Category: Ghostly Images
The Ghosts of Gettysburg
October 12, 2023October is here, bringing with it earlier sunsets and fresh spookiness, lingering whispers in shadowy nooks, and the unseen rustling of fallen leaves. Whether or not you believe in such things, Gettysburg is world-renowned among aficionados of the supernatural as a potent center for paranormal activity. No matter if you are deeply passionate about Civil War history, are interested in supernatural investigation, are a fan of ghost hunting— or even if you’re just looking for a good old-fashioned scare to celebrate the Halloween season, the ghosts of Gettysburg certainly offer a chilling invitation!
Read on to uncover more about the restless spirits that reputedly haunt this historic town and battlefield, and some of the legends that surround them.
History Uncovered at the National Soldier’s Orphans’ Homestead!
January 16, 2023
History came to life during the annual interior painting and maintenance at the National Soldier’s Orphan’s Homestead in Gettysburg. A wall in the original dining area was in need of repair, and the decision was made to cut a small hole to see what was behind the drywall. Fortunately, the hole was in an area that revealed plaster, layers of wallpaper, and the original brick. As Laurie Crown, Manager of Ghostly Images and Eric Nelson, Lead Tour Guide and Trainer, worked to uncover the brick, they discovered what appeared to be one side of a window frame. After several days of careful work, three of the original windows were uncovered. The very windows that Major General Oliver O. Howard of the XI Corps perhaps used to monitor the Battle of Gettysburg. The very windows later used by the children of the Orphanage to catch a glimpse of the normal life they once enjoyed, and desperately longed for.
Haunted Gettysburg
October 14, 2022Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, is known throughout the world as the location of one of the largest, most expensive, and deadliest battles of the American Civil War. With over 50,000 estimated casualties, the famous Battle of Gettysburg in 1863 is widely believed to mark the turning point of the war. Over 160 years have passed since those three bloody days at Gettysburg, but some believe the nightmare of that battle never ended for some of the poor souls killed there. Across the hallowed grounds of the battlefield and throughout the town and environs, it is believed by some that the haunted souls of those who suffered there may still roam.
A Civil War Christmas: The Only Civilian Death of the Gettysburg Battle
November 20, 2020
Jennie (Mary Virginia) Wade, a seamstress living in Gettysburg during the mid-19th century, pines for the love of her life, Johnston (Jack) Skelley, an Army soldier of 87th Pennsylvania. He is in Virginia fighting for the Union.
In July of 1863, the Confederate Army, led by Gen. Robert E. Lee of Northern Virginia, launches the Gettysburg Campaign, and the rages of war envelope the town. Civilians are caught between the battlefronts and forced inside to seek shelter in their basements.
5 Reasons to Book a Ghost Tour
September 21, 2018
As Halloween grows closer, the interest in our famous Ghost Tours reaches maximum capacity. If you are considering adding a ghost tour to your Gettysburg visit, here are a few of the popular reasons guests choose to go on a ghostly adventure.
- They’re not all scary
While some of our ghost tours, like Georgia, Your Sister is Dead or our Ghostly Encounters are on the scarier side, we also have options like our Ghost Bus Tour that are more appropriate for younger children, or those who are easily frightened.
If you’re worried about the degree of scariness in any of our tours, just give us a call and we’ll be able to answer any questions you may have.
Gettysburg Tours – Group Itineraries for Adults and Seniors
July 19, 2017
Let Gettysburg Group Reservations take the headache out of planning your next group tour to Gettysburg! We help plan military and family reunions, girlfriends’ getaways, and romantic retreats for you and your spouse.
This is the second in our special group itineraries series. Be sure to check out part one – Gettysburg group itineraries for all interests. If you’d like to learn more about any of our group tours for adults and seniors, just click on the tour name below or feel free to give us a call for more info.
Need an idea for your family, class, or military reunion and not sure where to start? We’ve got a full day’s worth of excitement packed into our Gettysburg Reunion tour. Starting at the Gettysburg National Military Park with a tour of the museum, galleries and cyclorama, you’ll then move to the Eisenhower National Historic site to tour the home of our 34th president, then stop for lunch at the historic Dobbin House. The afternoon includes a licensed guided battlefield bus tour and a stop at the Jennie Wade House (the home of the only civilian killed during the Battle of Gettysburg). Round out your day with a tour and tasting at the Mason Dixon Distillery, a visit to the Seminary Ridge Museum, and dinner at Hickory Bridge Farm.
Peggy Noel
April 25, 2014Traveling a few miles out of Gettysburg to the West on Fairfield Road you cross a small bridge over Marsh Creek. The slow moving water winds slowly off to the left along Gettysburg Campground creating a rather picturesque scene. This quiet area, however, holds a rather tragic tale… the tale of Peggy Noel, that has been told and retold for many years, going back to the days before the Civil War.
According to the story, a young Gettysburg woman was traveling the road on a dark, snowy night. Peggy Noel was returning home from a trip to Fairfield and was running late. To make up for lost time, the coachman was going too fast for the poor conditions that evening. As they approached the bridge, the horses tripped and fell to the muddy roadway. The driver was thrown to the side of the road. He looked back in horror to see the coach topple and the doors spring open. Peggy Noel was thrown from her coach. She became entangled in the large spoked rear wheel and to the driver’s horror he saw her decapitated. The head of the young woman rolled across the bridge eventually falling into the water below.
For days they searched the banks of the creek to no avail. Eventually Peggy went to the grave headless. Rumor tells us that the family did not mark the grave. They couldn’t bear the thought of visiting a site of such horror, a grave with a headless corpse. There is a rock out on the battlefield just north of Devil’s Den with the letters P. Noel carved into it. To this day no one knows when it was put there or who did it. Could it be the final resting-place of Peggy Noel?
Along the banks of Marsh Creek, South of Fairfield Road, stories persist of a headless woman wading through the waters. She appears to be searching for something. Could Peggy still be searching for her head, hoping to be again complete!
I had read this story years ago in a local ghost storybook and filed it away in my mind. Imagine my surprise in the summer of 2002, when a family of 4 (Mom, Dad, son of about 17 and daughter, maybe 13), approached me after a Baltimore Street ghost tour. The son acted as the spokesman for the group. He said that he had a silly question for me about a ghost story. I told him that the only silly questions are those that don’t get asked and I’d be happy to hear his. That is when he surprised me by saying that the family had arrived in Gettysburg a few days earlier and had taken some historical tours but my tour was their first adventure into the spirit world. As he spoke, I could see that the mother was very uncomfortable with the whole situation. I then found out why. He went on to ask if I knew stories concerning a headless woman in the vicinity of Gettysburg Campground out on Fairfield Road. As I started to search the recesses in my mind, I asked out of curiosity, Why?
It seems on that very morning, his mother had awakened just before dawn. They were staying at a campsite along Marsh Creek just off Fairfield Road. The mother decided to go out in the fresh morning air and walk to the restrooms. Rather than return directly to the camper, she took a longer way back, walking along the edge of the creek in the morning air.
It wasn’t long after that, the mother awakened the rest of the family as she came screaming and crying into the camper. It took them 15-20 minutes to calm her down to the point that she could tell her tale.
(To be Continued)