What are some of the best known ghost stories?

One well - known ghost story is 'The Bell Witch'. It's about a witch that haunted a family in Tennessee. There were strange noises, objects moving on their own, and the witch would torment the family members, especially the father and a young girl. Another is 'The Amityville Horror'. A family moved into a house where a brutal murder had occurred, and they experienced terrifying things like cold spots, strange voices, and apparitions.

There might be a story of a haunted ship. Sailors on a ship start to notice strange occurrences, like objects moving by themselves and cold spots. It could be related to a past disaster on the ship where many lives were lost, and the souls are trapped on the vessel.

One famous Tudor ghost story is that of Anne Boleyn. It's said her ghost haunts the Tower of London. After her execution, people claim to have seen her headless figure wandering around the place where she was beheaded.

One well - known hoax ghost story is the Amityville Horror. It was later found that many of the'spooky' elements were fabricated for financial gain. Another is the Bell Witch Haunting, which over time has had elements of exaggeration and false claims added to it. There's also the Cottingley Fairies, which were actually just cut - out pictures made to look like real fairies, but were presented as evidence of the supernatural.

The ghost of Lady Howard of Fitzford is a well - known one. She was said to be a cruel and wicked woman in life, and her ghost is supposed to haunt the areas around Tavistock in Devon. People claim to have seen her spectral figure in the moonlight.

There are stories of apparitions that seem to be the figures of the people who ended their lives in Aokigahara. These apparitions are often described as looking lost and forlorn. Many believe that the negative energy in the forest gives rise to these spectral appearances. Legend has it that the forest has an almost magnetic pull for those in despair, and the resulting deaths have left behind a sort of spiritual residue. People who have visited the forest have sometimes reported seeing a figure in the distance that disappears when they approach, which they think could be one of these spirits.

One popular Victorian ghost story is 'The Woman in Black'. It's about a mysterious woman in black who haunts a small English town. Her appearance is often associated with death and misfortune. Another is 'The Monkey's Paw'. It tells a tale of a magical paw that grants wishes but with terrible consequences. And 'Carmilla' is also well - known. It features a female vampire, which was quite a unique and spooky concept during the Victorian era.

In certain African cultures, there are also ghost marriage stories. For example, among some tribes, if a man died unmarried, his family could choose a woman to be symbolically married to him. This woman might then be considered part of the family and have certain rights and responsibilities within the family structure. The idea was often rooted in cultural beliefs about the afterlife and the importance of family continuity even in death.

There's also 'The Bell Witch'. This story is based on a real - life haunting in Tennessee. The Bell Witch tormented the Bell family, making strange noises, moving objects, and even attacking family members. It's a long - standing and well - known ghost story that has been passed down through generations, and the details of the hauntings are very creepy.

Well, 'The Necklace' by Guy de Maupassant is quite famous. It's about a woman who borrows a diamond necklace for a ball, loses it, and then spends years in poverty trying to replace it, only to find out in the end that the original necklace was a fake. 'The Tell - Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe is another well - known short story. It's a psychological thriller where the narrator's guilt over murdering an old man is driven to madness by the sound he imagines is the old man's heart still beating. Then there's 'An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge' by Ambrose Bierce, which has a very unexpected ending.