You might have noticed that Chicago has appeared at the top of a few lists lately -- some more infamous than others.
The city was recently named the "Best Big City in the U.S" by Conde Nast Traveler, a "Best Foodie City" from Wallethub, and, well, America's most rat-infested city, according to pest control company Orkin.
But according to a different list, it's not just the rats that are lurking across Chicago.
Travel + Leisure Magazine just in time for Halloween released a list of the "10 Most Haunted Cities in America," and The Windy City is ranked high -- coming in at No. 2.
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The reason, the magazine says, is thanks to the many ghosts that a "disastrous fire, a notorious serial killer and mob history" left behind.
"Iroquois Theater was the site of a tragic fire killing hundreds in 1903, and some say the alley behind the theater is still haunted by those unfortunate patrons," Chicago's entry reads.
According to Smithsonian Magazine, more than 600 theatergoers met their untimely fate on December 30, 1903 at the theater on West Randolph Street in Chicago's Loop when "a spark from a stage light ignited nearby drapery."
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"It was soon apparent that the fire could not be contained," the story continues. "Audience members bolted from their seats toward what few exit doors they could find, but most were obscured by curtains."
Those who suffered at the hands of H.H. Holmes, the country's first serial killer, also haunt the city, Travel + Leisure says.
"H.H. Holmes murdered dozens (if not hundreds) of women in his infamous "Murder Castle," located at W. 63rd Street, the magazine says. "And while that building was replaced, some workers still report odd experiences while working in the new building's basement."
Other haunted locations include the North Side site of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, where on Feb. 14, 1929 seven men were gunned down inside a Clark Street garage, Chicago Magazine says.
While the incident remains unsolved, it's often attributed to Al Capone, whom the FBI refers to as having ruled an "empire of crime in the Windy City."
Across the country, nearly 1,000 miles away, at No. 1 on Travel + Leisure's "Most Haunted" list New Orleans, Louisiana. Rounding out the rest of the top 10 cities are Savannah, Georgia at No. 3; St. Augustine, Florida at No. 4; Portland, Oregon at No. 5; Gettysburg, Pennsylvania at No. 6; Washington D.C. at No, 7; San Francisco, California at No. 8; Salem Massachusetts at No. 9 and San Antonia, Texas at No. 10.
Boo.
