AMERICAN HAUNTINGS GHOST HUNTS
FIRST-EVER GHOST HUNT AT THIS LOCAtion!
night at the ursuline convent
alton, illinois
next available date: june 13, 2026
8:00 pm to 2:00 am
$48 per person
Join American Hauntings at the former Ursuline Convent in Alton, Illinois – a NEW location that has never been officially investigated before! Although closed since 2014, mysterious events have started to be reported during the clean-up and renovations of the building, and have been so unsettling that some volunteers have left, claiming they’ll never return. If you’re brave enough to join us for the first ghost hunts here, then we’d like to invite you to what may be one of the spookiest locations you’ve ever experienced!
As anyone with an interest in ghosts can tell you, churches, convents, and religious buildings are often known for being home to many restless spirits. Add in a long, rich history and the chances of finding evidence of spirits increases greatly – which might explain the haunting at this place!
THE HISTORY….
The original Ursuline convent on Fourth Street that became part of Marquette High School
Built in the early 1930s on the site of the 1856 Illinois State Fair, the large brick buildings marked the second location of the Ursuline Sisters Convent in Alton. The order first came to the St. Louis region from Bavaria in 1859 and was sent to Alton at the request of Bishop Daniel Juncker to teach in Catholic schools. Their original convent was built on Fourth Street, where they founded the Ursuline Academy for girls. In 1927, it opened to boys and became Marquette High School. The original convent became part of the school.
Soon after, the Ursuline Sisters moved to the new convent on Danforth Street and remained there, serving the community, until the cost of the massive brick buildings became too expensive to operate and it closed in 2014.
The buildings were recently purchased by a non-profit group, which is working to restore the structures and convert them into a community center.
AND THE HAUNTINGS!
Although closed to the public since 2014, the building has not been entirely abandoned. According to stories told by a number of people who were able to enter and explore the convent, it was claimed that while vacant – it wasn’t empty. Those stories spread rumors of lingering ghosts, and many reported unexplained sounds, like footsteps, voices, whispers, music, and even prayers.
One woman claimed to have made a nocturnal visit to the convent, and as she entered one of the old bedrooms, she saw a woman in an Ursuline nun’s habit standing in the room, looking out the window. When the woman gasped, she said the nun turned partially in her direction – and then vanished.
Her story was followed by a man who alleged he saw another woman in a nun’s habit walk across the hallway ahead of him. She vanished around a corner, and when the man reached it and looked for her, she was nowhere to be seen. He left the building a few minutes later.
Since the recent purchase of the building, volunteers who have been working to get the place cleaned up and repaired have passed on their own accounts of weird happenings, as if the restoration has stirred up activity from the past.
We hope you’ll consider joining American Hauntings for the first ghost hunts at the site and seek out the spirits that may linger here. Is it as haunted as some have claimed? Find out for yourself!