Independence National Historical Park, Old City, and Society Hill, Philadelphia · Ghost Tour of Philadelphia (operating since 1995)
Ghost Tour of Philadelphia has operated since 1995, making it one of the longest-running ghost tour companies in the country. Its flagship walking tour departs from Signers' Garden at 5th and Chestnut Streets and covers back streets and gardens of Independence National Historical Park, Old City, and Society Hill -- the core of colonial and early-Republic Philadelphia, home to Independence Hall, Washington Square (a former burial ground), and 18th-century merchant houses including the Powel House and Hill-Physick House.
The tour has been named one of the top 10-15 'must-see' attractions in the US by Budget Travel Magazine, voted Best Guided Tour and Best Walking Tour in Philadelphia by Philly.com and Philly Happening List readers, and featured in Fodor's, Lonely Planet, and Moon Travel Guides, as well as 6abc's Halloween Haunts and Visit Philadelphia's Halloween coverage.
Sources
- https://ghosttour.com/philadelphia.html
- https://ghosttour.com/hauntedphiladelphia.html
ApparitionsUnexplained SoundsFeelings of Being Watched
The operator's marketing describes the Powel House and Hill-Physick House as among the most haunted sites in Society Hill, visited as part of the tour's indoor stops, alongside outdoor stories tied to the Strangers' Burial Ground. Separately, the operator's site describes the USS Olympia -- a Spanish-American War-era cruiser docked at Penn's Landing, commissioned in 1895 -- as reportedly cursed by sailors who served aboard it, naming a figure called 'Gunner Johnson' as the ship's most frequently reported ghost.
All of this is the tour operator's own marketing material, describing what the tour and its related programming cover, not an independently verified claim by HauntBound.
Notable Entities
Gunner Johnson (operator's name for a reported USS Olympia ghost)
Media Appearances
- Budget Travel Magazine
- Fodor's
- Lonely Planet
- Moon Travel Guides
- 6abc's Halloween Haunts
- Visit Philadelphia