The most haunted location in the area is said to be Fort Morgan. As Halloween night approaches we pay tribute to the historic fort and the many souls who call it home.

As writer Marilyn Jones discovered during an interview, Fort Morgan holds many more stories than just the Battle of Mobile Bay.

“As I walk through the tunnel to enter the fort, I get a feeling that I’m entering hallowed ground,” says Fort Morgan tour guide Jeff Rodewald. 

Construction on Fort Morgan began in 1819. Completed in 1833, the fort was named to honor Revolutionary War hero General Daniel Morgan. 

“As I learn the history of the fort, where the soldiers stayed, where they ate their meals, and where they went when they were wounded, (I often) visualize and feel the camaraderie and the pain of every soldier,” says Rodewald. 

Many guests say they believe there are spirits and ghosts still present in the fort. It’s easy to time travel as you walk through the massive archways along the same corridors where soldiers lived, worked and died for just over a century. 

On one particular summer night at dusk, Rodewald was stationed in a back room of the fort near a row of casemates (an armored structure where guns are fired). Dressed in a period soldier uniform, his assignment was to tell visitors about the deaths in the fort from the time of construction to its closure after World War II. 

According to Rodewald, three young women entered the candlelit entrance and stopped to take a picture of the doorways that run through five of the casemate rooms. “They are toward the end of the group coming in … Just as one of them is in the process of taking the picture one of them shouts ‘did you see that?!’ The other two say, ‘yes!’

“They pull the picture up on their phone and sure enough, there is an orb-like object in the photo,” he recalls. “They ask me if anyone else is back here. I tell them we are the only people in this part of the fort. … They are a little spooked with what just happened,” he says with a smile. “I cannot explain what they saw, but they saw something!”

There have been many sightings over the years. The old barracks are said to be one of the most haunted portions of the fort. In 1917 a prisoner hanged himself there. According to many reports, you can still hear the hanging man cry late at night. Visitors say they also hear footsteps and have been touched.

During the Civil War, a bomb went off in a room of the fort killing several men. Visitors say the men can still be heard screaming. 

The most witnessed manifestation is a young woman. She was attacked sometime during the 19th century, and it is believed she still roams the fort and grounds looking for her attacker. 

As the sun sets on this Halloween eve, remember the spirits at Fort Morgan and you may even hear their pleas for help.

Be safe and happy Halloween.