"Adapted from Ghosts and hauntings of the Finger Lakes by Patti Unvericht.

Local history doesn't have to be boring and ghost stories aren't always scary. A few of the buildings moved to the Genesee Country Village and Museum brought their previous owners along for the ride. A fatal fire in 1964 took the lives of six children a few days before Christmas, the spirit of the holiday lives through laughter and playful footsteps. And on a Cayuga Lake college campus, the ghost of jealous wife wields her knife at the spot where she killed her husband's mistress. These are just a few stories passed down through the years and witnessed by the living.

Welcome to the spooky towns of the Finger Lakes region! Stay alert! Ghosts lurk around every corner. Even the most unexpected places might be haunted by wandering phantoms. Did you know that the depths of Seneca Lake may harbor an ancient lake monster? Or that buildings along the Erie Canal are haunted by ghosts from that bygone era? Can you believe that even the plywood used to build a famous old theater in Ithaca may be haunted? Pulled right from history, these ghostly tales will change the way you see the Finger Lakes, and have you sleeping with the light on!

From spooky state parks to real-life haunted houses, Ghosts and Hauntings of the Finger Lakes tells the stories behind the most supernatural sites around the shores of New York's famous Finger Lakes. Local paranormal investigator Patti Unvericht takes you on a journey to places such as the Elmira Civil War POW Camp, thought to be inhabited by the restless spirits of casualties of the war, to the State Theatre in Ithaca and even the tourist-friendly Geneva on the Lake, rumored to be haunted by past guests who have expired while staying at the historic hotel.

What disturbing secrets surround the cold, deep waters of Lake Michigan? Sudden violent storms and rocky shoals have claimed the lives of countless mortals foolish enough to brave the treacherous surf of Lake Michigan. But is there another, unnatural force at work? A force that spirited away a ship's captain from a locked cabin without a trace? A force that caused a perfectly airworthy jet to fly into the waves, taking all its passengers to a watery death? Perhaps these tragedies are linked to numerous UFO sightings over the lake. Or perhaps a clue might be found in the prehistoric Stonehenge-like structures discovered deep beneath the crystalline blue surface. Historian and storyteller Gayle Soucek will explore the mysteries behind the area known as the Lake Michigan Triangle.

The author is a Great Lakes research historian and he has taken the time to tell some of the best stories he has heard about "strange happenings" on the Great Lakes.