South Dakota Ranks Fourth Nationally For Paranormal Sightings Per Capita

When it comes to all things creepy and spooky, South Dakota is one of the most haunted states in America.

As we get ready for Halloween at the end of the month, PlayCasino.com counted every paranormal sighting listed for each state on Ghosts of America, the long-running website where members of the public log their paranormal encounters town by town, and compared the totals with the Census Bureau's latest population estimates. Across the 50 states, 68,029 sightings are reported.

When you factor in population, the Mount Rushmore State's 45.8 sightings per 100,000 residents is the fourth most in the nation. As for the spot in the state that has seen the most paranormal activity, that would be Eagle Butte in central South Dakota, with 26 sightings.

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One of the state's neighbors also landed in the top ten. Iowa's 33.2 sightings per 100,000 is ninth overall, with 50 sightings in just Clinton alone.

MOST HAUNTED STATES

1. Maine - 57.3 per 100,000 residents (811 sightings, most reported in Sanford, 27)
2. North Dakota - 51.3 per 100,000 residents (410 sightings, most reported in Argusville, 24)
3. Oklahoma - 48.2 per 100,000 residents (1,987 sightings, most reported in Concho, 47)
4. South Dakota - 45.8 per 100,000 residents (428 sightings, most reported in Eagle Butte, 26)
5. Vermont - 38.0 per 100,000 residents (245 sightings, most reported in Saint Albans, 16)
6. Wyoming - 37.2 per 100,000 residents (219 sightings, most reported in Gillette, 34)
7. West Virginia - 35.0 per 100,000 residents (619 sightings, most reported in Harpers Ferry, 20)
8. Montana - 34.4 per 100,000 residents (394 sightings, most reported in Billings, 44)
9. Iowa - 33.2 per 100,000 residents (1,074 sightings, most reported in Clinton, 50)
10. Kansas - 32.9 per 100,000 residents (979 sightings, most reported in Wichita, 36)

At the other end of the table, Florida is the least haunted state per person. Its 1,800 sightings are the 12th-highest total of any state, but with more than 23 million residents, that works out at just 7.7 per 100,000, or one for every 13,035 people.

LEAST HAUNTED STATES

1. Florida - 7.7 per 100,000 residents (1,800 sightings)
2. Arizona - 10.8 per 100,000 residents (825 sightings)
3. New York - 11.0 per 100,000 residents (2,196 sightings)
4. Nevada - 11.6 per 100,000 residents (380 sightings)
5. New Jersey - 11.6 per 100,000 residents (1,110 sightings)
6. Delaware - 12.6 per 100,000 residents (134 sightings)
7. Connecticut - 13.5 per 100,000 residents (497 sightings)
8. Hawaii - 13.5 per 100,000 residents (194 sightings)
9. Maryland - 13.6 per 100,000 residents (851 sightings)
10. North Carolina - 14.5 per 100,000 residents (1,621 sightings)

Military bases feature heavily among the most-sighted places.

Fort Knox has 95 reported sightings, the most of anywhere in Kentucky, while Fort Benning has the most in Georgia with 68 and Camp Lejeune the most in North Carolina with 45. Gettysburg, the site of the Civil War's bloodiest battle, has the most in Pennsylvania with 44, and Roswell, famous for a very different kind of unexplained encounter, has the most in New Mexico with 38.

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