Haunted Orlando

by Joshua Ginsberg

Author Joshua Ginsberg guides intrepid readers on a journey into Orlando's haunted history. More than 70 million people visit Orlando annually. Some travel for pleasure, others come for business, but once the glow of the nightly fireworks over the Magic Kingdom fades, the City Beautiful plays host to a different set of guests…from beyond the grave. Do those who played roles in bringing the city to life continue to inhabit it well after their deaths? Encounter July Perry and the ghosts of Wall Street Square, the apparition known as the Lady of Lucerne, the unquiet victims of Sunland Hospital, restless residents of Greenwood Cemetery, and a great many others.

128 pages, Paperback

Published September 2, 2024

About the author

Joshua Ginsberg is the author of Secret Tampa Bay: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful and Obscure (2020), Tampa Bay Scavenger (2021), and Oldest Tampa Bay (2022), and co-author of Secret Orland (2023). A writer and curiosity seeker, he relocated from Chicago in 2016. Recently he wrote the script of the ghost tour for the Clearwater Jolley Trolley (hauntedclearwater.com) and his work has appeared in numerous print and online publications including Trembling with Fear (Horror Tree), 365 Tomorrows, The Chamber, The City Key, Atlas Obscura, Travel After Five, and on his own blog, Terra Incognita Americanus. He currently lives in the Town n’ Country neighborhood of Tampa with his wife, Jen, and their Shih Tzu, Tinker Bell.

Reviews

[Darth Jader · Rating 4.25 out of 5]

This is a very good book about the hauntings in and around Orlando. The author does a great job of giving the reader the background into each haunted location, from when it was built, to any changes made throughout the years, and why each building/location has a lot of historical significance. My only two minor complaints are that the author should have spent a bit more time on the ghostly activity at each location, far too often the author only dedicated a small paragraph at the end of each spiel to the supposed hauntings at the location. I also think the author could have removed a couple locations mentioned as it was proven that these locales are not likely haunted, but I guess since they are creepy enough, the get a place in a book about haunted locations. Make that make sense. Finally, this is a slight knock on the rating, there are quite a few grammar errors at the end of the book showing me the book was not thoroughly edited before publication. I would recommend that this book be read by travelers interested in exploring the haunted locales in Orlando.

[Nathalia Barnerd · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the restless spirits of Sunland Hospital to the mysterious Lady of Lucerne, each story is vividly told, balancing well researched history with eerie encounters. Ginsberg has a gift for painting Orlando not just as a sunny vacation destination, but as a place where the past still lingers in shadowy corners.