Most Haunted Places In Sacramento

With Sacramento’s rich history, there are bound to be endless ghost stories.

By Marilyn Nelson on October 7, 2022

(Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

With Halloween approaching this seems like the perfect time to explore some of the area’s most haunted locations.

1. 1. Old City Cemetery:  Reports of several apparitions including a couple dressed in black, a dog who follows visitors around the cemetery and suddenly disappears, and a little girl heard giggling and playing near the headstone of a deceased child. The cemetery is well known for its numerous hauntings.
   2. Old Sacramento Underground Tunnels: Frightening phantoms have been reported in the maze of tunnels that run under this section of Sacramento. Nine local business owners even got together and hired a professional parapsychologist to free them of one troublesome demon. 
   3. Delta King Riverboat Theater: The theater is believed to be haunted by the ghost of the original captain. Employees have reported seeing him sitting in the balcony during productions, heard foot steps above deck, and had a glass of water spilled by unseen force the sound board in the sound booth.
   4. Sacramento Room in the Central Library: The library staff often hears unexplained noises, doors closing, lost books reappearing, but most notably the apparition of a lady in red. 
   5. CSUS Theatre: The university’s theater is reportedly haunted by the ghost of a young man who died in an accident during construction of the building. His presence has been felt near the elevator between the Scene Shop and the Costume Shop, on the Catwalks, and in the Light booth.
   6. Sacramento Theatre Company: It’s believe at least five ghosts inhabit the building. Paranormal investigators believe a glowing pink aura or orb frequently seen around the dressing rooms is a former theater manager, or a former actress. Other reported ghosts lurking about include a stagehand, an opera singer and two Hungarian lovers. 
   7. Old Governor’s Mansion: This one is tricky. Investigators seem to experience endless complications and strange setbacks when trying to report on the goings on here. Reporters, psychics, authors, and paranormal investigators all share stories of odd equipment failures, confused schedules, pilfered notes, garbled or erased tapes, and other obstacles while trying to extract the story of this house.
   8. Dorothea Puente Boarding House: This Sacramento landmark is where Dorothea Puente murdered and buried several of her elderly guests to collect their social security checks in the 1980’s. Dorothea even said she kept seeing one of the deceased men reappear, and later residents reported numerous paranormal manifestations. One tenant reported a ghostly presence shaking their beds at night, doors opening by themselves even when locked, and the sounds of slow footsteps.
   9. Woodlake Park: This area appears to be one of Sacramento’s most haunted neighborhoods. Residents report more paranormal activity here than any other area of the city. Psychics believe most of hauntings stem from an old tribal burial grounds that lies beneath the neighborhood. The center of the activity seems to be in the 2000 block of Royal Oaks Drive.
   10. Iceland Ice Skating Rink: The original owner and builder of the rink, ‘Pops’ Kerth still makes his rounds at night. Pops is said to wander the dark, cold rink at 4am, just as he always did, making certain all is well.
   11. Paradise Beach: There have been many reports of a phantom wandering this sandy bank along the American River near Sac State. The apparition is thought to be the spirit of a young man who drowned in the swift current.
   12. Solomon’s: Originally a saloon on K Street, also a former used record store, the ghost of an old woman dressed in black Victorian dress with white ruffled collar has often appeared in the basement area. In the late 1990’s, the apparition of a young man in his 20s also began appearing.
   13. River City Saloon: The saloon which dates back to the earliest days of the Sacramento is reportedly haunted by three ghosts – an old miner, a former saloon girl and a young child. Bartenders have plenty of stories to share.