The Most Haunted State in America? New York Tops the List

If you’ve ever felt like someone was watching you while walking past an old church or heard a whisper in an empty hallway. There's some good news (or bad news). You’re not losing it.

You’re just in New York, the most haunted state in America. According to a new study analyzing a century’s worth of ghost sightings, spooky legends, and viral paranormal posts, New York ranks as the most haunted state in America.

While the rest of the country is carving pumpkins, we’re out here sharing sidewalks with spirits.  From eerie old asylums to centuries-old lighthouses, this place is practically a paranormal playground.

Haunted Highways and Ghostly Gossip

The data pulls from 100 years of reports and even includes modern-day paranormal chatter from TikTok, X (Twitter), and Reddit. Turns out, if you’ve ever felt a cold breeze while walking down a dark hallway in an old building, or swore you saw someone in the corner of your eye, you’re far from alone.

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From haunted hotels in the Catskills to restless spirits in abandoned asylums and lighthouses along Lake Ontario, New York’s ghost population is thriving. Albany’s Capitol Building is said to host the ghost of a night watchman who never clocked out. The Sagamore Resort on Lake George? Guests there report everything from phantom children giggling in the halls to mysterious footsteps pacing outside locked doors. And let’s not even start on the Amityville house, because that’s a whole other level of “nope.”

Why New York?

It makes sense when you think about it. New York has layers. Centuries of history, tragedy, triumph, and untold stories all packed into one state. From Revolutionary War battlefields to centuries-old cemeteries and crumbling upstate mansions, it’s practically a paranormal paradise.

So if your lights flicker, your cat hisses at nothing, or you hear footsteps upstairs when you live alone... maybe don’t check.

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