Elfreth's Alley

Elfreth's Alley paranormal

Photo by: Marianne Donley
Location submitted by: sdonley on 08/03/2017
DBA Approved: Y

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PANICd#: 1903

Our nation's oldest residential street.

124-126 Elfreth's Alley
Philadelphia , PA 19106
Open to the public: Yes

http://www.elfrethsalley.org/

Lat: 39.9527666
Lon: -75.14239709999998

Database Summary:

Demographic Rank: 5
History: 1
Stories: 3
Claims: 5
Evidence: 0
Resources: 8
Retrievals: 6924
Vistor Rating: 0.0
Votes: 7

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History

History information is some background and history about the location. This is meant to be a basic summary. Below the history records you will find sources in which you can click on to find out more information. There may be multiple history records per location.

Our nation's oldest residential street.

Nestled between Second Street and the Delaware River, thirty-two Federal and Georgian residences stand as reminders of the early days of Philadelphia.

Designated a National Historic Landmark October 15th, 1966.

Elfreth's Alley was not included in original plans for Philadelphia. As Philadelphia became a bustling city, artisans and merchants purchased or rented property close to the ports where goods and materials arrived. This led to overcrowding, and landowners recognized that tradesmen needed alternate routes to the river. Landowners Arthur Wells and John Gilbert combined their properties between Front and Second Streets to open Elfreth's Alley, named after silversmith Jeremiah Elfreth, as a cart path in 1706.

Added by: sdonley on 07/28/2019 DB#:429
Source(s):
http://www.elfrethsalley.org/

Stories

Stories are just that. Stories and personal accounts that have been reported about the location.

Stroll along the nation's oldest residential street to try to catch a ghostly glimpse of one of the some 3,000 people who have lived along this eerie alleyway through the years. There are rumors that a soldier was hanged on Elfreth's Alley, and several visitors have even been able to nab what they consider to be photographic evidence of paranormal activity.

Added by: sdonley on 07/28/2019 DB#:1431
Source(s):
https://www.visitphilly.com/articles/philadelphia/...

Twisted Philly Podcast

Episode 72: Elfreth’s Alley

The link to the podcast is in the sources below

Added by: sdonley on 07/28/2019 DB#:1432
Source(s):
https://twistedphilly.com/2018/05/08/episode-72-el...

Reports of strange lights and voices are regularly reported, and people often catch ghostly images on their cameras. An old story goes that a soldier was once hanged in the street, and that his spirit continues to haunt the vicinity.

Added by: sdonley on 07/28/2019 DB#:1433
Source(s):
https://www.ranker.com/list/ghost-stories-from-phi...

Paranormal Claims

Here are the paranormal claims for this location. These have been found through Internet research, reports from members, or reports from personal interviews. To add a claim, please contact PANICd.com, and we will review and add your information.

Claim #	Added	Added By	Claim
2884	07/28/2019	sdonley	Strange lights and voices are regularly reported.
2885	07/28/2019	sdonley	Several people have taken strange ghostly images in photographs.
2886	07/28/2019	sdonley	The apparition of a soldier who was believed to be hung on the street has been seen.
2887	07/28/2019	sdonley	People have reported having headaches while walking down the alley.
2888	07/28/2019	sdonley	People have reported devices have battery drainage while walking down the alley.

Additional Resources

This is a collection of Internet resources for this location. This section will house links to other websites that contain information related to history, claims, investigations, or even the location's website.

Wikipedia Entry Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	Wikipedia entry for this location.
Historic Philadelphia Tour: Elfreth's Alley & Mantua Maker's Museum House Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	A tour of historic sites of interest throughout Philadelphia with interesting facts, information for visitors and more.
The Freakiest Paranormal Legends From Philadelphia (Page 3) Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	Since its beginningsÂ as one of America's first cities, Philadelphia has beenÂ one of the nation's most important historical sites. Everything there is steeped in patriotic history, including Philadelphia ghost stories. Similar to the ghost stories of Massachusetts, tales of ... (Page 3)
#elfrethsalley hashtag on Twitter Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	See Tweets about #elfrethsalley on Twitter. See what people are saying and join the conversation.
Taking a Stroll Down Elfrethâ€™s Alley in Philadelphia Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	Information about the location, see link for details.
Elfreth's Alley Association \| Historical Society of Pennsylvania Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	Information about the Elfreth's Alley Association, see link for details.
Elfrethâ€™s Alley Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	Information about the location, see link for details.
A Brief History of Elfreth's Alley in Philadelphia Added: 07/28/2019 By: sdonley	Information about the location, see link for details.