Spooky Construction Stories—Industry Faves and Real-World Experiences From Our Customers

“During the beginning of the earthwork phase, our subcontractor discovered a plastic bag with a blanket rolled up with bones inside. The police were called and after forensic testing it was determined that the bones were of a large dog. Needless to say until those results came back, this was the talk of the company.”

—Karen S.

“One time we were renovating a building and our excavation subcontractor dug up a barrel. The top popped open and a woman rolled out. The woman that was found inside had disappeared years ago. They never found her until we did. Her husband had worked at the business and assumed to have killed her and buried her behind the building. She still had money in her pocket and rumors were spoken about her preparing to leave him. He went to jail for another crime and had died prior to us finding her body. Money was donated and she was given a proper burial by her surviving relatives.”

—Sheryl D.

NYS Education Building—Albany, NY

The New York State Education Building, designed by Henry Hornbostel and constructed between 1908 and 1911, was the “first major building constructed in the United States solely as a headquarters for the administration of education.” The building is also allegedly haunted by a ghost named Jason.

I’m assuming Jason is a nickname because, according to the story, the ghost is the spirit of an Italian stone mason who died while working on the building during its construction. (Maybe because Jason rhymes with mason, or perhaps his name was Giasone and it got anglicized to Jason).

Jason was working in the basement when he accidentally fell into a space where concrete was being poured. Instead of trying to rescue Jason, the Irish foreman, angered by Jason’s clumsiness and ineptitude, told the workers, “Keep pouring,” trapping Jason’s body and his ghost in the building for eternity.

Jason still haunts the building to this day. Employees working in the basement, which they refer to as “The Dungeon,” have reported sensing an unwelcome, chilling presence and seeing a shadowy figure out of the corner of their eyes. Others have reported Jason as being a friendly spirit, by taking out books that are hard to find and even leaving them open on the correct page.

Original source here.

Winchester Mystery House

In 1881, Sarah Winchester became exceptionally wealthy seemingly overnight after inheriting nearly $20.5 million (roughly the equivalent of $500 million today) following the death of her husband, wealthy rifle business owner William Winchester. Already grieving after the unexpected passing of their only daughter, Sarah was now childless, widowed, and completely alone.

Unsure of her next steps, she turned to a psychic medium—who is the driving force behind this bizarre story. The psychic advised Sarah to move out West to make amends with the many restless souls murdered by Winchester Rifles.

This sparked a 38 year construction on a mansion made up of seven floors, 300 rooms, 13 bathrooms, two ballrooms, six kitchens, 47 fireplaces, two basements, and three elevators. It also boasted 10,000 panes of glass and 2,000 doors.

According to legend, Sarah’s intention was to confuse and mislead the angry spirits who haunted her. She used a Ouija board to communicate with the spirits, who advised her on what changes to make to the house—resulting in doors like this opening to nothing but the air.

It’s rumored that her carpenters worked all day, every day, rotating in shifts to meet her ever-changing demands. However, Sarah paid her workers 50% more than the average wages of the time so the staff was more than happy to satisfy her commands.

Today, after many earthquakes and much-needed renovations, only four stories and 160 rooms remain. But all of the original mystery is still intact. Was Sarah trying to escape the spirits she believed haunted her, or did she simply get lost in her own blueprints?

Original source here.