#30 Of The Most Haunted Places In The World

9. Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia, U.S.

As the first prison in the U.S to introduce solitary confinement, this gloomy building was at the centre of much debate: did the practice lead to reflection and ultimately, contrition? Or was it akin to torture, the torment of which would only twist the minds of those punished with it even further? The prison was eventually shut down in 1871, but visitors claim to see prisoners still inhabiting cells, and to hear malicious mutterings close at hand.

10. Port Elizabeth Library, South Africa

If you happen to be reading a spooky book in the Port Elizabeth Library and feel a ghostly presence nearby, it may not just be the suggestive powers of the pages in front of you. Police Constable Maxwell was burned in a fire next door a full 6 years before this library was even built, but when his memorial stone was moved to the library’s gardens, he kept showing up at the library until his stone was returned to its original place. Perhaps he wasn’t much of a reader? Even now that his presence no longer disturbs library goers, there’s the still the ghost of former caretaker, Robert Thomas, to contend with: even though he died nearly 80 years ago, he still arranges discarded books in neat piles.