SS William A. Irvin tops Minnesota's new evidence-ranked haunted index

SS William A. Irvin in Duluth ranks #1 in HauntBound's 2026 index of Minnesota's most haunted places, which ranks sites by published evidence rather than reputation. Palmer House Hotel, the state's most famous haunted site, ranks #10. Hennepin County holds three of the top ten.

The top five:

1. SS William A. Irvin, Duluth
2. Mantorville Opera House, Mantorville
3. Historic Calumet Inn, Pipestone
4. First Avenue, Minneapolis
5. Wabasha Street Caves, Saint Paul

SS William A. Irvin in Duluth has the most distinct published accounts of any Minnesota site, eight. The oldest documented site is Wabasha Street Caves in Saint Paul, dating to 1840. Minneapolis College of Art and Design in Minneapolis is the index's most family-friendly pick in the state. Apparitions are the most commonly reported phenomenon, on record at 54 sites.

"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.

HauntBound ranks each state's places by the documented record of reported haunting phenomena: the quantity, independence, persistence and documentary quality of published reports. A story retold many times counts for less than independent accounts, and a source that only establishes a building's history never counts as evidence of a haunting. The index does not try to determine whether paranormal phenomena are real. The 2026 index reflects sources identified and classified as of September 15, 2026.

For media:The full ranking: https://hauntbound.com/most-haunted/minnesota/The fact sheet, with city-by-city numbers and cleared images: https://hauntbound.com/press/fact-sheets/minnesota/Interviews by email and city-by-city data on request.

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

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