20 + Real Tennessee Haunted Houses So Frightening They Were Featured on TV

For many chill seekers, the chintzy costumes and silicone masks of Halloween are not nearly enough to satisfy their craving for fear. No. These brave souls are looking for the real deal, and TN has plenty to offer!

These Tennessee haunted houses and buildings are so haunted (allegedly) that they’ve managed to hit the big time on television. Some have even been featured on multiple shows. Below you’ll discover some of the scariest places in TN, how to visit them, and how to stream their featured episodes.

Towards the bottom of the page, you will also find a free printable watch list, with every show episode for your viewing enjoyment! Watch the shows and judge the haunt level for yourself!

Discover 20 + real TN Haunted Houses that are completely terrifying!

If you are here looking for Halloween-style haunted houses, you can find those at the links below.

Tennessee Haunted Houses: Nashville

For your convenience, these haunted attractions are separated by the metro areas: Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Tri-Cities. Click on the name of any attraction to verify the information provided or get additional details.

Important Note: Oddly, season and episode numbers vary by the individual streaming platform and, for that reason, have not been included on this list. They ARE included on the FREE printable watch list, which details many different places you can stream each episode. You can download that resource at the bottom of this page.

Loretta Lynn’s Plantation House

Featured on

  • Ghost Adventures – “Loretta Lynn Plantation House”

Details

At this haunted plantation, visitors may glimpse the crying woman in white, named Beula Anderson. She died of grief just 12 days after the death of her newborn son. Visitors report hearing her cries and seeing the anguished movements of her ghostly body.

There are also the ghosts of 2 Civil War soldiers on the property.

In addition to daytime tours, guests can stay overnight at this location’s onsite campground. The campground boasts RV spots, tent spots, and a few small cabins.

Bell Witch Cave and Cabin

Featured on

  • Ghost Adventures – “Bell Witch Cave”
  • Haunted Live – “The Curse of the Bell Witch”

Details

At this site, the Bell family was haunted by the ghost of a witch who calls herself Kate. Many neighbors bore witness to the events, which included physical assaults, footsteps, knocking, weird animal sounds, and the eventual poisoning death of family patriarch John Bell.

Many visitors report experiencing similar paranormal events to this day. Daytime tours are offered throughout the year, and nighttime tours are offered during the month of October. Nighttime tour hours run through midnight (the witching hour).

Old Lincoln County Hospital

Featured on

  • Ghost Adventures – “Old Lincoln County Hospital”

Details

This building was used as a hospital from 1935 through 2001. Although there are many, one of the most well-known ghosts at this location is a young girl named Mary. Many nurses also reported an “Angel of Death” that stalked dying patients.

Unfortunately, this building is not currently open for public tours. Local investigators have spoken to the owner and are hopeful that it will eventually reopen in the future.

Thomas House Red Boiling Springs

Featured on

  • Ghost Hunters – “Dead and Breakfast”
  • Paranormal State – “Room 37”

Details

This historic bed and breakfast has a long history of haunts. Moving beds, cold spots, disembodied voices, feelings of dread and terror, and dark figures are frequently reported by guests.

The hotel regularly hosts Ghost Hunting Weekends where guests work alongside trained paranormal investigators to seek out the terrifying spirits on-site.

The one-night adventure includes full accommodations, a full night of ghost hunting, dinner, midnight snack, and breakfast. Guests are also free to leave the group and hunt on their own if desired.

Historic Haunted Lotz House

Featured on

  • Most Terrifying Places in America – “A Spa For the Supernatural”
  • Haunted Live – “Caught in the Crossfire”

Details

The bloody Battle of Franklin left thousands of Civil War soldiers dead on the lawn of this historic home. The bodies are said to have been stacked 6 feet deep. This gruesome battle left its mark on the house, as blood stains are still visible on the walls to this day.

The house is said to be haunted not only by the soldiers but also by 2 of the Lotz children, who suffered early deaths on the property. Paranormal experiences include tugging on pants legs, apparitions, voices, and more!

This location offers daytime tours throughout the week. They also offer after-dark ghost tours around Halloween. People report having ghostly encounters during both nighttime and daytime tours.

Real Memphis Haunted Houses

Metal Museum (formerly Memphis US Marine Hospital

Featured on

  • Ghost Asylum – “U.S. Marine Hospital”

Details

This 1800’s hospital was originally established to care for injured Civil War soldiers. It remained a working (and experimental) military hospital until it was closed in the 1960s. The military continued to use the building until the 1990s. You can view some awesome photos over on Abandoned Southeast.

Thousands of patients died at the hospital and many were reportedly experimented on and tortured. The facility is said to be haunted by both patients and evil staff members.

Currently, 1/2 of the hospital is a metal art museum, which is open daily, aside from Mondays and holidays. The other half is being turned into apartments.

Woodruff-Fontaine House

Featured on

  • Ghost Hunters – “Don’t Forget About Us”

Details

This historic mansion is said to be haunted by the many family members who lived and died inside the house.

The mansion is currently owned by The Association for the Preservation of Tennessee Antiquities, which has turned it into a museum. The museum gives history-focused daytime tours and ghost tours in the evening.

The ghost tours do use sophisticated paranormal investigation equipment. They also have a large haunted Halloween event as their annual fundraiser.

Orpheum Theatre Memphis

Featured on

  • Most Terrifying Places in America – “The Girl Ghost of Octagon Hall”

Details

This theatre is haunted by the ghost of a young girl named Mary, who is approximately 12 years old. The circumstances surrounding her death are unclear. Paranormal happenings include apparitions, disembodied voices, and physical interactions, such as playing the theatre’s pipe organ.

The theatre is still operational, so you are free to get show tickets any time you like. There are also a couple of walking ghost tours that visit this location.

20 + Real Tennesse Haunted Houses

Real Tennessee Haunted Houses: Knoxville

Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary

Featured on:

  • Ghost Asylum “Brushy Mountains State Penitentiary”
  • Wrestling with Ghosts “Drag Me to Jail”

Details

Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary was operational as recently as 2009. This maximum-security prison housed some of Tennessee’s most dangerous criminals. Some of the criminals’ crimes were so heinous that their prison sentences were upwards of 200 years!

While the death penalty was never carried out at Brushy State, more than a few of the murderers and rapists housed here died during their stays. With crimes like that, it’s no wonder they also enjoy haunting from the grave!

Paranormal happenings at this location include physical assaults, apparitions, footsteps, and disembodied voices. The prison offers both short nighttime tours and overnight stays, both complete with the use of sophisticated paranormal investigation equipment.

Bijou Theatre

Featured on

Ghost Hunters – The show named the Bijou the “hidden gem of haunted America,” although it was never given its own feature episode.

Details

Originally built in 1817 as a hotel, this historic building was used as a makeshift hospital during the Civil War, and many soldiers died within its walls. For a short time, it also served as a brothel, which was also riddled with violence.

Paranormal incidents at this venue include physical interactions, apparitions, and disembodied voices. It is also reported to have several residual hauntings, where a scene from the past plays out repeatedly, as though it is stuck in time.

This is still a working theatre, so ghost tours are hosted by the theatre and are typically reserved for special events. There is usually a large event held around Halloween.

Ghost tour guests are escorted through all the typically off-limits parts of the theatre and provided with a detailed account of the various paranormal events that have been reported over the years.

Greenbrier Restaurant Gatlinburg

Featured on

  • Wrestling with Ghosts “I Used to Be a Cop”

Details

For those of you who prefer a friendlier ghost, this is the place for you. This historic lodge-turned-restaurant is home to the ghost of a jilted bride named Lydia. The story goes that Lydia was staying at the lodge, and after she got jilted, she was so emotionally distraught that she killed herself in her room. She also has a marked grave on the property.

Many restaurant patrons report seeing Lydia’s sad apparition at the top of the staircase that leads to what was once the guest room. Since this episode originally aired, the restaurant has been remodeled, but it is the same place.

Even if you hope to see a ghost during your visit, you obviously also want to enjoy the food as well. The Greenbrier has a reputation for top-notch American surf-and-turf and craft cocktails. In a play on words, they bill themselves as a “Food and Spirit Outpost.”

Cocke County Memorial Building

Featured on

  • Ghost Brothers – “Coke County Memorial Building”

Details

Once serving as an overflow morgue after a mysterious passenger jet crash, which warranted a secretive FBI investigation, the building is said to be haunted by the crash victims, including 2 child ghosts.

Paranormal happenings at this location include physical interactions, apparitions, disembodied voices, feelings of dread and doom, and more.

Wheatlands Plantation Sevierville

Featured on

  • Ghost Stalkers – “Wheatland’s Plantation”

Details

This 1820s home is supposedly located on a Native American burial mound and is said to have had over 70 murders/deaths take place on the property. There is also a slave cemetery located on the property. Whew! That’s definitely a lot of baggage.

But, is it really haunted? Unfortunately, you probably won’t get a chance to decide for yourself any time soon.

Ghost Hunt Weekends used to host periodic dinners and ghost hunt tours on the plantation, but the plantation is now closed to the public. It was recently sold at the beginning of 2019. Perhaps the new owner will reopen it for tours in the future.

Old Lafollette Post Office

Featured on

  • Wrestling with Ghosts – “Going Postal”
  • Wrestling with Ghosts – “The Postman Always Screams Twice”

Details

The Wrestling with Ghosts crew experienced such strong paranormal encounters on their first visit that they were compelled to return to this same location a second time. One crew member even describes this as the location that made him a true believer.

Paranormal encounters at this old post office include physical interactions, disembodied voices, footsteps, and apparitions. This location is no longer open to public tours.

Bethesda Presbyterian Church Morristown

Featured on

  • Wrestling with Ghosts – “They Died with Their Boos On”

Details

This 1835 church was used as a hospital for wounded soldiers during the Civil War. The cemetery is said to be haunted by Confederate soldiers, deceased church members, and others buried in the cemetery.

Paranormal activities at this location include physical interactions, apparitions, disembodied voices, and more. The cemetery is open so that people may pay their respects, but ghost hunting is no longer permitted. The cemetery closes at dark.

Real Haunted Houses in Chattanooga

Hales Bar, Marina, and Resort

Featured on:

  • Ghost Adventures “Hales Bar Marina and Dam”
  • Ghost Hunters “Flooded Souls”
  • Kindred Spirits “Blood in the Water”

Details

Once a functioning hydroelectric dam, the ruins and bar sit on old Cherokee land that was ultimately confiscated by the government. Many believe the land has been cursed.

Paranormal encounters at this location have included apparitions, disembodied voices, physical interactions, and more.

The investigative team at Stones River Paranormal offers overnight tours at this location and has already captured compelling video evidence. Overnight accommodations at this location include on-site floating cabins and RV sites.

South Pittsburg Hospital

Featured on

  • Ghost Lab “No Escape”
  • Ghost Asylum “Old South Pittsburg Hospital”
  • Paranormal Witness “The Night Wizard”
  • Paranormal Challenge “Old South Pittsburg Hospital”

Details

Considered one of the most haunted places in Tennessee, the land where this hospital stands once housed a vibrant Native American community.

The community shared the land with Union soldiers during the Civil War, during a Confederate attack at this location, many soldiers and Native Americans were slaughtered in the fields surrounding OSPH.

The hauntings are thought to be a combination of soldiers, Native Americans, and hospital patients. The hospital also sits directly on top of a natural spring, which is thought to feed the paranormal activity at this location. Observed encounters include physical interactions, apparitions, disembodied voices, and more!

There are regular hunts at this location, hosted by the owners. The hunts last until 3 AM and include dinner. If you have a large group there is also a number to call to set up a private tour.

Delta Queen River Boat

Featured On

  • Ghost Brothers “The Delta Queen”
  • Ghost Lab “The Ghost of Blackbeard”

Details

This historic 1920s vessel was once used as a stationary hotel/restaurant/bar, docked at Coolidge Park. After the vessel was severely damaged during an ice storm, the fate of the boat remained up in the air. But no worries, the vessel is set to resume overnight river cruises in 2020, with stops in Chattanooga and Nashville.

The vessel is said to be haunted by Captain Mary Greene, the first female riverboat captain in America. She ran the boat until her death, and many believe that her spirit watches over the boat as a protector.

tn haunted houses

Real Haunted Houses in Johnson City TN, Bristol, Kingsport, and Beyond

Rabbitman Cabin

Featured on

  • Wrestling with Ghosts “The Rabbitman Commeth”

Details

This haunting surrounds the story of George Sherwin, who fed and befriended wild rabbits. His large collection of wild rabbits soon attracted the attention of neighbors, and subsequently the police. In his zest to protect his rabbits, he wound up committing multiple murders over the years.

Paranormal events include physical assaults, unexplained violent illness immediately after stepping foot onto the property, disembodied voices, and more.

I couldn’t find any information regarding the exact location of this cabin (somewhere in the Uncoi Woods), so I am assuming that it is not currently open for ghost hunting. You can watch this full episode on YouTube.

Sensabaugh Tunnel

Featured on

  • Wrestling with Ghosts “I Used to Be a Cop”

Details

Some are skeptical of the authenticity of this haunt, however, many hunters and locals do report paranormal activity at this location. It is said to be haunted by Mr. Sensabaugh himself, a man who lived across the street and frequently scared off mischievous teens, while he was alive. It may also be haunted by the 7 immigrant workers killed during the tunnel’s construction.

People report horrifying apparitions, disembodied voices, and more! Just type Sensabaugh Tunnel into Google Maps to find the location.

More East TN Family Fun

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