The Creepiest Things Ever Found in People's Basements
Creepy basements - they're a staple of horror movies, particularly in titles like The Silence of the Lambs and The Conjuring. But of all the scary basements featured on the big screen, nothing can compare to the real life horrors discovered by everyday people beneath their homes and businesses. From mysterious wells, medical oddities, skeletal remains, animals, and even other people, this list of creepy things found in basements will surely raise the hair on the back of your neck.
For more creepy finds, be sure to also check out the creepiest things people have found in attics!
- 12,855 VOTES
Mummified Infant Remains and a Peter Pan Obsession
In 2010, a woman made a shocking discovery inside a trunk tucked away in her Los Angeles, CA apartment building's basement. Wrapped in LA Times newspapers from the 1930s were two mummified remains of newborn infants, sealed away together with various Peter Pan-related paraphernalia, including a copy of the book by J.M. Barrie and a membership card to the Peter Pan Woodland Club. Weirdly enough, the previous owner of the trunk was Janet M. Barrie - or J.M. Barrie, the same name as the famous author.
While some theorized the woman might have been a distant relative of the writer, it was later revealed there was no familial relation.
Furthermore, DNA tests showed the infants were indeed the children of Janet, and it's possible they were illegitimate children who died shortly after birth. While the identity of the children and further information about the trunk's owner were unearthed, the circumstances that led Janet to stow her deceased children in her trunk will forever be a mystery. - 22,535 VOTES
A Secret Roommate
Ohio State University students made a startling discovery in September 2013, when they found a locker in the basement of their house that led into a secret room, complete with textbooks and photographs on the wall. The room was apparently inhabited by "Jeremy," a complete stranger to the other residents of the house. The matter was resolved peacefully - Jeremy simply vacated his sweet secret room. Still, the tenants have no idea how many keys to their home might be floating around town. - 32,349 VOTES
Two Fetuses in Jars
Workers tasked with renovating an old building in Hannibal, MO uncovered two fetuses preserved in jars of formaldehyde in the basement. The discovery bolstered rumors that the property once housed an illegal abortion clinic established sometime in the early 1900s. - 42,033 VOTES
Three Kidnapped Women
This story rocked headlines in May 2013 - Ariel Castro, a Cleveland, OH man, was arrested following the revelation that he had been keeping three women imprisoned as sex slaves for over a decade. Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight had all been kidnapped by Castro between 2000 and 2004, and ranged between 14 and 20 years old at the time of their kidnappings. They were discovered when one of Castro's neighbors heard Berry crying for help from within their underground prison.
Castro was sentenced to life in prison. One month later, in September 2013, he was found hanging by his bedsheets in his cell, an apparent suicide. He was mourned by few. - 5656 VOTES
A Mysterious Woman
Bruce Wilkerson, the mayor of Bowling Green, KY, discovered evidence of a woman staying at one of his properties in April 2020. Wilkerson told WKNY-TV that he "heard noises and smelled cigarette smoke" and later found blood on his cellar door and a bag of women's clothing in the basement. Wilkerson did not see anyone on that first investigation, and later checked with the police to find out if any women had been reported missing (they had not).
It was not until venturing into the basement a second time that the mayor encountered the woman, whom he described as in her 20s with long, brunette hair.
The woman reportedly told the mayor she was "hiding from someone," then fled the basement and ran into the street. Wilkerson said he didn't know how long the woman was living in his basement, but she did not steal anything and he would not press charges.
- 61,833 VOTES
The Dolls' Last Supper
Hanny's, a restaurant and bar in Phoenix, AZ, offers up tasty late-night food options and spirits, though the latter is not just of the alcoholic variety. Apparently set up by the establishment's owners, this scene of placid dolls arranged in a way not unlike depictions of The Last Supper, serves as a horrifying discovery for patrons venturing down into the basement.