Ghost Towns: Haunted Vishnu Springs, Illinois

 

Vishnu Springs - Photo from The Ghosthunter Girls

If there's one thing I love more than ghost stories (and my cats and possibly horror movies), it's ghost towns. I just can't get enough of them! Blame my dad for stopping at a ghost town out west on a road trip when I was barely a teen. That's why I was so excited to come across Vishnu Springs, a ghost town in Illinois that's supposedly haunted.

The history of the town dates back to the 1880s when a group of settlers arrived in Illinois. Historians believe there were around 2,000 people in the area. They came for the natural springs, which many believed had healing properties. They believed that it only took one dip (or sometimes multiple dips) to get the benefits of the waters. By the end of the decade, the residents named their town Vishnu in honor of the Hindu God of the same name.

Darius Hicks was the first to capitalize on the natural springs. Hicks arrived around the turn of the 19^th century and decided to turn his family's land into a large health resort. The Capitol Hotel was the focal point of the town, serving as a gathering place for locals and the best place for visitors to stay. Visitors flocked to the healing waters, which led to the town building up around them. Vishnu had a restaurant, a blacksmith shop, and even two shops. Seeing the need for more, Hicks arranged for horses and buggies to bring visitors from other towns. He would also add a school, racetrack, pond for fishing, and a few parks.

Sadly, his dream of seeing Vishnu become a hotspot would fail. One of the standout attractions in the town was a gorgeous carousel that took both children and adults on fun trips. A supervisor sent to the town in the summer of 1903 was tasked with checking the carousel to ensure it was functioning. While examining the horses, the man didn't realize his sleeve had become lodged in the track. Much to the horror of those watching, the carousel pulled the man deep into the gears where he was crushed to death.

Though Hicks hoped the town would rebound, it wasn't meant to be. Hicks grew despondent and hired a team to take care of the town when he left just a few months later. Within two decades, Vishnu was a shell of its former self. Many residents left for greener pastures as the stores and other attractions shut down. By the 1920s, it was officially an abandoned ghost town.

That didn't stop others from trying to capitalize on Hicks's ideas though. Ira Post took over the hotel in 1935 and had some success. Visitors came to take a dip in the water, enjoy a picnic lunch, and have a wholesome time. Post passed away in the 1950s, leaving the hotel vacant again until the late 1960s when a trio arrived. Though they had plans to create a country western attraction and reopen the hotel, the plans fell through.

The last attempt at breathing life into Vishnu came from a group of college students. They headed to the town from Western Illinois University in the 1970s and turned some of the land into a commune. Get your mind out of the gutter people; it was a farm commune! They had tons of animals, ran a farm, and even hosted some music festivals before giving up in the early 80s. Vishnu later became the property of Western Illinois University, which now uses the land as the Ira and Reatha T. Post Wildlife Sanctuary.

Vishnu Springs is allegedly one of the most haunted spots in Illinois. The only problem is that some people have never heard of it. Who can blame them? The town is hidden deep in the woods and only accessible via a one-mile hike from the main road. Visitors received tickets for trespassing on the land, making it one I cannot recommend you visit in person.

The most haunted place in Vishnu Springs is the old hotel. Legend says that Hicks lived here with his wife Maud for several years. The hotel was the highlight of the town, but it was far from doctors. When Maud went into labor, Hicks tried his best but to no avail. Maud passed away. Hicks lost both his wife and child, which only made him more willing to leave the town behind.

Visitors often talk about hearing or seeing a woman in the halls of the old hotel. Wearing a long white dress or gown, she appears sad and lonely. When approached, she always disappears. Some even claimed they saw her walk through walls or blink out of sight in the blink of an eye. Others reported hearing a woman's cries come from deep within the hotel.

There are other reasons why Maud may not be happy in the hotel. Hicks had a reputation as a ladies' man that didn't end when he tied the knot or when his wife became pregnant. Not only did he continue having relations with other women, but Hicks allegedly knocked up his housekeeper. The young woman was so ashamed that she had an abortion before fleeing the town, leaving Hicks to deal with the whispers around him. Not long after Maud's death, Hicks married his wife's teen daughter, leading to even more whispers. It's not surprising that Maud isn't happy stuck in the place where she witnessed so much unhappiness.

I came across another version of what happened to Hicks. In this one, he tried to keep his affair a secret. When she announced her pregnancy, he demanded she terminate it and even arranged for the procedure. The unnamed woman suffered complications and was forced to spend many days in the hospital. Upset at what he did to her, she demanded he tell his wife or she would. Before she could follow through, Hicks shot himself in the head. This version of the story happened after his second marriage. It might explain why visitors occasionally see a woman in a long black dress roaming the streets of Vishnu Springs.

Other stories concern strange noises heard in the dead of the night. People claim to hear what sounds like metal striking metal. It's a sound they cannot explain until they hear a blacksmith at work. Not only did the blacksmith shop in the town shut down decades ago, but it doesn't even have any tools or equipment left behind that would account for these mysterious noises.

Vishnu Springs is certainly an unsettling place. The old hotel bears marks on the walls from the long legacy of visitors who carved their names there. It's one of the only remnants of the old town, save for one of the fish ponds Hicks stocked back in the day. Vishnu Springs is a gorgeous spot and a reminder of a bygone time that just might be haunted.