Every town has its legends, and every town has That One Legend that will stick with you, whether you believe it or not. This haunted road in rural Northeast Ohio has been terrifying local kids for almost a century, and drawing ghost hunters and paranormal investigators from all over the country for decades.
Gore Orphanage Road stretches from Vermilion to Savannah, Ohio, and is the source of local mystery and terror.
The haunted stretch lies around Wakeman.
Legend has it that an orphanage was located off the road from 1909 until 1916.
The exact location of the old orphanage is hotly debated among ghost hunters and local children daring enough to go searching. But it's certainly true that this part of the road feels different to the rest.
The orphanage was started in 1909 by Mrs and Mr Sprunger, after the death of their own children.
It started life as the Light and Hope Orphanage, but in life it was anything but. The orphanage actually took its nickname, Gore Orphanage, from the road. It was named after the geological feature: gore meaning a small (typically triangular) patch of land.
But the mingling of legends means that the gruesome tragedy of Gore Orphanage has taken on a life of its own.
The legend starts with the deterioration of pastoral care at the orphanage. Those in charge of the children were harsh and quick with punishment. Stories of children escaping the orphanage with the help of local townspeople are supported by some newspaper clippings and letters. The children who escaped relayed stories of abuse and torture by their so-called carers. One man in particular was implicated in the worst of the cruelties: some stories say a reverend, some say Mr Sprunger, also known as Old Man Gore.
The story goes that one night, Old Man Gore grew tired of the children. He locked them in their rooms, and set the house on fire.
Ever since, young kids in old-fashioned clothing have been seen standing on the road and in the forest near the orphanage ruins, only to disappear in the blink of an eye.
Visitors to the site have reported hearing the crackling of a fire and the screams and moans of the children trapped inside. Some have smelled the burning flesh.
The orphanage was said to have housed up to 120 children, and every one of them perished in the flames.
It's said that the old stone marker is all that is left of the building, which burned to the ground in 1916.
There are ruins nearby, although you have to push your way through the overgrown forest to find anything. Many people have seen children and a woman, likely a nurse from the orphanage, wandering the forest, or hiding behind trees. No one has ever reported being harmed in this site, but some claim that they have seen a large, mean-looking old man, grumbling to himself about "the children"...
Legends have a way of mutating and mingling over time. Some claim that there never was an orphanage on this site. If there was, it is likely that the story of it burning down was borrowed from a nearby tragedy which happened around the same time, in which a school actually did burn down, killing all 126 children inside. There are no records to support the story, but then, others claim that there are no records to deny it. However, I challenge even the most skeptical of people to drive down this stretch of road and not feel a little thrill...
Or something more.
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