Two Lewes landmarks rank among Delaware's ten most haunted places

With Halloween approaching, two Lewes landmarks, Cape Henlopen State Park and Cannonball House, rank among Delaware's ten most haunted places in HauntBound's 2026 index. The index ranks 28 Delaware sites by separate published accounts and how far back they go, not by fame or search popularity.

Cape Henlopen State Park ranks #1, and its seven separate published accounts are the most of any Delaware site. The U.S. Army built Fort Miles there in 1940 to guard the Delaware River approach; the fort became a state park in 1964. Local accounts describe the Corpse Light, an unexplained beam seen offshore where no lighthouse stands, tied to the 1798 wreck of the British warship HMS DeBraak; local legend holds that Captain James Drew, who died in the wreck, walks the shoreline on moonless nights.

Cannonball House ranks #3. The mid-1700s Front Street house takes its name from a British cannonball, still lodged in its foundation, fired during the April 1813 bombardment of Lewes, and the Lewes Historical Society now operates it as a maritime museum. Three separate published accounts describe activity there. Staff describe a door that will not stay shut and tools found moved overnight, attributed to a former resident named Susan, who died in 1917; a 2011 investigation named the house the most active of several buildings examined.

Outside Sussex County, Rockwood Mansion in Wilmington ranks highest, at #2.

"We rank by evidence, not legend: independent published accounts, documented history, and how far back the reports go. We don't claim ghosts are real, or that they aren't. We document where the reports concentrate, and we show our work," said Ben Fineman, editor of HauntBound. The ranking shows each site's documented record.

Visiting:Cape Henlopen State Park (Fort Miles), 15099 Cape Henlopen Dr., Lewes, is open for park visits; the Fort Miles Museum at Battery 519 keeps separate hours.Cannonball House, 118 Front St., Lewes, is a free seasonal maritime museum, open April through September; it is now closed for the season.

For media:The full ranking: https://hauntbound.com/most-haunted/delaware/The fact sheet, with Lewes numbers and cleared images: https://hauntbound.com/press/fact-sheets/delaware/Venue contact: fortmilesmuseum.org and historiclewes.orgA short version follows.

HauntBound (hauntbound.com) is a family-friendly field guide to more than 6,000 documented haunted and historic places across the United States, ranked by published evidence rather than legend. No venue pays to be listed or ranked.

Media contact: Ben Fineman, Editor, HauntBound, editor@hauntbound.com

###