It’s Halloween! What better way to celebrate than with some ghost stories? Here are CityNews.ca’s Top 5 Haunted Buildings in Toronto.
5. Old City Hall
Judges’ robes mysteriously being pulled, footsteps heard walking down deserted hallways, moans from empty holding cells in the basement - these are among the many unexplained occurrences that have been reported from Old City Hall. So what (or who) is disturbing the building? One theory is that it’s the ghosts of Robert Turpin and Arthur Lucas, the last two men sentenced to hang in Canada. Although tried for separate crimes their lawyer, Ross MacKay, believed both men to be innocent. Whether it’s the spirit of disgruntled criminals or just an old creepy building is up to you to decide.
4. The Royal York Hotel
The Royal York Hotel has been a fixture on Toronto’s cityscape since 1929. When it opened it was the tallest building in the British Commonwealth. It has welcomed more than 40 million visitors over the years and is still one of the nicest buildings (inside and out) standing in this city. Could it be haunted? According to John Robert Colombo’s book Mysteries of Ontario, the eighth floor has the spirit of an older man with grey hair walking the halls at night. And a report on The Toronto Ghosts and Hauntings Research Society website mentions the ghost of a former employee who hanged himself in the staircase leading up to the roof.
3. Keg Mansion
Go for the steak, hang with the ghost. Literally. The best-known haunting at the Keg Mansion (located on Jarvis St. just North of Wellesley St.) is that of a maid who hanged herself when the Massey Family owned the house. Supposedly you can still see her hanging from a rope in the front entrance some nights. Other reports include the sound of children running and playing in the kitchen and upper floors and some creepy sightings in the women’s washroom. As long as they don’t affect the food I think the ghosts add a nice ambiance to the restaurant. Bon Appétit!
2. The Guild Inn
A recent article on blogTO reminded me how much history the Guild Inn has and just how terrifying it can be. Located on top of the Scarborough Bluffs it was originally built to be the summer home of Colonel Harold Bickford. Over the years it has been a missionary college, museum, military hospital, a hotel and now an abandoned building. With such a sordid past it’s no wonder there are reports of paranormal activity. Loud noises at night, random temperature drops, door handles rattling and visions of a young soldier with one blue eye and one brown. Spooky.
1. The Old Don Jail
The Old Don Jail housed a lot of evil in its time. Many hangings took place at the indoor gallows (including the last two men to hang: Arthur Lucas and Robert Turpin) and inmates were not always treated well. Last year human remains were found in an unmarked burial site on the grounds. All this leads to a lot of stories - ghost stories. The one I’ve heard over and over is that of an angry female inmate. Supposedly she hanged herself in her cell one night and has haunted the jail ever since (and she’s angry). Other stories I’ve heard have mentioned cold spots or spots where people feel anxious for no reason. All I know is that the building gives me the chills whenever I’m around it and that’s why it’s number one on my list.
Have stories of your own on these or any other buildings in Toronto? Send them to brian.mckechnie@citynews.ca and I’ll post them in the story. Happy Halloween!
Photo Credits: Old City Hall photo by Brian McKechnie, Keg Mansion photo courtesy Wikipedia, Don Jail Photo courtesy Wikipedia
This past Halloween my sister in law and I decided to celebrate our birthdays though they were early in the month. As Libras we are both sensitives and both very interested in the paranormal. I have a small collection of Ouija boards so I decided that I would give her one. It was a fun Ouija that glowed in the dark, both the board and planchette. I have never found one off of Ebay before and consider it to be rare and special. Ebay seems to be the only place where you can find them in a bit of an abundance. Anyways, she loved it so much! I got her a couple other more practical things, so I’m glad I balanced out everything with the funky ouija! I am also going to get her something paranormal themed for her Christmas present. I’m not going to say just in case she is reading this lol The day I got the board out from storage I was preparing for our Halloween party and I even dressed up my little doggy. I started taking pictures and captured an orb. Because I had two of the boards out I’m not sure which one that was attached to. I think it’s mine because a few days ago, while in the shower, I got such a fright. My dog has even been looking at me weird as though there is someone beside me. I know it’s not our apartment because it’s relatively new… only 6 years old. No one else has ever lived here and I don’t feel like there was any tragic events. Anyways, I haven’t heard of anything that has occurred on my sister in laws side, yet!
I was going through my A Haunting collection and realized that my very favorite episode was not included? I was so disappointed and hit TOPS to find out what was going on. I looked up and found out that A Haunting Connecticut and Georgia were the pilots and not included with my Season 1 & 2 set Because of popular demand they were just released at the end of this September so of course I BIN’d them (Buy It Now option some Ebay auctions offer) !! I’m so excited!!!! I won both A Haunting Pilots, Connecticut and Georgia. A few days before that I BIN’d Seasons 1, 2, 3 and 4 DVDs on Ebay, as well! I already had Season 1 and 2 on DVD but to buy 3 4 separately would have been more than getting the 4 seasons in one boxed dvd set. I ordered the pilots from the same seller to cut my shipping costs down too. I hope they get here before Halloween, but if not, it’s ok. I will watch them all the time anyways. Now for Season 5! I can’t wait until it airs and then goes on DVD!! Seriously I know I have said this so many times before but it is the best Paranormal documentary ever, in my opinion! I have had paranormal and psychic experiences myself and I can really relate to the stories… it feels like the real thing because it’s based on true accounts. I can’t wait until I get them!!!
While in the East Coast of Canada I was fortunate enough to find a Value Village and a practically brand new Tarot card set with an information book. I was just in Chapters last week and I suddenly had the urge that I really wanted one?? Full Story »
I am so happy to see that the best paranormal series is now on DVD! And you can purchase all 4 seasons on Ebay for usually less than $40 US, plus shipping. Full Story »
Personalizationmall.com supplies personalized gifts, their selection is second to none, and they even offer Halloween themed gifts, as well. Halloween T-shirts, cups, tote bags, treat bags, picture frames, signs and more!
I’m not sure if anyone has ever seen that SNL video featuring Justin Timberlake and a cast member singing Dick in a box lol Anyways the following is the paranormal version
I was at a couple thrift shops yesterday and I happened upon something really great. It was a circa 1960 talking board by Canada’s own Copp Clark. They were making boards since 1861! They started with a wood board and then hardboard like the one I have newly acquired. It has a genie on the box cover and even comes with instructions. The planchette is wood and has 3 removable legs. I have tried to find the exact date of the board, but have had no luck. I did find out; however, that William Fuld, the original creator of Ouija, contacted the Copp Clark company himself in 1960 demanding that they not use the Ouija name. His lawyers tried even way before that in 1919, but they ignored their request. They are no longer in existance though. For more details please visit Mr William Fuld’s website! http://www.williamfuld.com/ouija_factories_international.html I don’t have my camera on me yet but I found the exact same board featured on www.graveaddiction.com They have other cool ouijas on there too so it’s definitely worth a look.
I’m not sure if I want to keep the board at this point though. I have 2 others so that is more than enough, but it’s so unique and special. My dad actually found it accidentally lol I swear I went over the board game section with a fine tooth comb and never saw it. The employees were also putting out things at the same time so that might explain it. Ouija boards are abundant on Ebay if you would like to buy one right away because they don’t always show up at thrift shops that often. Please see below for current Ouija auctions on Ebay Canada. I also found some books on Amazon Canada that deal with Ouija. Haunted Toronto and A Haunting DVD is also included as well.
I realized that I posted product widgets of the US version of Amazon. My bad, sorry! I am going to update them all shortly. I am going to start with the prize first. I believe that this book is a definite must for any Toronto paranormal fan. It looks to be priced the best too!
5. Old City Hall
Because of popular demand they were just released at the end of this September so of course I BIN’d them (Buy It Now option some Ebay auctions offer) !! I’m so excited!!!! I won both A Haunting Pilots, Connecticut and Georgia. A few days before that I BIN’d Seasons 1, 2, 3 and 4 DVDs on Ebay, as well! I already had Season 1 and 2 on DVD but to buy 3 4 separately would have been more than getting the 4 seasons in one boxed dvd set. I ordered the pilots from the same seller to cut my shipping costs down too. I hope they get here before Halloween, but if not, it’s ok. I will watch them all the time anyways. Now for Season 5! I can’t wait until it airs and then goes on DVD!! Seriously I know I have said this so many times before but it is the best Paranormal documentary ever, in my opinion! I have had paranormal and psychic experiences myself and I can really relate to the stories… it feels like the real thing because it’s based on true accounts. I can’t wait until I get them!!!
