Savannah is known for its haunted locations, so it’s no surprise that the Hostess City of the South is No. 1 on a new ranking.
Yelp has released its list of the top haunted places around the country, and two Savannah spots made the top 25.
“We identified businesses in the restaurant, food, travel and arts categories with a large concentration of reviews mentioning relevant keywords, then ranked those spots using a number of factors including the total volume and ratings of reviews mentioning those keywords. Haunted houses and ghost tours were not considered,” the reviews and recommendations website said in its methodology.
Two spots landed on the ranking, which Yelp sent via email. Each of them is just over 3.5 hours away from Atlanta in Savannah.
The Olde Pink House
The Olde Pink House took the top spot on the list. The national landmark was built on land granted by the crown of England. Secret meetings occurred in the house when James Habersham Jr. lived in it from 1771 to 1800. It’s said the meetings helped the 13 colonies gain independence from England. It housed Georgia’s first bank, the Planter’s Bank. It opened its doors to military generals following Union Gen. William T. Sherman capture of the city. As the home changed hands, the past continued to swirl through the halls.
“The ghosts of the past walk freely with you on your visit to the elegant rooms, vault wine cellars, up the fine staircases or down for a drink by the massive Planters Tavern Fires.”
Today, the Olde Pink House serves as a restaurant featuring inventive Southern dishes. The most mentioned dishes on Yelp include low-country she-crab soup, crab cake and fried pork chop.
The Marshall House
At No. 11 on Yelp’s list is the Marshall House, one of the oldest hotels in Savannah. It’s one of the properties businesswomen Mary Marshall developed in the 1800s. It was a hospital in the mid-1800s yellow fever epidemics and a Union hospital during the Civil War’s final months. Economic and structural reasons led the Marshall House to close in 1957. Although the 2nd, 3rd and 4th floors were abandoned, the ground floor was maintained until 1998. The following year, extensive restorations were made.
But its historical ties to the yellow fever epidemics and the Civil War have linked it to haunted stories.
“Take any of the local ghost tours, and you’ll hear plenty of stories!” the website says. “Rumors and reports include guests seeing ghosts in the hallways and foyers, hearing children running down the long, narrow halls late at night, faucets turning on by themselves and much more.”
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