The Wild West, American Frontier, The Old West–all iconic names for any land west of the Mississippi that was ripe for adventuring, starting over fresh, and finding your fortune. In the land of cowboys, gunfighters, train robbers, and gunslingers a slew of infamous outlaws and lawmen gained notoriety and place in the history books for the wild lives filled with gambling, gunfights, horse chases, shootouts, and more that seemed to fill their daily lives and sell dime novels by the thousands. With names like Billy the Kid, Annie Oakley, Sam Bass, Wyatt Earp, Jesse James, and Chief SItting Bull, stories would arise that would become legend, told for decades after they were long gone, bones buried, and their blood soaked and dried into the unforgiving desert towns and lands upon which they left their mark on.
It’s no surprise with all these legends, myths, and campfire tales came real stories of unexplained encounters, tales of the unbelievable, real ghost stories and documented accounts where the living would whisper of rumors and sightings of the dead. From bloody post-Civil War battles to shootouts like the O.K Corral to deadly encounters with the natives of the land, tragic events and horrific stories of defiant dare-devils, duels, disease, and death emerged from the dust that never seemed to settle in the now deserted places where everyone though they’d strike it rich.
Many of these places, though, are still inhabited by locals who will tell anyone–visitors or the random passerby, the legends and ghost stories of those they swear still walk the land, visiting or never leaving or even trapped in the towns and cities where they spilled blood…or where their blood was spilled first. Tighten your saddle and check your buckles because if you choose to delve into the dark and frightening ghostly tales of the Wild, Wild West, you may find yourself unable to escape…whether from the ghosts of The American Frontier or just the unending nightmares that follow. Click here to find out what the Top 25 places are in America’s Most Haunted West.