From forgotten amusement parks to haunted prisons, here’s why Ohio might be America’s best-kept secret for strange exploration.

When most people think of Ohio, they picture flat farmland, college football, and maybe a skyline shot of Cleveland or Cincinnati. But if you dig just a little deeper—or if you’re the kind of person who packs a flashlight and keeps an extra pair of boots in the trunk—then you know: Ohio is strange.

Not just “huh, that’s quirky,” but strange. I’m talking deeply weird, history-saturated, mystery-soaked, liminal-space strange. Whether it’s abandoned institutions, secretive religious colonies, or gravity-defying roads, the Buckeye State has a long, complicated relationship with the odd and unexplained.

So grab your gloves, bring your camera, and let’s take a tour of the strangest places in Ohio—urban explorer style.

1. Helltown (Boston Mills) – The Urban Legend That Refuses to Die

Location: Peninsula, OH
Coordinates: 41.2647° N, 81.5551° W

Let’s get this one out of the way: Helltown isn’t marked on any map. But if you’re into folklore, Cold War-era land grabs, and government cover-ups (allegedly), this place has it all. In the 1970s, the federal government bought up land around Boston Mills as part of an expansion of Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Locals were evicted, buildings were boarded up, and suddenly, rumors spread like wildfire.

Stories of mutant snakes, Satanic rituals, haunted school buses, and abandoned churches with upside-down crosses became urban legend gold.

What’s true? What’s embellished? That’s part of the fun. Explore carefully—much of the land is now part of the National Park and subject to patrol. But even from the roadside, it’s a place where the hair on your arms stands up just a bit straighter.

2. The Ohio State Reformatory – Ghosts, Solitary Cells, and Shawshank

Location: 100 Reformatory Rd, Mansfield, OH
Website: mrps.org

You don’t have to be a ghost hunter to feel something inside these walls.

Built in 1886, this castle-like prison resembles a Gothic cathedral more than a penitentiary. It’s most famous as the filming location for The Shawshank Redemption, but urban explorers know it as one of the most intense haunts in the Midwest.

With stories of inmate abuse, suicides, and shadowy figures seen roaming solitary confinement, it’s a must-visit for anyone with an interest in the macabre. Night tours, ghost hunts, and photography passes are available and highly recommended. Just don’t go in expecting a kitschy haunted house vibe. This place is legit unsettling.

3. Lunkenheimer Valve Company (Cincinnati) – Industrial Decay Frozen in Time

Location: 2001 Spring Grove Ave, Cincinnati, OH (Private Property – No Trespassing)

Some buildings age with dignity. Others just sit there like sleeping giants, wrapped in rust and slowly succumbing to nature.

The Lunkenheimer Valve Company was once a powerhouse of industrial manufacturing. Now it’s a husk—a multi-building complex with rusted stairs, cracked gauges, and typewriters left exactly where they were decades ago. If you’re lucky enough to get permission, or know someone who knows someone, it’s a dream location for those who romanticize decay.

Pro tip: There are other abandoned factories in the Cincinnati area with slightly less security if you’re not ready for prime time. But this one? This is the holy grail.

Nearby: Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum is a nonprofit rural cemetery and arboretum located at 4521 Spring Grove Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. At a size of 733 acres, it is the third largest cemetery in the United States, after the Calverton National Cemetery and Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery.

4. Moonville Tunnel (Zaleski State Forest) – A Haunted Train Tunnel in the Middle of Nowhere

Location: Hope-Moonville Rd, McArthur, OH
Website: vintoncountytravel.com

What do you get when you mix a coal-era ghost town, a single-track railway, and a series of unexplained deaths?

Moonville Tunnel.

All that’s left of Moonville is a few grave markers and the crumbling brick tunnel that once connected this now-vanished town to the outside world. Locals say it’s haunted by the ghost of a brakeman, and more than one visitor has claimed to see lantern lights flickering deep inside.

You’ll need to hike in, so bring boots and bug spray. The tunnel is especially eerie at dusk, when the woods seem to muffle sound and time stretches in weird ways. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself whispering.

5. The World’s Largest Cuckoo Clock (Sugarcreek) – Creepy or Quaint? You Decide.

Location: 100 N Broadway St, Sugarcreek, OH
Website: villageofsugarcreek.com

OK, this one’s less abandoned and more bizarre roadside Americana, but it earns a place on this list for sheer oddball energy.

This thing is huge—over 24 feet tall—and every 30 minutes, a little polka band of mechanical figures emerges to serenade you with oompah music. Depending on your mindset (and how many hours you’ve been on the road), it’s either charming or the stuff of nightmares.

It’s right in the heart of Ohio’s Amish Country, so it’s a weird cultural juxtaposition too. I always say: urban exploring is as much about context as it is about decay. And this? This is peak Ohio.

6. Chippewa Lake Amusement Park – Nature’s Reclamation Project

Location: Chippewa Lake, OH (Demolished 2020, remnants remain nearby)

Once a bustling lakeside attraction, Chippewa Lake Amusement Park was abandoned in the late 1970s and sat untouched for decades. Ferris wheels slowly rusted into the treetops, bumper cars collected moss, and swan boats decayed in stagnant pools.

Though the park was largely cleared in 2020, there are still echoes of its existence—stone foundations, access roads, and the occasional structural remnant if you know where to look. For seasoned explorers, it’s a masterclass in how fast (and how slowly) nature takes back its turf.

And if you’re into photography, some of the most haunting shots of Ohio’s abandonment history came from here.

7. Serpent Mound – Ancient Earthworks and Magnetic Weirdness

Location: 3850 OH-73, Peebles, OH
Website: greatserpentmound.com

Is it an ancient burial site? A calendar? A signal to something in the stars?

No one’s quite sure.

This 1,348-foot earthen effigy of a coiled serpent predates modern civilization in North America and aligns with solar and lunar cycles. It’s eerie, quiet, and weirdly magnetic—literally. Visitors report compass glitches, animal behavior changes, and strange dreams after visiting.

This one’s out in the countryside, far from the rust and ruin of industrial Ohio, but it’s deeply strange in its own quiet, prehistoric way.

8. The House of Wills (Cleveland) – Occult Symbolism in a Forgotten Funeral Home

Location: 2491 E 55th St, Cleveland, OH (Private Property – Do Not Enter Without Permission)

Once the largest Black-owned funeral home in Ohio, this East Cleveland mansion-turned-mortuary is now a hotspot for ghost hunters, photographers, and yes, Satanic panic conspiracy theorists.

With its decaying interior, dramatic staircases, and allegedly occult graffiti, it’s easy to see why it’s taken on a life of its own in paranormal circles. It’s also tragically beautiful—a reminder of the building’s rich cultural past and its decline in a city full of forgotten giants.

The current owner has opened it for events and paranormal investigations, so this one might be legally explorable—if you ask nicely.

9. Gravity Hill (Prospect Place) – Where the Rules of Physics Get Messy

Location: Trinway, OH (near Prospect Place Mansion)
Website: geocities.ws — (classic ghost site throwback, worth it)

Here’s the deal: You stop your car at the bottom of the hill, put it in neutral… and it rolls up.

Locals have been talking about this “gravity hill” for decades. Some say it’s ghosts. Others say it’s an optical illusion. Either way, it’s a rite of passage for weird Ohio fans.

While you’re in the area, swing by Prospect Place Mansion, one of Ohio’s most haunted historic homes. And maybe bring a level or two. Because something about this hill feels wrong.

10. Mansfield’s Secret Subway Tunnels – Rumors, Ruins, and Runoff

Location: Beneath downtown Mansfield, OH
Accessibility: Mostly sealed, but some entrances exist in old basements

This one’s more rumor than confirmed—but if you spend enough time in Mansfield, someone will eventually tell you about “the tunnels.” Supposedly used during Prohibition (and maybe even the Underground Railroad), these brick-lined shafts connect old businesses, speakeasies, and hidden storage vaults.

Are they real? Yes—at least parts of them. Are they accessible? That depends on your charm, your connections, and your willingness to do a little spelunking in the service of history.

Final Thoughts: Ohio Is Weird. And That’s a Good Thing.

As an urban explorer, I’ve crawled through flooded train stations, stood alone in abandoned theaters, and followed rumors into dead ends and discoveries alike. And I’m telling you, Ohio is a goldmine for strange places.

It’s the kind of state where weirdness hides just below the surface. Where one minute you’re sipping coffee in a sleepy college town, and the next, you’re walking the edge of a collapsed asylum wing with a raven cawing overhead. It’s honest. It’s raw. And it’s just waiting for people like us to pay attention.

So if you’re planning a trip, grab your flashlight, a backpack, your best boots, and maybe a spare pair of pants (trust me). Ohio won’t disappoint.