There are several tales of bravery and beauty in Utah’s rich past, but there are also many sinister truths hidden under the surface. Stories about places supposedly possessing evil energy, eerie accounts of ghost encounters, and even actual murders and mayhem have been passed down through the decades. Bears are a constant warning to campers, but the little rustling that occasionally occurs in these forests might not be a bear at all. It may just be the “ghost of the canyon” a ghost. According to canyon historian Jay Allen, the ghost of miner Edward Hines, known as the “hermit of American Fork Canyon,” has been told to cause a commotion at nearby campsites.
The Man Who Haunts AF Canyon
Allen stated that they continue to claim that his ghost continues to haunt the canyon. “Do not be alarmed if you hear a garbage can rattling in a campsite; it is simply Ed out getting something to eat.” Allen claimed that Hines had a lonely existence at Forest City, which is now a deserted hamlet situated above Tibblefork Reservoir in American Fork Canyon. “There were up to 780 mines in the 1870s when there was a lot of mining going on farther up the canyon,” Allen added. “He is a miner who worked claims up there for a longer period of time than anyone else and was likely up in the mining district longer.”
Food might be hard to come by during the cold winters, but Hines seemed to have trouble when food was plentiful. In one story, Allen recounted, “two miners came along and checked him and poor Ed was on the point of death, so they urged him to come up to their cabin and they cooked him a real big dinner, and he ate and ate and ate and he requested he go back to his cabin to remain.” When these men went down to check on Ed a few days later after not hearing or seeing him, they discovered him dead. Apparently, he consumed so much food that he passed away. The story is rooted in truth, firmly rooted in American Fork Cemetery, even if it seems almost too good to be true.

Other haunted places in Utah
American Fork Canyon
If you are embarking on a spooky road trip across the Beehive State, you must visit Utah’s American Fork Canyon. This massive forest, which includes Timpanogos Cave, is a hive of paranormal activity and haunted locations. The most well-known ghost in American Fork Canyon is the recluse, who some believe to be the former miner Ed Hines. Campers claim to hear strange sounds near their campsites, but when they check, no one is there. A bearded, spectral old man destined to spend eternity wandering the forest, the hermit has been sighted by others.
The Rio Grande Depot
In Utah, the Rio Grande Depot is among the top destinations for a spooky road trip. In addition to its intriguing history and distinctive design, the building is home to the Purple Woman, a ghost. A lady died on the train rails not long after the Depot opened in 1910. There have been several sightings since 1947, when people first saw her ghost.
Benson Grist Mill
The Benson Grist Mill is a must-see while traveling to some of Utah’s most eerie locations. The Mill has a lengthy history dating back to roughly 1850, in addition to being highlighted on the Travel Channel’s “Ghost Adventures.” It was fully restored in the late 1980s, and there are rumors that a person who perished there is still haunting the place.
Fort Douglas
Several homicides and suicides took place in the Fort Douglas cemetery and museum between the late 1800s and the early 1900s, giving it a violent past. Many people think that those individuals, notably Clem, a ghost from the Civil War era with a beard and a short, stocky frame, still haunt the fort and cemetery. When you go, keep an eye out for his spirit.
Brigham Young Farmhouse
The Brigham Young Farmhouse, situated at the “This Is The Place Monument,” draws thousands of visitors looking for ghosts and otherworldly phenomena. The Farmhouse is inhabited by a number of spirits, including Lucy Ann Decker and Ann Eliza Webb, two of Brigham Young’s wives. Ann is not as kind as Lucy, who is a sweetheart and often shows up in the kitchen during tours. She is probably in one of the upstairs bedrooms in the Farmhouse.
Uinta Basin
Ghost sightings, UFO activity, alien abductions, and skinwalkers are among the paranormal phenomena that have a well-known reputation in Utah’s Uinta Basin. The mysterious paranormal activity in the basin is well-known to viewers of the television programs “Mystery at Blind Frog Ranch” and “Secrets of Skinwalker Ranch.” You may visit a lot of ghostly and frightening locations in the Uinta Basin on your Halloween road trip across Utah, in addition to those two ranches.