8 Haunted Places in Central Florida You Didn't Know About!

I thought a blog about haunted places nearby would be apropos for Halloween. When I began researching I was blown away by the number of haunted places in Florida! Some of those I will revisit later but for now here are eight places within swimming distance for me. Enjoy!

LAKESIDE INN - MOUNT DORA

Several ghosts are known to reside in the charming Lakeside Inn, which was built in 1883 and is the oldest continuously operating hotel in Florida. Two of the inn’s ghosts are young girls from the 1890s to 1920s. One is about nine years of age who wears a frilly red dress. She is believed to be Amy, a little girl who disappeared from the inn in 1892. The other is a girl around 12 who wears a blue dress and is often seen in the dining room. She’s been known to move the chandeliers and chairs. Also seen at the inn are the apparitions of a man in a top hat and a gangster in a fedora. Locals say there is a hidden speakeasy from Prohibition days somewhere in the inn. 

BEEF O’BRADY’S (FORMERLY STANNA’S RESTAURANT) - UMATILLA

The ghost of a young woman is said to haunt this restaurant. Legend has it she hanged herself on the third floor sometime in the early 1900s. Shadows of a woman in a long flowing dress are seen, and objects are thrown around in the women’s bathroom. Cold spots are felt, and ghostly female laughter is often heard.

BAYSTREET THEATRE - EUSTIS

Lots of paranormal claims here, including screams from the upstairs rooms, orbs appearing in photographs, eerie phantom presences felt around the building… One visitor was unlucky enough to see a glimpse of a man hanging from the balcony. Lights turn on and off on their own without explanation. Of particular interest is an area called “The Hole” beneath the stage, where some paranormal investigators have discovered bizarre temperature variations and a general overall eeriness.

SUNLAND HOSPITAL – ORLANDO

Sunland Hospital was demolished nearly two decades ago, but locals still know the story well. Located in the Pine Hills area of Orlando, it was a treatment center for profoundly mentally and physically disabled children and adults during the ‘60s and ‘70s.  After allegations of abuse and neglect it was shut down in the early 1980s. From that point on, people claimed to see weird lights and sounds emanating from the abandoned building, and it didn’t take long for it to become the number one spot in Orlando for bored kids and ghost hunters to check out at night, looking for a good scare. Some got just that – apparitions of little boys and girls appeared at various spots throughout the building.  The abandoned hospital remained a popular nighttime diversion for Orlando’s youth until the mid-1990s, when one unfortunate kid fell through an elevator shaft and was seriously injured. The abandoned hospital was demolished soon after. 

ENZIAN THEATER - MAITLAND

The Enzian Theater is an arthouse movie theater located in Maitland, Florida. The theater hosts the Florida Film Festival and several other local film festivals. Witnesses tell of a disembodied head appearing in the north corner of the theater, screaming before disappearing into the restaurant next door. It only happens on moonless nights.

I-4 DEAD ZONE - SANFORD

The I-4 Dead Zone is an elevated area halfway between Orlando and Daytona Beach, and reports say that since 1963 more than 2,000 accidents have occurred here. Rumor has it that four graves of German settlers who succumbed to yellow fever were paved over to build that part of the interstate. Ghost hitchhikers are often seen here, and strange voices come through on cell phones in this area.

One rainy night a few years ago my sister saw a woman in white standing in the middle of the southbound lanes of the interstate. She quickly swerved and called 911 to report the “crazy lady in the middle of the highway.” The 911 operator told her she just saw a ghost. Creepy! 

THE PUTNAM HOTEL - DELAND

The Putman Hotel is no longer in operation and was sold in 2013. Two ghosts are said to reside here. Legend has it a guest murdered his wife and then committed suicide in one of the rooms. A shadowy figure has been seen in the hallway and footsteps and eerie whistling can be heard. The sixth floor is said to be especially active, although it was off-limits to guests and used only for storage.

AL CAPONE’S HOUSE – SORRENTO

In Sorrento there still stands a beautiful Victorian house that once belonged to the notorious gangster Al Capone. The house has changed owners a number of times because no one can live there peacefully. A poltergeist bangs pots and pans in the night, lights flicker on and off, voices are heard, and a ghost, feeling very much like a body, slides into bed with people who reside there.

Are you spooked yet?

Thank you for reading my blog!
Just keep swimming! 

Bay Street Theatre

Lakeside Inn

Enzian Theater

Sunland Hospital

Putnam Hotel