The Most Hair-Raising, Haunted Spots In NYC

Location: 1 West 72nd Street

History: Built between 1880 and 1884, the Dakota building is an imposing (and by now notorious) residential property on the corner of Central Park West. An upscale destination from the start, its been the home of artists and celebrities including Lauren Bacall, Leonard Bernstein, and Judy Garland. John Lennon was living in the Dakota when he was tragically killed outside and Yoko Ono still maintains an apartment there. The building was also prominently featured in Roman Polanski’s 1968 creepy classic Rosemary’s Baby.

Haunted Happenings: Construction workers have reported seeing various spirits inside the building, including the figure of an adult man with the face of a young boy and a little girl dressed in period clothing. The Dakota's most famous ghostly resident, of course, is John Lennon himself. Multiple people have claimed to see the musician leaning against the wall near the archway of the southern entrance, where he was shot, while one resident said they saw him playing the piano in their apartment. Before his death, Lennon himself reported supernatural run-ins, claiming that he met a "crying lady ghost" roaming the hallways.

[Photo via Wikipedia]