The final bell tolled, class was dismissed and the halls fell silent forever... Spine-chilling wrecks straight out of horror movies, America's creepiest abandoned schools and university buildings could strike fear into the hearts of even the bravest schoolchildren. From spooky ghost town schoolhouses to sinister institutions with dark pasts, these ex-places of learning are far scarier than homework.
Join us as we explore America's 15 most haunting abandoned schools and colleges. If you're feeling brave enough...
Little remains of the once-bustling railroad hub of Govan, Washington. The foreboding schoolhouse, built around 1905, stands as one of the few relics of this desolate ghost town, which dates back to the late 1880s. Plagued by misfortune, Govan suffered a devastating fire in 1927, but the death knell came in 1933 when Highway 2 was built, completely bypassing the town. The population steadily dwindled, and the schoolhouse closed in 1942. Further fires in the 1970s sealed the town's fate once and for all.
Supposedly cursed, Govan played host to a shocking number of homicides given its tiny population. Spirits are said to haunt the schoolhouse, which has become a magnet for ghost-hunters. But remember folks, as with any abandoned place, trespassing is dangerous as well as illegal and best left to the phantoms.
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Once a beacon of faith in Detroit's LaSalle Gardens neighbourhood, the 100-year-old St Agnes Catholic Church and the girl's school next door have lain abandoned for almost 20 years. The school was built in 1916 and the Gothic-Revival church was finished eight years later, quickly becoming a popular place of worship. By the early 1960s it boasted thousands of parishioners, while the school counted 180 pupils. Then the 1967 Detroit riot happened...
Swathes of the neighbourhood were torched during the unrest. St Agnes survived but its congregation plummeted as residents fled to the suburbs. Even visits from two 20th-century icons couldn't save St Agnes; Mother Teresa set up a small offshoot of her order of nuns there, while civil rights legend Rosa Parks attended mass at the church with the saint in 1981. The school closed in 2000 while the church shuttered in 2006, and vandals, looters and neglect have since turned the buildings into unholy wrecks. A new chapter may soon begin: work is slated to start on an ambitious project to redevelop the church and school into apartments and shops.
The halcyon days of Bennett College's Halcyon Hall were long gone when this pic was taken in 2019. Somewhere between a Gothic mansion and a medieval castle, the once-magnificent edifice in Upstate New York was built in 1893 as a 200-room luxury hotel. Repurposed in 1907 as the elite Bennett College for young ladies, it flourished until the 1970s when enrolment numbers tumbled and the college fell on hard times. The institution was eventually forced to declare bankruptcy and it closed for good in 1978.
Left to rot, the former college building fell into a state of appalling disrepair, though the worse it got, the more attractive it became for urban explorers and photographers. Adding to its allure, Bennett College was reputed to be haunted by the spirits of departed alumni. Stories circulated of apparitions roaming the corridors, doors randomly slamming and muffled voices of unknown origin. After decades of neglect, the building was deemed too far gone to save, and it was unceremoniously demolished in 2022 to make way for a park.
This small HBCU (historically Black college or university) isn't abandoned per se. With just a handful of students on its books, the institution is just about hanging on. But the lion's share of its buildings have stood vacant for years, including McKee Hall, which dates from just after the college was founded in 1875. The college started to struggle financially as far back as the 1970s, and lost accreditation in 1997. Currently, the college is only offering online courses.
Through recent decades the unused parts of the campus have deteriorated – frozen in time, this chemistry lab was abandoned together with its contents. Just 11 students enrolled in 2015, and two years later the college had to vacate its last two occupied structures after they failed to meet building codes. In 2023 a fire ripped through the campus and the bodies of two trespassers were found on the site. Plans are, however, reportedly afoot to redevelop the college, including a proposed $12 million (£9.2m) renovation of McKee Hall.
Founded in 1859, the ghost town of Bodie experienced explosive growth after large reserves of gold were discovered in the 1870s. By 1879, the gold rush town had a population of 10,000 and over 250 buildings, including this fine structure. It started out as a lodging house before replacing the town's original school, which had burned down. But Bodie's heyday was short-lived. Its precious metal reserves were rapidly exhausted and large-scale mining ended in 1915. Two major fires destroyed swathes of the town, hastening its demise, and Bodie was all but deserted by the 1940s.
In 1962 the ghost town became a state park, and its remaining 110 buildings and their contents were preserved for posterity. Bodie now has a reputation for paranormal phenomena, with resident phantoms including a wronged maid and an angelic little girl. Visitors have reported phone cameras freezing mysteriously when photographing the schoolhouse, alongside other unsettling occurrences. Then there's the 'curse of Bodie', which brings bad luck to anyone who dares steal its artefacts. The curse was actually dreamt up by park officials to deter theft, but has taken on a life of its own, with some visitors mailing stolen items back to the park with letters recounting their misfortunes.
Housed in a noble Neoclassical building dating from 1917, the Annie Lytle Elementary School (originally Public School Number Four) in Jacksonville was once packed with amenities and drew in plenty of pupils. But its destiny was dramatically altered in the 1950s when an interstate highway was constructed a stone's throw from its grounds. The highway isolated the school and the din from the traffic made it almost impossible to teach. The institution had no choice but to close, and in 1960 it shut its doors forever.
The building was designated a historic landmark in 2000, but has more or less been left to rack and ruin, with its interiors covered in graffiti. Dubbed 'the Devil's school', it became a hotbed for crime before CCTV was installed and security ramped up. Ghost stories abound and the school is considered one of Florida's most haunted buildings. Tall tales about its past have added to the institution's infamy, including gruesome stories of a murderous principal and a cannibal janitor.
Holy Cross High School was established in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward back in 1879 as St Isidore's College, and its elegant administrative building dates from 1895. The local district was named after the Catholic school and it was a steadfast presence until Hurricane Katrina brought devastation to the city in 2005. The campus was inundated by the storm surge and had to be abandoned, after which the school relocated to a new site in Gentilly.
A redevelopment plan fell through, and by the late 2010s squatters had moved into the former school building. In 2018, the Louisiana Landmarks Society named it one of the most endangered sites in New Orleans, a worrying reflection of the structure's deteriorating condition. Developers finally got their act together in 2023 and work began on an $8 million (£6.3m) project converting the administrative building into 59 apartment units. The revamp has since been completed, breathing new life into this local landmark.
Back in Detroit, the abandoned buildings capital of the US, Cooley High School in Grandmont was designed by prestigious architectural firm Donaldson & Meier and opened in 1928 at the cost of $14 million (£11m) in today's money. According to Chalkbeat Detroit, the school was admired for its palatial Mediterranean-Revival style and excellent athletics programmes, becoming one of the most prestigious educational establishments in Motor City. Notable alumni include Little Caesars Pizza founder Mike Ilitch and union boss James P Hoffa, son of missing Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa.
Yet as Detroit declined, so did the school. Enrolments dropped to unsustainable levels during the 2000s, and, no longer viable, Cooley High closed in 2010. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2011, but has severely degraded since the last bell rang out. Vandals and looters have trashed the interiors and stolen everything of value, while in 2017 a suspicious fire gutted the auditorium. Plans to transform the school into a community hub were rejected by the Detroit school board in 2023, leaving the future of the site up in the air.
This infamous establishment was founded in 1908 as the Eastern Pennsylvania Institution for the Feeble-Minded and Epileptic. Its numerous structures, including this imposing administration building, were designed to care for individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities. But care was lacking to say the least. Later renamed the Pennhurst State School and Hospital, the facility became notorious for its terrible conditions and the appalling treatment of its residents. After years of abuse allegations and litigation, the institution was finally shut in 1987.
The campus buildings fell into disrepair, and while some were eventually renovated and repurposed, others had to be demolished. In 2010, the administration building was reinvented as a seasonal haunted attraction, capitalising on its eerie atmosphere and stories of ghostly encounters within its walls. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the move proved controversial, with many feeling that the attraction trivialised the suffering the institution's residents endured.
This troubled institution followed a similar trajectory to Pennhurst. When it opened in 1922 as the Belchertown State School for the Feeble-Minded, the establishment was considered a model for educating people with disabilities. But years of underfunding and overcrowding led to awful conditions and terrible suffering. The situation reportedly improved after a 1972 class-action lawsuit exposed the neglect and abuse, though the school struggled to shake off its bad reputation and closed in 1992.
The buildings sat empty for years before a plan to redevelop the 400,000-square-foot (37,000sqm) property was agreed in 2012. Several structures have since been pulled down, including the auditorium pictured here, while an assisted-living facility and early childhood education centre have been built. In early 2024 the town green-lit a 100-unit housing development – the largest project yet. According to local newspaper The Amherst Bulletin, it's set to include a museum documenting the chequered history of the school in the red-brick administration building.
Another storied Detroit establishment that declined along with its city, the JTPA Nursing School shut down in 2003. The training school was part of the Herman Kiefer Hospital complex, which dates back to 1893. The sprawling campus was completely closed in 2013 and put up for sale by the cash-strapped city, which declared bankruptcy that same year.
A New York-based developer bought the complex in 2015 and has embarked on a multi-year renovation project that will see the old hospital campus transformed. According to the Detroit Free Press, plans include homes, a hotel and an indoor skate park, but the developer has been having a tough time finding uses for all the buildings on the site. In the meantime, the nursing school sits empty, its condition worsening with each passing year.
Truly putting the ghost in ghost town, abandoned Bannack in Montana is a hive of paranormal activity – if the many scary stories surrounding it are to be believed. Founded in 1862 when an enormous quantity of gold was discovered in the area, Bannack's population swiftly grew to 5,000 and the gold rush town briefly served as Montana's capital in 1864. Numerous buildings sprung up including this combined schoolhouse and masonic lodge, which was built in 1874. But Bannack's glory days were fleeting.
Bigger gold reserves were discovered elsewhere, and when the railroad bypassed the town in the 1880s, its days were numbered. The population fell away and by the mid-20th century Bannack had become a bona fide ghost town. The 50-plus surviving buildings were taken over by the state and Bannack was reborn as a state park. The entire town is said to be haunted, including the schoolhouse and masonic lodge. According to Haunted US, supernatural occurrences are frequent, from talking apparitions and shadowy figures, to disembodied voices, unexplained door-slamming and chilling cold spots.
Well over a hundred years old, Tallulah High School in Louisiana closed in 2006 due to steadily falling enrolment. Boarded up and left to its fate, the handsome Neoclassical red-brick building a short way from the Mississippi River has been vacant ever since, eagerly awaiting redevelopment, which has been a long time coming.
Several proposals have been floated over the years, including a failed 2014 plan to repurpose the school as a new campus for Louisiana Delta Community College. The latest scheme, which looks like it could come to fruition, involves converting the historic building into a learning and recreational centre for teenagers and adults, at a cost of roughly $20 million (£15m).
Completed in 1911, George W Ferris School stood as a testament to Highland Park's rapid growth during the early 20th century and its later demise. As per Detroiturbex, the influx of workers to Henry Ford's Highland Park plant led to a surge in the Detroit suburb's population and a corresponding need for more schools. The school underwent several expansions to accommodate extra pupils, including new wings and a gym with a swimming pool. In the 1960s it transitioned from an elementary to a middle school and further additions were made, including a cafeteria-auditorium.
Highland Park's fortunes turned as the US automotive industry slumped. Consequently, George W Ferris's enrolment tanked, leading to its closure in the late 1990s. A reopening plan failed and the once-vibrant school fell into disrepair. After years of decay, the building was finally demolished in 2022, marking the end of an era for Highland Park.
Built in 1917 as Shenandoah's main high school, this steel-framed stone building served as a hospital and morgue for victims of the Spanish flu pandemic before being put to its intended use. The building was heavy on amenities, with advanced fire-proofing and a swimming pool – the oldest school pool in the state. But the school eventually outgrew the building and relocated in the early 1980s. The building then housed an elementary school but that too shut down, closing its doors in 1994.
Abandoned for years, the building was stripped of its contents and took steady damage. Smashed windows, destroyed bathrooms and damaged seats in the auditorium were among the many signs of neglect. Parts of the edifice were restored by its final owner, Kent Steinmetz, and briefly operated as a community centre. But other areas collapsed and the building was ultimately condemned. With a heavy heart, Steinmetz made the decision to demolish the structure, and it was bulldozed in April 2024.