Welcome to the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A national historic landmark.

Click Here to visit the web site of Eastern State Penitentiary.

Opened in 1829 as part of a controversial movement to change the behavior of inmates through "confinement in solitude with labor," Eastern State Penitentiary quickly became one of the most expensive and most copied buildings in the young United States. It is estimated that more than 300 prisons worldwide are based on the Penitentiary's wagon-wheel, or "radial" floor plan.
Some of America's most notorious criminals were held in the Penitentiary's vaulted, sky-lit cells, including bank robber Willie Sutton and Al Capone. After 142 years of consecutive use, Eastern State Penitentiary was completely abandoned in 1971, and now stands, a lost world of crumbling cellblocks and empty guard towers.

It was here that the Garden State Ghost Hunters fulfilled a dual role; we conducted a paranormal investigation in this immense prison and participated as the subject 'actors' for an upcoming episode of 'Mysterious Journeys' to be aired nationally on the Travel Channel in the fall of 2007. We quickly took up residence for a hard day into night of anticipated paranormal activity. Our group was small, 4 primary team investigators and backup team members. The lead investigators were Boni Bates, Robert Reid, Dave Goldstein and Keri Bo Bates. Helping them with transportation and setup were Whettam Bates & Tracey Thielman.

The day started with arrival at 4:00pm. The ESP staff opened the massive Iron Gate so our caravan may enter the prison yard. It locked solidly behind us. The hot June sun cooked every rock in those dark and gothic walls. We explained quite a bit on the TV show about how we investigate and the equipment we use to determine the presence or absence of the paranormal. There was plenty of down time as the camera crews took various positions as we explored this mecca of mayhem and sadness. After a brief team meeting we got started. Into the night we setup our cameras and recording equipment hoping to make that singular discovery that provokes and bewilders.

As if it had been written in Hollywood the winds began to change late in the evening. With our entourage nestled deep within the prison cell blocks the weather shifted and we were entertained by a violent thunder & lightning storm. Bolts of light and crashes of thunder added a satisfying soundtrack to our investigation.

Halfway into the night we paused to review some of the evidence from the investigation & we were able to have quite a lively discussion. More evidence was gathered including some remarkable pictures taken in the prison infirmary. Rob captured an interesting photo taken in Cellblock #7 facing the ceiling. There is some sort of energy ribbon in the lower left of the frame. I assure you (author) I was standing next to Rob and there was nothing visible there. We also checked the camera lens and all other rational possibilities. Interesting indeed! Some of the Orb activity from Cell Block #7 was of particular interest. Our IR cameras did their job and we recorded about 4 hours on tape. We have compiled a short video for you here on the site so please check it out. The night came to an end around 2:30am as we wrapped up. The TV crew recorded our final thoughts, we loaded up our cars and trucks and we played our last 'get-out-of-jail-free' card. The grim iron gates once again screeched open and our team emerged from the Bastille and flooded out into the dark quiet pre-dawn streets of Philadelphia.

Dave Goldstein