Ashmore Estates

The origin of Ashmore Estates dates back to 1857, when Coles County established its public county poor farm to house impoverished citizens, mentally ill residents, orphans, and destitute elderly individuals. In 1911, the original wooden almshouse burned to the ground, prompting county commissioners to construct a modern, fireproof two-story brick facility. Completed in 1916, the building served as the Coles County Poor Farm almshouse for over four decades, operating as a self-sustaining agricultural community where residents worked the surrounding fields in exchange for room and board. In 1959, the property was purchased by Psychiatric Veripaked Incorporated, which reopened the facility as Ashmore Estates—a private psychiatric care institution catering to developmentally disabled and chronically mentally ill patients. However, financial hardship, inadequate staffing, and regulatory violations plagued the institution, leading to its permanent closure in 1987. Left abandoned for nearly two decades, the building suffered severe vandalism and decay until paranormal author Arthur Kelley purchased the property in 2006 to operate it as a commercial haunted attraction. In 2014, current owner Robbin Terry acquired the landmark, completing extensive structural repairs, installing a new roof, and converting Ashmore Estates into a premier historic dark tourism destination and research facility for paranormal investigators.

Decades of severe hardship, institutional suffering, disease outbreaks, and eventual abandonment have created a rich, enduring tapestry of chilling ghost lore surrounding Ashmore Estates throughout Coles County and central Illinois. The most famous legend centers on 'Elva Skinner,' a young girl who allegedly died in a tragic fire that consumed an earlier wooden structure on the county poor farm property in the late nineteenth century. According to local folklore, her spectral figure wearing a singed dress is frequently seen standing near the main entryway or peering from second-floor window frames, accompanied by the distinct smell of smoke and burning wood in rooms where no fires exist. Another celebrated legend involves 'Joe,' a former resident of the psychiatric facility who lived at Ashmore Estates for decades until his death; his friendly spirit is said to inhabit the main floor, flicking flashlight beams on and off in direct response to vocal questions and making light thumping noises along the hallway walls. In contrast, subterranean legends warn of a dark, hostile male entity residing in the basement water pump room, nicknamed 'The Shadow Man.' Paranormal investigators claim this entity aggressively confronts trespassers, producing guttural growls, shoving investigators against brick walls, throwing loose gravel across the concrete floor, and projecting a dense, tall shadow figure that blocks doorway exits to terrify late-night visitors and ghost hunters.

Ashmore Estates is widely considered by professional ghost hunters, dark tourists, and investigative teams to be one of the most actively haunted locations in the Midwestern United States. Investigation teams routinely record clear Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVPs), including disembodied male growls, female weeping, and distinct voices answering questions posed during audio sessions. Full-bodied shadow figures are frequently witnessed darting across the long center hallways on both the first and second floors, even during daytime hours. Visitors routinely experience physical contact phenomena, such as unseen hands touching their shoulders, tugging on clothing, or pulling hair, alongside sudden dramatic temperature drops exceeding twenty degrees within seconds. Inexplicable equipment malfunctions—such as brand-new camera batteries draining instantly to zero and night-vision cameras powering off unexpectedly—are documented daily by researchers exploring the complex. During public ghost hunts, heavy wooden doors have been captured on video swinging open and slamming shut on their own accord without any draft.

The Ashmore Estates facility is a massive two-story institutional brick structure constructed in the Neo-Georgian architectural style with a full subterranean basement level. The building features a symmetrical red-brick exterior accented by concrete window sills, a raised stone foundation, a gabled roofline, and a central columned entrance portal. The interior layout is defined by long, narrow central corridors on each floor flanked by dozens of small former patient rooms, communal dining halls, administrative offices, and medical wards. The basement level contains concrete utility rooms, laundry vaults, furnace chambers, and subterranean storage chambers, featuring exposed brick walls and original iron pipe infrastructure throughout the subterranean footprint.

Ashmore Estates is private property located in rural Coles County near Ashmore, Illinois. Access onto the property and inside the building is strictly limited to ticketed public events, daytime historical tours, flashlight ghost walks, and private overnight paranormal investigations booked in advance through the official Ashmore Estates website. Public tours and investigation dates are held regularly throughout the spring, summer, and autumn months. Visitors are strongly advised to wear sturdy closed-toe hiking boots or walking shoes, dress in warm layers, and bring reliable flashlights, as interior areas lack central heating or air conditioning, making autumn and spring night investigations quite chilly.

Ashmore Estates owes its formidable paranormal reputation to its real, documented history as an institutional poor farm and psychiatric asylum, coupled with high-profile media features on *Ghost Adventures*, *Ghost Hunters*, and *Paranormal Lockdown*. The building's isolated rural location and intense, documented poltergeist activity make it a flagship location for dark tourism, historical preservation, and paranormal research across the Midwestern United States.