Two Philadelphia landmarks rank among Pennsylvania's ten most haunted places

With Halloween approaching, two Philadelphia landmarks, Baleroy Mansion (exterior viewing only) and USS Olympia, rank among Pennsylvania's ten most haunted places in HauntBound's 2026 index. The index ranks 245 Pennsylvania sites by separate published accounts and how far back they go, not by fame or search popularity.

Baleroy Mansion ranks #3. The Easby family bought the Chestnut Hill estate in 1926, and George Meade Easby, great-grandson of Civil War General George Meade, spent his life there cultivating its reputation as a haunted house. Eight separate published accounts describe activity there, the earliest dated to 1961. Easby described his mother Henrietta's apparition on the front staircase and a Blue Room chair he said had caused four deaths. Most of Baleroy's claims trace only to Easby's own interviews and tours, with little independent corroboration.

USS Olympia ranks #10. Commodore George Dewey used the cruiser as his flagship during the 1898 Battle of Manila Bay, and Coxswain John Johnson died there in an 1895 gun-barrel accident. Four separate published accounts describe activity there, the earliest dated to 2008. A 2010 Philadelphia Inquirer investigation documented volunteers describing an icy touch in the passageways and translucent figures below decks, most often identified as Gunner Johnson.

Statewide, Baker Mansion in Altoona ranks #1, and Eastern State Penitentiary, also in Philadelphia and the state's most famous haunted site, misses the top ten.

"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:Baleroy Mansion (exterior viewing only), 111 W. Mermaid Lane, is visible only from the public street. Please do not trespass.USS Olympia, 211 S. Christopher Columbus Blvd., is a museum ship open Tuesday through Sunday as part of the Independence Seaport Museum.

For media:The full ranking: https://hauntbound.com/most-haunted/pennsylvania/The fact sheet, with Philadelphia numbers and cleared images: https://hauntbound.com/press/fact-sheets/pennsylvania/Photo: Baleroy Mansion and USS Olympia, on the fact sheet.Venue contact: phillyseaport.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

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