Alcatraz Island Haunting — Former Inmates Refuse to Leave

Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary operated from 1934 to 1963 on an island in San Francisco Bay, housing some of the most dangerous criminals in America. Even before it became a federal prison, the island was considered cursed by Native Americans who avoided it. The Ohlone people called it a place of evil spirits.

After closure, National Park Service rangers and employees assigned to the island began documenting anomalous experiences. Rangers reported being locked in cells by unseen forces, hearing sobbing and banging coming from within sealed areas, and feeling sudden extreme cold in specific locations.

The utility corridor known as the Dungeon is considered the most active location, where prisoners in the early 20th century reported a glowing-eyed creature that may have preceded the federal penitentiary era. Cell 14D, used for long-term solitary confinement, is reported to be perpetually cold and associated with feelings of panic and a suffocating presence.

Al Capone's ghost has been reported in the bathroom where he played banjo, and the sounds of a 1940s big band have been heard by multiple independent witnesses in the same location. The island's isolation and its history as a place of extreme confinement contribute to its reputation as one of the most authentically haunted federal properties in the United States.