Stranger Things in South Bend & Mishawaka, Indiana

From echoes in abandoned buildings to local legends that refuse to rest, South Bend has its share of supernatural secrets waiting to be uncovered.. So grab your flashlight, rally your friends, and cue up the Stranger Things soundtrack—it’s time to explore the weird, wacky, and wonderfully mysterious side of The Bend.

The information and stories below are provided by The History Museum.

In season 4 of Stranger Things, Nancy and Robin pretend to be psychology students from the University of Notre Dame in order to gain access to talk with a patient at the Pennhurst Mental Hospital.

The Original Hacienda Mexican Restaurant is located in an elegant old Mishawaka home at 706 Lincolnway West. Many years ago, it was said that a maid employed by the home’s owner perished in an upstairs room. From that time, strange occurrences have been reported throughout the house. When Hacienda Mexican Restaurant moved into the property, the eerie manifestations continued, with certain parts of the building’s lights going on and off. In addition, some employees have reported that bathroom faucets inexplicably turn on and off. We learned about more spirits than expected in our recent episode of Around The Bend, where we explore these eerie occurances and much more!

RELATED CONTENT: Around The Bend: Hacienda Mexican Restaurant

A University of Notre Dame student from Brazil, Pio Montenegro, was staring out his dorm window on a crisp, clear night in 1925. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he spotted a white shape heading toward Washington Hall. As the figure drew closer, Montenegro realized it was a rider on the back of a white horse, and it seemed to be heading straight for the front door of Washington Hall. He continued watching the pale rider maneuver his steed up the front steps of the building, enter, and disappear.

Before the rider entered the building, Montenegro saw his face, and he suddenly realized it was George Gipp, the Notre Dame football legend.

Gipp died of pneumonia five years prior, and Montenegro was the first person to catch sight of Washington Hall’s most famous spirit.

During his stint as a Notre Dame football player, Gipp developed a habit of traveling into downtown South Bend, staying late. Many times he returned to campus to find his dorm building locked. As the legend goes, one night, Gipp returned late to campus to find Washington Hall locked and decided to curl up on the granite steps to sleep. It was December 1920, and Gipp developed a severe case of pneumonia. He was eventually hospitalized but died on December 14, 1920. His body was returned to Calumet, Michigan, for burial.

Since Montenegro’s first sighting, legend has it the Gipper has often been seen riding a horse up the steps leading to the front entrance to Washington Hall. Footsteps have been heard walking down the hallways. Doors have mysteriously opened and closed.

Built and opened in the prime of the Prohibition era, the Morris Performing Arts Center has seen many historical events in South Bend's history. Fires, the Dillinger heist, and not to mention everything that transpired before the Morris was bult in it's place. When the basement was reconstructed, dressing rooms were put in place where underground tunnels existed. At the Whispers from the Past ghost tours the Morris provides through the fall, you learn, and might even have a first-hand experience, of paranormal activity experienced there.

They say most activity experienced takes place in the basement, though some have heard whistles upstairs or felt taps on the shoulder during quiet moments. Visit South Bend Mishawaka attended a recent ghost tour, and witnessed motion detectors going off in the basement when no one was in the vicinity. Sometimes, cat ball toys will move on their own. Sometimes, voices can be heard through ghost hunting technology (which we also experienced). Two male voices, and a female. Experience the whispers of the past yourself and see what you find.

Saint Mary’s College, located in Notre Dame, Indiana, was founded in 1844 by the Sisters of the Holy Cross as a private Catholic liberal arts college. It is one of the oldest institutions in the United States, providing higher education for women.

Le Mans Hall is one of the dormitories on campus with a main feature of a six-story bell tower in the middle of the building. Legend has it that the ghost of a young girl has often been seen in the bell tower. Over the years, students have reported hearing strange footsteps, toilets flushing on their own, and telephones ringing even though unplugged.

There are many lore stories surrounding various cemeteries. In South Bend along Adams Road is the location of Portage Prairie Cemetery. This little graveyard is the final resting place for the early settlers of German Township.

People have reported seeing strange lights throughout the cemetery along with odd mist and fog, for many years. In addition, some have mentioned that while in the graveyard after dark, they have had the experience of an unseen spirit breathing into their ear. A shadowy figure has been spotted moving among the silent grave markers, recounted some passersby.

It is also interesting to note that Portage Prairie Cemetery is about a mile from Primrose Road.

The stories and legends about this road as it winds through a section of tree-lined darkened woods are renowned. Some have held the opinion that this is the most haunted place in Indiana. Others balk at the claims, usually stating that nothing has appeared or happened to them when they have traveled the darkened thoroughfare.

The far western end of Old Cleveland Road in South Bend turns to the north, and the street takes on the name of Primrose Road. It is a typical rural street; houses, some grasslands, and small farms dot both sides of the lane. However, as one travels just north of where Auten Road intersects, Primrose is quickly encased in a canopy of overhanging trees and brush. The low-lying, swampy earth encroachment now lines both sides of the road. The pavement has also disappeared, and the path has become gravel. This is where most people believe the unexplained phenomenon begins.

The tales are many. The most common lore is that if you drive your car through this section of Primrose at under 20 mph, your tires will be slashed. If you go over thirty miles an hour, the car’s engine will begin to sputter and die, forcing you to walk the rest of the trail.

Some have reported losing phone service just in that wooded section of Primrose Road.

Travelers on Primrose have also reported seeing a phantom farmhouse that suddenly appears out of nowhere. According to their stories if you try to walk to the farmhouse, it will disappear from view. Those lucky enough to have made it to the phantom house have knocked on the door and reported a ghostly apparition in the guise of an old woman that either opened the door and invited one in, which is good luck, or slammed the door in one’s face, which is considered bad luck.

Other stories have recounted the appearance of a ghostly red pickup truck. This old truck passes you, and when you turn back to look at it, the truck vanishes, but you can still see it in your rearview mirror.

A ghost horse has also appeared to some, darting to both sides of Primrose behind their car. There have been reports of people hearing horse whinnying with no animal being seen.

Various other phenomena have been recounted, including different colored lights chasing people, red eyes being seen in the darkened woods along both sides of the road, hands, and feet going numb, and inhuman howls and screams piercing the quietness of the night.

The former St. Joseph Hospital serving the South Bend Mishawaka area was rumored to have a ghostly nun roaming the halls.

Around 1878 it became evident that the growing city of Mishawaka needed a proper hospital facility. Construction on the new St. Joseph Hospital began in June 1909, and within a year, it opened with 40 beds and five nuns serving as nurses. Before long, more rooms and beds were needed, so an additional wing was added in 1918. More patients required more nurses, so Sister Columba opened a St. Joseph Hospital School of Nursing in 1919.

As the years quickly went by, nuns’ roles as nurses diminished, and most became involved in the hospital’s administration. However, one nun continued to make her rounds long after her death.

For years, both staff and patients had seen the phantom nun, who, on many occasions, was found walking on the fifth floor, which was the surgical wing. Many nurses would enter a room to check on a patient who would ask about the nun who had just visited them. A few patients had reported that the nun had prayed with them before she left their room. The gentle ghostly nun could be identified because of her traditional dress; her habit hadn’t been used in the diocese for years.

The unknown Sister had caused no fear or natural anxiety. On the contrary, many patients recounted that they felt better and more comforted after a visit from the traditionally clad spirit of St. Joseph Hospital.

The former St. Joseph Hospital was located at 1441 N Michigan Street in South Bend, where St. Joseph High School is now located.

The Blackstone Theater Corporation was organized in South Bend in 1918, designed to show silent motion pictures but was later revamped for burlesque and stage shows.

After a performance by Hindu Wausau and Her Oriental Belles in October 1929, the Blackstone Theater was closed. But not from public pressure; the lack of patrons made it too expensive to keep open. Instead, the Blackstone was purchased by the Publix movie house chain of theaters in November 1929. The theater was remodeled, and sound and other new equipment were installed. It was re-opened on Christmas Day, 1929, under the new name State Theater.

It is unknown when the first haunting of the State Theater occurred, but those that have reported seeing a ghostly visitor mention it is a figure of a woman dressed in 1920s clothing. Some have seen her in a white dress; others say it is lavender.

When the State Theater hosted musical acts in the 1980s and 1990s, it was related that fantasm flapper was often seen when blues bands played. The theater is now closed.