Is the Hanford Civic Auditorium haunted?

The Hanford Civic Auditorium at night.

If you happen to visit the small town of Hanford, located in Kings County, is located in Courthouse Square near the Bastille. And like the Bastille, there are stories that the auditorium is haunted.

In 1924 the city of Hanford built the auditorium for cultural and political uses as well as hosting community activites. It seems that over the years several of it's visitors have decided to stay for one reason or another. When you first enter the Civic Auditorium it is said that you can sometimes feel a very cold breeze passing by, even though the windows are closed. Also in the mens restroom, there has been reports of hearing men discussing legal topics even though there is no one else in the area. Occasionally a man dressed in an old style suit from the 1940's can be seen in the area, but always disappears without a trace.

The auditorium itself has several ghosts. Several spirits have been seen on the upper balcony appearing to be watching an invisible show. Also a man with dark brown hair and eyes and wearing a black suit with a white shirt has been seen applauding. As soon as he is done he instantly vanishes.

There is no reason given to why these ghosts haunt the auditorium, but one can speculate they are what's called a residual haunting. What a residual haunting is that someone or something makes such an impression on a certail location that it is theorized that they leave an imprint. The event replays itself over and over again like a movie and any spirit that is seen is oblivious to the living. The ghosts in the auditorium applauding even there isn't a performance going on seem to fit this criteria. As do the voices in the mens restroom. Both are instances of something repeating itself.

Though it is entirely possible that these are actual ghosts haunting the Civic Auditorium. Perhaps the spirits seen in the auditorium enjoyed it so much in life that they have returned there in death. Though without a proper investigation it's hard to theorize what is actually going on. But one thing is for certain, the Hanford Civic Auditorium is definitely haunted by something.

Is Hanford's Calvary Cemetery haunted?

The entrance to Hanford's Calvary Cemetery

There have been stories for years claiming that the Calvary Cemetery in Hanford, CA is haunted. No one really knows when or where these stories originated. Rumor has it that the cemetery is open late every Friday and tourists come to see the mausoleum as this seems to be the center of any paranormal activity.

People have spoken of sensing some strange type of entities in the mausoleum when they first enter, almost as if someone or something is watching them. Others have claimed to hear voices when they are in the mausoleum, though they cannot discern whose voices they are or what they are saying.

The mausoleum where most of the activity occurs

There have also been sightings since the 1960's of a woman dressed in a white dress circling the mausoleum late at night. No one knows who she is, if she is interned in the mausoleum or she wanders the grounds for some other reason.

Whatever is going on here, it must be something for the stories to have lasted for so many years.

Hanford's haunted Bastille

Do the spirits of inmates still haunt this old prison in Hanford?

Located in downtown Hanford, Ca is a rather unique brick building called The Bastille. Built around 1897 it served as the Kings County prison until 1964 when the building was condemned following the discovery of the sheriff office's ceiling strewn upon his desk and surrounding floor area. With the unexpected "cave-in" came additional inspection of the old structure. A new and much larger sheriff's office and jail were soon constructed about one mile to the west on Lacey Boulevard and the original prison was closed.

Over the years the building has been home to several restaurants and nightclubs. What's interesting is that there have been reports from the cooks in the kitchen of some unseen presence trying to frighten them. Pots and pans would be moved and the cooks felt like someone was always watching them. Other reports of a heavy presence in the old solitary confinement chambers (now converted to individual dining areas) and there are rumors after a new set of stairs were built leading to the restrooms, they appeared to become old and frail.

The Bastille at night.

Could some of the prisoners who died here over the fifty plus years still be roaming the building, claiming they are innocent and are trying to get anyone's attention? Or perhaps there are other spirits still there who were angry for being imprisoned there and are still making their feelings known after death? Unfortunately The Bastille is currently closed as the restaurant that was in there closed for business. Eventually another business will open up in there. Will they experience the same things as others in the past? Or have those ghosts of The Bastille finally become silent after all these years?