Tallahassee Ghost Stories: A Journey Through the City’s Haunted Landmarks

Maybe it’s the way the wind blows the Spanish moss in the live oaks at dusk that makes Tallahassee a perfect setting for ghost stories. Or, maybe it’s the contrast of new construction growing out of the middle of antebellum architecture that makes your mind play tricks on you. Either way, with 200 years of American history plus thousands of years of indigenous settlement, Tallahassee has its share of spine-tingling stories. Somewhere between history and legend live the ghosts of Tallahassee’s bygone days. Here are three areas to explore, each filled with paranormal tales where the spirits of Tallahassee’s past still linger. Walk it alone if you dare, or schedule a ghost tour with Storied Paths!

Stroll Along Monroe Street

If you assume the busy urban center of our beautiful city will scare the ghosts away, think again. A short walk down Monroe Street brings you face-to-face with several phantoms from the past.

• Lively Corner, originally built in 1875, has been home to several businesses over the past 150 years. It operated as the Leon Bar starting in 1892 but was forced to close down in 1904 when Leon County outlawed the sale of alcohol. However, several of the bar’s former patrons are still seen hanging around out front, apparently still waiting for their “spirits.”
• The Federal Exchange Building is said to be haunted by the ghost of C.L. Mizell. A local banker during the onset of the Great Depression, Mizell made the ultimate sacrifice for his beloved Tallahassee. He is rumored to “spook” bank patrons who need some sound financial advice.
• The mere act of walking along Monroe Street downtown puts you in the footsteps of one of Tallahassee’s most infamous murders. What began as a political dispute ended in an ambush. Leigh Read, a Southern Democrat, was shot and killed in broad daylight in April of 1841 while walking along Monroe Street after leaving the Capitol.

Courtesy of the State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory.

Step into the Old City Cemetery

A fascinating place to spend time exploring during the day, the Old City Cemetery is the final resting place for many of Tallahassee’s earliest settlers. From Yellow Fever victims to Civil War soldiers, much of Tallahassee’s gruesome past is also buried here. The most visited grave, however, is that of Elizabeth Budd Graham, affectionately known as Bessie. Local legend says she was a white witch, and admirers continue to leave tokens on her monument to this day. Standing outside the fencing at night, and just you might catch some orbs or misty shadows with your camera.

Wander A Little Wider

If you want to expand your tour of Tallahassee’s haunted history, here are a few recommendations.

• The Goodwood Museum is worth the visit on any given day, but if you’re lucky, you just might hear the spirited laughter of children running through the house. Reported for decades by owners, visitors, and staff, the identity of these spectral youngsters are a mystery.
• The Tallahassee Museum preserves both nature and history.. While you’re there, be sure to stop by Bellvue Plantation, the preserved home of Princess Catherine Willis Murat. Her apparition has been glimpsed by more than one visitor in the house where she lived for twenty years…and where she died.
• Velda Mounds Park is an archaeological site linked to the Fort Walton peoples who lived in the area prior to the Spanish Mission Period. For decades local residents have claimed to experience a whole host of paranormal phenomena, from apparitions of Native Americans, to howling wolves. But maybe its Emma Boyd, the FSCW instructor who died in a tragic accident while excavating the mound in 1922, who really haunts the site.

Ready for a chilling adventure? Book a ghost tour today and explore these haunted locations up close with Storied Paths.