorian era, and even during the time of the Lenape.

“We have a lot of participants in October. During All Hallows Eve, the veil is the thinnest between our world and the afterlife, so there’s a greater chance of getting a glimpse of the spirit world,” Timper said. Read more: East Brunswick Ghost Walk Reveals Town's Paranormal History

5. Greenfield Hall, Haddonfield

Built in the early 1700s by a John Gill IV, Greenfield Hall in Haddonfield serves as the headquarters for the borough historical society today. It is the third structure built on the property, beginning with a log cabin that dates back to the 1700s. According to some, visitors can witness history literally come alive after hours in the form of ghostly apparitions at the headquarters.

In the 1840s, Gill IV married a wealthy woman from Moorestown whose ghost is thought to haunt the home. In fact, she is described in one peculiar incident that happened when borough officials repainted the home in the 1960s:

A painter was alone late night when he came across an old woman, small, dressed in the simple gray garb and white bonnet of a Quaker. It wasn't long before the woman, who represented the painting of former homeowner Mrs. Elizabeth Gill, vanished like a puff of smoke, according to an account published on Haddon Patch in 2011.

There are other haunting accounts from the borough of Haddonfield, including the tale of two girls who came down with the flu when they lived in a home in the 1950s, more than 100 years after two other young girls who lived in the home died of the flu. Was a ghost trying to take care of them when they claim he kept covering them in blankets?

These stories and more are covered as part of the Historical Society of Haddonfield's Haunted Haddonfield Walking Tours, which take place this year on Oct. 15, 16, 22, 23, 29 and 30. Rain date is Oct. 31. Read more: Haddonfield's Greenfield Hall Has Haunted History

6. Old Canal Inn, Nutley

No, the roped-off area around a chair at the Old Canal Inn in Nutley isn't a reserved seating section. The off-limits chair is known as the Death Chair due to its fatal history, according to an urban legend. The lore details that, after two men were fighting at length over the seat, both died exactly 10 days later of a heart attack. Per Weird NJ, at least two others have died after sitting on the chair: In 1964, when two men sat on the chair, the pair ended died of heart attacks within three days of each other.

The century-old Nutley restaurant has since concocted a special menu item named after the legend. The "Death Seat Burger Platter" is a beer battered, deep fried burger stuffed with jalapeños, cheddar and mashed potatoes that comes with fries and a salad. It is available on Mondays only. Read more: Spooky Meal: 'Death Seat' Burger Still Being Served In Nutley

7. The Brass Rail, Hoboken

Some say Hoboken's most haunted site is the Brass Rail, a bar on the main drag of Washington Street that was supposedly the scene of a wedding party turned tragic more than 100 years ago.

According to legend, a woman was celebrating her new marriage when she tripped at the top of the stairs and fell to the bottom. The poor groom, knowing his beloved's neck was broken, apparently drank too much and took his own life near the bar's stairwell. He penned a note first: "Now that my wife was taken from me, there is no reason for me to live."

According to the weekly Hoboken Reporter, which visited the site with a ghost hunter in 2004, "Employees of the restaurant have long reported hearing noise from the upstairs dining room after closing, and owner Armando Luis tells strange tales of an adding machine that mysteriously turns on during meetings and starts adding with no apparent rhyme or reason." Read more: Hoboken's Spookiest Bar: Does Late Bride Haunt Brass Rail?

8. Liberty State Park, Jersey City

The Terminal at Liberty State Park has more than history in its tracks: it also has a few ghost stories that have piled over the years. From ghostly ladies in white to runaway trains, the terminal at Liberty State Park is full of unverified spooky stories.

The terminal was built in 1889 and closed in 1967. In its heyday, the transportation hub served 30,000 to 50,000 commuters every day. However, it's golden age didn't last for long as CRRNJ went bankrupt in 1967 and the terminal was shut down and abandoned. A renovation in the 1970s opened the terminal up for use as an events space when some began to report paranormal activity.

The most infamous of the tales is the Lady in White. As creepy as the name is, the tale gets eerier — passersby and employees of the park have reported seeing a woman with long white hair and wearing white walking through the terminal. Security guards have tried to stop the woman or approach her, but most people who get close enough only catch her walk through the walls of the abandoned terminal.

Another tall tale from the station is the ghost train of 1959. A 123-ton diesel train was left idling at the station with no one on board and suddenly took off on its own. The runaway train was never explained, and the tale still gets spun larger and larger to this day, with some rumoring they see the ghost train leave the station at midnight. Read more: Haunting Tales From The Terminal At Liberty State Park

9. Devil's Tree, Basking Ridge

The Devil's Tree or sometimes described as "a portal to hell" is one of Somerset County's creepiest haunts, according to some. It's so eerie that Thrillist Magazine has named it the most haunted place in New Jersey and one of the most scariest places in America.

"Out of context, the tree's silhouette alone is enough to inspire nightmares: a warped, half-dead oak looming in the middle of a lonely field, with dozens of ax marks lining its trunk. Then there's the gruesome history," said Thrillist.

Rumors surrounding the tree, at 181 Mountain Road in Basking Ridge near the Bridgewater border, date as far back as the 1920s when a group of KKK members was rumored to hold cross burnings and hangings off the limbs of the tree.

Basking Ridge historian Brooks Betz previously confirmed there was in fact an active KKK clan located just down the road on the Bridgewater side near Route 202/206 and Brown Road, where the Hindu temple now stands. However, the clan activities have not been proven.

"One of the different rumors is that one of the guys, a grand wizard of the clan, who owned the property in Bridgewater would hold a series of KKK activity and cross burnings. And instead of doing it on the Bridgewater property, they did it on the tree. There were tales of lynching and cross burning. But nothing was substantiated," Betz said.

Another rumor revolves around a farmer — who lived in the white farmhouse that had stood adjacent to the tree — who murdered his entire family at the home and then hung himself on the tree.

"Supposedly anyone who tries to cut down the unholy oak comes to an untimely end, as it is now cursed. It is said that the souls of those killed at the spot give the tree an unnatural warmth, and even in the dead of winter no snow will fall around it," Betz wrote in a piece about the tree years ago. Read more: Devil's Tree: A Spooky Legend In Basking Ridge

10. BONUS: The Jersey Devil, Garden State

What ghoulish New Jersey creature feature would be complete without a mention of the Jersey Devil? Several reported facing the Jersey Devil - first known as the "Leeds Devil" - throughout the state starting around the 1770s.

According to popular folklore, the Jersey Devil originated with Pine Barrens resident Jane Leeds, also known as Mother Leeds. After discovering her pregnancy with a 13th child, Mother Leeds cursed the child in frustration and claims he would be the devil, according to the legend.

Mother Leeds gave birth to the boy, who was born a normal child. But he transformed soon after, developing hooves, a goat's head, bat wings and a forked tail. Growling and screaming, the child beat everyone with its tail and flew up the chimney before heading into the Pines. In some versions of the story, Mother Leeds was a witch, and the father was the devil himself.

According to legend, while visiting the Hanover Mill Works in the early 1800s to inspect cannonballs getting forged, a Commodore Stephen Decatur saw a flying creature. He fired a cannonball directly upon it, to no effect, according to James F McCloy and Ray Miller Jr., who wrote a book called "The Jersey Devil."

Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon's older brother, claimed he saw the Jersey Devil while hunting on his Bordentown estate in 1820. The creature received blame for several livestock killings in 1840. Similar attacks were reported in 1841, accompanied by tracks and screams, according to the legend.

Between Jan. 16-23 in 1909, newspapers published hundreds of claimed encounters with the Jersey Devil throughout the state. The alleged encounters included an "attack" in a trolley car in Haddon Heights and a social club in Camden. Sightings came from throughout South Jersey and ranged as far as Delaware and Western Maryland, with mysterious hoofprints (which dogs refused to follow) were investigated by police, according to legend. Rumors say the Philadelphia Zoo even offered a $10,000 reward for the capture of the beast.

The widespread coverage created fear throughout the Delaware Valley, prompting several schools to close and workers to stay home, according to Robert E. Bartholomew's book, "A Colorful History of Popular Delusions." Vigilante groups and hunters roamed the Pines and countrysides to find the devil.

In 1927, a cab driver in Salem County reported that he was attacked by the Jersey Devil as he was changing a flat tire. As a flying creature swooped down and attacked, the driver jumped into his car and heard the beast attack the roof of his car. Modern sightings include a slaughtered pig farm in 1980 near Wharton State Forest in which only the brains of the pigs were eaten and talon-like markings were left on their bodies. In 2015, a security guard from Little Egg Harbor photographed what appeared to be the Jersey Devil at a Galloway golf course.

Whether you love or hate the legendary monster, its impact can be felt across the Garden State, from the National Hockey League team in Newark to the Jersey Devil Coaster at Jackson's Six Flags Great Adventure. There's even a web page for the Jersey Devil on the state Pinelands Commission site:

"At times, there are newspaper articles in southern New Jersey about the latest sighting of the Jersey Devil. Reports of hearing his screams have come even from people in cities near the Pinelands," the website reads.

"Some in New Jersey now think that the Jersey Devil is the protector of the Pinelands, who will not harm any humans who love this special area and try to protect it. Perhaps he is not such a bad guy after all."

Trick or Treat! Read more from Patch below:

• NJ House From 'Sabrina The Teenage Witch' Is On The Market
• Happy Halloween: Here Are NJ's Top Five Spookiest Urban Legends
• 9 Spooky Movies And TV Shows Filmed In New Jersey

With reporting by Russ Crespolini, Carly Baldwin, Caren Lissner, Sarah Salvadore, Alexis Tarazzi, Eric Kiefer, Anthony Bellano, Catarina Moura, Kimberlee Bongard and Sam Mercado.