The city of Rochester is a popular choice for those looking for a bit of a scare in upstate new york. From haunted museums to spooky old hospitals and everything in between, you are sure to find paranormal activity to suit your preference here.

Let’s look a little bit closer at some of the most haunted places in Rochester, NY.

9 - George Eastman Museum

George Eastman Museum

The George Eastman Museum is the oldest museum in the world that is dedicated to photography and it houses one of the world’s oldest public film archives.

The museum opened for business in 1949, but the property itself was built in 1905 as a residence for George Eastman, founder of Eastman Kodak Company.

Eastman actually died in the house and many believe that it is him who is haunting the property today, perhaps keeping an eye on his estate!

8 - Valentown Museum

Valentown Museum

Valentown Museum sits in the outer suburbs of Rochester and was originally a private residence built by Levi Valentine back in 1879.

It has since been turned into a very popular museum which is said to be inhabited by a number of spirits.

Some of the strange things that have happened in the building include tools being moved around in the basement when nobody has been down there and an old fashioned music box beginning to play when nobody has touched it!

A number of EVP recordings have also been captured here and there have been sightings of apparitions which appear mainly in shadow form!

7 - Durand-Eastman Park

Durand-Eastman Park

According to the locals, Durand-Eastman Park is haunted by a white lady. The spirit is supposed to be the ghost of a woman who used to live in the 3 Lakes Pavilion, which has come to be known as ‘the White Lady’s Castle.

Apparently the woman lot a daughter at some point and it is believed that she was murdered by a boyfriend. This is why the white lady seems to have designated herself as a champion for women in distress.

She is often seen in the park apparently searching for her daughter, and she is also known to harass males who she feels are mistreating women!

On a handful of occasions she has also been seen with two dogs by her side. She seems to wander freely around the park rather than being confined to any one particular area.

6 - Auditorium Theatre

Auditorium Theatre

The Auditorium Theatre in Rochester, NY was originally built as a Masonic Temple in 1928. These days it is a popular venue for Broadway shows, but it is not only popular with the living, but also the dead as well!

The Auditorium Theatre is considered to be one of the most haunted locations in Rochester NY. There are several ghosts that have been spotted in the theatre including an elderly gentleman and a man in a red coat.

Witnesses say that the apparition of the older man hangs around backstage and that he has been known to move some things around from time to time.

Meanwhile the apparition with the red coat only ever appears in the lobby and it is often after hours.

There have also been reports of unexplained voices heard inside the theatre.

5 - Holy Sepulchre Cemetery

Holy Sepulchre Cemetery

Cemeteries can be pretty creepy places anyway, but when you get one which also has tales of paranormal activity it can be a little bit more disconcerting!

In Rochester, NY one of the creepiest cemeteries is the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery which is believed to date back to around 1871.

One of the main claims to fame that the cemetery has is that it is the final resting place of Jack the Ripper suspect Francis Tumblety. However, this is not who is said to be haunting the burial ground.

Visitors say that they have witnessed a dark shadowy figure, believed to be a woman, wandering around the cemetery in the evenings.

There have also been reports of smaller white apparitions in the children’s area.

4 - Main Street Armory

Main Street Armory

The Main Street Armory dates back to around 1905 when it was built by the United States Army with the intention of using it to train and process soldiers joining up for the first time.

It remained in use right up until 1990 and then lay vacant for several years. In the mid 2000s it opened as a live music venue and witnesses began to start reporting seeing apparitions in the old building along with moving objects and other strange occurrences.

The Armory has been the focus of paranormal themed television show in the past and is now considered to be one of the most haunted places in Rochester, NY.

3 - Rush Rhees Library, University of Rochester

Rush Rhees Library, University of Rochester

The Rush Rhees Library on the University of Rochester was named in honour of the 3rd president of the University – Mr Benjamin Rush Rhees.

It was opened in 1930 and it still has the same original elevator in place. The library is apparently haunted by the ghost of a construction worker who died after a serious fall while the library was being built in 1929.

He has been spotted in between the stacks and some students report the elevator working by itself!

2 - Rochester Public Library

The Haunted Rochester Public Library
115 South Ave, Rochester, NY 14604

One of the most haunted buildings in Rochester NY and it had been featured on paranormal themed television shows.

It is apparently haunted by the spirit of a young woman who is believed to have drowned when she fell into a nearby aqueduct.

Her body was swept away and became wedged in a tunnel that runs under the library.

She seems to spend most of her time wandering among the stacks.

She is joined in the property by the spirit of a former librarian called Frank who actually died from a heart attack while on duty at the library.

Visitors have reported lots of unexplained noises including moans and phantom footsteps.

It is also common for people to see shadowy figures peeking around the stacks.

One of the most credible pieces of evidence recorded inside Rochester Public Library is a clip from security footage showing a heavy door opening and closing when there was nobody in the building.

1 - Rochester Psychiatric Center

Rochester Psychiatric Center

Most locals will probably agree that Rochester Psychiatric Center is at the top of the list when it comes to the most haunted places in Rochester, NY.

Over the years a large number of tales have sprung up regarding the old medical facility, which has also been known as the Monroe County Insane Asylum.

The main hospital has been maintained and is still used, largely for records storage, but the remaining buildings are in varying states of disrepair with many of them boarded up.

As with most psychiatric facilities from decades back, Rochester Psychiatric Center was plagued by claims of staff abusing and/or neglecting patients as well as brutal and inhuman ‘treatments’ which were little more than experiments on vulnerable human guinea pigs.

As you might imagine, this leaves quite a mark on the property. Not only were these poor patients already mentally disturbed, but they also went through further anguish at the hands of those who should have been treating them!

Is it any wonder that those who brave what is left of the old hospital have heard echoes of their pain in the form of disembodied screams, cries and groans?