Ashmore Estates Ghost Hunt, Ashmore, IL
$129.00
Are you ready to take on the formidable Ashmore Estates, one of the most haunted locations in Illinois? Join Haunted Rooms America as we investigate this icon of the paranormal world.
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Event Time: 8PM – 2AM CT
Limited Spaces Available!
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Haunted Rooms America Welcomes You To Ashmore Estates
Reputed to be one of the most haunted locations in the Midwest
Ashmore Estates needs little introduction to anyone who follows the paranormal. Featured on Ghost Adventures, Destination Fear, and Death Walker, this foreboding brick building in rural Coles County has a reputation few locations can match. Spirits here are said to push, scratch, and oppress the living. More than one investigator has walked out and sworn never to return.
Join Haunted Rooms America for a six-hour after-hours investigation of a building where over a century of poverty, illness, and death soaked into the walls. This is not a gentle night. Ashmore has a way of responding to those inside it.
A century of the forgotten
The story begins with the Coles County Poor Farm. From 1857 the county housed its destitute near the town of Loxa, and in 1870 it purchased 260 acres in Ashmore Township, alongside the Indianapolis and St. Louis Railroad, for a larger farm. The first almshouse built there took in the poor, the elderly, and the mentally ill together, with no separate provision for the violently insane, who were simply left to live among everyone else. Conditions were bleak from the start.
A 1911 review found vermin in the walls, the building infested with insects, food prepared in filthy conditions, almost no ventilation, and sanitation for the inmates all but non-existent. The building was condemned.
An untold number of people died during those early years. So many, in fact, that the poor farm kept its own cemetery, and the unmarked graves of the forgotten still lie at the northern edge of the property today. Estimates put the number of deaths across Ashmore’s history at more than one hundred.
The building that stands today, Ashmore Estates, was raised on the site in 1916 as a new almshouse, offering the county’s poorest a bed and board in exchange for working the land. It operated until the county sold it in 1959, after which it became a private psychiatric facility, then a public mental hospital taking patients from across the state. By the late 1960s it was overcrowded. Money for expansion never came, and after years of mounting debt and tightening regulations, the last patients were transferred out and Ashmore closed its doors in 1986.
The building sat abandoned. Break-ins and vandalism followed, then storms, and by the time it was reopened for paranormal investigation, decades of neglect and sorrow had settled into every room. It is that atmosphere, and whatever remained behind, that draws investigators from across the country.
The spirits of Ashmore
Ashmore’s reputation rests on the sheer range of what people report inside it: heavy footsteps in empty halls, loud bangs and crashes with no source, shadow figures moving along the second and third floor corridors, disembodied voices caught on recorders, and the persistent sense of being watched, followed, and sometimes touched.
Several figures have become part of the building’s legend over the years:
Elva. The most famous story attached to Ashmore is that of a little girl said to have died from burns after her dress caught fire at the original almshouse in the 1880s. Whether her story is history or folklore is debated, it first appeared in print as fiction, and only afterward did visitors begin reporting her, but many who come here describe the same things: childlike footsteps, faint laughter, and the feeling of a small hand slipping into theirs before vanishing.
Joe. According to long-told local legend, a resident named Joe was struck by a train while walking the tracks back from a day’s labour, and, refusing to go easily, limped the whole way back to the poor farm before collapsing and dying of his injuries. His tall figure is said to be seen inside and outside the building, sometimes clearly enough to recognise.
The boiler room. Investigators single out the boiler room and the stairwells as the most aggressive spots in the building, where people report being pushed and shoved, and where something darker is said to linger.
The two women upstairs. In a room near the front of the building, two female spirits are said to reside, believed to have been gentle, mentally handicapped former patients. Visitors read aloud to them in the hope of coaxing them out, and many report odd sounds, disembodied voices, and sudden EMF spikes once they begin.
Are the stories true? That is exactly what you are here to find out. Ashmore Estates has built its reputation on giving investigators something they cannot explain. Come and see whether it gives you the same.
What’s included
- A full six-hour after-hours investigation with the Haunted Rooms America team
- Full, non-restricted access to this notoriously haunted building
- Use of our equipment, including dowsing rods, trigger objects, and EMF meters
- Free time to investigate on your own at the end of the night
- Snacks and drinks provided at intervals through the night
Event Time: 8PM to 2AM CT Location: 22645 E Co Rd 1050 N, Ashmore, IL 61912
Tickets are extremely limited.
BOOK YOUR TICKETS NOW TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT!
Event Details
Time: 8 PM – 2 AM CT
Location: 22645 E Co Rd 1050 N, Ashmore, IL 61912
Guests are strongly advised to bring extra warm clothing with them for colder nights.
Ample parking is available on the site of the property.
WHAT’S INCLUDED?
- Paranormal investigation 101 (a quick class to get you up to speed with the techniques and equipment you will be using throughout the night)
- A full night of ghost hunting with the Haunted Rooms America team
- Full non-restricted access to this notoriously haunted building!
- Use of our equipment which includes, dowsing rods, trigger objects, and EMF Meters,
- Free time to investigate at the end of the night
- Psychic medium in attendance* – we endeavor to have a psychic medium at every event, however, this may not always be possible,
- Snacks and drinks are provided at intervals throughout the night!
What to Bring?
Please bring with you a form of photo ID, and a printed off booking confirmation email (or show this on your phone).
We will be providing you with paranormal equipment to use, however, we will need something of value per group to hold onto as collateral (phone, car keys, watch, etc.)
We will be providing snacks and drinks at intervals throughout the night.
And of course, bring your phone/camera with you, the more pictures we have the better chance we have of capturing something!
Other than that, just yourself and an open mind!
Ashmore Estates History
The Coles County Poor Farm was initially in the small town of Loxa, serving there from 1857 to 1869. Due to the county’s growing need, a new poor farm was commissioned in Ashmore in 1870, right next to the Indianapolis & St. Louis Railroad.
The first almshouse building on the property housed both the insane and the poor and conditions for inmates quickly became bleak. After years of terrible living standards, the facility was deemed unsafe and unsanitary and condemned by the State Board of Charities.
During the first buildings’ time as an almshouse, there was an untold number of deaths. In fact, many of the residents that entered its doors lost their lives. The bodies of these unfortunate souls are buried in the graveyard on the northern end of the property.
The new almshouse (Ashmore Estates) was built on the site in 1916, offering the most destitute a place of opportunity, to work the land of the county for bed and board. The almshouse operated for many years before the property was sold by the county in 1959. It later served as a private psychiatric facility, however, after just five years the facility had to close its doors in 1964 due to unmanageable debt.
The doors were open to those suffering from mental afflictions again in 1965, however, this time the patients were those from state mental institutions.
Soon the hospital became overcrowded, but the money wasn’t there to extend. It wasn’t until 1977 that finances were arranged for the building of a new wing, and construction began.
However, building work wasn’t completed until the 1980s, and by that time it was too late, due to lack of money and increasing regulations, the Illinois Health Facility Planning Board closed the establishment. By 1986 all the patients had been transferred to other mental institutions and Ashmore closed its doors.
Three years after its closure, there were attempts to reopen it as a mental health facility for teenage boys but there was a public backlash, leading Ashmore Village Board to deny the request.
A private owner took over the property and began work on remodeling the building into a home, though his plans were scuppered after repeated break-in attempts and vandalism.
In 2006 the building was purchased by Scott Kelley and his wife who set about restoring the building, reopening it for tours to fund the restoration work.
In 2013 a huge storm hit the area and Ashmore Estates suffered considerable damage. Later that year the building was put up for auction and purchased by Robert Burton & Ella Richards. In May 2014 it was sold again, this time to the current owners, Robbin & Norma Terry.
The Terrys put in considerable efforts in restoring the building, putting in a new roof, bathrooms, shower, kitchenette, and more. Now the building stands preserved as a historical building and a location for paranormal investigation.
FAQ
What Should I Expect on a Ghost Hunt?
Become a paranormal investigator for the night like the TV stars of Most haunted, ghost adventures or TAPS Ghost hunters.
Use some of the specialized equipment and be guided by experienced paranormal investigators who will share their knowledge, techniques and experiences of hunting for ghosts or spirits.
Feel free to bring along any of your own equipment including but not limited to EVP recorders, flashlights, cameras or video cameras.
Bring extra clothing as in some parts old buildings may get cold but please refrain from wearing clothing that can cause distracting sounds. Many old buildings have a story to tell and we will supply them to you along with of course the ghost stories.
There will be breaks and light refreshments are provided.
We are not out to try and convince the world of the existence of an afterlife. That’s for you to decide.
We can be Sceptical and logical yet open to other beliefs and prayers of protection will be carried out.
We do not perform tricks and will not be running around with sheets on our heads!
You will be with like-minded people looking for the answer “is there really an afterlife”?
However much we try unfortunately we can’t guarantee that members of the spirit world will make their presence known but we can at least guarantee that you will experience a fun and interesting night.
Do I receive an actual ticket?
The event is ticketless. Your proof of booking is your booking confirmation email. You will also receive an email with important information prior to your event, usually the week of.
Is there any age limit of who can attend these events?
The age limit is 18 years and over.
Will there be a Medium at the event?
All events listed on Haunted Rooms are hosted by experienced Hosts and Professional Psychic/Clairvoyant Mediums. However sometimes a Medium(s) may not always be present – but as usual, you will be in very safe hands with our experienced Hosts who have a wealth of knowledge and are fully trained in all aspects of professional public ghost hunting events and experience nights.
Can I sleep at an event?
Unless it is otherwise stated, events don’t include sleepover.
Will I see a Ghost?
Unfortunately, activity will not just happen on command, however using the various experiments and experienced hosts on the events, everything will be done to offer the best chance of spiritual activity.
Nearby Accommodation
Reviews
Rating
My daughter and I booked a Haunted Rooms tour at the Rawlins, Wy Historical Prison. It was so much fun! The haunted rooms teams was amazing, they were knowledgeable with their paranormal investigation equipment. They were attentive yet also allowed us the opportunity to explore and investigate on our own as well. We got some awesome evidence. I was hit in the shoulder by a cabinet that was closed, but swung open with force. Scared the heck out of me, and the Haunted Rooms team member wasn’t able to debunk it because the cabinet door doesn’t move, even when unlatched. My daughter had her hair pulled. We had a cat ball with us that lit up on its own when we asked a spirit to touch it. We had 3 very intelligent conversations with spirits and used a spirit box with these conversations. It was seriously so much fun. I’ve always been a believer in the ability to communicate and connect with spirits, but to witness it personally without being able to debunk anything we experienced made this tour amazing. I look forward to booking again and I’m taking my son this time too.
We just completed the WY. Frontier Prison tour. We had a blast! Loved how they let you roam freely at the end of the night. Also, the use of their equipment & the snacks and refreshments provided are an added perk. Would highly recommend!
Just did a tour at battleship North Carolina and the night can’t be beat. Most definitely one of the most haunted places in NC.
My husband and I just toured the USS North Carolina Battleship this past Saturday. We had an AMAZING experience! Immediately booked another tour for the Bellamy Mansion and ordered paranormal equipment to use. Can’t wait til the next haunt!!!
We investigated the USS William A. Irvin in Duluth MN. It was a great experience, everyone was super friendly and helped whenever they could! if you are debating on signing up. Just do it! we had alot of fun!
Investigated Mortuary Manor in Toledo with my daughter. The guides were extremely knowledgeable about the equipment and different techniques to attempt to communicate with spirits. The owner was very very nice and was actively trying to help in any way he could. We had a very small group of 5 so we had the run of the place. It was a lot of fun and I definitely recommend to anyone interested in the paranormal. We definitely had some activity during the night. The experience made me want to try out other locations if I can. There were a few graduation parties going on in the area the night I was there so, I’d like to go back and see what I can find when it’s a little more quiet in the beginning of the night but it was a great experience!
Bought this as a gift to my brother. I went in not expecting much but had a great time at Valerie Hill winery. We caught some pretty cool stuff and he had a great Estes session. Highly recommend.
Everything was well organized and smooth. There was no gimmick, it started off as a quiet night paranormal wise, maybe because there was a long game of soccer going on right outside. Nothing to be done about that. Mid-Orange Correctional facility is now also part sports complex. The guides demonstrate tools used for investigating and even though the night started quiet, they didn’t hype up every little sound. They debunked sounds and explained what to look for. By 1am my husband and I ran into a group that came with their own equipment and had returned to a spot they had previously had activity. They welcomed us to join them and my EMF meter flew to red pretty steadily. They brought out the dowsing rod and it pointed at me directly so I was asked if I would hold it. I have never really understood how people don’t move the rods themselves. When I held it I realized there is a sleeve on the handle. So you’re not touching the rod. The rod was very responsive and corresponded with the EMF consistently for a few minutes. Anyway, what I liked most is it seems like the community cares. Everyone in the group checked in on my comfort. It was my favorite part of the night.
My son and I had a truly unforgettable experience at the Rock Island Roadhouse. The team that ran this event were all very knowledgeable of the history of the location as well as all of the equipment that they use. There were I think around 50 people total that attended and they broke us out into 4 separate groups. The first 4 hours of the night that were spent in the group setting taking turns with each team member didn't have much activity going on, however, once we were able to explore on our own the last 2 hours, we had some AMAZING activity! We even picked up what sounded like two whispering words in response to our questions! I highly recommend this group!
Did the Battleship North Carolina on April 3rd. I've already booked again for August. The hosts (Both physical and spiritual) were amazing. Recorded several EVP's throughout the night. Some very strong responses with dousing rods. Always skeptical about them, but there were strong responses, especially when we started talking to them like the military members they were. At one point I asked if they wished they had women on Battleships, he replied with a strong "Yes" and my Ghost Box replied with the word "Seductive". He really liked one of the young ladies with us. Turns out she was 18 and he was 20 when he died. Can't wait to do this again!
