Halloween enthusiasts no longer have to drive through Marrero or New Orleans East to get their fix of frights — the living nightmare that is New Orleans City Hall has officially achieved recognition as the “World’s Largest House of Horrors.”
Built in 1958, the frightful building spans over 477,000 square feet of ghastly space in the CBD, including its minion locations, making it the largest in the world according to Guinness World Records.
Long rumored to suck the souls out of all who dare to enter its realm and cause sane people to go mad, the 10-story low-rise building has long been known to locals as the portal to hell.
“It definitely has a sinister feel to it. As soon as I entered, a feeling of dread immediately came over me. It was this bone-chilling feeling down my spine as though it was telling me ‘There is no God here,’ said paranormal investigator Jimmy Trent.
Trent, who braved his way into the decaying building a few months ago to investigate and validate the claim for Guinness World Records, noted that just moments after entering the lobby a “lifeless-looking” figure suddenly appeared behind a receptionist’s desk but quickly vanished as soon as he approached.
“Any time I attempted to communicate with any of the entities they disappeared into thin air. It’s like the apparitions didn’t want to be disturbed, only to do the disturbing. There is definitely a lot of negative, antagonistic energy in the structure.”
Mysterious noises, putrid smells, and unexplainable occurrences seem to be common in the building.
“I mean we have heard adults, crying, angry noises. This time particularly, I don’t know if they were even human sounds.”
Trent’s team tried to use a variety of equipment, such as digital recorders, cameras, electromagnetic field (EMF) readers, and a modified radio called a “ghost box,” to gather information during the investigation but was ultimately unsuccessful.
“Weird, it seems that nothing works in this building.”
With the title, New Orleans adds to its reputation as one of the nation’s most haunted cities. However, Guinness World Records representative Seth Hall warns having the record doesn’t reduce the danger or grim nature of the structure, only brings attention to it.
“This title is like putting up a sign that warns people there’s a downed powerline on the ground; you’ve got to be extremely careful around it,” said Hall.
“This place has more horrors packed into it than any other in the world, so people need to keep that in mind. I do not recommend visiting unless you truly prepare yourself to experience hell.”
No word yet on how the city plans to take advantage of the situation further.
