Moundsville West Virginia Penitentiary

     I was thinking about prisons and how they must be the most haunted places we can encounter. Prisons have had many inmates who were killed, tortured, or just died of old age. I decided to do some research on one of the most haunted prisons in the United States. I came upon a penitentiary in Moundsville, West Virginia, which is claimed to be the most haunted one of all.

     The penitentiary opened in 1876 and was soon overcrowded by inmates. They had extremely small cells that were 5 by 7, and they were considered to be cruel and unusual punishment, so the prison closed in 1995. Even though the prison is closed, the stories of the murders, rapes, and tortures continue to be told. 

     There was a snitch in the prison who was attacked by three men. His throat was cut open, and his entire body was cut into pieces. His ghost is said to be lurking in the boiler room, where he was killed. There was around 86 men who were hung, about 10 were executed by electrocution, and more than 100 deaths were unrecorded. Many inmates were tortured to the point where their bodies gave out and were close to dying.

     There are claims that you can hear disembodied voices, noises in the cells, and see a well known "shadow man". Most paranormal activity takes place in the "Sugar Shack", where the inmates would gamble, murder, rape, and fight. Since many prisoners were buried in the land, you may also be able to see more activity in the cemetery. This place delivers when it comes to showing you how much the souls of the prisoners can interact with the living.