6 Spooky Small Towns In Florida

The sunny, cheerful Florida is home to many haunted sights in cities like Key West and St. Augustine. Nevertheless, these small towns in the state are most spooky for their mere size encompassing memories of abandonment, famous residents from the past, and ghostly visitors today.

Cassadaga

Perched on Lake Helen within half an hour from Orlando, the village is sought-after by international supernatural connoisseurs. Although set only a mile from the main road, it feels like leaping into another world. There's definitely a different kind of energy in the Cassadaga, often described as unique and healing. Occupied by many psychics, mediums, and spiritual healers that were drawn to the village, it is also home to the Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp, which was founded in 1894 with the most reputable psychic mediums and healers. They are known for contacting deceased people, telling the future, and spiritual healing, among other specializations. There's also a rare crystal healing bed, a Reiki Master Healer, as well as church services, workshops, and a spiritual book shop. The location comes with a rich supernatural history that one can discover upon setting base at the thematic Cassadaga Hotel as an only-adults lodging. It suits people seeking supernatural encounters, spiritual growth, and those wishing to capture the other-worldly energy, where ghostly visitors have been known to mess with one's belongings. There's also a restaurant, a gift shop, and many group events for a relatively normal experience.

Hopewell

Founded shortly before the Civil War as the Turner Plantation in the surroundings of a citrus grove area, it was also known formerly known as the town of Callsville in 1870. Worked by slaves, the land of the plantation was later divided into small homesteads when they attained freedom. Quickly prospering into a town that no one knows why it was named Hopewell, it was later abandoned with no hope for a future. Still, with the recent reclamation of the town and residents from the nearby Hillborough, there must be something about the citrus groves that give the area its wishful environment. Stepping into town makes one susceptible to a whole other energy, especially after dusk, when one can hear a deafening choir of voices of the long-gone residents, according to those living there today. Whether it is just a tale, there is something magical and spookily magnetic about the location adorned by all the citrus groves. Among the few buildings, one can find the old McDonald House, Hopewell's church, Hull House, and a cemetery. Many homes have been overtaken by vines and sprawled over by tree canopies, with some in bad condition, too dangerous to explore. Nevertheless, the picturesquely eerie townscape is galore for the curious and the photographers.

Kismet

The small town was founded in 1884 by the Kismet Land and Improvement Company as a thriving citrus town. Upon the destruction of the orange groves just short five years later in the freeze of 1889, the town became deserted. With snowbirds wintering in Kismet for a warm getaway away from everything and everyone, there was even a 50-room hotel that was later torn down. There is a place where Walt Disney's parents got married in 1888 just up the road, while Kismet is also home to the graveyards of Walt Disney's grandparents. What makes this small town spooky is the glee behind the established community of orange-citrus growers-veiled in abandonment, along with the "gravely" connection to the legendary-cheerful Walt Disney.

Slavia

The small town was founded by a group of Slovakian immigrants that moved there from Ohio in 1911. They were looking for new land to build a wholesome life with values around agriculture. Failing to establish a flourishing place that would help them prosper, the Slavia Colony Company dissolved following only short nine years later in 1920. They divided the remaining acres between stockholders and moved elsewhere, possibly trading Florida for another state, with no one knowing exactly where the Slavia are now. Upon visiting the haunting location, one may run into a lonely 11-year-old boy, a transparent figure of John Mikler, who was the first person to be buried in the town back in 1933.

Stiltsville

The small ghost town of Stiltsville is spooky for its truly-disastrous location that one can still visit today. A formerly thriving vacation spot, Stiltsville was rife with gambling dens and bars at the height of its prosperity. The Bikini Club was the most popular of all, a grounded yacht, that came with a deck for nude sunbathing, as well as known for giving free drinks to the ladies who were dressed in two-piece swimsuits. Upon sustaining irreversible damage from the many hurricanes that hit the area, and the closure of the Bikini Club, Stiltsville turned into a ghost town. While the setting is truly picturesque with the remaining houses still functioning, it is all just a mere reflection of what the hotspot used to be. One can also kayak or take a boat to navigate the shallows of Biscayne Bay to see the disarray of abandoned homes and former recreational spots from the water.

White City

The small town was founded in 1893 by a group of Danish settlers from the mid-west, inspired by Chicago's World Fair. Four years later, White City was visited by con artist Colonel Myers, claiming that he came to the community to establish a great town. He would take down payments for land parcels and charge from residents' savings, thus scheming his way through and swindling people out of money and land. Not surprisingly, he soon disappeared with most of the town's cash, which left White City without a chance of surviving the freeze of 1984 to 1985. With crops destroyed, its residents went elsewhere, leaving behind a mix of an active ghost town for visitors to see today. One can walk down the streets to marvel at some interesting homes from the early 1900s, as well as stop by the old White City Marketplace-turned antique shop. Other original structures include the Jorgensen House and the Captain Hammond House, while residents believe that the colonel still roams the town to this day. Many restoration efforts getting mysteriously destroyed and personal items like gold watches going missing are all blamed on his ghostly glory. 

These towns come with small areas and an enclosed perimeter offering a greater chance of running into some of the spooky sights and even people from the past. Comprising a demanded location for the supernatural-seekers, they are also sought for picturesque glories by the curious photographers.