The Ghost Stories That Make Fort El Reno So Creepy

In terms of haunted history across Oklahoma, our military installations really take the cake. We just talked about the hauntings at Fort Sill, but are you familiar with Fort El Reno? It's rumored to be one of the most haunted military posts in the country, and judging by the stories and dark history, even I, a non-believer in ghosts and paranormal shenanigans, might be a little weirded out to go explore Fort El Reno on a dark night.

The story that got my attention involved a volunteer at the visitor center who heard the director of operations upstairs. He called her to ask how she'd managed to sneak past him, because he knew he'd heard her voice.

She told him she wasn't upstairs. She was in Texas. Nobody else was in the building with him in that moment.

That's a pretty good start to a ghost story. It also wasn't an isolated event.

The Little Girl At Fort Reno

Fort Reno has a big old, run-down Victorian-esque house that dates back to 1878, and like all creepy old houses, it's also haunted.

Paranormal investigators have been to examine this place a dozen times, and they keep coming away with similar stories. A ghostly little girl named Emily Ann, who they believe may have been murdered and buried beneath the house.

That part of the story has never been fully confirmed, so we're dealing with legend more than established history. But it gets creepier. Visitors have reportedly seen a little girl standing in one of the windows.

There was a picture someone snapped during a photoshoot back in 2016. Paranormal experts swear there's a ghost in the window behind the happy couple getting their photos snapped. You can see it here.

Confused of what you're looking at? Welcome to the club. We call ourselves "Everyone." When paranormal investigators had a go at identifying the apparition, the results were inconclusive.

The Emily Ann story is unsettling enough without adding mysterious photographs to the mix. And if you've got an old Victorian house with a story about a murdered child attached to it, I'm guessing that window has become a pretty popular place for people to stare while they're on a tour.

The Ghosts At The El Reno Commissary Have Their Own Thing Going On

The old commissary has reportedly had some unusual visitors, too, including children who have been seen playing peek-a-boo. There's also a ghost in the old schoolhouse who, according to the stories shared on Fort Reno's ghost tours, only answers questions about partying.

That's a wildly specific twist on a good old-fashioned ghost story.

The U.S. Cavalry Museum has a much less entertaining story. Workers upstairs have reportedly heard coughing and retching coming from the area around the front desk. They go to check on the employee they think is sick, only to find that she's fine.

That's the sort of thing that would get old pretty quickly if you worked there every day. Imagine trying to get through your shift while somebody, or something, keeps making you think there's a sick person downstairs.

Fort Reno Has Plenty Of Real History Behind Those Stories

Part of what makes Fort Reno interesting is the history that sits underneath all these tales. The post began in 1874, during the conflicts surrounding the Red River War, and its mission changed over the years as the territory around it changed. Soldiers were involved in the government's efforts to control the region, and the fort later played a role in the Oklahoma Land Runs, a POW camp during WWII, and a slew of weird history up until the day it closed.

It's only natural that paranormal stories have grown alongside that long history.

On the cool side of things, Fort Reno now holds lantern-lit historical spirit tours, where visitors hear about the reported encounters while traveling around the old post and cemetery.

Have you been on a ghost tour before? Some of them are pretty interesting. Hearing a horrifying tale outside the building where it supposedly happened is an experience.

If you'd like to take that tour yourself, click here for info.