29 American Towns That Send Shivers Down Internet Folks’ Spines

There is something eerie about small towns around the world, and they don’t necessarily need to be in the USA. After all, it is not without reason that there are many successful horror movies set in places with small towns.

In fact, there’s even a whole movie genre called Small-Town Horror. Among some of the top films of the genre in the list on Ranker are classics like Halloween (1978), A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Jaws (1975), Psycho (1960), The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), and the more recent title It (2017). And that is without going into all the series, like Twin Peaks (1990) and Stranger Things (2016).

Of course, it’s easy to argue that some of the imagery we now have in our heads might also have been created by these very movies. It could also be that big cities are very different in comparison or that our minds simply find it hard to accept that everything that looks so calm and perfect can just be like that without any hidden agenda.

As Horror Head wrote on Medium, places like these tend to look picturesque, with many trails, wide open parks, warm homes, and stores, as well as friendly people welcoming you with open arms—all of it looking as if it hasn’t changed one bit in the past few decades. 

This type of scenery usually makes one feel like what they see in front of their eyes is too good to be true, and so, the mind wanders, looking for whatever could be lurking beneath this beautiful surface.

And sure enough, every small town has something to say. If you find the right person to talk to, you’ll likely hear about all kinds of things, from myths and urban legends to haunted historical tales and dark secrets. While it may be difficult to tell how much of it is true, it will most likely sow a little bit more doubt in you, making you doubt the perfect exterior just a little bit more.

When talking about small and unsettlingly perfect towns like that, there's another great example that we learned about when Bored Panda reached out to the OP, u/Scrambl987.

The creepiest place in the USA, according to the author of this thread, is Celebration, Florida. "The idea of a Disney-controlled city is just odd," said the Redditor.

As Celebration Info writes, the town that used to be part of the Disney World Resort no longer belongs to the Walt Disney Company and is now part of Kissimmee and Osceola County. And yet, the idea of a functional city built by an entertainment company as an experiment in community planning somehow feels a little unnatural.

The OP revealed that it was their recent visit to Celebration that inspired them to ask this question online. "The thread becoming so popular was a definite surprise to me," shared the person.

But in the end, every place is different in its own way, and every city or town has its own plusses, minuses, and horror stories. So, if you’re planning a trip where you might visit any one of these spots that these Redditors mentioned, it may be wise to remember what they said. But try not to take their words as an undeniable truth because every experience is personal, and there’s no guarantee that whatever you read will come true.

What did you think about this story? Do you know any other creepy towns in the USA that you’d like to add to the list? Share your thoughts in the comments below!