The Most Haunted Places in North Dakota
20 documented locations, ranked by depth of evidence. Updated September 2026.
What makes this ranking different
- Evidence-ranked. Ordered by how many independent published reports we found, how far back they go, and how well they hold up, not by how often a story is retold. A place with more recent accounts can rank below one with a longer record. See methodology.
- Family-rated. A family-suitability rating on every site, so you know before you go.
- Logistics-checked. Each entry says how you can visit, book, or stay, as far as we could confirm it; where we could not, the page says so.
North Dakota has 20 documented haunted locations in the HauntBound index.
- Total documented
- 20
- Museum / Historical Site
- 6
- Haunted Dining / Bar
- 4
- Theater / Performance Venue
- 3
- Family-friendly
- 18
- Bookable
- 4
- Oldest documented site
- Fort Abercrombie State Historic Site (1857)
- Most-reported phenomenon
- disembodied voices
- This October
- 6 experiences running this October
The upset
North Dakota's most famous haunted site, Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park, does not make the evidence top ten; the winner is Bonanzaville, USA in West Fargo. Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park · Bonanzaville, USA
Ranked
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Bonanzaville, USA in West Fargo assembles 34 historic buildings on 12 acres, including the Houston House, once home to inventor David Henderson Houston, who patented the first roll film for cameras in 1881. The Houston House and the Brass Rail Saloon are the buildings most often named in visitor and staff accounts of unexplained activity, though published reports give few specifics beyond general impressions. The museum runs seasonal paranormal investigations each October, when small groups are let into the buildings after normal hours.
6 original accounts · documented across 2 decades, 2013-2025 · retold in 6 later publications
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HauntBound identified three distinct published accounts at this museum site, across five kinds of published source. Two later publications retell those accounts. Reported phenomena include cold spots and electrical anomalies.
3 original accounts · documented across 2 decades, 1931-2022 · retold in 2 later publications
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HauntBound identified three distinct published accounts at this burial ground. Two later publications retell those accounts. Reported phenomena include a sensed presence and orbs.
3 original accounts · documented across 3 decades, 1920-2017 · retold in 2 later publications
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Cass County established a hospital and poor farm in 1895 for residents without family or means; when it closed in 1973, its three cemeteries held 1,000 unmarked graves, 300 of which were relocated in 1985. The grounds became Trollwood Park and hosted a performing arts school. During performances, witnesses described a woman in a dark 19th-century dress dancing beneath a willow near the Cemetery #2 marker, mistaken for part of the show before she vanished.
3 original accounts · documented across 3 decades, 1960-2022 · retold in 5 later publications
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Edward G. Patterson built this ten-story hotel in 1910-1911, originally named the McKenzie Hotel, and it was the tallest building in Bismarck for decades. The Peacock Alley restaurant opened on the ground floor in 1933, after Prohibition's repeal, and operates while the upper floors became senior apartments. Seventh-floor residents report hearing party sounds from the closed eighth floor at night, and restaurant staff have found glasses moved from the rack to the bar by morning.
2 original accounts · documented across 2 decades, 1900-2003
Superlatives
Methodology
For purposes of the HauntBound Index, "most haunted" means the location with the strongest documented record of reported haunting phenomena. We evaluate the quantity, independence, persistence, and documentary quality of published reports. We do not attempt to determine whether paranormal phenomena are real, and we never count a source that only establishes a building's history as evidence of haunting claims. Repetitive coverage is subject to diminishing returns, so a story retold many times does not outrank a story independently documented. Rankings never consider commercial relationships.
The 2026 Index reflects sources identified and classified as of September 15, 2026.
Corrected September 18, 2026: a source audit revised the documented-account count for St. Joseph's Hospital; the ranking reflects the correction.
This is a documentation ranking, not a visitation guide; sites not open to visitors are marked on their entries.