The Hauntings of Fort Mifflin
Posted: 11.08.2024 | Updated: 11.08.2024
Philadelphia is a town steeped in history.
The Revolutionary War. The Declaration of Independence. The Civil Rights Movement. These pivotal events took root and flourished in the “City of Brotherly Love.”
However, it’s not just history that the town is full of - it also has its fair share of ghosts, especially in the historic Fort Mifflin. And, like Philadelphia itself, they have plenty of character to make them worth reading about.
Who is the Faceless Man of Fort Mifflin?
When you hear Faceless Man, you may conjure images of the shape-changing assassins from Game of Thrones. But it turns out, those Faceless Men aren’t the only ones you should know about.
The Faceless Man of Fort Mifflin isn’t quite an assassin but is as scary as one. And he may have even taken a life or two back in his day.
If you haven’t guessed it already, our faceless man is the ghost that haunts the old Fort Mifflin, though he’s far from the only specter lurking around this Philadelphia fortress. Keep reading to learn more about each one, and be sure to book a ghost tour with Philly Ghosts to find out even more about haunted Philadelphia.
Fort Mifflin History
Like Philadelphia itself, Fort Mifflin has a rich and proud history. It is the oldest continuously used fort in America, a reputation that endures to this day. That’s an impressive feat, considering how much combat it has seen in its time.
During the American Revolution, it served as a fortress for the colonial minutemen. In 1777, starving and facing a critical supply shortage, British troops under the command of General William Howe occupied Philadelphia. Fort Mifflin was located in a strategic position, which prevented new supplies from entering the city. American forces held the fort, against great odds, determined to win by starving the British troops out.
Howe’s forces, trying to break the siege, bombarded Fort Mifflin with cannon fire, but the troops inside held the fort for weeks. This sacrifice distracted the British long enough for George Washington to make his escape and establish a base at Valley Forge to last the winter in.
Curiously, that wasn’t the only incident involving Fort Mifflin and a man named William Howe. During the Civil War, the fortress served as a military prison to house Confederate troops and Union deserters. William H. Howe was one such deserter, and he was executed for his desertion and a murder he committed. Keep his name in mind as you read.
After the Civil War, Fort Mifflin stayed in use despite falling into disrepair. It served America as an ammunition stockpile during World War I and II. While it served its role well, its crumbling infrastructure necessitated the involvement of Philadelphia. A preservation movement was made to restore it to its former glory, and today, it serves as a tourist hotspot and still serves the Army as its oldest still-in-use fort.
Hauntings of the Fortress
The Faceless Man of Fort Mifflin is far from the only ghost that haunts Fort Mifflin. He’s not even the only one with a nickname!
The Screaming Lady is one of the ghosts with some of the most sightings by people in Philadelphia. However, before she achieved that intimidating moniker, the Screaming Lady was known as Elizabeth Pratt.
Elizabeth used to live in the fort, as she was the wife of a US Army officer. Elizabeth’s daughter inherited her mother’s love of a man in uniform because she fell in love with one of the officers in the fort. However, Elizabeth and her husband disapproved of the match and publicly disowned their daughter.
Tragically, the daughter died of the typhoid fever epidemic rampaging through the nation at the time before her family could reconcile. Heartbroken and guilty, the ghost story goes that Elizabeth hanged herself in the officer’s quarter of Fort Mifflin.
However, some say she never left. Maybe it was a guilty conscience or an attempt to see her daughter in the afterlife. Elizabeth’s ghost remains in the fort, always in the officer’s quarters where she died and always screaming in agony, still reeling over her loss.
It is a tragic tale, but at least Elizabeth isn’t a lonely ghost. There’s Jacob, the blacksmith, whose forge smoke can sometimes be spotted, a lamplighter who maintains his ghostly duty in the barracks, and the ghost of a sick man standing in the hospital, still trying to get treatment.
Many visitors and workers of the fort report seeing soldiers doing marching drills and cleaning their guns, even when no reenactors are working. Sometimes, the smell of cannon fire can still be sensed in the fort, even though a battle hasn’t taken place here in centuries.
The Faceless Man
Of course, all the ghosts mentioned above give deference to the grim Faceless Man of Fort Mifflin. To begin his tale, remember the William H. Howe we told you about above - the Civil War soldier, not the Redcoat general.
This particular Howe was a Union soldier and, by all accounts, seemed to be a pleasant man who was easy to get along with. He was even somewhat of a war hero - continuing the fight at the Battle of Fredericksburg long after most of his regiment had left.
However, even the most outstanding soldier’s resolve will crumble under the right conditions. Howe met those conditions when he was suffering from a bowel infection during the war. He was stationed in Virginia, away from home, and desperately needed medical attention. Howe and some of his fellow soldiers decided to desert and make a break for the intact hospitals of Washington, D.C.
Union Army policy at the time was to punish desertion, and Howe penned a letter to Abraham Lincoln, admitting that he was scared to return to his post. Unfortunately, Lincoln never got a chance to reply back to Howe because the Army found the young soldier and stormed his home where he was hiding out with his wife. A gunfight ensued, and Howe killed one of the soldiers who came to arrest him.
Swiftly tried for his murder and desertion, Howe had a bag placed over his head and was hanged. That bag is why his ghost received the name “Faceless Man.”
The Faceless Man remains a spooky presence, demanding silence and respect whenever his faceless ghost decides to walk the fortress grounds on any night.
Haunted Philadelphia
For a fortress with such a proud military history behind it, Fort Mifflin’s ghosts serve as a grim reminder of all the tragedies - from grieving parents to executed deserters - that war brings, even from outside of the battlefield. Be sure to book a ghost tour with Philly Ghosts to learn more about Philadephia’s haunted history. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and keep reading our blog for more real Pennsylvania hauntings.
Sources:
https://www.phillyvoice.com/fort-mifflin-haunted-philadelphia-ghost-faceless-man-william-howe
https://www.travelchannel.com/shows/portals-to-hell/episodes/fort-mifflin
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