Whaley House

California · United States · Museum

Whaley House — California · United States · Museum

"America's most supernatural home" according to the Travel Channel — built in 1857 on the site where Yankee Jim was hanged.

The Whaley House in Old Town, San Diego, California was built in 1857 by Thomas Whaley and is the oldest brick building in southern California. Over the years the house served as a family home, a courthouse and a theatre — but its dark reputation goes back further still.

On the very spot where the house was later raised, the thief and drifter Yankee Jim Robinson was hanged in 1852, convicted of stealing a boat. The executioner made no allowance for Jim's height of 193 centimetres, so that his feet barely reached the ground — which gave him a slow and agonising death.

Shortly after the Whaley family moved in, they told the San Diego Union newspaper that they had heard heavy footsteps in the house, which they believed to be Yankee Jim's spirit. Common ghostly experiences in the house are footsteps, disembodied voices and the sound of a crying infant. Some visitors see apparitions or feel sudden cold spots, see objects move by themselves and lights flicker without explanation.

The Whaley House is often called "America's most haunted house" and is today a museum. For many visitors it is Yankee Jim's heavy footsteps, echoing through the old brick house, that linger longest in the memory well after the visit.

Sources: English Wikipedia "Whaley House", sdghosts.com, usghostadventures.com, ghostcitytours.com

FAQ

Where is Whaley House located?

Whaley House is in California, United States.

More haunted places in California

Accounts are drawn from local folklore and visitor reports.

Image: Wikimedia Commons