As Halloween approaches, Alabamians have many options for fun and fright, from scary movies and spooky phone apps, to pumpkin carving and corn mazes. But, have you ever wondered where it all started?

Folklorists believe our modern Halloween holiday is derived from a 2,000-year-old Celtic tradition celebrating the end of harvest and first day of winter. During the festival of Samhain, the Celts believed spirits mingled with the living, sometimes causing trouble and destruction. To satisfy the spirits, they left offerings of food and drink outside of their homes. They blew out their hearths and a large bonfire was built to further draw the spirits away from the Celts’ homes. The spiritual leaders, dressed in animal skin costumes, used the ashes of the bonfire to make predictions about the coming year.

Over time, Samhain came to be celebrated the evening before All Saints Day, recognized on Nov. 1. Consequently, the Celtic holiday became known as All Hallows (hallowed means holy) Eve, and eventually Hallow Evening and then Halloween. The traditions later came to the United States with the Irish (the descendants of the Celts) in the mid-1800s and they have continued to evolve into our modern holiday celebrations. On Oct. 31, children throughout Alabama will continue the celebration by dressing in costume and collecting the candy offerings we leave for the visiting ghouls and goblins.

Select Halloween Haunts

Looking for a good scare this Halloween with a little history sprinkled in? You don’t have to go far. Alabama sports a slew of historic sites where spirits and spooks have made their presence known. Here are some of Alabama’s most famous historic haunts:

University Chapel, Auburn
139 South College St., 36830
Hours of operation: Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.
http://www.auburn.edu/student_info/student_affairs/stdunion/chapel.html

The building was supposedly used as a hospital during the Civil War, where it is rumored that a confederate soldier named Sydney Grimlett died. In the 1970s, when the building was used as a theater, several student actors and theater attendees reported that the building was haunted by the ghost of Sydney Grimlett. It is believed the ghost moved with the theater troupe to the new Tellfair Peet Theatre building. The Tellfair Peet Theatre is located at 350 West Samford Avenue, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849. http://www.cla.auburn.edu/theatre/

Sloss Furnaces, Birmingham

20 32nd St. North, 35222
Hours of operation: Tuesday – Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday noon to 4 p.m. Closed Mondays

Now a national historic landmark and museum, Sloss Furnaces was an operational blast furnace from 1882-1971. During the early years of operation, several works died while on the job and it is believed that their ghosts still haunt the site. The site has been investigated by several paranormal investigation teams and was featured on the Travel Channel’s “Ghost Adventures.”

Pickens County Courthouse, Carrollton

1 Courthouse Square, 35447

Legend has it in 1878 a man named Henry Mills was accused of burning the town’s courthouse. Mills claimed that he was innocent of the charges. However, while awaiting trial he was killed by a drunken, angry mob. It is believed that Mills ghostly image can be seen in one of the courthouse windows. The courthouse, listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, still holds the offices of the Pickens County circuit clerk.

Gaineswood, Demopolis

805 South Cedar Ave., 36732
Hours of operation: Tuesday–Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., first Saturday of each month 10 a.m. –2 p.m.. Closed Sundays. Other times by appointment. Call 334-289-4846. Closed all state holidays. Admission to the home: Adults, $7; College students and seniors, $5; Children 6-18, $4.  http://www.preserveala.org/gaineswood.aspx

A Greek Revival plantation home built in the early 19th century, Gaineswood gained its haunted notoriety from author Kathryn Tucker Windham’s story, “The Unquiet Ghost of Gaineswood.” Some have heard piano music inside the home, played by the ghost of a broken-hearted woman. Gaineswood is a national historic landmark and owned by the Alabama Historical Commission.

Dead Children’s Playground, Huntsville

1351 McClung Ave., SE, 35801

Maple Hill Park, located in the historic Maple Hill Cemetery (1822), contains an area that was designated for children. A variety of paranormal investigations have noted swings moving on their own, the sound of children laughter and orbs of light. The City of Huntsville removed the playground equipment in 2007, but that has not stopped the mysterious occurrences.

Boyington Oak, Mobile

Northwest corner of the Church Street cemetery, near the grave of Joe Cain.

Legend states that in 1835, Charles Boyington was convicted and sentenced to death for murdering a man named Nathaniel Frost. While proclaiming his innocence, Boyington stated that a large oak would grow above his grave as a sign of his faulty conviction. While the gravestone is now gone, the oak tree remains, and according to some, so does the ghost of Charles Boyington.

St. James Hotel, Selma

1200 Water Ave., 36701
Originally known as the Brantley Hotel in 1837, the hotel was once host to Frank and Jesse James. After falling on hard times the hotel closed in1892-1893. When the building was reopened as a hotel in 1997, several guests reported seeing the ghosts of Jesse James, his girlfriend Lucinda, and others dressed in 1800’s-style apparel. In addition, it is said that a barking dog can sometimes be heard, which is believed to be the dog that had belonged to Jesse James.

Jemison Van de Graaff Mansion, Tuscaloosa

1305 Greensboro Ave., 35401
Hours of operation: Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tours of the mansion are free of charge.
http://www.jemisonmansion.com/

Robert Jemison Van de Graaff, Jr., a state senator and inventor, built the home in 1859. It is rumored that Van de Graaff’s son-in-law and daughter haunt the mansion.