Haunted Philadelphia: Famous Phantoms, Sinister Sites, and Lingering Legends

by Darcy Oordt

Philadelphia is known for many brotherly love, Revolutionary history, passionate sports fans, cheesesteaks, and Rocky are merely a few of them. But the Founding Fathers didn’t just walk the streets of Philadelphia 200 years ago, many still walk here…or so the story goes. Along the streets of Philadelphia you can find the ghosts of Ben Franklin, Betsy Ross, Alexander Hamilton, and Edgar Allen Poe. But those are only the famous ones. There are a few less known ghosts creeping around the historic streets.

Nearby Fort Mifflin certainly has its share of hauntings, given its long history of sheltering soldiers and holding prisoners from the Revolutionary War up to the Civil War. And given all the cemeteries that have been established and then relocated--or not--it's almost a given that thousands of disturbed graves might stir up a ghost or two.

289 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2015

Reviews

[Elena Santangelo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably the most comprehensive collection I've read of Philly (and Philly area) ghost stories. I've done living history on many of the sites and read a lot of other similar collections, so I was already familiar with about half the legends, but Oordt includes stories and history of many lesser known sites. Also included was a nice amount of creepy history, like where bones/coffins have been found on construction sites, what has been built over old cemeteries (mostly elementary schools, it would seem), and the like.

What I absolutely loved about this book was that the author didn't simply repeat stories found in other sources. Oordt did historical research where possible to find out if events happened the way the legends claimed or if the identities of the ghosts (especially famous people like Ben Franklin) had anything to do with the buildings they now supposedly haunt, and if not, what actually happened there that might produce a ghost. I've done this myself. Staying true to the history usually makes a much more interesting story.

Highly recommend. Nice read for the month of October.

[William Jeanes Memorial Library]

The writing is clumsy and barely edited, but when you keep in mind that this is written by an experienced tour guide, it becomes quite entertaining. The stories and jokes do feel like you're listening to an audio tour, and I appreciate that the author did some research and offers, when relevant, alternative, logical explanations to some of the legends. Even if you don't believe in ghosts, if you have any interest in checking out some of Philadelphia's historical locations, the stories in this book will definitely help guide you.
-Patron E.M.

[steen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I can't say this book was the most captivating read but I do appreciate the author's straightforward approach. Some haunted locations are briefly mentioned, only to end in the author noting that there's no research to support the local legend. There are some attempts at humor and some of the stories are interesting but the writing style is a bit dry.

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just not very good

The biggest problem with this book is just that none of this stuff can be proven. You would have to fully believe in ghosts and that sort of thing to really like this book I gave it 2 stars as opposed to 1 star only because of the author's historical and geographical description of different locations in the city