Discover the haunted history of this Florida Gulf Coast city with tales of battles, murders, natural disasters and the restless spirits they left behind. Located on the coast of Florida’s panhandle, Panama City offers plenty of charm, fun and sun. But it also has a dramatic past that still lingers among its old buildings and historic landmarks. Staff at the City Center for the Arts can still hear the footsteps of inmates pacing the cells of the Old County Jail that once occupied the grounds, and a phantom known as Virginia still frequents the elevators of the historic Bay County Courthouse. Not all spirits bring doom and gloom, however—one local family learned how to befriend the resident ghost of their new home that was fond of whistling at night. Using extensive research and interviews, author Beverly Nield details the ghastly history of haunted Panama City.

Sumter County's serene beauty is cloaked by mystery--a Seminole sage's timeless spell, a lurking swamp monster, a family's spirited legacy and the ghostly cries of brokenhearted souls. Floridian bad boys, mobsters and bank robbers line the pages of Sumter County's criminal past. Murder, mayhem and mystery are embedded in our cultural timeline, from the indigenous eradication to the present-day retirement utopia. Step into the paranormal possibilities swirling inside the historic Baker House in Wildwood. Sense the residual energy that sways from Sumter County's courthouse front steps. Feel the county's macabre history come alive as Deborah Carr Hollingsworth churns up chilling tales from our mysterious past.

Explore the spirited history and haunted sites of Tampa with this guide from a local historian. Tampa may be known for sunshine and good times, but it has a scary side. When dusk settles down over the Hillsborough River, spirits begin to stir. Strange things happen in old hotels, theaters and public buildings, and an old cemetery becomes surprisingly lively. Some have seen an old crime boss walking the street. Some have encountered ancient spirits in a public parking garage. Still others have met a long-dead soul in a downtown shop. Join local author and historian Deborah Frethem as she navigates the twists and turns of the more macabre side of Tampa Bay.

Manatee County's history is filled with tales of Native American battles, shipwrecks and the expeditions of Hernando de Soto. It's no surprise that spirits still linger on these sunny shores. Anna Maria Island's first permanent resident still returns to the island more than one hundred years later to flirt with the female tourists. A convict hanged in the county courthouse in 1907 is sometimes heard singing on the courthouse grounds. In the 1970s, the specter of a blond woman was seen hitchhiking along the old Skyway Bridge, only to vanish once she'd been picked up. Join author and paranormal investigator Liz Reed on a tour of Manatee County's most haunted locales.

Discover the paranormal past of this panhandle town . . . Photos included! Monticello might sometimes seem like a quiet Florida panhandle town, but its history tells of a ghostly past stretching back to the early nineteenth century. Discover the stories behind the old blacksmith’s forge on Jefferson Street—where the chilling sounds of metal striking metal still ring out across the town—and the Hanging Tree, forever haunted by the ghosts of executed outlaws and lost Confederate soldiers. The Monticello Historical district contains over forty buildings dating back to the nineteenth century, and it is said that one out of every three buildings are haunted. Join local haunted tour guide Betty Davis and Big Bend Ghost Trackers as they reveal the amazing history of Monticello’s spookiest spots.

Author and Haunted DeLand tour guide Dusty Smith recounts a century of ghostly history in the bustling historic community of DeLand, the Athens of Florida. Specters include those of Jeannette Barnhill, whose ghost drove her real estate mogul widower mad by standing behind him to keep a constant watch on his accounting books, and of the guest killed in the 1917 Putnam Hotel fire who leaves the smell of burnt wood and flesh in the air. Forlorn lovers Ruby and Joshua, a freed slave and a plantation foreman, and Suzanna Brown, who jumped to her death with unrequited love for a Stetson professor, are included, as well as the ghostly horse-drawn hearse that has been seen parked alongside what was once the Old Casket Company. From steamboat captains to Spiritualist camp residents, DeLand's ghosts are sure to delight visitors and residents alike in this stirring account of the area's historic haunts.