Skip to Search Skip to Live Player Skip to Content Skip to Footer

Haunted Belle Isle Folklore With Paranormal Author Roxanne Rhoads

Author Meltdown
Belle Isle in Detroit is a unique island that is also a park right in between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is home to the Detroit Grand Prix and you can also enjoy loads of other entertainment like hanging on the beach, golf, bike riding, picnics, kayaking, aquarium, green house observatory, tennis, baseball fields and tons more.

I recently did a story about some of the more haunted locations in and around Detroit. You can click here, or just scroll to the bottom of the page.

Author, Roxanne Rhoads contacted me and had this to say “I think all of Detroit is haunted, seriously. There’s just something spooky and weird about Detroit.” She might be right.

She told me her thoughts on some of the hotels in the Motor City. “Detroit’s hotels are very haunted. My next book is Haunted Hotels of Michigan and there are a lot of spirits wandering the halls of locations that are or used to be hotels and inns. The Two Way Inn, which is now a bar, has quite a few spirits, and not just the ones they serve at the bar.”

She said the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton, which is the old Hotel Fort Shelby, sat empty for years. “There is a rumor that in the 1980s the plumbing failed and a squatter named Al drowned in four feet of sewage that flooded the basement. Now Al’s ghost haunts the alley and the lobby of the beautifully restored Doubletree.” I’ll remember not to try to stay late on my next visit there.

What does she think is the most haunted place in Detroit? She had an answer no one else had mentioned. “Personally, I think Belle Isle is the most haunted spot in Detroit.  There is something forlorn and desolate about Belle Isle. It is a space lost in time. A sense of unease hangs in the air. I can’t quite put my finger on what is wrong but there is something definitely “off”. Amidst all the beauty and nature malevolence slithers just out of sight. Many people have died on the island, on the bridges, and in the water surrounding the island.”

She passed along this story which I’d never heard. “Detroit folklore has a Lady in White story connected to Belle Isle. One legend says that a young bride was murdered by her new husband on their wedding night. Now her ghost wanders the island full of despair. She is drawn to young couples. Another legend claims that the Lady in White is an old woman who appears by bridges. Urban legend claims she is the mother of a girl who was murdered on that stretch of road (perhaps the mother of the bride?). If you stop on or by the Tanglewood Bridge and wait, she might appear. If you are in the car, honk three times, this seems to get her riled up and she’ll come out, perhaps to shake her fist at you for disrupting her peace and quiet. Or maybe, she’ll try to lure you into the woods. Some versions of the legend claim the Lady in White is the beautiful maiden who became the Snake Goddess. One version even claims that she transforms into a white doe.” Ok, that’s just straight-out creepy! I will NOT honk three times! LOL

She passed along a link to a more detailed version of this story. She said it was was collected by Dave Sprybrook in 1969 and detailed on Wayne State University’s Walter P Reuther Library website: http://reuther.wayne.edu/node/13851

Thank you, Roxanne!

-Meltdown-

Local Paranormal Investigators Name The Most Haunted Places In The Detroit Area

Since I started my Haunted Michigan podcast last year, I’ve gotten to know several of the local paranormal groups. That being said, I reached out to them and asked about haunted places specifically in the Detroit area.

A huge thank you to Kat Tedsen, Nicole Beauchamp, Jessica Knapik and John E.L. Tenny from the “What’s Up Weirdo?” podcast, Jeff Adkins and Todd Bonner from Detroit Paranormal Expeditions, Jessica from Mystic Mitten Paranormal, Marc and Ed from Haunt Investigators of Michigan.

Here’s a list of some of the places they named.

  • Site of the 1929 VooDoo Murders

    Kat Tedsen wrote to me about a site, as opposed to a building. She wrote “The site of the 1929 VooDoo Murders. Located on the corner of St. Aubin and Mack in Detroit. The now vacant lot was once the home of Benjamin Evangelista and his family. He was a well-known practitioner of VooDoo. His basement his VooDoo church.

    It was there on July 3, 1929, Evangelista, his wife and children were found butchered. His wife and children upstairs in the upstairs bedrooms. Benny was found sitting on his “king” chair in the basement. His hands crossed on his chest. His head severed from his body and placed at his feet. There were several suspects but the murderer never found.”

    That sounds nuts!

  • The Elmwood Cemetery

    Jessica Knapik from the What’s Up Weirdo podcast with John E. L. Tenny gave me several, but now we’ll go with the Elmwood Cemetery in Detroit. I found the video below online. It looks pretty wild, I may have to take a swing by there. 

  • The Leland hotel/city club

    Author and paranormal investigator Nicole Beauchamp sent me this link to a post she just wrote recently. I’ve only been to City Club once in my life and it was about 26/27 years ago. I can barely remember anything about it.

    Detroit's Most Haunted Locations | Spirits of the Motor City | Visit Detroit

    Uncover the ghostly tales of Detroit's most haunted locations. Explore the spirits of the Motor City in this chilling journey through its haunted history.

  • The Whitney

    This one came up several times. On a previous episode of Haunted Michigan, Marc and Ed from Haunt Investigators Of Michigan spoke about several incidents they’ve had at the famous location. They talked of “Gracie’s Table” and more, with sightings and some audible events as well.

    Jessica and John from the “What’s Up Weirdo?” podcast mentioned this one as well.

    I was at a speaking engagement with a recent podcast guest, Gerry Hunter, and he brought this place up as well, as did Jessica Knapik. Mark from Marter Paranormal did too.

    Jessica Krutell from Mystic Mitten Paranormal chimed in on the Whitney as well. “At the current date, the Whitney operates as an upscale fine dining experience and offers paranormal tours. It is said that apparitions appear in the windows and throughout the building. The elevator lift has reportedly followed employees from floor to floor. Even the acclaimed TAPS from tv’s “Ghost Hunters” had investigated this haunted location of Detroit.”

  • Fort Wayne

    This place is another that comes up a lot. Ed and Marc from Haunt Investigations of Michigan had some crazy things happen to them at this location. You can watch their episode where they talk about it here.

    I heard that in recent years there’ve been so many ghost hunters trying to investigate there, that they shut it down.

  • The Frederick Stearns House

    According to Jeff and Todd from Detroit Paranormal Expeditions, the Frederick Stearns House has a lot of energy. I recently tagged along with them at the home.

    They sent me this description of what they’ve experienced there.

    Frederick Stearns HouseLocated in Detroit’s historic West Village neighborhood, this 16,000-square-foot mansion was built for Frederick K. Stearns, who was a key figure in turn-of-the-century Detroit and grew his father’s pharmaceutical company into a global player. He was also an organizer of the Detroit Orchestral Association (which later became the Detroit Symphony Orchestra), a trustee of the Detroit Museum of Art (which later became the Detroit Institute Of Art), and owner of the Detroit Wolverines Baseball team, which competed in the MLB’s National League and won the World Series in 1887.

    While investigating in the basement, we heard someone walk across the dining room directly above us. However, the only other person there with us that night was the owner, and she was on the opposite side of the house the entire time. People who used to work in the home have also shared their experiences with us. One reported smelling cigarette smoke in a specific room multiple times, although no one who worked there at the time smoked at all, let alone inside the home. Another reported having her hair lifted while she reached into a drawer, as well as seeing a shadowy figure walking down the back stairs in the building. 

  • The Delray district of Detroit

    Another location was provided by Kat Tedsen. She wrote to me about this site. “Another site is the Delray district of Detroit. This was where Rose Verers, the Witch of Delray lived. Delray was once a thriving Hungarian immigrant community. Rose Veres was one of the residents and prided herself on her supernatural powers of witchcraft. The superstitious immigrants believed in her powers and feared her.Rose ran a small boarding home. Interestingly, over a few years, Rose’s tenants began to die. It seemed of “natural” causes but were they? The police suspected she was killing them off for her benefit. It seems, before she’d rent a room to a tenant they had to open a life insurance policy in Rose’s name. Just, she said, to ensure their rent was paid should they suddenly leave …. or die. And die they did. Rose was making some decent money from those life insurance policies.The police would eventually strong-arm a confession out of her and her son. Interrogation methods used were tortuous. She finally confessed. Rose and her son were sent to prison. Rose swore the prosecuting attorney and police were corrupt, liars and forced her confession. She swore her innocence and gave them all the “evil eye” at sentencing. Did Rose’s evil eye work? It seems in the years that followed, there was a big purge of the Detroit Police Department. Most of the officers involved in Rose’s case were fired, that includes the P. A who was accused of corruption. Even more interesting, the PA on Rose’s case was sent to the same prison where Rose’s son was incarcerated. Rose and her son were eventually released from prison. Rose’s son passed in front of the cell of the former prosecuting attorney’s cell and simply nodded to him as he left for freedom.Was Rose Veres truly innocent or one of Detroit’s first female serial killers? Did her evil eye work? Today, Delray is mostly an area of vacant lots, and abandoned homes. However, there are accounts the Witch Delray still roams the streets of Delray dressed in her dark, flowing dress and headscarf.The full story of the Witch of Delray can be found in my “Stepping Into Darkness” book The story of the VooDoo Murder will be included in my new book, hoping to be out next year.

    Thank you for that hair-raising story, Kat!

  • Masonic Temple

    I had a few people mention this place. It’s kind of ironic because I had some investigators say they didn’t think it was haunted at all. Either way, it’s a great venue downtown with a storied history.

  • The DIA

    Another one from Jessica from Mystic Mitten Paranormal. She had this to say about the building housing the art collection. “With pieces dating back to the dawn of time, it’s no surprise weird things happen there after dark. Some of the paranormal reports are centered around specific art pieces, others state strange noises can be heard throughout. Some say that they hear loud crashing sounds, with seemingly no source or reason. There are other reports of art pieces moving on their own.”

  • Nancy Whiskey

    Again, Jeff and Todd from Detroit Paranormal Expeditions chimed in with a bar in Detroit, Nancy Whiskey.

    Nancy Whiskey, located in Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood, is one of the oldest bars in the city. According to some firsthand reports we heard from staff who work there, it may also be one of the most haunted. Some of the experiences reported at Nancy’s include glasses flying off the bar and shattering on the floor, as well as staff hearing conversations near the bar after the place had closed for the night.

    Even beyond the reports of paranormal experiences, the history alone of Nancy’s makes it a fascinating place. Located just down the street from the UAW Teamsters office, it is said to have been a favorite haunt (no pun intended) of Jimmy Hoffa when he was around. When you walk into the main entrance, there is an unsuspecting phone booth to the left. Jimmy Hoffa is said to have frequently used this phone, as he was being investigated by the FBI and they had wiretapped his phone. 

     

Meltdown started on the mighty WRIF on the evening of Halloween, 1995. Technically, his first on-air shift was the morning of November 1st. Moving to the Motor City from Buffalo, N.Y., he has built a career and family. Over his almost three-decade stint at RIFF, he's had the privilege to work with some of the biggest personalities in Detroit radio history. He boasts of being just the second-afternoon drive jock in the station's illustrious 53-year history. Along with his love for rock music and attending concerts, he's also an avid Harley-Davidson enthusiast and hockey player. He plays year-round and manages to squeeze in a few charity games throughout the year. Meltdown writes about the Detroit Red Wings, rock music, and Detroit concert venues.
Meltdown

Sign Up For The WRIF Everything That Rocks Newsletter

Get everything that rocks sent right to your inbox. We're talking rock news, concert updates, stories from all around metro Detroit, plus exclusive contests, games and more.

*
By clicking "Subscribe" I agree to the website's terms of Service and Privacy Policy. I understand I can unsubscribe at any time.
Author Meltdown
Category:

More Uncategorized

Load More